Easco Hand Tools#History
{{Short description|Former manufacturing company}}
{{Infobox company
| name = Easco Hand Tools
| logo =
| type = Privately held company
| industry = Manufacturing
| predecessor = Moore Drop Forging Company
| foundation = {{Start date |1901 }}
| founder =
| defunct = {{End date |1990}}
| fate = Acquired by Danaher Corporation
| location_city = Hunt Valley, Maryland
| location_country = United States
| key_people =
| products = Hand tools
| num_employees =
}}
Easco Hand Tools was an American manufacturer of hand tools. It is best known for being the main supplier of mechanic's tools for the Craftsman brand. Its tools were also sold under the Allen and KD Tools brands after its acquisition by Danaher Corporation. The brand name was gradually phased out by Danaher.
History
The company began as Moore Drop Forging Company in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1900{{cite web |url=http://alloy-artifacts.org/moore-drop-forging.html |title=Moore Drop Forging Company |publisher=Alloy Artifacts |access-date=February 15, 2018}} or 1901.{{cite web |url=https://www.bloomberg.com/research/stocks/private/snapshot.asp?privcapid=7960446 |title=Company Overview of Easco Hand Tools, Inc. |publisher=Bloomberg |access-date=February 15, 2018}}
In 1938 Moore became a vendor for Sears Roebuck.
In 1967, Moore Drop Forging was acquired by Eastern Stainless Steel Corporation (Easco), a manufacturer of stainless and specialty steel. Easco continued the Craftsman contract with Sears. By 1969, the parent company was known as Easco Corporation. Tools made by MDF for Sears have a "V" maker's mark on them, those by Danaher had a "V^" (V and upside down V, sometimes a right-side up V). Variations of the "VV" exist including three digit codes on tools such as ratchets. It is believed that these denote the time frame of manufacture, as well as the plant that made them. "V" typically meant the tool was made in the Springfield, MA plant, "VV" typically meant it was made in the Springdale, AR plant and "G" meant it was made in the Gastonia, NC plant. This has been confirmed with various plant employees who worked at these facilities.
In 1985, Easco Corporation was acquired via a hostile takeover by Equity Group Holdings, controlled by the investment brothers Steven Rales and Mitchell Rales and taken private. The hand tools division of the company was taken public, and the other divisions were sold to an investment group including Citicorp Venture Capital.{{cite web|last=Sweeney|first=Paul|work=The New York Times|title=Brothers Come of Age With New Bid|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1988/10/15/business/brothers-come-of-age-with-new-bid.html|date=1988-10-15|access-date=2014-02-28}}
In 1990, the hand tool company was acquired by the brothers' Danaher Corporation.{{cite web|work=The New York Times|title=COMPANY NEWS; Danaher Acquires Easco Hand Tools|url=https://www.nytimes.com/1990/02/21/business/company-news-danaher-acquires-easco-hand-tools.html|date=1990-02-21|access-date=2014-02-28}} This acquisition made the tools division the largest part of Danaher.{{cite web|work=Hoover's|title=Danaher Corporation|url=http://cobrands.hoovers.com/company/Danaher_Corporation/rfcyci-1-1njhxk.html|access-date=2014-02-28|archive-date=2014-03-05|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140305150442/http://cobrands.hoovers.com/company/Danaher_Corporation/rfcyci-1-1njhxk.html|url-status=dead}} In 1991, Sears selected Danaher to be the exclusive supplier of Craftsman mechanic's tools.{{cite web|last=Martin|first=Ellen James|work=The Baltimore Sun|title=Sears to buy more tools from Danaher|url=https://www.baltimoresun.com/1991/06/18/sears-to-buy-more-tools-from-danaher/|date=1991-06-18|access-date=2014-02-28}}
In 2010, Danaher merged its tools division with Cooper Tools to form Apex Tool Group. In 2013, Apex closed the Gastonia, North Carolina plant where Easco manufactured sockets since 1978.{{cite web|last=Robinson|first=Ragan|work=The Gaston Gazette|title=Gaston plant closing, 220 to lose jobs|url=http://www.gastongazette.com/gaston-plant-closing-220-to-lose-jobs-1.77192|date=2013-01-10|access-date=2014-02-28}}