Fairbanks Scales
Encyclopedia
Two brothers, Thaddeus
and Erastus Fairbanks
founded the Fairbanks Scales manufacturing company in 1830 in St. Johnsbury, Vermont
.
Fairbanks employs over 500 employees nationwide. It maintains service centers, distributors and sales offices in 49 states and in over 25 countries. It sells precision and bench scales, heavy capacity truck scales, and railroad track scales.
Through an arrangement of levers, Thaddeus Fairbanks was able to tremendously reduce the amount of weight needed to counter-balance a load. He then dug a pit for his lever design, placing the platform level with the ground. This modification ended the task of having to hoist the entire load.
In his first design, Thaddeus rested a platform on two long levers which were connected to a steelyard, upon which the counterbalance was placed. Although achieving accurate weighing results, instability of the design was troubling. By adding two short levers to his long ones, he established support points at all four corners of the platform. Now his scale was not only accurate, but very stable. In 1830, Thaddeus built his first real scale and applied for a patent.
By the time of the Civil War, Fairbanks' scales were the best known American product in the world. Erastus and Thaddeus were now joined by their younger brother, Joseph. The modest one-building operation expanded to 40 buildings with more than 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) of floor space by 1910.
E & T Fairbanks & Company offices opened in the cities of Boston and New York in the 1870s. Fairbanks’ scales were sold in Europe
. Thaddeus sold the manufacturing rights to H. Poole and Sons in England
in the 1830s, thus creating an international marketing niche.
In 1846, trade began in China
. Two years later, Joseph Fairbanks
began selling scales to Cuba
. In 1860, the Vermont-based company sold scales throughout the Caribbean
, South America
, India
and Russia
. In fact, European sales grew to such an extent that Fairbanks established a facility in Budapest to assemble scales.
In 1867, Fairbanks produced 4,000 scales a month. The U.S. Post Office ordered 3,000 postal scales in various capacities; E & T Fairbanks & Company filled the order in just eight days.
By 1882, more than 80,000 Fairbanks scales were produced annually. By 1897, the company held 113 patents for improvements and inventions in weighing. Fairbanks offered its customers 2,000 standard model scales, yet made as many as 10,000 different models and custom systems.
company, giving Fairbanks-Morse complete control over the manufacturing and distribution of Fairbanks Scales. During this time the Fairbanks-Morse company produced scales, locomotive
s, diesel engines, electric engines and pumps for industrial use.
Following the merger, the company stagnated. In 1962 George Strichman was appointed president. Renamed Fairbanks Weighing Division of Colt Industries.
A modern manufacturing plant replaced the deteriorating facilities in St. Johnsbury, Vermont in 1966. Kenneth F. Hammer served as company president from 1968–1985. It became one of the top scale manufacturers, with almost fourteen hundred employees in its St. Johnsbury, VT, Meridian, MS, and Holmdale, CA plants and 60 sales and service locations across the US.
In 1975, a new factory was built in Meridian, Mississippi
, producing a variety of products designed for heavy capacity weighing. In 1988 Fairbanks came under the current management of F.A. "Bill" Norden, president and major stockholder of Fairbanks Scales. He headed a group which acquired the company from Colt Industries. Finance, marketing and executive offices were moved from St. Johnsbury to Kansas City, Missouri
.
In 1999, F.A. Norden was named Chairman of the Board and his son, Richard Norden, became Fairbanks' President and COO
.
Thaddeus Fairbanks
Thaddeus Fairbanks was an American inventor. He was an inventor of heating and cook stoves, cast iron plows, and other items. His greatest success was the invention and manufacture of the platform scale, which allowed the weighing of large objects accurately.- Biography :Fairbanks was born in...
and Erastus Fairbanks
Erastus Fairbanks
Erastus Fairbanks was an American manufacturer and Whig politician.He studied law but abandoned it for mercantile pursuits, finally settling in St. Johnsbury, Vermont, where in 1824 he formed a partnership with his brother Thaddeus for the manufacture of scales, stoves and plows...
founded the Fairbanks Scales manufacturing company in 1830 in St. Johnsbury, Vermont
St. Johnsbury, Vermont
St. Johnsbury is the shire town of Caledonia County, Vermont, United States. The population was 7,571 at the 2000 census. St. Johnsbury is located approximately northwest of the Connecticut River and south of the Canadian border.St...
.
Fairbanks employs over 500 employees nationwide. It maintains service centers, distributors and sales offices in 49 states and in over 25 countries. It sells precision and bench scales, heavy capacity truck scales, and railroad track scales.
History
Thaddeus was a wagon maker by trade. He built a foundry in 1823 to manufacture two of his inventions - the cast iron plow and a stove. In 1824, Erastus joined Thaddeus to form the E & T Fairbanks Company in St. Johnsbury, Vermont. The brothers believed that the weighing systems of the time yielded inaccurate results. Thaddeus attempted to produce a competitive device.Through an arrangement of levers, Thaddeus Fairbanks was able to tremendously reduce the amount of weight needed to counter-balance a load. He then dug a pit for his lever design, placing the platform level with the ground. This modification ended the task of having to hoist the entire load.
In his first design, Thaddeus rested a platform on two long levers which were connected to a steelyard, upon which the counterbalance was placed. Although achieving accurate weighing results, instability of the design was troubling. By adding two short levers to his long ones, he established support points at all four corners of the platform. Now his scale was not only accurate, but very stable. In 1830, Thaddeus built his first real scale and applied for a patent.
By the time of the Civil War, Fairbanks' scales were the best known American product in the world. Erastus and Thaddeus were now joined by their younger brother, Joseph. The modest one-building operation expanded to 40 buildings with more than 20 acres (80,937.2 m²) of floor space by 1910.
E & T Fairbanks & Company offices opened in the cities of Boston and New York in the 1870s. Fairbanks’ scales were sold in Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
. Thaddeus sold the manufacturing rights to H. Poole and Sons in England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
in the 1830s, thus creating an international marketing niche.
In 1846, trade began in 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...
. Two years later, Joseph Fairbanks
Joseph Fairbanks
Joseph Fairbanks was a merchant and political figure in Nova Scotia. He was a member of the 1st General Assembly of Nova Scotia and represented Halifax township in the Nova Scotia House of Assembly from 1776 to 1785....
began selling scales to Cuba
Cuba
The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
. In 1860, the Vermont-based company sold scales throughout the Caribbean
Caribbean
The Caribbean is a crescent-shaped group of islands more than 2,000 miles long separating the Gulf of Mexico and the Caribbean Sea, to the west and south, from the Atlantic Ocean, to the east and north...
, South America
South America
South America is a continent situated in the Western Hemisphere, mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a relatively small portion in the Northern Hemisphere. The continent is also considered a subcontinent of the Americas. It is bordered on the west by the Pacific Ocean and on the north and east...
, India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
. In fact, European sales grew to such an extent that Fairbanks established a facility in Budapest to assemble scales.
In 1867, Fairbanks produced 4,000 scales a month. The U.S. Post Office ordered 3,000 postal scales in various capacities; E & T Fairbanks & Company filled the order in just eight days.
By 1882, more than 80,000 Fairbanks scales were produced annually. By 1897, the company held 113 patents for improvements and inventions in weighing. Fairbanks offered its customers 2,000 standard model scales, yet made as many as 10,000 different models and custom systems.
Fairbanks-Morse
In 1916, Charles Hosmer Morse, a Fairbanks employee, acquired control of the company. Then in 1927, the Fairbanks office in New York became part of the Fairbanks-MorseFairbanks-Morse
Fairbanks Morse and Company was a manufacturing company in the late 19th and early 20th century. Originally a weighing scale manufacturer, it later diversified into pumps, engines, windmills, locomotives and industrial supplies until it was merged in 1958...
company, giving Fairbanks-Morse complete control over the manufacturing and distribution of Fairbanks Scales. During this time the Fairbanks-Morse company produced scales, locomotive
Locomotive
A locomotive is a railway vehicle that provides the motive power for a train. The word originates from the Latin loco – "from a place", ablative of locus, "place" + Medieval Latin motivus, "causing motion", and is a shortened form of the term locomotive engine, first used in the early 19th...
s, diesel engines, electric engines and pumps for industrial use.
Fairbanks-Whitney and Colt Industries
In 1958, Fairbanks-Morse merged with Penn-Texas and was renamed Fairbanks-Whitney.Following the merger, the company stagnated. In 1962 George Strichman was appointed president. Renamed Fairbanks Weighing Division of Colt Industries.
A modern manufacturing plant replaced the deteriorating facilities in St. Johnsbury, Vermont in 1966. Kenneth F. Hammer served as company president from 1968–1985. It became one of the top scale manufacturers, with almost fourteen hundred employees in its St. Johnsbury, VT, Meridian, MS, and Holmdale, CA plants and 60 sales and service locations across the US.
In 1975, a new factory was built in Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian, Mississippi
Meridian is the county seat of Lauderdale County, Mississippi. It is the sixth largest city in the state and the principal city of the Meridian, Mississippi Micropolitan Statistical Area...
, producing a variety of products designed for heavy capacity weighing. In 1988 Fairbanks came under the current management of F.A. "Bill" Norden, president and major stockholder of Fairbanks Scales. He headed a group which acquired the company from Colt Industries. Finance, marketing and executive offices were moved from St. Johnsbury to Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri
Kansas City, Missouri is the largest city in the U.S. state of Missouri and is the anchor city of the Kansas City Metropolitan Area, the second largest metropolitan area in Missouri. It encompasses in parts of Jackson, Clay, Cass, and Platte counties...
.
In 1999, F.A. Norden was named Chairman of the Board and his son, Richard Norden, became Fairbanks' President and COO
Chief operating officer
A Chief Operating Officer or Director of Operations can be one of the highest-ranking executives in an organization and comprises part of the "C-Suite"...
.