The Standard Electric Time Company was a

Springfield, Massachusetts Springfield is a city in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, United States, and the seat of Hampden County. Springfield sits on the eastern bank of the Connecticut River near its confluence with three rivers: the western Westfield River, the ...

company founded in 1884, and was a manufacturer of synchronized clock systems and fire alarm systems. They were the oldest manufacturer of electric clocks in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. The company was acquired by Johnson Controls in 1970 and then Faraday in 1978.

History

The company was founded in

Waterbury, Connecticut Waterbury is a city in the U.S. state of Connecticut on the Naugatuck River, southwest of Hartford and northeast of New York City. Waterbury is the second-largest city in New Haven County, Connecticut. According to the 2020 US Census, in 20 ...

by Charles Warner, the pioneer of the electric clock. The company was later moved to Springfield MA in 1911. Standard quickly became known for its electric clock systems, which were often installed in schools, universities, and other public buildings. These systems consisted of a

master clock Master or masters may refer to: Ranks or titles * Ascended master, a term used in the Theosophical religious tradition to refer to spiritually enlightened beings who in past incarnations were ordinary humans *Grandmaster (chess), National Master ...

, which then controlled all secondary clocks. Like many companies during the

Great Depression The Great Depression (19291939) was an economic shock that impacted most countries across the world. It was a period of economic depression that became evident after a major fall in stock prices in the United States. The economic contagio ...

, Standard suffered from financial difficulties throughout the 1930s. In the 1940s during

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

, Standard products were used in many defense projects. In 1950, Standard made a {{convert, 15000, sqft, adj=on addition onto their Springfield plant, and introduced several new product lines, most notably

fire alarm A fire alarm system warns people when smoke, fire, carbon monoxide or other fire-related or general notification emergency, emergencies are detected. These alarms may be activated automatically from smoke detectors and heat detectors or may also ...

systems, fluid analyzer systems, and nurse call systems for use in hospitals. In 1970, it was announced that the company would be sold to

Johnson Controls Johnson Controls International is an American Irish-domiciled multinational conglomerate headquartered in Cork, Ireland, that produces fire, HVAC, and security equipment for buildings. As of mid-2019, it employed 105,000 people in around 2,0 ...

Milwaukee, Wisconsin Milwaukee ( ), officially the City of Milwaukee, is both the most populous and most densely populated city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin and the county seat of Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Milwaukee County. With a population of 577,222 at th ...

. During this period, the company modernized its fire alarm division with the SET/7000, a modular solid-state conventional panel, and later with the SET/7500, a 250-zone multiplex panel in console form that could control fire alarm, security, and building automation systems, along with their light plates and remote lights. In 1978, Johnson Controls sold Standard Electric Time to

Faraday Michael Faraday (; 22 September 1791 – 25 August 1867) was an English scientist who contributed to the study of electromagnetism and electrochemistry. His main discoveries include the principles underlying electromagnetic induction, ...

. In 1981, Faraday downsized the company substantially, closing all divisions except for standard electric time, and moved it to

Tecumseh, Michigan Tecumseh is a city in Lenawee County in the U.S. state of Michigan, near the River Raisin. Tecumseh is about southwest of Detroit, south of Ann Arbor, and north of Toledo, Ohio. The main street of downtown is Chicago Boulevard, also designat ...

. Faraday is now owned by

Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational conglomerate corporation and the largest industrial manufacturing company in Europe headquartered in Munich with branch offices abroad. The principal divisions of the corporation are ''Industry'', '' ...

, and a small branch office still remains in Springfield.

External links

The Standard Electric Time Collectors' Photo Gallery

SETclocks: A site dedicated to The Standard Electric Time Company
Clock brands Manufacturing companies established in 1884 Fire detection and alarm companies Manufacturing companies based in Springfield, Massachusetts Clock manufacturing companies of the United States