TRW Inc.
| TRW
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|---|---|
 |
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| legal form | Incorporated |
| founding | 1901 |
| resolution | 2002 |
| Reason for dissolution | Acquisition by Northrop Grumman |
| Seat | |
| Branch | Defense industry, aerospace, automotive supply |
The TRW ( T hompson R amo W ooldridge ) was an American technology company in the United States . Founded in 1901, the company ceased to exist in 2002 when the aerospace division was sold to Northrop Grumman while the automotive division was sold as TRW Automotive .
history
In 1875 Joseph Lucas began making ship lamps in Birmingham . In 1897 Lucas Industries began manufacturing parts for the automotive industry. In 1931 Lucas Industries and Bosch founded CAV-Bosch (CAV: Charles Anthony Vandervell (1870–1955), founder of CA Vandervell Ltd. in Acton , Great Britain. Manufacturer of diesel injection systems). In the same year the company took over the brake business of the Bendix Corporation in England. In 1939, Lucas Industries took over Bosch's shares in CAV-Bosch. In 1943, New Hudson Co. was taken over, and the Girling brake patent holder merged with Bendix and Luvax shock absorbers to form Girling.
Simon Ramo and Dean Wooldridge founded The Ramo-Wooldridge Corporation in 1953 . 1958 came the merger of Thompson Products with Ramo-Wooldridge to Thompson-Ramo-Wooldridge. Thompson-Ramo-Wooldridge became the first company to build a spaceship, the Pioneer 1 . In 1964 the computer division was spun off into a joint venture with Martin Marietta as Bunker Ramo Corporation .
In 1965 the company name was shortened to TRW Inc. TRW took over United Carr and entered the electronics / electromechanical and restraint system industry. Furthermore, the company was taken over by Cam Gears in the UK. TRW developed and supplied the Abort Guidance System (AGS) for the lunar lander for the Apollo mission . TRW bought Credit Data in 1969 and thus entered the information industry. In 1971 TRW took over Ehrenreich. In 1972, TRW introduced the first power steering system in the USA. TRW took over Repa and thus entered the occupant restraint system business.
The Viking Biology Instrument, built by TRW, searched for life on Mars in 1976. TRW merged with ESL, Inc. in 1977. The TRW-built Pioneer 10 was the first human-built object to leave the solar system in 1983. The first tracking and data relay satellite (TDRS) built by TRW was launched in 1983 with STS-6 from the space shuttle Challenger . In 1989, TRW produced the VHSIC SuperChip, the first self-repairing electronic component. The first airbag system including sensors was delivered by TRW. In 1995, TRW had sales of more than $ 10 billion for the first time in its history. TRW continued to produce the first single sensor system for front, side and rear impacts in 1996 and in the same year sold the information systems business. Lucas Industries and Varity merged to form LucasVarity . The rating business was spun off to Experian in 1996 .
In 1997, TRW took over the airbag and steering wheel systems division from Magna International as well as BDM International and Temic Bayern Chemie Airbag in Aschau am Inn. These became TRW Airbag Systems and brought the entry into the field of occupant protection systems. In 1998, TRW was the first automotive supplier to design, develop and integrate a complete occupant restraint system for a series vehicle, the Mercedes-Benz M-Class. TRW supplied the first two-stage generator for airbags. In 1999, TRW took over the automotive supplier LucasVarity. TRW sold the real estate business in 2001, which was taken over with ESL. TRW was a US company that mainly manufactured armaments , but also a supplier to the automotive industry . In addition, TRW operated a rating agency . On December 12, 2002, Northrop Grumman bought the armaments division. From then on, the auto parts division was an independent automotive supplier as TRW Automotive and part of the US financial investor Blackstone Group .
literature
- Davis Dyer: TRW: Pioneering Technology and Innovation since 1900 . Harvard Business School Press, Boston 1998, ISBN 0-87584-606-8 .