Rheem Manufacturing Company is an American privately held manufacturer that produces residential and commercial water heaters and

boiler A boiler is a closed vessel in which fluid (generally water) is heated. The fluid does not necessarily boil. The heated or vaporized fluid exits the boiler for use in various processes or heating applications, including water heating, centr ...

s, as well as heating, ventilating and air conditioning (HVAC) equipment. The company also produces and sells products under the Ruud brand name. It is a subsidiary of Paloma Industries. What became Rheem started in 1925 as a supplier of packaging to the

petroleum industry The petroleum industry, also known as the oil industry or the oil patch, includes the global processes of exploration, extraction, refining, transportation (often by oil tankers and pipelines), and marketing of petroleum products. The large ...

, and is currently headquartered in

Atlanta, Georgia Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,7 ...

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 territori ...

. The company is one of the largest manufacturers of both water heating and HVAC equipment in the United States, and also produces and markets products in

Argentina Argentina (), officially the Argentine Republic ( es, link=no, República Argentina), is a country in the southern half of South America. Argentina covers an area of , making it the second-largest country in South America after Brazil, th ...

Armenia Armenia (), , group=pron officially the Republic of Armenia,, is a landlocked country in the Armenian Highlands of Western Asia.The UNbr>classification of world regions places Armenia in Western Asia; the CIA World Factbook , , and ' ...

, Australia,

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, China,

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Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Iraq Iraq,; ku, عێراق, translit=Êraq officially the Republic of Iraq, '; ku, کۆماری عێراق, translit=Komarî Êraq is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Turkey to the north, Iran to the east, the Persian Gulf and K ...

Kuwait Kuwait (; ar, الكويت ', or ), officially the State of Kuwait ( ar, دولة الكويت '), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated in the northern edge of Eastern Arabia at the tip of the Persian Gulf, bordering Iraq to the nort ...

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New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

, Perú,

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UAE The United Arab Emirates (UAE; ar, اَلْإِمَارَات الْعَرَبِيَة الْمُتَحِدَة ), or simply the Emirates ( ar, الِْإمَارَات ), is a country in Western Asia (The Middle East). It is located at th ...

, and

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History

The company is named for its founders, brothers Richard "R. S." Rheem and Donald "D. L." Rheem. They were the sons of William S. Rheem (1862–1919), former Standard Oil Company of California president who led the construction of a major oil refinery for the company in Richmond, California. The brothers initially began manufacturing galvanized steel drums in 1925 as a co-partnership with Pacific Galvanizing Company in

Emeryville, California Emeryville is a city located in northwest Alameda County, California, in the United States. It lies in a corridor between the cities of Berkeley and Oakland, with a border on the shore of San Francisco Bay. The resident population was 12,905 ...

. A third brother, William "W.K." Rheem, helped finance the company at its start. The Rheem Manufacturing Company was subsequently organized on January 22, 1930, buying out Pacific Galvanizing. Rheem also acquired the Republic Steel package company, which also had a plant in Richmond. Republic Steel made boilers and tanks, which allowed Rheem to enter the business of water heating. The company acquired the John Wood Manufacturing Company of California, which produced automatic gas storage water heaters, in 1931. The company expanded overseas to Australia in 1936, building a plant in Sydney. The Australian operation began making steel

shipping container A shipping container is a container with strength suitable to withstand shipment, storage, and handling. Shipping containers range from large reusable steel boxes used for intermodal shipments to the ubiquitous corrugated boxes. In the context of ...

s, including drums, in 1937 and water heaters in 1939. In 1941, the company became the largest manufacturer of automatic water heaters in the United States. 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 opposing ...

, much of the company's efforts went towards wartime production, including building ships and aircraft parts. In 1954, Rheem brought the introduction of " glass-lining", which coated the interior of a water heater tank with porcelain to extend the life of the tank. One of the most significant events came in 1956 with the introduction of "Rheemaire" central air conditioning and heater systems for homes. This eventually became one of the company's primary business areas. In 1959, Rheem purchased the Ruud Manufacturing Company. In 1968 a plant was opened in Bergum (Burgum in Frisian) in the Netherlands by (among others) Mr. P. Toonstra. The plant was successful but had to close its doors by the end of 1983. Beginning in August 1970, Rheem began producing

Heat pump A heat pump is a device that can heat a building (or part of a building) by transferring thermal energy from the outside using a refrigeration cycle. Many heat pumps can also operate in the opposite direction, cooling the building by removing ...

s and HVAC units for residential applications, based in

Fort Smith, Arkansas Fort Smith is the third-largest city in Arkansas and one of the two county seats of Sebastian County. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 89,142. It is the principal city of the Fort Smith, Arkansas–Oklahoma Metropolitan Statistical Are ...

. In 1983, Rheem introduced the Richmond Water Heaters brand, aimed at hardware stores and

home-improvement center A home improvement center, home improvement store, or home center is a retail store that combines the functions of a hardware store with those of a lumber yard. Major North American home-improvement center chains include Home Depot, Lowe's, Menar ...

s. In 1984, Rheem was acquired by Pace Industries, Inc. The company discontinued containers in 1985, ending 60 years making steel drums and other containers. In the same year, the company acquired Raypak, Inc., which expanded the business into swimming pool heaters as well as commercial boilers. In 1988 Rheem was acquired by Paloma Industries, Ltd., a privately held Japanese company with headquarters in Nagoya, Japan, which wished to expand globally. Rheem was the first residential HVAC company to begin using

scroll compressor A scroll compressor (also called ''spiral compressor'', scroll pump and scroll vacuum pump) is a device for compressing air or refrigerant. It is used in air conditioning equipment, as an automobile supercharger (where it is known as a scroll ...

s throughout their lineup in 1994, and all air conditioners and heat pumps continue to use Copeland Scroll Compressors. The company was also first to introduce a 14

SEER In the United States, the efficiency of air conditioners is often rated by the seasonal energy efficiency ratio (SEER) which is defined by the Air Conditioning, Heating, and Refrigeration Institute, a trade association, in its 2008 standard AHR ...

remote condensing unit in 1997. In 1998, the company began supplying the

Home Depot The Home Depot, Inc., is an American multinational home improvement retail corporation that sells tools, construction products, appliances, and services, including fuel and transportation rentals. Home Depot is the largest home improvement r ...

with a line of GE branded water heaters. In 2009, Rheem and Ruud were the first to sell a Hybrid Heat Pump Water Heater, which was more than twice as efficient as similar electric water heaters. Also in the same year, Rheem and Ruud central air conditioners were reported to have the fewest percentage of units requiring repair among all major HVAC brands according to '' Consumer Reports''. Rheem's market share of the central air conditioner market had been as high as 16% in the 1980s and dropped to about 11% by 2000. By 2008, a report by the

United States Department of Energy The United States Department of Energy (DOE) is an executive department of the U.S. federal government that oversees U.S. national energy policy and manages the research and development of nuclear power and nuclear weapons in the United Stat ...

ranked the firm as fifth in the US in the central air conditioner and

heat pump A heat pump is a device that can heat a building (or part of a building) by transferring thermal energy from the outside using a refrigeration cycle. Many heat pumps can also operate in the opposite direction, cooling the building by removing ...

market with a 12% market share (behind UTC/ Carrier with 27%, both

Goodman Goodman or Goodmans may refer to: Businesses and organizations * Goodman Games, American publisher. * Goodman Global, an American HVAC manufacturer. * Goodman Group, an Australian property company. * Goodmans Industries, a British electronic co ...

/Amana and American Standard/

Trane Trane is a manufacturer of heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, along with building management systems and controls. The company is a subsidiary of Trane Technologies, a company focused on manufacturing HVAC and refrigerat ...

with 14% and Lennox with 12%), while in the residential gas furnace market as of 2008, the company was also ranked fifth with a 12% market share (behind Carrier with 32%, Goodman with 15%, and both Lennox and Trane with 13%).

History of Ruud

Ruud was founded by

Edwin Ruud Edwin Ruud (9 June 1854 – 9 December 1932) was a Norwegian-American mechanical engineer and inventor who immigrated to the United States where he designed, sold, and popularized the tankless water heater. He was the founder and President of Ruu ...

(1854–1932), a

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

immigrant who lived in

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Western Pennsylvania, the second-most populous city in Pennsylva ...

. He developed the first automatic storage tank gas-fired water heater, which went into production in 1889. Ruud worked for

George Westinghouse George Westinghouse Jr. (October 6, 1846 – March 12, 1914) was an American entrepreneur and engineer based in Pennsylvania who created the railway air brake and was a pioneer of the electrical industry, receiving his first patent at the age ...

(1846–1914), but eventually bought the rights to produce the product he invented and formed his own company in 1897. In 1913, Ruud merged and absorbed the Humphrey Company of Kalamazoo, Michigan which also manufactured water heaters. The Humphrey Company had a large manufacturing operation in Kalamazoo, which Ruud continued to operate and expand. In 1954, Ruud moved all operations from Pittsburgh to Kalamazoo where they were headquartered until the purchase by Rheem in 1960.

Current products

In North America, Rheem and Ruud both manufacture and sell a full line of heating and cooling products for residential and commercial applications, including up to 98.7%

annual fuel use efficiency The annual fuel utilization efficiency (AFUE; pronounced 'A'-'Few' or 'A'-'F'-'U'-'E') is a thermal efficiency measure of space-heating furnaces and boilers. The AFUE differs from the true 'thermal efficiency' in that it is not a steady-state, pea ...

gas furnaces, oil-fired furnaces, up to 20 SEER air conditioners, heat pumps,

thermostats A thermostat is a regulating device component which senses the temperature of a physical system and performs actions so that the system's temperature is maintained near a desired setpoint. Thermostats are used in any device or system tha ...

air handler An air handler, or air handling unit (often abbreviated to AHU), is a device used to regulate and circulate air as part of a heating, ventilating, and air-conditioning ( HVAC) system. An air handler is usually a large metal box containing a blow ...

s, package units, and

indoor air quality Indoor air quality (IAQ) is the air quality within and around buildings and structures. IAQ is known to affect the health, comfort, and well-being of building occupants. Poor indoor air quality has been linked to sick building syndrome, reduce ...

products such as media filters, UV lamps, and

humidifiers A humidifier is a device, primarily an electrical appliance, that increases humidity (moisture) in a single room or an entire building. In the home, point-of-use humidifiers are commonly used to humidify a single room, while whole-house or furnac ...

. In many additional countries around the world, the companies sell numerous types of water heating equipment, including gas fired tank storage and tankless water heaters, high-efficiency condensing water heaters, hybrid heat pump water heaters, and solar water heaters under the Rheem, Ruud, Richmond, Paloma, Solahart, Splendid, and GE brands. Swimming pool-related products include gas-fired and heat pump heaters sold under the Rheem and Raypak brands. Protech replacement parts for HVAC systems are sold through the PROSTOCK retail program. In December 2013, Rheem acquired Scottsboro, Alabama-based Heat Transfer Products Group (HTPG). HTPG, a standalone company, produces the Russell, Witt, ColdZone and Kramer commercial

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 ...

brands. In 2015, Rheem won the top spot in the Water Heaters category for its brand familiarity by the Builder magazine.

Former divisions

Rheem Califone manufactured audiovisual equipment under the Rheem, Califone, and Roberts brands. These were used in schools and institutions, and included

public address system A public address system (or PA system) is an electronic system comprising microphones, amplifiers, loudspeakers, and related equipment. It increases the apparent volume (loudness) of a human voice, musical instrument, or other acoustic sound sou ...

s, reel-to-reel audio tape recorders, phonographs, as well as

Combo organ A combo organ, so-named and classified by popular culture due to its original intended use by small, touring jazz, pop and dance groups known as "combo bands", as well as some models having "Combo" as part of their brand or model names, is an elect ...

s. Rheem and Ruud also sold re-branded

Briggs & Stratton Briggs & Stratton Corporation is an American manufacturer of gasoline engines with headquarters in Wauwatosa, Wisconsin. Engine production averages 10 million units per year as of April 2015. The company reports that it has 13 large facili ...

residential

Emergency power system An emergency power system is an independent source of electrical power that supports important electrical systems on loss of normal power supply. A standby power system may include a standby generator, batteries and other apparatus. Emergency p ...

s beginning in 2007. As of March 2, 2013, the companies no longer listed backup generators on their Web sites.

Plant and office locations

All currently operating facilities are

ISO 9001 The ISO 9000 family is a set of five quality management systems (QMS) standards that help organizations ensure they meet customer and other stakeholder needs within statutory and regulatory requirements related to a product or service. ISO ...

certified.

Former facilities

NASCAR

Since 2007, Rheem has sponsored Richard Childress Racing (RCR) in the

NASCAR The National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing, LLC (NASCAR) is an American auto racing sanctioning and operating company that is best known for stock car racing. The privately owned company was founded by Bill France Sr. in 1948, and ...

Sprint Cup Series The NASCAR Cup Series is the top racing series of the NASCAR, National Association for Stock Car Auto Racing (NASCAR). The series began in 1949 as the Strictly Stock Division, and from 1950 to 1970 it was known as the Grand National Division. ...

and

Xfinity Series The NASCAR Xfinity Series (NXS) is a stock car racing series organized by NASCAR. It is promoted as NASCAR's second-tier circuit to the organization's top level Cup Series. NXS events are frequently held as a support race on the day prior to a ...

through their Rheem, RUUD, and Richmond Water Heaters brands. They previously sponsored

Kevin Harvick Kevin Michael Harvick (born December 8, 1975) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 4 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing. Harvick is the 2014 Cup Series champion, ...

and Harvick's racing team

Kevin Harvick Incorporated Kevin Harvick, Inc., colloquially referred to as KHI, was a NASCAR team owned by NASCAR Cup Series driver Kevin Harvick and his wife DeLana, who is the daughter of former Busch Series driver John Linville. The team owned cars in the NASCAR Natio ...

(KHI), along with

Ron Hornaday Jr. Ronald Lee Hornaday Jr. (born June 20, 1958) is an American former professional stock car racing driver. He is the father of former NASCAR driver Ronnie Hornaday and son of the late Ron Hornaday Sr., a two-time Winston West Champion. Hornaday is ...

Cale Gale Cale Gale (born March 5, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver and crew chief. Karting Gale's racing career began when his father placed him on a go-kart at age 4. In 1989 at the age of five years, he began racing competitive ...

and other former RCR & KHI drivers in the Cup, Xfinity, and Camping World Truck Series. They formerly sponsored

James Buescher James H. Buescher (born March 26, 1990) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He is the 2012 Truck Series champion. After parting ways with NTS Motorsports in 2015, Buescher became a real estate agent. He owns and operates his ow ...

in the Xfinity Series and Truck Series. Brandon Jones, the son of former Rheem CEO J.R. Jones, currently competes in the Xfinity Series. In 2018 Rheem moved to

Joe Gibbs Racing Joe Gibbs Racing (JGR) is an American professional stock car racing organization owned and operated by former Washington Redskins (today the Washington Commanders) coach Joe Gibbs, which first started racing on the NASCAR circuit in 1991. His ...

with

Ryan Preece Ryan Jeffrey Preece (born October 25, 1990) is an American professional stock car racing driver. He competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 41 Ford Mustang for Stewart-Haas Racing. Preece previously competed in what is now th ...

& Christopher Bell driving the Machine for 36 races. Rheem also was put on the rear quarter panel of the No. 18 Cup car driven by

Kyle Busch Kyle Thomas Busch (born May 2, 1985) is an American professional stock car racing driver and team owner. He currently competes full-time in the NASCAR Cup Series, driving the No. 8 Chevrolet Camaro ZL1 for Richard Childress Racing and part-time ...

as an assosicate sponsor to the No. 18. It was announced In September 2019 that Rheem would sponsor Christopher Bell for an unknown number of races in the No. 95

Leavine Family Racing Leavine Family Racing (formerly Circle Sport – Leavine Family Racing and originally Leavine Fenton Racing) was an American professional stock car racing team that last competed in the NASCAR Cup Series. Owned by Sharon and Bob Leavine, the tea ...

Toyota Camry The Toyota Camry (; Japanese: トヨタ・カムリ ''Toyota Kamuri'') is an automobile sold internationally by the Japanese auto manufacturer Toyota since 1982, spanning multiple generations. Originally compact in size (narrow-body), the Camry ...

in the Cup Series in 2020.

References

External links

*
Ruud Official Website

Rheem family of brands

Richmond Water Heaters Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

Eemax Tankless Water Heaters Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

EcoSmart Tankless Water Heaters Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

Sure Comfort Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

WeatherKing Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

HTPG Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

Raypak Official Website - [http://www.rheem.com/about/brandsfamily a Rheem brand]

Rheem en Perú

* {{Atlanta companies Privately held companies based in Georgia (U.S. state) Heating, ventilation, and air conditioning companies Manufacturing companies established in 1925 Manufacturing companies based in Atlanta 1925 establishments in California