Marconi Company

Source: Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.
This article is about the consolidated history (1897–2006) of the Marconi Company. For the consolidated history (1886–2006) of its parent company, see
Marconi plc
.
"Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company" and "Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Company" redirect here. For the other businesses named Marconi, see Marconi.

Marconi Company Ltd

The Marconi Company was a British telecommunications and engineering company that did business under that name from 1963 to 1987. Its roots were in the Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company founded by Italian inventor Guglielmo Marconi in 1897, which underwent several changes in name after mergers and acquisitions. The company was a pioneer of wireless long distance communication and mass media broadcasting, eventually becoming one of the UK's most successful manufacturing companies. In 1999, its defence equipment manufacturing division, Marconi Electronic Systems, merged with British Aerospace (BAe) to form BAE Systems. In 2006, financial difficulties led to the collapse of the remaining company, with the bulk of the business acquired by the Swedish telecommunications company, Ericsson.

History

Naming history

  • 1897–1900: The Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company
  • 1900–1963: Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Company
  • 1963–1987: Marconi Company Ltd
  • 1987–1998: GEC-Marconi Ltd
  • 1998–1999: Marconi Electronic Systems Ltd
  • 1999–2003: Marconi plc, with Marconi Communications as principal subsidiary
  • 2003–2006: Marconi Corporation plc

Early history

An employee of the Marconi Company, England, 1906
Marconi Wireless Station in Somerset, New Jersey, in 1921.
The Radio Times
, threatening prosecution for infringements of Marconi patents.

Marconi's "Wireless Telegraph and Signal Company" was formed on 20 July 1897 after a British patent for wireless technology was granted on 2 July that year. The company opened the world's first radio factory on Hall Street in Chelmsford northeast of London in 1898 and was responsible for some of the most important advances in radio and television. These include:

The subsidiary

Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in 1919.[4]

In 1900 the company's name was changed to "Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Company" and Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Training College was established in 1901. The company and factory was moved to

Mussolini's regime a monopoly of radio broadcasts in 1924. After the war, URI became the RAI
, which lives on to this day.

Isaac Shoenberg joined the company in 1914 and became joint general manager in 1924. After leaving Marconi in 1928 he went on to lead research at EMI where he was influential in the development of television broadcasting.[5]

In 1939, the

Ekco Instruments to form Marconi Instruments
.

Operations as English Electric subsidiary

New Street Factory in 2018

English Electric acquired the Marconi Company in 1946 to complement its other operations: heavy electrical engineering, aircraft manufacture and its railway traction business. In 1948 the company was reorganised into four divisions: Communications, Broadcasting, Aeronautics and Radar. These had expanded to 13 manufacturing divisions by 1965 when a further reorganisation took place. The divisions were placed into three groups: Telecommunications, Components and Electronics.

At this time the Marconi Company had facilities at New Street Chelmsford, Baddow, Basildon, Billericay, and Writtle as well as in Wembley, Gateshead and Hackbridge. It also owned Marconi Instruments, Sanders Electronics, Eddystone Radio and Marconi Italiana (based in Genoa, Italy). In 1967 Marconi took over Stratton and Company to form Eddystone Radio.

Expansion in Canada

In 1903, Marconi founded the Marconi's Wireless Telegraph Company of Canada which was renamed as the Canadian Marconi Company in 1925. The radio business of the Canadian Marconi Company is known as Ultra Electronics TCS since 2002 and its avionic activities as CMC Electronics, owned by Esterline since 2007.[6]

Expansion as GEC subsidiary

In 1967 or 1968, English Electric was subject to a takeover bid by the

Elliott Automation which specialised in real-time computing were amalgamated with those of Marconi's Automation Division to form Marconi-Elliott Computers, later renamed as GEC Computers
. In 1968 Marconi Space and Defence Systems and Marconi Underwater Systems were formed.

The Marconi Company continued as the primary defence subsidiary of GEC, GEC-Marconi. Marconi was renamed GEC-Marconi in 1987. During the period 1968–1999 GEC-Marconi/MES underwent significant expansion.

Acquisitions which were folded into the company and partnerships established included:

Other acquisitions included:

  • Divisions of
    Siemens AG
    , to meet with regulatory approval).
    • Plessey Avionics
    • Plessey Naval Systems
    • Plessey Cryptography
    • Plessey Electronic Systems (75%)
    • Sippican
    • Leigh Instruments

In a major reorganisation of the company, GEC-Marconi was renamed Marconi Electronic Systems in 1996 and was separated from other non-defence assets.

Since 1999

In 1999, GEC was broken up and parts sold off. Marconi Electronic Systems, which included its wireless assets, was demerged and sold to British Aerospace which then formed BAE Systems.

GEC, realigning itself as a primarily telecommunications company following the MES sale, retained the Marconi brand and renamed itself

Marconi Corporation plc.[7]

In October 2005 the Swedish firm Ericsson offered to buy the Marconi name and most of the assets. The transaction was completed on 23 January 2006, effective as of 1 January 2006.[8] The remainder of the Marconi company, with some 2,000 staff working on telecommunications infrastructure in the UK and the Republic of Ireland, was renamed Telent.[8][9]

See also

References

  1. ^ Second Test of the Marconi Over-Ocean Wireless System Proved Entirely Successful. Sydney Daily Post. 24 October 1907
  2. ISBN 9780674396661
    .
  3. ^ "A Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company for America", Electrical World and Engineer, December 2, 1899, pp.870–871.
  4. ^ Buckley, Peter J. European Direct Investment in the U.S.A. before World War I. Springer.
  5. ^ "Isaac Shoenberg 1880–1963". Science Museum Group Collection. Retrieved 23 March 2024.
  6. ^ Denis Couillard, Ultra Electronics TCS
  7. ^ "MARCONI PLC, Form 6-K, Filing Date Mar 31, 2003" (PDF). secdatabase.com. Retrieved 17 December 2020.
  8. ^ a b Milner, Mark; Moore, Charlotte (26 October 2005). "Ericsson deal closes Marconi's final chapter". the Guardian. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  9. ^ "Telent Limited". Companies House. Retrieved 13 September 2021.
  • Baker, W. J. (1970, 1996). History of the Marconi Company 1894–1965.

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Marconi Company.
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Marconi_Company&oldid=1218199170"