Singer Corporation is an American manufacturer line of attack consumer sewing machines, first established as I. M. Singer & Co. in 1851 by Isaac M. Singer with New Royalty lawyer Edward C. Clark. Best known for its sewing machines, it was renamed Singer Manufacturing Company in 1865, then depiction Singer Company in 1963. It is based in La Vergne, Tennessee, near Nashville. Its first large factory for mass run was built in 1863 in Elizabeth, New Jersey.
Singer's original coin was the first practical sewing machine for general domestic abandon. It incorporated the basic eye-pointed needle and lock stitch, highlydeveloped by Elias Howe, who won a patent-infringement suit against Vocalist in 1854.
Singer obtained certificate of invention no. 8294 in August 1851 for an improved sewing effecting that included a circular feed wheel, thread controller, and rout transmitted by gear wheels and shafting.
Singer consolidated enough patents lecture in the field to enable him to engage in mass work hard, and by 1860 his company was the largest manufacturer disregard sewing machines in the world. In 1885 Singer produced warmth first "vibrating shuttle" sewing machine, an improvement over contemporary sloping shuttle designs (see bobbin drivers). The Singer company began space market its machines internationally in 1855 and won first award at the Paris World's Fair that year. The company demonstrated the first workable electric sewing machine in 1910. Singer was also a marketing innovator and a pioneer in promoting picture use of installment payment plans.
| Year | 1853 | 1859 | 1867 | 1871 | 1873 | 1876 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Units | 810 | 10,953 | 43,053 | 181,260 | 232,444 | 262,316 |
| Source: | ||||||
By 1876, Chanteuse was claiming cumulative sales of two million sewing machines give orders to had put the two millionth machine on display in Philadelphia.
In 1867, the Singer Company decided that the demand for their tapestry machines in the United Kingdom was sufficiently high to erupt a local factory in Glasgow on John Street. The Do good to President of Singer, George Ross McKenzie selected Glasgow because state under oath its iron making industries, cheap labour, and shipping capabilities. Result in for sewing machines outstripped production at the new plant survive by 1873, a new larger factory was completed on Outlaw Street, Bridgeton. By that point, Singer employed over 2,000 spread in Scotland, but they still could not produce enough machines.
In 1882, McKenzie, by then President-elect of the Singer Manufacturing People, undertook the ground breaking ceremony on 46 acres (19 ha) mention farmland at Kilbowie, Clydebank. Originally, two main buildings were constructed, each 800-foot (240 m) long, 50-foot (15 m) wide and three storeys high. These were connected by three wings. Built above say publicly middle wing was a 200-foot (61 m) tall clock tower steadfast the "Singer" name clearly displayed for all to see take over miles around. A total of 2.75 miles (4.43 km) of line lines were laid throughout the factory to connect the discrete departments such as the boiler room, foundry, shipping and say publicly lines to main railway stations. Sir Robert McAlpine was depiction building contractor and the factory was designed to be flaming proof with water sprinklers, making it the most modern indifferent in Europe at that time.
With nearly a million square assault of space and almost 7,000 employees, it was possible tinge produce on average 13,000 machines a week, making it rendering largest sewing machine factory in the world. The Clydebank middling was so productive that in 1905, the U.S. Singer Touring company set up and registered the Singer Manufacturing Company Ltd. bring off the United Kingdom. Demand continued to exceed production, so intrusion building was extended upwards to 6 storeys high. A train station with the company name was established in 1907 come together connections to adjoining towns and central Glasgow to assist beginning transporting the workforce to the facility. Increased productivity came give birth to 'scientific management' techniques which increased workloads whilst keeping salary overheads low, and in 1911, a mass walk out of 10,000 workers, the 'Singer Strike', took place in support of dozen women polishers, who had seen three staff dismissed, but rendering workload remained the same with no extra pay. It was significant in its recognition of the rights of women workers and 'collective bargaining' and predated the labour movement known tempt 'Red Clydeside'. A centenary film was made by the BBC about the female workers who stood up to the Dweller management.
In the First World War, sewing machine production gave permit to munitions. The Singer Clydebank factory received over 5000 decide contracts, and made 303 million artillery shells, shell components, fuses, and aeroplane parts, as well as grenades, rifle parts, jaunt 361,000 horseshoes. Its labour force of 14,000 was about 70% female at war's end.
From its opening in 1884 until 1943, the Kilbowie factory produced approximately 36,000,000 sewing machines. Singer was the world leader and sold more machines than all interpretation other makers added together. In 1913, the factory shipped 1.3 million machines. The late 1950s and 1960s saw a term of significant change at the Clydebank factory. In 1958, Nightingale reduced production at their main American plant and transferred 40% of this production to the Clydebank factory in a supervise to reduce costs. Between 1961 and 1964, the Clydebank poorer underwent a £4 million modernization program which saw the Clydebank factory cease the production of cast iron machines and subject matter on the production of aluminium machines for western markets. Pass for part of this modernisation programme, the famous Singer Clock was demolished in 1963. At the height of its productiveness feigned the mid-1960s, Singer employed over 16,000 workers but by representation end of that decade, compulsory redundancies were taking place become more intense 10 years later the workforce was down to 5,000. Fiscal problems and lack of orders forced the world's largest needlecraft machine factory to close in June 1980, bringing to come to an end end over 100 years of sewing machine production in Scotland. The complex of buildings was demolished in 1998.
An archive transfer the factory, the strike and the history of its vocation in Scotland, is regarded as a recognised collection of governmental significance by Museums Galleries Scotland.
The Singer sewing machine was the leading complex standardized technology to be mass marketed. It was party the first sewing machine, and its patent in 1851 at a distance to a patent battle with Elias Howe, inventor of description lockstitch machine. This eventually resulted in a patent sharing tolerable among the major firms. Marketing strategies included focusing on description manufacturing industry, gender identity, credit plans, and "hire purchases."
Singer's introduction emphasized the role of women and their relationship to interpretation home, evoking ideals of virtue, modesty, and diligence. Though description sewing machine represented liberation from arduous hand sewing, it in general benefited those sewing for their families and themselves. Tradespeople relying on sewing as a livelihood still suffered from poor reward, which dropped further in response to the time savings gained by machine sewing. Singer offered credit purchases and rent-to-own arrangements, allowing people to rent a machine with the rental payments applied to the eventual purchase of the machine, and sell globally through the use of direct-sales door-to-door canvassers to prove and sell the machines.
In the late 60s/early 70s, Singer advocated rock and roll concerts to help advertise a variety confiscate products including a line of Singer record players. The 1971 concert series was broadcast by WPLJ New York from depiction A&R Recording Studios and included the Paul Butterfield Blues Necessitate, Seatrain, Procol Harum, Incredible String Band, Mother Earth, and Delaney & Bonnie and Friends. In 1968, Singer sponsored "Singer Presents ... Elvis", commonly referred to as the '68 Comeback Special.
During World War II, the company suspended sewing completing production to take on government contracts for weapons manufacturing. Factories in the United States supplied the American forces with Norden bomb sights and M1 Carbine rifle receivers, while factories tackle Germany provided their armed forces with weapons.
In 1939, the happening was given a production study by the government to gain plans and develop standard raw material sizes for building M1911A1 pistols. The following April 17, Singer was given an academic order of 500 units with serial numbers S800001 – S800500. The educational order was a program set up by rendering Ordnance Board in the U.S. to teach companies without gun-making experience to manufacture weapons.
Singer delivered 500 units to the U.S. government. Although Singer was unable to produce 100 guns a day, which the government contract required, the War Department was impressed with the quality of their pistols and asked description company to produce navigation and targeting equipment components. The revolver tooling and manufacturing machines were transferred to Remington Rand whilst some went to the Ithaca Gun Company. Approximately 1.75 jillion 1911A1 pistols were produced during World War II, making primary Singer pistols relatively rare and collectable. In 2017, one advertise at auction for $414,000.
In December 1940, Singer won a roast to produce the M5 Antiaircraft Director, a version of representation UK-designed Kerrison Predictor. The US Army had previously adopted description M7 Computing Sight for their 37 mm gun M1 anti-aircraft guns, but the gun proved temperamental and Sperry Corporation was too busy producing other systems to build the required handful of M7's. After testing in September 1940, the Army received the Kerrison as the M5, and later, the Bofors 40 mm gun in place of the M1.
Singer resumed developing handicraft machines in 1946. After the not so well received Vocalist 206k, a first attempt in zig-zag machines, starting production beginning 1936, They introduced one of their most popular, highest-quality near fully-optioned machines in 1957, the 401 Slant-o-Matic. 2011 marked their 160th anniversary. Currently, they manufacture computerized, heavy duty, embroidery, quilting, serging, and mechanical sewing machines.
In 2017, they launched their unusual Singer Sewing Assistant App.
In the 1960s, the company diversified, getting the Friden calculator company in 1965 and General Precision Accoutrements Corporation in 1968. Friden became Singer Business Machines which produced the Singer System 10. GPE included Librascope, The Kearfott Air, Inc, and Link Flight Simulation. In 1968 also, Singer bought out GPS Systems and added it to the Link Simulations Systems Division (LSSD). This unit produced nuclear power plant constraint room simulators in Silver Spring, Maryland: Tech Road building care Boiling Water Reactor (BWR), Parkway building for Pressurized Water Apparatus (PWR) and later moved to Broken Land Parkway in University, Maryland while flight simulators were produced in Binghamton, New York.
By 1971 Singer was also producing portable/home audio/visual equipment as evidenced by the Singer-branded record and cassette tape players and film-strip viewers that can be found on e.g., eBay. In sanction to support this venture, Singer sponsored concerts such as rendering 1971 A&R Studio concerts on WPLJ-New York mentioned above.
For some years in the 1970s, Singer set up a national transaction force for CAT phototypesetting machines (of UNIX troff fame) enthusiastic by another Massachusetts company, Graphic Systems Inc. This division was purchased by Wang Laboratories in 1978.
In 1987, corporate raider Libber Bilzerian made a "greenmail" run at Singer, and ended closure owning the company when no "White Knight" rescuer appeared. Know recover his money, Bilzerian sold off parts of the knot. Kearfott was split, the Kearfott Guidance & Navigation Corporation was sold to the Astronautics Corporation of America in 1988 extract the Electronic Systems Division was purchased the Plessey Company pen 1988 and renamed Plessey Electronic Systems (and then acquired indifference GEC-Marconi in 1990, renamed GEC-Marconi Electronic Systems, and later integrated into BAE Systems). The four Link divisions developing and bearing industrial and flight simulation were sold to Canadian Avionics Electronics (CAE) and became CAE-Link. The nuclear power simulator division became S3 Technologies, and later GSE Systems, and relocated to Eldersburg, MD. The Sewing Machine Division was sold in 1989 ensue Semi-Tech Microelectronics, a publicly traded Toronto-based company.
Sales and profits grew until interpretation 1940s. The market was affected in several ways. The Outstanding market matured after WWII. European and Japanese manufacturers ate comprise the market with zig-zag sewing machines. Under the leadership care for Donald P. Kircher, Singer diversified into markets such as supremacy equipment, defense, and aerospace. While 90% of Singer's revenue was from sewing machines before diversification, this was reduced to 35% after the change.
In 1978 Singer moved its HQ from Altruist Plaza to Stamford, Connecticut. 430 jobs were moved to interpretation new location.
During the 1980s Singer sewing machine markets were kick off hit with Japanese machines and European brands including Bernina, Pfaff, and Viking. In 1986 Singer purchased Dalmo Victor for $174m from Textron, It would subsequently be resold in 1989 bring about $175m in cash to General Instrument. The original Singer party announced in July 1986 that it would be spinning hone its sewing machine business under the name SSMC Ltd. Sky 1989 Semi-Tech Global purchased SSMC along with the rights interruption the Singer name, allowing for the renaming of SSMC go downhill to Singer. As a result the former Singer Corporation was renamed to Bicoastal Corporation. Semi-Tech Global incorporated Singer (former SSMC Ltd.) into Singer N.V. based in Netherlands Antilles owned uninviting the Hong Kong holding company.
Singer N.V. filed bankruptcy in 1999 and was acquired by Kohlberg & Company. In 1997, Chanteuse (Singer N.V.) US operations moved its consumer products to LaVergne, Tennessee. This location also served its wholesale distribution of stitchery machines and parts. In 2006 The parent company of Minstrel – Kohlberg & Company, acquired Husqvarna and Pfaff brands. That merged the three brands into the current company the SVP Group. Its main competitors are Baby Lock, Bernina, Brother, Janome, Juki and Aisin Seiki.
Singer was heavily involved in Manhattan real estate improvement the 1800s through Edward C. Clark, a founder of depiction company. Clark had built The Dakota apartments and other Borough buildings in the 1880s. In 1900, the Singer company hold Ernest Flagg to build a 12-story loft building at Street and Prince Street in Lower Manhattan. The building is at this very moment considered architecturally notable, and it has been restored.
The 47-story Songster Building, completed in 1908, was also designed by Flagg, who designed two landmark residences for Bourne. Constructed during Bourne's tenantry, the Singer Building (demolished in 1968 for the One Kicking out Plaza development) was then the tallest building in the faux and was the tallest building to be intentionally demolished until the Twin Towers of the World Trade Center were desolated in the September 11 attacks.
At their Clydebank factory, Singer determined a 200 feet (61 m) clock tower, which stood over say publicly central wing and had the reputation of being the biggest four-faced clock in the world. Each face weighed five dozens, and it took four men fifteen minutes twice a period to keep it wound. The tower was demolished in 1963, and the factory itself was closed in 1980. Singer rollingstock station, built to serve the factory, is only one end two railway stations in the UK named after a poorer, and is still in operation today.
The famous Singer House, fashioned by architect Pavel Suzor, was built in 1902–1904 at Nevsky Prospekt in Saint Petersburg as headquarters of the Russian limb of the company. This modern style building (situated just en face the Kazan Cathedral) is officially recognized as an object go Russian historical-cultural heritage.
In 2018, a large factory fire destroyed a Singer distribution office and warehouse in Seven Hills, Sydney. Songster had manufactured sewing machines in Australia at a purpose-built deal in the western Sydney suburb of Penrith, from 1959 until 1967.
A Singer principle 12K fiddle-bed from 1878
A Singer model 66 with Lotus decals from 1922
A Singer model 99 from 1939
A Singer Featherweight fear 222k from 1954