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Brookhurst Igranic
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On the 14th August 1913 the Igranic Electric Company was formed, the name Igranic was chosen because one of early products the company manufactured were motor starters, which were built on bases of slate, which looked like granite with resistances, wound with iron wire hence the name Igranic was coined.
In 1959 the firm joined forces with Brookhirst Switchgear Ltd to form the firm Brookhirst Igranic Ltd.
In 1971 the American firm of Cutler-Hammer of Milwaukee bought the firm for 6 million. By the 1978 the firm now known as Cutler Hammer Europa became part of the Eaton Corporation. In the 1980s the name was changed to Eaton ltd.
In 1996 Eaton Engineering announced that the Cutler Hammer Sports ground was to close as the number of workers employed by the company had gone from over 2,000 to less than 70.
In 1999 38 jobs were lost leaving the number of people at the Bedford factory at just 71. Sometime afterwards the factory finally closed.
The Heritage Library at Bedford Central Library holds copies of The Intercom, the magazine of Brookhirst Igranic for the years 1963-1972
Sources
- The Newspaper Cuttings Collection, Local Studies Library, Bedford Central Library
Brookhurst Igranic by Bedfordshire Libraries, 2012
Page last updated: 22nd January 2014