 | |
| Type | Subsidiary |
|---|---|
| Industry | Manufacturing |
| Founded | Los Angeles, California, United States (1907) |
| Founder |
|
| Headquarters | , United States |
| Products | Industrial tools |
| Parent | Stanley Black & Decker |
| Website | protoindustrial.com |
Proto Tools (formally Stanley Proto) is an American industrial hand tool company. Founded as Plomb, it is presently a division of Stanley Black & Decker. The company is credited with creating the first combination wrench in 1933.
Proto was founded in 1907 by Alphonse Plomb, Jacob Weninger, and Charles Williams as the Plomb Tool Company, a small blacksmith shop making chisels in Los Angeles. In 1933, Plomb released what is commonly credited as the first combination wrench. [1]
Plomb acquired a number of companies during the 1940s, including Cragin Tool of Chicago, Illinois in 1940, P&C Tool of Oregon in 1941, Penens Tool of Cleveland, Ohio in 1942, and J.P. Danielson of Jamestown, New York in 1947. [2] Penens Tool would produce tools under the Fleet and Challenger brand names after its acquisition. [3]
In 1946, Plomb was sued by another tool manufacturer—Fayette R. Plumb, Inc., now a brand of Apex Tool Group [4] —for trademark infringement. [5] The company began manufacturing its tools with the Proto name, a portmanteau of "professional" and "tools," in 1948. In 1957, the company began operating as Pendleton Tool Industries. [6]
In 1964, Proto was acquired by Ingersoll-Rand, and in 1984, it was acquired by Stanley and became Stanley Proto Industrial Tools. [7]
Black+Decker Inc. is an American manufacturer of power tools, accessories, hardware, home improvement products, home appliances and fastening systems headquartered in Towson, Maryland, north of Baltimore, where the company was originally established in 1910. On March 12, 2010, Black & Decker merged with Stanley Works to become Stanley Black & Decker. It remains as a wholly owned subsidiary of that company.
Stanley Black & Decker, Inc., formerly known as The Stanley Works, is a Fortune 500 American manufacturer of industrial tools and household hardware and provider of security products. Headquartered in the greater Hartford city of New Britain, Connecticut, Stanley Black & Decker is the result of the merger of Stanley Works and Black & Decker on March 12, 2010.
Craftsman is a line of tools, lawn and garden equipment, and work wear. Originally a house brand established by Sears, the brand is now owned by Stanley Black & Decker.
Irwin Industrial Tools is an American manufacturer and distributor of hand tools and power tool accessories. It is owned by Stanley Black & Decker. It is best known for producing Vise-Grip locking pliers. Additionally, it produces clamps, drill bits, taps and dies, screw extractors, bolt extractors, saw blades, pipe wrenches, screwdrivers, snips, and other construction tools.
The Ridge Tool Company is an American manufacturing company that makes and distributes hand tools under the Ridgid brand name. The company was founded in 1923 in North Ridgeville, Ohio. In 1943, it relocated to its current location in Elyria, Ohio, and in 1966, it became a wholly owned subsidiary of Emerson Electric.
Mac Tools is an American company that distributes and markets professional tools and related equipment. It is headquartered in Westerville, Ohio, United States. The Mac Tools line consists of over 8,000 professional tools, including screwdrivers, ratchets, wrenches, and assorted air tools.
SK Hand Tools is an American tool company located in Sycamore, Illinois. Major products include sockets and drive tools, wrenches, air tools, and other mechanics' tools. The company has a tool line of over 3,500 items including wrenches, ratchets, screwdrivers, tool boxes and air tools. It has manufacturing facilities in Colorado Springs, Colorado and Sycamore, Illinois. Outlets for their products include independent tool-truck dealers, auto parts stores, and major internet vendors such as Sears and Amazon.com.
Klein Tools is an American company based in Lincolnshire, Illinois that manufactures hand tools. The company is known for its popularity with workers in the electrical and telecommunications industries. Lineman's pliers are often called "Kleins," an example of a genericized trademark.
Husky is a line of hand tools, pneumatic tools, and tool storage products. Though founded in 1924, it is now best known as the house brand of The Home Depot, where it is exclusively sold. Its hand tools are manufactured for Home Depot by Stanley Black & Decker, Western Forge, Apex Tool Group, and Iron Bridge Tools. Its slogan is "The toughest name in tools." Home Depot also carries a higher end line of tools marked Husky Pro.
Apex Tool Group is an American supplier of hand tools and power tools. It was formed as a joint venture of Cooper Industries and Danaher by the merger of Cooper Tools and Danaher's Tools and Components segment. In October 2012, Danaher and Cooper sold Apex to Bain Capital for about $1.6 billion. Apex is headquartered in Sparks, Maryland, and has over 20 factories globally including the United States, Canada, Mexico, Germany, China, and South America.
Channellock is an American company that produces hand tools. It is best known for its pliers—the company manufactures more than 140 types of pliers—particularly its eponymous style of tongue-and-groove, slip-joint pliers. Its pliers have distinctive sky-blue handle grips; the company has been using the same trademarked shade of blue since 1956.
Crescent, originally called the Crescent Tool Company, is a brand of hand tools. Founded in 1907, the Crescent brand has changed ownership multiple times. It is currently owned by Apex Tool Group, LLC of Sparks, Maryland as part of its Hand Tools division. It is best known for its style of adjustable wrench.
Armstrong Tools was an American industrial hand tool manufacturer. In its final years, it existed as a brand of Apex Tool Group, LLC and manufactured the majority of its tools in the United States, focusing mostly on aerospace, government, and military users.
Blackhawk is an American brand of hand tools. It is currently a sub-brand of the Proto division of the Stanley Black & Decker.
Western Forge was an American manufacturing company. The company manufactured hand tools that were sold under other brands, including private-label brands such as Craftsman and Husky. It was a subsidiary of Ideal Industries.
Stanley Hand Tools is a brand of hand tools. It is a division of Stanley Black & Decker, following the merger of The Stanley Works with Black & Decker in March 2010.
New Britain Machine Company was a tool company that was headquartered in New Britain, Connecticut. The company started to sell sockets and drive tools. New Britain was the main supplier for NAPA tools until its closure in 1990. New Britain Machine owned Husky and Blackhawk tools as well as making its own economy-grade tools under the None Better and Mustang names. New Britain Machine was then acquired by the Litton Tool Company on December 22, 1972.
Allen is a brand of hand tools, most widely recognized for its wrenches, known generically as "Allen wrenches". As a brand, it is owned by Apex Tool Group.
Snap-on Industrial Brands, historically the J.H. Williams Tool Group, is a division of American hand tool manufacturer Snap-on that makes and distributes tools to industrial markets. In addition to the Williams brand from which it originated, the group includes Bahco and CDI Torque Products.
Plumb is a brand of hand tools owned by Apex Tool Group. The brand is known for its hammers and hatchets.