Westinghouse Electric Corporation

History

Beginnings

Westinghouse Electric was founded by George Westinghouse in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, on January 8, 1886. Building on the advancement of AC technology in Europe, the firm became active in developing alternating current (AC) electric infrastructure throughout the United States. The company's largest factories were located in East Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, Lester, Pennsylvania and Hamilton, Ontario, where they made turbines, generators, motors, and switch gear for the generation, transmission, and use of electricity. In addition to George Westinghouse, early engineers working for the company included Frank Conrad, Benjamin Garver Lamme, Bertha Lamme (first woman mechanical engineer in the United States), Oliver B. Shallenberger, William Stanley, Nikola Tesla, Stephen Timoshenko, and Vladimir Zworykin.

Early on, Westinghouse was a rival to Thomas Edison's electric company. In 1892, Edison was merged with Westinghouse's chief AC rival, the Thomson-Houston Electric Company, making an even bigger competitor, General Electric.

During the 20th century, Westinghouse engineers and scientists were granted more than 28,000 U.S. patents, the third most of any company. Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company changed its name to Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1945.

1990s

In 1990, Westinghouse experienced a serious setback when the corporation lost over one billion dollars due to bad high-risk, high-fee, high-interest loans made by its Westinghouse Credit Corporation lending arm.

In an attempt to revitalize the corporation, the board of directors appointed outside management in the form of CEO Michael H. Jordan, who brought in numerous consultants to help re-engineer the company to realize the potential that they saw in the broadcasting industry. Westinghouse reduced the workforce in many of its traditional industrial operations and made further acquisitions in broadcasting to add to its already substantial Group W network, including Infinity Broadcasting, TNN, CMT, American Radio Systems, and rights to NFL broadcasting. These investments cost the company over fifteen billion dollars. To recoup its costs, Westinghouse sold many other operations, including its defense electronics division, its metering and load control division (which was sold to ABB), its residential security division, the office furniture company Knoll, and Thermo King.

Westinghouse purchased CBS Inc. in 1994 for $5.4 billion. Westinghouse Electric Corporation changed its name to and became the original CBS Corporation in 1997. Also in 1997, the Power Generation Business Unit, headquartered in Orlando, Florida, was sold to Siemens of Germany. A year later, CBS sold all of its commercial nuclear power businesses to British Nuclear Fuels Limited (BNFL). In connection with that sale, certain rights to use the Westinghouse trademarks were granted to the newly formed BNFL subsidiary, Westinghouse Electric Company. That company was sold to Toshiba in 2006.

Products and sponsorships

Power generation: The company pioneered the power generation industry and in the fields of long-distance power transmission and high-voltage alternating-current transmission, unveiling the technology for lighting in Great Barrington, Massachusetts.

Steam turbine generator: The first commercial Westinghouse steam turbine-driven generator, a 1,500 kW unit, began operation at Hartford Electric Light Co. in 1901. The machine, nicknamed Mary-Ann, was the first steam turbine generator to be installed by an electric utility to generate electricity in the US. George Westinghouse had based his original steam turbine design on designs licensed from the English inventor Charles Parsons. Today a large proportion of steam turbine generators operating around the world, ranging to units as large as 1,500 MW (or 1,000 times the original 1901 unit) were supplied by Westinghouse from its factories in Lester, Pennsylvania, Charlotte, North Carolina, or Hamilton, Ont. or were built overseas under Westinghouse license. Major Westinghouse licensees or joint venture partners included Mitsubishi Heavy Industries of Japan and Harbin Turbine Co. and Shanghai Electric Co. of China.

Research: Westinghouse had 50,000 employees by 1900 and established a formal research and development department in 1906. While the company was expanding, it would experience internal financial difficulties. During the Panic of 1907, the board of directors forced George Westinghouse to take a six-month leave of absence. Westinghouse officially retired in 1909 and died several years later in 1914.

Electrical technology: Under new leadership, Westinghouse Electric diversified its business activities in electrical technology. It acquired the Copeman Electric Stove Company in 1914 and Pittsburgh High Voltage Insulator Company in 1921. Westinghouse also moved into radio broadcasting by establishing Pittsburgh's KDKA, the first commercial radio station, and WBZ in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1921. Westinghouse expanded into the elevator business, establishing the Westinghouse Elevator Company in 1928; it sold its elevator business to Schindler Group (forming the Schindler Elevator Corporation) in 1989. Throughout the decade, diversification engendered considerable growth; sales went from $43 million in 1914 to $216 million in 1929.

Aviation: Westinghouse produced the first operational American turbojet for the US Navy program in 1943. After many successes, the ill-fated J40 project, started soon after World War Two, was abandoned in 1955 and led to Westinghouse exiting the aircraft engine business with the closure of the Westinghouse Aviation Gas Turbine Division (Kansas City) in 1960.

Environmental incidents

There have been a number of Westinghouse-related environmental incidents in the US. Below is a short list of these. All of these are chemical pollution incidents; none of them involve nuclear reactors or nuclear pollution.

Sharon plant: The Westinghouse Sharon Plant was a 58-acre Westinghouse transformer production facility in Mercer County, Pennsylvania. The EPA's recent Five Year Review Report (2016) of this Superfund site determined that the Shenango River has been polluted due to Westinghouse operations in this area. Because of the findings, the state of Pennsylvania has issued a "Do Not Eat" advisory for fish around the Westinghouse site. This plant was no longer operational after 1984. Westinghouse submitted their final cleanup plan in 1998, and further action beyond their dissolution has been liable to CBS. The transformer business unit was sold to ABB in 1989. This site now houses a product design company.

Adams County plant: Westinghouse was fined $5.5 million in 1996 for polluting groundwater in over 100 wells, as well as other water sources, while operating its Westinghouse Elevator Company plant in Adams County, Pennsylvania. Degreasers and other toxic chemicals were released over a five-year period in the 1980s. This business unit was sold to Schindler in 1988. Future liability for cleanup has been directed to CBS following the dissolution of Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1999.

Horseheads site: Westinghouse operated a cathode-ray tube plant in Horseheads, New York. They were deemed responsible for pollution at the Kentucky Avenue Wellfield Superfund site in Horseheads, New York. Westinghouse polluted nearby soil, affecting the safety of a nearby aquifer and wells used by residents. One phase of the cleanup effort describes Westinghouse Electric Corporation's facility, designated "Disposal Area F" and the "Former Runoff Basin Area", which are contaminated with volatile organic compounds (VOCs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and arsenic, will be cleaned up using a combination of soil excavation and soil vapor extraction. At Disposal Area F, the area of contamination is about 0.3 acres. At the Former Runoff Basin Area, the contaminated soils cover approximately 0.7 acres. Disposal of the excavated soils occurred at appropriate off-site facilities. The removal of the PAHs and arsenic contamination will protect site workers and employees at the Westinghouse facility and the cleanup of the VOCs will help restore the quality of the Newtown Creek Aquifer. In 1986, Westinghouse entered a joint venture at this plant with Toshiba to produce Cathode-Ray Tubes (CRTs). In 1989, Toshiba became part owner of this plant and the Westinghouse CRT business unit. Future liability has been shifted to CBS.

Timeline of company evolution

1880s

1884 – George Westinghouse begins developing a DC electric lighting system

1885 – Westinghouse becomes aware of the new European transformer based alternating current systems when he reads about them in the UK technical journal Engineering

1885 – William Stanley, Jr., working for Westinghouse, develops the first practical AC transformer

1886 – Westinghouse Electric Company founded in East Pittsburgh

1886 – William Stanley, Jr. installs the world's first operational transformer based multiple voltage transmission system, a demonstration lighting system in Great Barrington, Massachusetts

1888 – development of an induction ampere-hour meter for alternating current developed by Oliver B. Shallenberger

1888 – licensing of Nikola Tesla's AC and Induction motor patents (Tesla was hired for one year as a consultant, but he quit after a few months)

1889 – renames itself the Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company

1890s

1891 – built world's first industrial AC system (Ames Hydroelectric Generating Plant)

1893 – supplied electric lights and power for World's Columbian Exposition and generators for Gettysburg Electric Railway

1893 – hired Bertha Lamme Feicht, the company's first female engineer

1894 – transportation Division (rail equipment) founded

1895 – installed hydropower AC generators at Adams Power Plant, Niagara Falls which supplied power to Buffalo, New York, completed 1896

1898 – purchases Walker Mfg. Co of Cleveland, establishing main facility and plant in Cleveland which produces power-transmitting machinery, cable railway networks, castings and lighting

1899 – founded British Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company

1900s to 1920s

1901 – acquires Bryant Electric Company of Bridgeport, Connecticut, which continues operation as a subsidiary

1901 – operation of first Westinghouse steam turbine generator installed at Hartford Electric Light Co.

1904 – with Baldwin, markets Baldwin-Westinghouse electric locomotives and AC electrification of railroads, particularly to the New Haven Railroad

1909 – introduces continuous-filament tungsten light bulb; ousts George Westinghouse as chairman during bankruptcy reorganization

1914 – acquires Copeman Electric Stove Company in Flint, Michigan from Lloyd Groff Copeman, moves it to Mansfield, Ohio and enters the home appliance market (sold in 1974 to White Consolidated Industries)

1914 – George Westinghouse dies, with a legacy including 361 patents and the founding of 60 companies

1915 – New England Westinghouse Company opens for business, first product is Mosin–Nagant rifles for the Russian Czar's army; within two years, the Bolsheviks cancel a previous order of over 1 million rifles after overthrowing the Russian Provisional Government, and facing bankruptcy, Westinghouse is rescued by the American Government when it purchases the rifles for use by the military

1917 – share of British Westinghouse purchased by a British holding company, which becomes Metropolitan-Vickers

1917 – builds steam turbine manufacturing plant in Lester, PA (Tinicum Township) near the Philadelphia airport

1919 – 8XE Pittsburgh experimental station goes on the air

1919 – creates RCA with GE, AT&T and United Fruit, buys the American division of Marconi

1930s and 1940s

1932 – announces Ignitron mercury-arc rectifier

1934 – opens its Home of Tomorrow in Mansfield, Ohio, to demonstrate Westinghouse home appliances

1935 – completes longest continuous electric steel annealing furnace in the world at Ford Motor Company, Dearborn, Michigan

1930s – funds invention of the magnetohydrodynamic generator

1937 – builds first "industrial atom smasher", a 5 MeV Van de Graaff electrostatic nuclear accelerator

1940s – enters aviation with airborne radar (defense electronics sold 1996), jet engine propulsion, and ground-based airport lighting, gets defense contract from U.S. military to produce plastic helmet liners for the M1 Helmet

1941 – after years of resistance to the unionization efforts of its employees and to the National Labor Relations Act, signs a national labor agreement with the United Electrical, Radio and Machine Workers of America after a United States Supreme Court decision that upheld the Act

1943 – purchased the lamp division of Kentucky-Radio Corporation (Ken-Rad) in Owensboro, Kentucky from Roy Burlew in exchange for 35,000 shares of Westinghouse stock valued at $1.6 million ($29.8 million todaywhen?)

1945 – renames itself the Westinghouse Electric Corporation and makes first automatic elevator

1945 – Westinghouse Aviation Gas Turbine Division (AGT) started

1948 – "You Can Be Sure... If It's Westinghouse" in Time magazine ad

1950s to 1970s

1951 – conducts first live network TV in U.S.

1952 – opens Cathode Ray Tube facility in Horseheads, New York; facility housed three divisions: Cathode Ray Tube, Electronic Tube, and Industrial and Government Tube

1954 – enters finance as Westinghouse Credit Corporation

1955 – buys KDKA-TV (then WDTV) in Pittsburgh and KYW-TV (then WNBK, now WKYC) and KYW Radio (originally, and currently WTAM) along with KYW-FM (then WTAM-FM, currently WMJI) in Cleveland; KYW is now licensed to a TV and AM radio station in Philadelphia

1955 – Westinghouse J40 engine failure causes all F3H fighters using the engine to be grounded, and all other jets using it switch to other engines; Westinghouse is forced out of aircraft engine business

1957 – introduces first successful "cobra head" roadway luminaire, the OV-25, integrating both ballast and optics in a more streamlined modern design

1961 – acquires Thermo King (sold in 1997 to Ingersoll Rand)

1964 – begins Skybus project; beginning of automated mass transit

1965 – invention of the first MEMS device, buys Marketeer Electronic Vehicles

1966 – founds Cinema Center Films

1966 – starts housing and real estate development divisions

1966 – buys a toy manufacturer

1967 – lights America's first computer-controlled outdoor electric sign

1980s

1981 – acquires both cable television operator TelePrompter (sold 1985), Muzak (sold September 1986), and 50% of Showtime for $576 million

1982 – acquires robot maker Unimation

1982 – sells street light division to Cooper Lighting

1983 – sells electric lamp division to Philips

1984 – buys Unimation robotics for $105 million

1986 – buys Los Angeles TV station

1986 – enters into joint venture with Airship Industries, Ltd. (London) to develop advanced lighter-than-air radar platforms and early warning surveillance airship for U.S. Navy in cooperation with its subsidiary TCOM Corp. located on the former Naval Air Station Weeksville in Elizabeth City, North Carolina

1987 – buys radio stations in Sacramento and Chicago

1987 – buys electrical equipment, engineering and waste disposal divisions

1988 – sells elevator/escalator division to Schindler Group, now known as Schindler Elevator Corporation

1988 – enters into joint venture with Taiwan Electric to build electric motors; Taiwan Electric eventually becomes sole owner of business as TECO Motor Company

1988 – spins Industrial and Government Tube Division off as Imaging and Sensing Technologies Corporation

1988 – closes the East Pittsburgh generator and Lester, PA turbine plants, which had once been the primary Westinghouse manufacturing facilities

1990s to 2020s

1990 – buys Knoll International Furniture

1994 – buys United Technologies' Norden electronic systems

1994 – Cleveland operations and facilities purchased by Eaton Corporation for $1.6 billion; Cleveland Westinghouse facilities, as well as manufacturing plants converted into other commercial enterprises

1994–95 – separates IT and phone service sales into Westinghouse Communications division

1995 – under the leadership of Michael H. Jordan buys CBS for $5.4 billion ($11.4 billion today)

1996 – buys Infinity Broadcasting for $4.7 billion

1996 – sells Westinghouse Electronic Systems defense business to Northrop Grumman for $3 billion ($6.2 billion today), becoming Northrop Grumman Electronic Systems

1997 – sells Thermo King division to Ingersoll Rand

1997 – buys American Radio Systems for $2.6 billion, increasing station network to 175

1997 – sells most non-broadcast operations; renames itself CBS Corporation as of December 1

1997 – sells its non-nuclear power generation and energy units to Siemens, which operated under the name Siemens Westinghouse until 2003

1998 – CBS Corporation creates Westinghouse Licensing Corporation subsidiary to manage the Westinghouse brand

1999 – sells remaining manufacturing asset, its nuclear energy business, to BNFL

Employees

CEOs

George Westinghouse, 1886–1909

Edwin Herr, 1911–1929

Frank Anderson Merrick, 1929 – February 1938

George Bucher, February 1938 – 1946

Gwilym Price, 1946–1957

Mark Cresap, Jr. 1957–1963

Don Burnham, 1963–1975

Robert Kirby, 1975–1983

Douglas Danforth, December 1983 – December 1987

John Marous, 1988 – June 29, 1990

Paul Lego, June 30, 1990 – January 1993

Gary Clark, January–July 1993

Michael Jordan, July 1993 – 1997

Other

Guy Tripp, a former Thomson-Houston employee who joined Westinghouse and became chairman of its board of directors in 1912, and served until his death in 1927.

Vladimir K. Zworykin, employed 1918-1930

Overseas subsidiaries

Westinghouse established subsidiary companies in several countries including British Westinghouse and Società Italiana Westinghouse in Vado Ligure, Italy. British Westinghouse became a subsidiary of Metropolitan-Vickers in 1919 and the Italian Westinghouse factory was taken over by Tecnomasio in 1921.