chicago brand power tools made in china

Chicago Electric power tools are manufactured in China. The Chicago Electric brand is sold exclusively at Harbor Freight Tools as of 2016 and is designed as a discount tool line.

The discount tool and equipment retailer Harbor Freight Tools introduced the Chicago Electrics brand in 1983. The line includes power tools such as drills, saws, grinders and impact wrenches. It is marketed as a high-quality discount brand.

Harbor Freight Tools also owns the Pittsburgh Pro, Central Pneumatic and U.S. General tool brands, all of which are also manufactured in China. Chicago Electric is not affiliated with Chicago Pneumatic, which sells a range of pneumatic tools manufactured in Japan.

Ever wonder who owns Craftsman tools? How about Milwaukee, Mac Tools, or Skilsaw? It may surprise you to know that only a handful of power tool companies own your favorite tools. That’s right, most tool brands fall under a parent company that also controls additional power tool manufacturers and brands. We break it down for you…with charts!

Stanley Black & Decker (SBD) turned heads when it bought Craftsman Tools in 2017 after Sears closed 235 stores in 2015. The company owns many brands, however. Dating back to 1843 with a man named Frederick Stanley, the company quickly formed its roots. In 2010, it merged with another company that started in 1910—Black and Decker. As of 2017, the company maintains a $7.5 billion business in tools & storage alone. SBD brands include:

As it turns out, TTI owns Milwaukee Tool and a host of other power tool companies. It also licenses the RIDGID* and RYOBI names for cordless power tools (Emerson owns RIDGID). TTI stands for Techtronic Industries Company Limited (TTI Group). Founded in 1985 in Hong Kong, TTI sells tools all over the world and employs over 22,000 people. TTI is listed on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and had worldwide annual sales of over US$6 billion in 2017. Their brands include:

Not anymore. In 2017, Chervon acquired Skil Power Tool Brands from Bosch. This added two big brands to their portfolio: Skilsaw and Skil. Chervon started its power tools business unit back in 1993, launching the EGO brand of cordless outdoor power equipment in 2013. In 2018, the company rebranded Skil (including the logo) and announced new 12V and 20V cordless power tools. Today, Chervon tools and products are sold by more than 30,000 stores in 65 countries. Chervon manufactures the following brands:

First off, Bosch Tools only represents part of the Bosch Group which includes Robert Bosch GmbH and over 350 subsidiaries across 60+ countries. In 2003 Robert Bosch GmbH combined its North American power tool and power tool accessory divisions into one organization, forming Robert Bosch Tool Corporation in North America. The company designs, manufactures, and sells power tools, rotary and oscillating tools, power tool accessories, laser and optical leveling devices, and range finding tools all over the globe. Bosch also manufactures the following tools:

Husqvarna Group manufactures chainsaws, trimmers, robotic lawn mowers, and ride-on lawnmowers. The Group also makes garden watering products as well as cutting equipment and diamond tools for the construction and stone industries. They have a presence in more than 100 countries and employ over 13,000 people in 40 countries. Husqvarna Group also owns the following tools:

JPW owns several large brands including Jet, Powermatic, and Wilton. The company has its headquarters in La Vergne, Tennessee but also has operations in Switzerland, Germany, Russia, France, Taiwan, and China. They sell products in 20 countries throughout the world. Their tool brands include:

Apex Tool Group has its headquarters in Sparks, Maryland, USA and employs more than 8,000 workers. They operate in more than 30 countries throughout North and South America, Europe, Australia, and Asia. Annual revenues exceed $1.4 billion on the sale of hand tools, power tools, and electronics tools for the industrial, automotive, aerospace, and construction/DIY markets. The following tool manufacturers belong to APEX Tool Group:

Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri (USA), Emerson controls power tool manufacturers and products in the industrial, commercial, and residential markets. While TTI licenses the RIDGID name for power tools, Emerson controls the following tools (among others):

Based in Wendlingen, Germany, TTS or Tooltechnic Systems owns Festool (electric and pneumatic tools), Tanos (not to be confused with the guy who destroyed half the universe), Narex, Sawstop, and now Shaper Tools. TTS is truly behind the scenes as it doesn’t really have appear to have its own website (at least not in the US) or an official logo. In bullet point format, its subsidiaries include:

Yamabiko Corporation started in 2008 and has three core business segments: outdoor power equipment, agricultural machinery, and industrial machinery. Based in Japan, Yamabiko is a global company with major markets in Japan and North America, and a growing presence in Europe and Asia. Tool brands include:

Founded over 100 years ago, ITW manufactures specialized industrial equipment, power tools, hand tools, and consumables. ITW operates in 57 countries with over 50,000 employees. They also have more than 17,000 granted and pending patents. ITW brands include:

Who makes Harbor Freight Power Tools remains a mystery—possibly because they may have switched suppliers in the past. Some have suggested LuTool, a company established in June 1999 supplies their power tools. LuTool has headquarters in Ningbo, China, and a North American office in Ontario, Canada. LuTool is owned by Gemay (Ningbo Gemay Industry Co Ltd) which also has its headquarters in Ningbo, China.

Not to be outdone, others have suggested Powerplus as the manufacturer behind the Drill Master, Warrior, Bauer, and Hercules lines of tools. Powerplus is a division of European company Varo with headquarters in Belgium.

Hilti and Makita are just Hilti and Makita. Hilti doesn’t have any subsidiary companies underneath them or a parent company over them. Makita, on the other hand, did acquire the Dolmar brand, bolstering its already-impressive line of outdoor power equipment tools. It’s pretty impressive the market share each of these companies enjoys!

We can’t leave out the popular house brands available at those big-box retailers and home improvement warehouses. Note that many (if not all) of the brands below represent ODM or OEM solutions. That means the tools get specified by the store but executed by another manufacturer. In other scenarios, tools are “offered” to a retailer and then manufactured in bulk upon acceptance of a buyer’s order.

While you may have thought you knew who owned all those power tool manufacturers, consolidation has changed the playing field. By far, Stanley Black & Decker demonstrates the largest buyout pattern. Companies like TTI, Apex Tool Group, ITW, and others also enjoy adding to their numbers.

For decades, Harbor Freight has become the go-to location for home power tools. To this day, the company continues to grow and brings in approximately $5 billion in revenue every year.

Thanks to their state-of-the-art testing labs, where employees put Harbor Freight tools into a long list of rigorous, punishing tests, Harbor Freight ensures a 100% satisfaction guarantee on all of their products.

In terms of quality, Chicago Electric is a mid-range brand. They’re not the most powerful nor the most durable, but they’re safe, functional, and get the job done just fine.

Along with the tools mentioned above, Chicago Electric also sells accessories and sharpeners to aid users with their projects. At the time of writing this review, Chicago Electric offers over 200 different tools and accessories fit for every occasion.

The Chicago Electric Miter Saw is praised for its power, versatility, and durability. Let’s take a look at the features that make this miter saw worth the attention.

Driven by a powerful 15 amp motor, the Chicago Electric Miter Saw has a generous 10-inch cut miter range that’s suitable for a number of applications.

While Chicago Electric tools aren’t as durable as the more well-known brands, they can survive years of use until they need to be replaced- especially if it’s well maintained and taken care of.

If you’re operating on a tight budget and only need to do standard DIY projects and household maintenance and repair, we recommend checking out some of Chicago Electric’s tools.

The massive verdict against Chinese-owned Positec in Chicago"s federal courthouse is a major victory for DeWalt"s owner, Black & Decker, which transformed its professional power tool business in the 1990s by reviving the DeWalt brand and adopting the now iconic yellow and black look on all of its tools.

Jurors found that the use of a near identical color scheme on packaging for Positec"s Rockwell brand of power tools was likely to confuse consumers after lawyers for Black & Decker compared DeWalt"s trademark color scheme to McDonald"s golden arches and Nike"s swoosh.

Niro said that Black & Decker spent more than $100 million advertising and promoting the DeWalt brand, including its sponsorship of NASCAR driver Matt Kenseth"s car, so that customers would recognize DeWalt tools on the shelves at Home Depot, Lowe"s and other home improvement stores.

Black & Decker developed DeWalt because of the perception that Black & Decker was a consumer brand that made coffee makers and low-cost tools, Niro said. Professional construction workers who were embarrassed to be seen with Black & Decker tools because their wives used their appliances at home embraced the DeWalt brand, he added.

Positec attorney Robert Theuerkauf said that Positec will likely appeal. It will continue to sell black and yellow packaged tools in the meantime, he said, though he added that he expects Black & Decker to now seek an injunction that would force Positec to stop.

Positec made some Black & Decker products in its Chinese factories in the 1990s but launched rival tool brand Worx and bought the Rockwell brand after Black & Decker started making tools in its own factory in Positec"s home city, Suzhou. Its owner, Don Gao, is a billionaire and the 189th richest person in China, according to Forbes.

CHICAGO - DeWalt won a $54 million verdict in a jury trial against China"s Positec, which manufacturers power tools using the trademark black and yellow color scheme as DeWalt, a unit of Stanley Black & Decker.

China"s Positec, which formerly manufactured for Black & Decker, sells Rockwell brand power tools, and its lawer said the company will contnue to do so until DeWalt obtains an injunction that would force it to stop. Positec is owned by Chinese billionaire, Don Gao.

DeWalt"s lawyer in the case, Raymond Niro, told the Chicago Tribunethat the U.S. tool manufacturer spent $100 million on advertising and promotion of the DeWalt brand - much of that centered recently on a Made in America theme as DeWalt expands its domestic tool manufacturing. The company has been steadly reshoring production of its power tools.INDUSTRY NEWS

In July, DeWalt formally announced it had expanded an initiative to build its products in the U.S., bringing an additional 60 corded and cordless power tools are into production at factories in Indiana Connecticut, Maryland, Kentucky, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee, making some of the brand’s most popular tools. DeWalt says it produces around 14 million products each year in the United States. The move was supported by a 2013 Consumer Reports survey that found 78 percent of Americans would rather buy a U.S.-made product when choosing between domestic or imported goods.

How much better is a high end tool compared to a low end?I had an opportunity to compare three oscillating tools side by side. I owned a Bosch tool since about 3-4 years, it served me very well. I bought a Festool Vecturo about half a year ago because I had an application which required a plunge base for very accurate cuts. Finally, I bought a Harbor Freight tool as a sacrificial tool to do some drywall work over the head (I did not want to get drywall dust into my better tools). Hence, so it happened that I ended up with three tools which cover the whole spectrum, from about $15 on the low end to almost $600 on the high end. I was very tempted to try them side by side to understand if the difference is at least remotely similar to the difference in price.The key to such test is to use the same blade on all tools. I had a “Japan tooth” saw blade (the one with relatively large teeth) which was compatible with Harbor Freight and Bosch tools. This is an appropriate blade to cut wood. I used a Fein adapter to install the same blade on Festool. The task was to cut through a half inch plywood (make a plunge cut). Both, my 10 year old son and I took turns making cuts. We measured the time to accomplish this goal for every tool.The parameters of the three tools compared were: (1) Chicago Electric (Harbor Freight) Item # 62279, fixed speed, 1.6 Amps, 21,000 rpm, 180 Watts, oscillation angle unknown, made in China ($14.99 at Harbor Freight on sale, $30 on Amazon at the time of this writing). (2) Bosch MX30EK-33 Multi-X, 3 Amps, 8,000-20,000 oscillations, 2.4 degree oscillation angle, made in Switzerland ($249), 3) Festool Vecturo Set , 400 Watts, up to 18,500 oscillations, 4 degree oscillation angle, made in Germany ($595).The first test was how the tools feel in hand. Chicago Electric was the lightest, the fit was nice, non-slippery, comfortable to hold. Five stars. Bosch was noticeably heavier, non-slippery handle, feels a little on the large side, but it worked fine for me and surprisingly my 10-year old son felt comfortable holding it, too. Hence, 4.5 stars. Festool felt a little weird in comparison, it lacks non-slippery surface to hold on to, and it is much longer than the other two tools because of a plug-in power cord (which I think is totally useless without dust extraction) – but despite all this, it does not slide in your hand and works fine. I always struggle a little finding the best spot to hold it. 4 stars.The second test was how easy was to install the blade. Chicago Electric was a chore, one has to use a metric Allen wrench to tighten the bolt which holds the blade in place. 3 stars. Bosch was by far the best, with quick release star-lock mechanism. It is just plug and play. 5 stars. Festool had very hard lever which one has to flip (my son was unable to do it at all), and a couple of parts which should be removed (and can be lost in the process). Quite uncomfortable, not much superior to Chicago Electric, 3.5 stars.The third test was turning on the tool. It may sound like a ridiculous test, but the power switch on Chicago Electric is so hard that my son could barely turn the tool on. For me, it was also a problem. 3 stars. Bosch was on second place, the switch was perfectly manageable, 4.5 stars, Festool was the most user-friendly when it comes to turning on, 5 stars.Now, to the cutting part! The first tool was Chicago Electric. Cutting through plywood was a struggle. It took me 35 seconds to make a plunge cut, while my son accomplished the same task in 33 seconds. This tool has a fixed speed. The other two tools have variable speed, and we set both tools to the max oscillation frequency. According to the tool specs, it got us roughly in the same ballpark. Bosch, with the same blade, was cutting amazingly faster. Both my son and I cut through half inch plywood, with the same blade, in 6 seconds. The difference was amazing, we expected that Chicago Electric may be worse, but not that hugely worse. Well, Festool has beaten that record easily. I accomplished the same plywood plunge cut (again, with the same blade) in 3.5 seconds, while my son completed the cut in 4 seconds. Just for the fun of it, at the end we installed on Festool it’s own (longer) plunge blade, and that one cut through the same plywood in astonishing 1.5 seconds! Wow! What a difference! From 35 seconds to 1.5 seconds!Hence, Chicago Electric ranks as 1 star (can barely do the job), Bosch rates at 4 stars ( adequate), and Festool ranks at 5 stars (superior cut speed). I think the reasons for this huge difference are two: power and oscillation angle. Festool has both the highest power and the largest angle of oscillation. Frequency of oscillations does not seem to have a decisive impact because all three tools in the test ran at similar RPMs: Chicago Electric has the highest frequency (21,000), followed by Bosch (20,000), and Festool was the lowest (18,000) – and yet it cuts faster.Quality: Chicago Electric is by far the worse. It is a low end, low cost China in all respects, from quality to look to feel to even packaging. The tool which we used was actually the second we got, the first one had to be replaced because the power switch did not work properly. Both Bosch and Festool are built very nicely. Both come in plastic cases, but Festool Systainer is clearly another step up over Bosch (albeit Bosch case is more compact and is a better thought-through for the use with this tool).Accessories: Bosch comes in a kit with a variety of blades. Festool’s kit does not include blades, but includes a plunge base which is a great attachment for making controlled precise cuts. In my opinion, the only version of Festool which is worth purchasing is the set with the plunge base. Bosch has a small advantage that it also comes with sanding pads (which are not all that useful, except in tight spots).None has dust extraction. All are pretty noisy.Overall rating: Festool came first in terms of performance. It cuts amazingly fast. Bosch has the best quality and performance to price ratio. It does not cut as fast as Festool, but it does a solid job. I decided to rate both Festool and Bosch five stars. Each has its disadvantages and advantages, none is perfect, but both are great performers. When it comes to cutting fast, Festool is the best in this test by a factor of two. When it comes to value for the money, Bosch is a little ahead. Chicago Electric… well… after the test, I told my son that he can take it apart to see what is inside and after that throw it into the dumpster – which is where it belongs. Chicago Electric is an incredibly inexpensive tool which can (sort of) do the job if it is bought just for a single task, in which cost is paramount but time is not critical. It works, but as a tool, meaning as a tool to do jobs over and over again, it is a joke. It is poorly made, and it barely cuts. You get what you paid for. I think it is better to spend more to buy a TOOL, not a joke.

A Chinese power tool manufacturer is moving its North American headquarters to Naperville from Michigan, taking over an empty new building developed for a Swedish manufacturer.

The company plans to bring more than 200 jobs over the next three years. It will relocate 75 workers from Grand Rapids and the Chicago suburbs of South Barrington and Geneva. Also moving there will be 37 employees who were added when Chervon completed its acquisition of Mount Prospect-based Robert Bosch Tools’ Skil and Skilsaw brands on January 1. The company also plans to hire 25 new workers this year and another 75 over the next three years.

Chervon makes power tools such as saws and drills, many of which are battery powered, with brand names including Ego and Hammerhead. It also makes outdoor equipment such as lawn mowers, blowers, trimmers and chain saws. Last year, Chervon bought the Skil tool brand from Mount Prospect-based Robert Bosch Tool.

We have invested millions of dollars in our own test labs and factories, so our tools will go toe-to-toe with the top professional brands. And we can sell them for a fraction of the price because we cut out the middleman and pass the savings on to you. It"s just that simple!