Tecumseh Products Company is an American manufacturer of
hermetic compressors for
air conditioning
Air conditioning, often abbreviated as A/C or AC, is the process of removing heat from an enclosed space to achieve a more comfortable interior environment (sometimes referred to as 'comfort cooling') and in some cases also strictly controlling ...
and
refrigeration
The term refrigeration refers to the process of removing heat from an enclosed space or substance for the purpose of lowering the temperature.International Dictionary of Refrigeration, http://dictionary.iifiir.org/search.phpASHRAE Terminology, ht ...
products. Tecumseh Products Company has subsidiaries that sell externally and internally to Tecumseh. The Tecumseh corporate offices are located in
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Ann Arbor is a city in the U.S. state of Michigan and the county seat of Washtenaw County, Michigan, Washtenaw County. The 2020 United States census, 2020 census recorded its population to be 123,851. It is the principal city of the Ann Arbor ...
.
History
In 2007, the company's former gasoline engine and power train product lines were sold to Platinum Equity LLC. In December 2008, the company closed its engine manufacturing division. Later Tecumseh Power sold off its Peerless transmissions business to
Husqvarna Outdoor Products.
In 2009, Tecumseh Products completed a move from
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 ...
to
Pittsfield Charter Township, Michigan
Pittsfield Charter Township is a charter township of Washtenaw County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 34,663 at the 2010 census.
Communities
* Lucerne is a former settlement within the township that had its own post office from ...
.
Tecumseh closed its doors in February 2009 when Platinum Equity LLC announced that Tecumseh Power Company had sold certain assets of its engine business to Certified Parts Corporation, including all existing and unfinished engine parts inventory, tools to make finished product, and certain intellectual property assets.
In 2015, Mueller Industries and Atlas Holdings completed the purchase of Tecumseh.
Price-fixing lawsuits
Pittsfield Township-based Tecumseh Products Co., along with units of Benton Harbor-based Whirlpool Corp., as well as a division of a Danish parts-supplier, agreed in 2013 to a settlement in a price-fixing lawsuit. The settlement cost Tecumseh approximately $7 million, according to a report in Crain's Detroit Business. The lawsuit, which was consolidated before U.S. District Judge Sean Cox in 2009, centers on a secret meeting between executives of the companies as well as Panasonic Corp., and an Italy-based components company. According to Crain's, the group allegedly met at a hotel in 2004 as part of a conspiracy to inflate the price of compressors.
Crain's reported the settlement totaled $41 million and must be approved by Judge Cox before it is implemented. Tecumseh's portion represents 2.7 percent of the company's sales between February 2005 and December 2008.
Gasoline engine components
In 2007, the company's former gasoline engine and power train product lines, which is what the company had been most known for, were sold to
Platinum Equity
Platinum Equity, LLC is an American private equity investment firm founded by Tom Gores in 1995. The firm focuses on leveraged buyout investments of established companies in the U.S., Europe and Asia.
History
Platinum Equity was founded in 199 ...
LLC, which does business as Tecumseh Power. Tecumseh engine products at one time were sold in over 120 countries. In December 2008, the company closed its engine manufacturing division.
Tecumseh Power sold off its Peerless transmissions business to
McDermott Outdoor Products.
On February 10, 2009, Platinum Equity LLC announced that
Tecumseh Power Company had sold certain assets of its engine business to Certified Parts Corporation. This included the sale of existing and unfinished engine parts inventory, tools to make finished product and certain intellectual property assets.
Certified Parts Corporation also assumed responsibility for warranty of previous engine sales.
In an interview published by ''The Janesville Gazette'' on February 10, 2009, Certified Parts Corporation President Jim Grafft said "that he plans to move the engine operation to
Rock County, Wisconsin
Rock County is a county in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. As of the 2020 census, the population was 163,687. Its county seat is Janesville. Rock County comprises the Janesville- Beloit, WI Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the M ...
, where he owns three facilities in Janesville and one in
Edgerton, and will initially supply parts for Tecumseh Power engines. Grafft also said that his company could eventually resume engine production, which Tecumseh Power ceased in December 2008".
On September 1, 2010, Certified Parts Corporation (CPC) of
Janesville, Wisconsin
Janesville is a city in Rock County, Wisconsin, United States. It is the county seat and largest city in the county. It is a principal municipality of the Janesville, Wisconsin, Metropolitan Statistical Area and is included in the Madison–Jane ...
, announced it had entered into an agreement with LCT, (
Liquid Combustion Technology) of
Travelers Rest, South Carolina
Travelers Rest is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States. The population was 4,576 at the 2010 census, a small increase from 4,099 in 2000. By 2018 the population had jumped to 5,253. It is part of the Greenville– Mauld ...
, to jointly manufacture air-cooled engines for the outdoor power equipment market. The agreement provided CPC with engineering, manufacturing, and sales capabilities allowing it to reintroduce the Snow King line of snow thrower engines and other engines formerly manufactured and sold by Tecumseh Power. The engines are exclusively represented by LCT, and sold under the Snow King, Lauson, and LCT brands and serviced exclusively by CPC and the existing Tecumseh Power dealer/distributor network. Traditionally, the Snow King line of engines had powered more snowthrowers than all other brands combined. LCT's horizontal 4-stroke gasoline engine product offering was extended by this agreement, and allowed CPC and LCT to provide single cylinder and V-twin vertical engines to outdoor power equipment manufacturers.
References
External links
{{Commons category, Tecumseh Products
www.tecumseh.comnbsp;— Tecumseh Products Company Web site
Companies based in Ann Arbor, Michigan
Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq