Grimes Manufacturing Company

The Grimes Manufacturing Company was an American manufacturer of aircraft lighting systems located in Urbana, Ohio.

Grimes Manufacturing Company

Industry	Aerospace
Founded	1933 (1933)
Founder	Warren G. Grimes
Defunct	1997 (1997)
Fate	Purchased by Allied Signal
Headquarters	Urbana, Ohio , United States
Number of employees	1,250^[1] (1977)
Parent	Midland-Ross Corporation (1977–1991) Allied Signal (1997–1999) Honeywell (1999–Present)

History

The Grimes Manufacturing Company was founded by Warren G. Grimes in 1933.

During World War II, the company built an additional building to handle the increased production.^[2] At the same time, it built Grimes Field, which it continued to operate until 1987.^[3] It again expanded in 1966, when construction began on a new 42,000 square foot addition.^[4]

From the 1960s to the 1980s, the company operated a Beech 18 called the Grimes Flying Lab to test its lights.^[5][6]

In 1977, Grimes was purchased by the Midland-Ross Corporation.^[7] Less than two years later Midland-Ross announced its intention to purchase a building at the Greenwood County Airport in Greenwood, South Carolina for the manufacturing operations of Grimes.^[8] Then, in 1981, Midland-Ross acquired the Mansfield Aircraft Products Company and made it a subsidiary of what was by then the Grimes Division.^[9] The division was restructured in 1982, with it being split into Grimes Galley Products, Grimes Lighting Products, and Grimes EL Products.^[10] The Grimes Galley unit closed two years later.^[11] Following a consolidation in 1991, the company reemerged as Grimes Aerospace.^[12] In 1992, construction began on a 20,000 square foot expansion of the Greenwood facility.^[13]

It was purchased by AlliedSignal in 1997.^[14] The sale would later be questioned after it was revealed that AlliedSignal pressured credit ratings companies to ignore the unrated bonds of Grimes investors.^[15] AlliedSignal, which would later become Honeywell, maintains as presence at two separate locations in Urbana.^[16]

See also

• Navigation light
• Pilot-controlled lighting

References

Notes

1. Platt, Brainard (7 September 1977). "Midland-Ross Buying Grimes Manufacturing". The Journal Herald. p. 17. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
2. "Then & Now: White-Valentine Broom Factory/Grimes Manufacturing". Champaign County Historical Society. 3 October 2019. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
3. Allbaugh, Dave (15 November 1986). "Questions Surround Small Urbana Airport as Lease Nears End". Dayton Daily News and Journal Herald. p. 18. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
4. Robbins, Fred (19 August 1966). "Work to Start on Grimes Building". Dayton Daily News. p. 47. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
5. Wood, Janice (4 November 2009). "The Grimes Flying Lab". General Aviation News. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
6. Miller, Alyssa J. (17 May 2012). "UFO a Flying Mistress". AOPA. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
7. "Midland-Ross Corp. Acquires Grimes Manufacturing Co". Dawson Springs Progress. 22 September 1977. p. 6. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
8. Mansfield, Duncan (2 May 1979). "County Attracts Another Industry". Greenville News. p. 1-B. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
9. "Plant which Lost Top Officers in Plane Crash Sold to Cleveland Firm". News Journal. 21 February 1981. p. 3. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
10. "Grimes Division of Midland Ross will Restructure into Three Units". News Journal. 24 December 1982. p. 9-B. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
11. Jakubick, Cynthia (30 June 1985). "Catching Up on the Year Since Midland-Ross Closed". News Journal. p. 1-C. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
12. "Grimes Announces Consolidation". The Index-Journal. 23 April 1991. pp. 11, 17. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
13. Ellison-Rider, Elaine (1 May 1992). "Grimes Aerospace to Expand Plant at Greenwood Airport". The News. p. 1C. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
14. "AlliedSignal to Buy Grimes Aerospace". Daily Record. AP. 19 June 1997. p. C1. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
15. Klein, Alex (25 November 2004). "Company May Have Pressed Credit Raters". Sacramento Bee. Washington Post. p. D7. Retrieved 11 August 2021.
16. Keeran, Joshua (4 October 2015). "Triad students tour Honeywell Aerospace's Urbana facilities". Urbana Daily Citizen. Retrieved 11 August 2021.

Bibliography

• Patzer, Nancy (10 September 2015). "A Light in the Sky: Warren G. Grimes and the History of Aviation Lighting". SlideShare. Retrieved 11 August 2021.