| Gents' of Leicester logo | |
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| Typical Gents' of Leicester logo |
| Gents' of Leicester clock | |
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| A typical 240-volt electric wall clock produced by Gents' of Leicester, dating to approx. the late 1960s |
Gents' of Leicester, also known as Gents & Company Limited, was established in Leicester, England, in 1872 by John Thomas Gent. For over a century, the company was a well known manufacturer of electrical equipment, in particular its electric clocks, which were used in public buildings and railway stations all over the world.
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The company also produced fire alarm systems, electric bells, transformers, telephones, signalling and recording equipment, and electrical parts for aircraft communications and radar equipment. The company had a workforce of several hundreds at its height.
Its main design and manufacturing centre and headquarters were at the Faraday Works in Temple Road, Leicester; but after World War II, the company expanded into nearby Kibworth.[1]
In 1981, Gents' of Leicester was taken over by the international organisation Chloride, and was known as "Chloride Gent". In 1982, the company was sold by Chloride to the MK Electric Group, and was then known as "Gent Limited". The factory at Kibworth closed, and only a few jobs remained at the central Leicester works.[2] In 1993, the company was acquired by Caradon/Novar; and in 2005, it was taken over by Honeywell, and has been known as "Gent by Honeywell" since. Still based in Leicester, the company is now mostly involved with fire detection and alarm systems.[3]