Sperry Marine
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Sperry Marine is a division of Northrop Grumman. The company manufactures many types of marine equipment such as marine radars, gyrocompasses, and navigation equipment. Sperry Marine was formed in 1997 from three well-known brand names in the marine industry - Sperry Marine, Decca Radar, and C. Plath. Sperry Marine was acquired by Litton Industries in 1996, followed by the Racal-Decca marine electronics business unit in 1997. They were combined with another Litton company, C. Plath, to create a single integrated worldwide supplier of navigation, communication, information and automation systems for commercial marine and naval markets. Northrop Grumman acquired Litton Industries in 2000.
The corporate headquarters of the company are located in Charlottesville, Virginia, USA, with European headquarters in New Malden, UK, and Hamburg, Germany.
[edit] History
The Sperry Gyroscope Company was founded in 1910 by Elmer A. Sperry, a noted engineer and inventor, who patented the first ballistic marine gyrocompass in 1911. During World War I, Sperry continued in the development of new-generation gyrocompass products, and also pioneered the development of gyro fire control and autopilot systems. In 1928, Elmer Sperry sold the Sperry Gyroscope Company to North American Aviation. In a subsequent corporate reorganization, it became the Sperry Corporation. During World War II, the company grew rapidly in response to the surging demand for marine gyrocompasses for the U.S. and Allied navies.
Following the war, Sperry Marine continued to solidify its position as the leading supplier of marine gyrocompasses and took the lead in developing integrated bridge systems for the commercial marine and naval markets. During the 1990s, Sperry Marine introduced the first ring laser gyro system for the U.S. Navy and rapidly became the world leader in ring laser gyro technology.
The company went through a series of mergers and acquisitions during the 1970s, 80s, and 90s, and was acquired by Northrop Grumman in 2000.
