Ingersoll Machine Tools is a manufacturer located in Rockford, Illinois that produces large scale machine tools for use in metal cutting and automated fiber placement.
History
DKIST - Ingersoll Machine Tools, Inc. was contracted to build major components of the Daniel K. Inouye Solar Telescope (DKIST). Pictured in this video are the Coude Rotator and the Total Mount Assembly....
The company was founded in 1891 by Winthrop Ingersoll when he moved W.R. Eynon & Co. from Cleveland, Ohio to Rockford. Originally, Ingersoll Machine Tools focused almost entirely on milling machinery and processes for metal removal. It acquired contracts from General Electric and, by 1917, was closely involved with wartime production and had a workforce of 600. It went on to produce customized machines for industries such as airplane and auto manufacturing. In the period from the 1960s to the 1980s, the company employed around 2,000 people at its plant, also developing CNC technologies to introduce automation into its manufacturing processes.
Bankruptcy
In 2003, Ingersoll International went bankrupt. The company was purchased by the Italian Camozzi Group. Since its purchase by Camozzi, the company has attempted to redefine its place in the market, continuing with milling machines but also expanding into other areas.
Activities today
Ingersoll Machine Tools is involved in advanced fiber placement (AFP) for the aerospace industry. It has made the wing molds for Mitsubishi, supplier of the wings on the Boeing 787. In 2010, it received Best Supplier Award from Alenia Aeronautica.
Ingersoll's AFP machines are also installed at UTC Aerospace Systems' (formerly Goodrich Corporation) facilities in Riverside, California. At this facility, the machines are used to layup the engine nacelles for the Boeing 787 and Airbus A350.
Ingersoll has also continued working in the metal cutting industry, with much of its contract production being for the wind industry. It has also sold machinery to NASA.
References
External links
- Ingersoll Machine Tools website (Camozzi)
- History of Ingersoll Machine Tools
- Bloomberg Businessweek profile
See also
Advanced fiber placement
