Delta Faucet Company
Encyclopedia
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
manufacturer of faucets. It is a subsidiary
Subsidiary
A subsidiary company, subsidiary, or daughter company is a company that is completely or partly owned and wholly controlled by another company that owns more than half of the subsidiary's stock. The subsidiary can be a company, corporation, or limited liability company. In some cases it is a...
of Masco Corporation
Masco
-Plumbing products:-Decorative architectural products:North America* Behr Process Corporation* Franklin Brass Mfg. Corp. * Ginger* Liberty Hardware* Masterchem Industries LLC* Melard Manufacturing Corp....
. It manufactures and markets faucets under the Delta, Brizo and Peerless brand names.
History
Delta Faucet Company was originally owned by Masco Screw Corporation, which was founded in Detroit in 1929 by ArmenianArmenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
immigrant Alex Manoogian
Alex Manoogian
Alexander "Alex" Manoogian was an Armenian-American industrial engineer, businessman, entrepreneur and philanthropist who had most of his career in Detroit, Michigan. He and his wife Marie donated their home to the city, which uses the Manoogian Mansion as the mayoral residence...
. In 1952, an eager inventor brought Manoogian his latest invention, a one-handled faucet that mixed both hot and cold water with a ball-valve. Unfortunately it leaked, but Manoogian saw potential. He therefore bought the faucet and its rights, improved it, and released it. The faucet remains successful, although other companies soon designed other single-handle faucets that didn't infringe Delta's patent
Patent
A patent is a form of intellectual property. It consists of a set of exclusive rights granted by a sovereign state to an inventor or their assignee for a limited period of time in exchange for the public disclosure of an invention....
s. Some people preferred the internal design of the Delta faucets, even though they had to adjust them periodically. Hardware stores still stock internal parts for these faucets, both the 1952 and the 1962 design, although they don't all carry the complete faucets.
The brand name Delta came about because the operating motion of the handle resembled the Greek letter of the same name
Delta (letter)
Delta is the fourth letter of the Greek alphabet. In the system of Greek numerals it has a value of 4. It was derived from the Phoenician letter Dalet...
.
The company was started in 1954 as a Masco subsidiary in the Detroit, Michigan region. In 1958, the company opened a manufacturing facility in Greensburg, Indiana
Greensburg, Indiana
Greensburg is a city in Decatur County, Indiana, United States. The population was counted at 11,492 at the 2010 census. The city is the county seat of Decatur County....
. In 1976, another facility in Chickasha, Oklahoma
Chickasha, Oklahoma
Chickasha is a city in and the county seat, business and employment center of Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 15,850 at the 2000 census. Chickasha is home to the University of Science and Arts of Oklahoma and hosts an annual Festival of Light celebration located at...
was opened (The Chickasha facility closed in 2006), followed by Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson, Tennessee
Jackson is a city in Madison County, Tennessee, United States. The total population was 65,211 at the 2010 census. Jackson is the primary city of the Jackson, Tennessee metropolitan area, which is included in the Jackson-Humboldt, Tennessee Combined Statistical Area...
in 1995. The company operates three more manufacturing facilities outside the United States, two in Ontario, Canada and one in Panyu
Panyu
Panyu District or Pun Yue District is a district in Guangzhou, Guangdong, China. It used to be a county-level city before it was incorporated in the administration of Guangzhou. The name of Panyu dates back to the completion of the conquest of Guangdong by Qin Shi Huang. It was the old name of...
, China
China
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
. Delta Faucet Company is headquartered in Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis, Indiana
Indianapolis is the capital of the U.S. state of Indiana, and the county seat of Marion County, Indiana. As of the 2010 United States Census, the city's population is 839,489. It is by far Indiana's largest city and, as of the 2010 U.S...
.
Brands
- Delta - the company's main brand of faucets.
- Peerless - a value-priced line of faucets made by Delta Faucet.
- Brizo - a premium line of faucets made by Delta Faucet.