Leviton

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This article is about the company. For the quasiparticle, see Leviton (quasiparticle).
Leviton Manufacturing Company, Inc.
Private
Industry Electrical
Founded 1906
Headquarters Melville, New York, USA
Area served
 Worldwide
Key people
 Donald Hendler (CEO & President)
Stephen B. Sokolow (Chairman)
Daryoush Larizadeh (COO)
Products Electrical Devices,
Lighting Controls,
Network Solutions,
Electric Vehicle Supply Equipment,
Security & Automation
Number of employees
 6,500 globally
Slogan The Future is On.
Website www.Leviton.com

Leviton Manufacturing Company, Inc., is the largest privately held manufacturer of electrical wiring equipment in North America.[1] It produces electrical light sockets, receptacles (switches & outlets), dimmers and other lighting control systems, wire, power cables, power cords, wall and ceiling occupancy sensors, wall plates, datacom, and other electrical products. Leviton is most famous for its Decora wall switch, the flat low profile form factor which replaced the standard toggle switch in many homes and office.[2]

History

File:Leviton logo old.png
The original Leviton logo, used from 1924 to circa 1968

The company was founded in 1906 by Isidor Leviton.[3] He began by manufacturing brass mantle tips for the natural gas lighting infrastructure in Manhattan. They sold their mantle tips on a pushcart on the Bowery on the Lower East Side of Manhattan. He also designed a screw-in lampholder for Thomas Edison's electric lamp in 1910, and within ten years the lampholders were being used in nearly every apartment in New York.

In the 1920s Leviton moved to the neighborhood of Greenpoint, in Brooklyn, and in 1936 the company built its own two square block, four-story factory and warehouse, which still stands today. The following year they acquired the American Insulated Wire Company, adding wire, cables, and cords to their product line.

Leviton bought Deal Electric Company in 1950, and Hale Brothers, which was renamed Leviton Canada, in 1953, and started to produce fluorescent lighting.

In 1965, Isidor Leviton's son Harold Leviton was named President and CEO.

Leviton moved its corporate headquarters to Little Neck, in Queens, New York, in 1973.[4]

In September 1999, Leviton acquired stage lighting controller manufacturer NSI Corp. as part of their Lighting Control Division.[5]

Donald Hendler and Stephen Sokolow, two of Harold Leviton's sons-in-law, were named CEO and chairman of the board respectively in December 2007, following the latter's death.[6]

Leviton moved from Little Neck in June 2009 to a slightly smaller but more energy-efficient corporate headquarters in Melvlle, N.Y.[4]

In 2011, Leviton partnered with Ford Motors to produce their evr-green Electric Vehicle Chargers for Ford Electric Cars.[7] Leviton also partnered with Toyota to manufacture chargers for the Toyota plug-in Electric Vehicles[8]

In 2012, Leviton launched its Universal Dimming device line which dims any dimmable light-emitting diode, compact fluorescent light, or incandescent lightbulb.[9] This results in dramatic energy savings. The company also released its Zipline Fluorescent Energy Retrofit Module, which eliminated retrofit wiring of ballasts.[10]

Leviton acquired Home Automation Inc. in August 2012,[11] and renamed it Leviton Security & Automation. In October 2013, Leviton acquired UK-based JCC Advanced Lighting.[12]

Leviton currently has operations in more than 85 countries on 6 continents, and employs approximately 6,500 people. Its products include over 25,000 devices and systems, which are used both residentially and in businesses.

North American Locations

  • Leviton Mfg. Company Inc., Melville, NY
  • Leviton Mfg. of Canada Ltd., Pointe-Claire, QC
  • Leviton Network Solutions, Bothell, WA
  • Leviton LES, Tualatin, OR
  • Leviton Security & Automation, New Orleans, LA
  • Leviton Mfg. Co., Morganton, NC

Recent Awards

2014: Leviton Receives Three EC&M "Product of the Year" Category Awards[13]
2013: Leviton SmartlockPro® OBC AFCI Receptacle Recognized as “2013 Best New Home Product” by This Old House Magazine[14]
2012: Home Channel News Golden Hammer Award[15]
2012: Today’s Facility Manager magazine Readers’ Choice Award[16]
2012: NECA Showstopper Award[17]

Patent Lawsuits

In March 2007, Leviton was sued in United States District Court by Lutron Electronics regarding various dimmers, switches, and wireless lighting control systems.[18][19] Lutron also filed a complaint with the International Trade Commission alleging that Leviton has produced several patent-infringing products in Mexico and China and then imported them into the United States.[20] The lawsuit was settled with a cross-license of certain of the parties' respective patents.[21]

External links

References

  1. ↑ Anonymous. Energy & Power Management. Troy: Jun 2005.Vol.30, Iss. 6; pg. 29, 7 pgs.Source type: Periodical ISSN: 15565467 ProQuest document ID: 855628221 Text Word Count 2946 Document URL: http://proquest.umi.com/pqdweb?did=855628221&sid=2&Fmt=2&clientId=76566&RQT=309&VName=PQD(subscription) Retrieved April 9, 2007)
  2. ↑ Decora > Leviton Web Site
  3. ↑ Leviton History > Leviton Web Site. Retrieved February 25, 2010
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
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  7. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  8. ↑ Lua error in package.lua at line 80: module 'strict' not found.
  9. ↑ Universal Dimmers > Leviton Web Site
  10. ↑ Zipline Lighting Retrofit > Leviton Web Site
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