Square D
Square D logo.
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| Industry | Electrical equipment |
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| Predecessor |
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| Founder | Bryson Dexter Horton |
| Headquarters | Andover, Massachusetts, United States |
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Area served
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| Products | electrical equipment |
| Brands | Square D, QO, Homeline |
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Number of employees
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20,000 (es. 2016) |
| Parent | Schneider Electric |
| Website | www |
Square D is an American manufacturer of electrical equipment headquartered in Andover, Massachusetts. Square D is a flagship brand of Schneider Electric, which acquired Square D in 1991.
The company was listed on the for 55 years prior to its acquisition without reporting financial loss in any calendar quarter, paying out 220 consecutive quarterly dividends to shareholders.
The company was founded on December 15, 1902 by Bryson Dexter Horton and James B. McCarthy. In 1903 they incorporated as the McBride Manufacturing Company. During the first decade of business, the company expanded into various other electrical products. In 1908, the company was renamed Detroit Fuse and Manufacturing. Horton, an 1895 electrical engineering graduate of the University of Michigan, was credited with the invention of the safety switch, which encased high voltage switches and started the company's main line of business of circuit breakers and encased control panels. Their first enclosed safety switch was introduced in 1909.
Soon after their renaming to Detroit Fuse and Manufacturing, the company adopted their famous logo — a capital "letter D" for Detroit, enclosed in a square. The logo was stamped on all Square D's switches and products. The combination of an easily remembered monogram logo and their great popularity resulted in customers referring their products as "Square D". Consequently, the company trademarked the logo and in 1917 they renamed the company Square D. Horton served as Square D's president until 1928
In the early 1920s Square D sold the majority of their fuse business in order to focus more on their safety switches and other safety products. The company began an aggressive marketing campaign to promote their safety switches. Their advertisements, which became to be known as "Jones is Dead!", directed public attention to the safety hazards of exposed electrical switches in factories. Square D hoped to capitalize on the growing concern of factory safety. One such fully working Square D safety switch from 1922 was donated in November 2003 to the Smithsonian's National Museum of American History.
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Wikipedia