build your own power tools manufacturers

Power equipment often operates in demanding conditions, including extended use and extreme environments. At MW Components, we design, engineer, and test our lightweight components to provide durability and consistent operation over a long life.

With over 30 locations, our manufacturing facilities offer the latest technology, including Swiss turning with diameters from 0.188” to 1.250”, CNC milling, honing, grinding, and more. Our team has over 50 years of experience manufacturing precision products such as hot and cold wound springs, fourslide metal stampings, and Belleville washers. These quality products have given us a reputation as a top US-based power tool manufacturer and led us to support some of the largest consumer tool brands in the world.

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.

Accessories with the original "Starlock" tool-holder can be changed over quickly, easily and safely, guaranteeing a perfect fit and optimum power transmission.Private Label inscriptions/Custom Private Label design

When you are buying power tools, it makes sense to choose a brand and stick with them. You do not have to worry about different types of batteries, different ways of doing things, and all the other hassles that come into play when you mix and match tools.

Before we jump into listing the best brands, I want to point out that the brand order is not ranked. The reality is that there is no one size that fits all. No one brand contains all of the best power tools, so what you find amazing in one brand, your neighbor is going to find in another.

The power tool industry is big and complex. One brand might make the best drill while the other might make the best jigsaw. Also, the power tool lineup within each brand can get very granular, because most brands want to cover the widest market possible.

I did some major renovations in and around the house recently, so I had plenty of opportunities to talk with various contractors about the tools of their trade.

The homeowners I talked to are my DIY friends and neighbors. I’ve heard them say that they’ve either inherited their tools, bought them on sale, or they did thorough research before buying them.

But, generally speaking, each brand on this list has at least 2 years of wear and tear coverage on their tools. If you want to get deeper, I have included a link to each brand’s website, where you can also find their warranty pages.

As for websites, there isn’t much research available, but there is one that stands out. It has recent research conducted by Lifestory Research on the most trusted power tool brands in America.

You may find tools aimed at homeowners being used on worksites, and vice-versa. Some companies create high-quality tools in both markets, while some fall short and others create amazing one-offs.

The tool market is competitive, with new companies entering the market all the time, but our recommended brands have risen to the top with years of experience, high-quality tools, and expert customer service.

Now, they offer construction tools, outdoor equipment, and more. They have amassed a large line of cordless tools, leading the way with a cordless revolution.

They also have corded, gas-powered, and multiple battery-powered tools. Their One-Key platform allows them to manage compatibility and maintenance across all of their battery-powered tools.

They make some of the best tools for electricians, HVAC technicians, and automotive workers. They are popular with professional contractors, and suitable for the most rugged and tough jobs.

A well-known brand that was established in 1915, but was not recognizable as the power-tool company that we know today until 1958. First came the planer, then drills, followed by everything else.

You will find Makita tools on construction sites and in workshops around the world. Their power tools are solid, and they also offer yard equipment and a range of pneumatic tools.

They even make a cordless coffee maker that you can use on job sites. And if you want your tools to be powerful and stylish, you can reach for the LXT sub-compact brushless series.

Once based in Japan, the tools are now manufactured all around the world without any drop in quality. A favorite on job sites, their power tools are complemented by extra convenience equipment such as fans and radios.

Raymond E. DeWalt invented the radial arm saw in 1923. The result of that is the multinational company that is around today. They are one of the original power tool manufacturers.

The success led to the acquisition of the company by Black & Decker in 1960, though there was a bleak period for a few decades as people saw Black & Decker as an amateur power tool company.

DeWalt manufactures hundreds of different power tools, with corded and cordless options. When they took over ELU, they began manufacturing German woodworking tools too.

The combination of hand tools and power tools became popular with contractors, and their reputation has grown. They have a wide variety of tools, accessories, stands, tool boxes, yard equipment, job site aids, and more. Some say that they have the best carpentry and concrete tools on the market.

When it comes to batteries, they have a range. The company manufactures the standard 12V and 18V batteries for compact tools, along with 20V and 40V batteries for outdoor equipment.

However, where they stand apart from the competition is with their FLEXVOLT technology. Depending on what tool the FLEXVOLT battery is attached to, it will switch between 20V and 60V, powering almost anything. Very cool!

Festool market themselves on quality. Their tools may cost you a little more than the competition, but you are paying for excellence. The engineering of the tools is incredible, they provide superior customer service, and they pride themselves on ease of use and portability.

The dust collection system alone is worth buying the tools that generate a lot of dust, such as sanders and routers. This makes the brand especially popular with contractors and carpenters. The dust-collection system is integrated into the needed tools, and it gives professionals the confidence to go into people’s homes and not leave a mess.

The German company builds tools that are worth the money. If you need to do a professional job, or you have a lot of jobs to attend to, then the tools should be one of your top choices.

You would expect a tool company to stand out based on the quality of their tools but, while Bosch does make excellent tools, that is overshadowed by the fact that they are 90% owned by a charitable organization, Robert Bosch Stiftung. They are a company that cares.

That technology does come at a price. Bosch tools are usually more expensive than their rivals, but you are paying for the extra quality. They are a favorite among serious amateurs, semi-pros, and professionals. If you need to do the job well, Bosch will help you.

They have a range of tools that not many other companies can compete with, and their tools are used for heavy-duty jobs, such as skyscraper construction and bridge repair.

They also pride themselves on aftercare. They support their customers with excellent customer service, solutions, and accessories. Their large sales force is also available to visit job sites to aid in problem-solving and to deliver tools and accessories as quickly as possible.

If you check with any handyman or contractor, you will likely find that they use Ridgid tools on their job sites. Their line of power tools may be limited, but they are still worth mentioning. They mainly produce drills, impact drivers, and saws.

Their limited range of power tools does mean that they do not have as advanced battery technology as other companies, but they compensate for that by offering one of the best warranties on the market.

As we mentioned before, a lengthy warranty often means complete trust in the tools, and tools that are built to last. This is the case with Ridgid. They may not have the biggest line of tools, but they do guarantee quality.

The following brands are largely focused on hobbyists, homeowners, and semi-pros, but sometimes you’ll see these power tools used by professionals as well.

The Ryobi company is owned by Techtronic Industries, just like Milwaukee. You could see the two power tool manufacturers as two arms of the same company, Milwaukee servicing professionals and contractors and Ryobi focusing more on homeowners and semi-professionals.

They have a variety of tools, but you may be most familiar with one of them, even if you do not know that it is a Craftsman tool. Everyone knows the Weedwhacker brand, and these string trimmers are used by a lot of people. Craftsman owns the Weedwhacker brand, along with manufacturing many other gas-powered, battery-powered, and corded outdoor and yard equipment.

They also pride themselves on their Versa System, a system for organizing tools, equipment, and accessories within a workshop. With this system, they are firmly marketing themselves towards hobbyists and homeowners.

Almost everyone knows Black+Decker. Founded in 1910, the company produces power tools for professionals and amateurs. It made its name in 1917 by inventing the portable electric drill and has gone from strength to strength, weathering some storms in its time.

They focus on the most commonly used tools, drills, sanders, and screwdrivers, and put a lot of energy into nailing (excuse the pun) those few select tools.

They do manufacture other tools, and you will find specialized tools in their range. From accessories to hand tools, they manufacture pretty much anything, though their core focus is on the most popular tools.

They are often compared to Ryobi, and have a similar quality, though Ryobi has been in the power tool market for longer and has more tools in its lineup.

Their new XTR lineup of cordless power tools is the most powerful yet. It offers 50% better performance than before and its meant for serious DIY’ers and semi-professionals. It also offers exceptional value for money.

A new company on the scene, they are sold through Walmart, and the power and money that Walmart has to back the tools are phenomenal, allowing them to hit the ground running.

Along with the affordability, you have convenience. As they are sold through Walmart, you can go into any store to find the tools, buy new accessories, or find replacements. And, with Walmarts renowned return policy, there is less risk.

Founded in 1926 in New Orleans, the tool company is now based in Stuttgart after being acquired by the German company Boschin 1996. More recently they have been acquired by Chevron, a Chinese power tool manufacturer.

Skil is the Skil in Skilsaw. The Skilsaw Model 77 was introduced in 1937, and a power-tool company was built around it. Many American houses and buildings were built using the Skilsaw.

Milwaukee power tools are the most searched for brand with 13,500 searches per month. DeWalt (9,900) and Ridgid (7,700) follow closely in second and third place. Ryobi is the go-to brand for many homeowners, which is also apparent from the search volume (5,700). Probably the biggest surprise on the list is Hart (4,000) which is gaining rapidly in popularity.

As expected, Ryobi has a lead over the competition; however, it’s surprising to see how much HART Tools has gained in popularity. They seem to have overtaken long-time and established brands like Kobalt and Skil and are now close behind Craftsman.

There are many power tool companies out there, both for professionals and homeowners. There is a reason why the recognizable names are the ones who have mostly been around for a long time. With years of experience and feedback, they have been able to mold and shape their companies, driving them forward in a competitive industry.

As we said at the beginning, there is no one-size-fits-all when it comes to power tool brands, but there is a brand out there that is right for you. All you have to do is choose the one that fits your needs.

There are 18 tool companies globally that owned 91% of the hand and power tool market in 2017 through their brands and daughter companies. Eleven of the companies on that list are headquartered in the U.S. In this article, we"ll be providing information on the top featured manufacturers and suppliers of tools on Thomas, as well as the top tool manufacturers and suppliers in the USA by revenue.

Table 1 below outlines details on the top featured manufacturers of tools on Thomasnet.com. Additional information includes the company headquarters location and estimated annual revenue. Below the table, you"ll also find a brief summary of each company"s activities.

aerospace/defense, automotive, medical, transportation, and other industries. They offer standard and custom parts and tools, with custom manufacturing services including machining, additive manufacturing, molding, cutting, extrusions, stamping, bending, and welding.

Based out of Tinley Park, IL, Allstates Rubber & Tool Corp. offers custom rubber molding, extrusion, and fabrication services for custom tools, including suction cup lifters and bumper pads for floor panel lifting. They also offer a variety of rubber parts and components.

Below we have provided details on the top manufacturers of hand and power tools in the USA, based on annual revenue. Additional information is included on each company’s location, year founded, and employee count. Below the table, you"ll also find a brief summary of each company"s activities.

Now that we’ve covered the top featured manufacturers of tools on Thomas as well as the top tool manufacturers in the USA by revenue, we hope this information will better enable you to source the products you need. For more information on these companies, or to make your own custom shortlist of tool manufacturers, we invite you to check out the Supplier Discovery page on Thomasnet.com, which features over 4,500 U.S. tool suppliers.

Building something on your own usually carries with it certain benefits, such as being in full control over what it is you are building and what it will accomplish, as well as a sense of pride when you create something that finally works just the way you want it. If you continue down that path, you may eventually start making your own tools to help build your other creations, and if you also have some CAD software you can make some very high quality tools like this belt grinder.

This build comes to us from [Emiel] aka [The Practical Engineer] who is known for his high quality solenoid engines. His metal work is above and beyond, and one thing he needed was a belt grinder. He decided to make a 3D model of one in CAD and then build it from scratch. The build video goes through his design process in Fusion 360 and then the actual build of this beast of a machine. The motor is 3.5 horsepower which, when paired with a variable frequency drive, can provide all of his belt grinding needs.

Between 2017 and 2021, the power tool market worldwide is expected to grow by more than $7.44 billion. According to Zion Market Research, the global power tools market was estimated to be approximately $27 billion by year-end 2018. Looking ahead, it is expected to reach $36 billion by 2025. This represents an expected compound annual growth rate of 4.14 per cent.

The global trend towards urbanisation is just one of the factors that have led to robust sales in the power tool market. Another contributing factor is the rise of a do-it-yourself (DIY) culture. Part of the impetus behind this shift can be attributed to the popularity of home renovation reality TV shows. Now more than ever, people are inspired to take on projects that previously would have been left to professional contractors. This, in turn, leads to a spike in the purchase of power tools.

The power tools market is somewhat unique in that many of the major players have been bought up by competitors leaving around four super-conglomerates in the field. For a snapshot of the main companies in the field today, here are ten of the largest power tools manufacturers in the world based on 2018 revenue.

Although not as old as some of the other entries on this list, Chervon has quickly grown into one of the top power tool manufacturers in the world. Chervon was launched in Nanjing, China in 1993 and has since grown into an international force in the sector. The company sells products in more than 30,000 stores and dealers in 65 different countries.

Chervon offers a line of both professional-grade and consumer-grade power tools. These products are manufactured in their two production facilities located in Nanjing as well as Steinheim, Germany. Their business operations are focused mainly on North America, Europe, China and Oceania.

Operations for their power tool line includes research and development, sourcing, manufacturing, testing, marketing, sales and distribution and after-sale service. Among their more popular brands are Devon (developed exclusively for the Asian market), Flex, Skil, Ego (cordless line of power tools), X-Tron, Calmdura (for European market), Hammerhead and Skilsaw.

The Apex Tool Group (ATG) is a relatively new entrant into the power tool market, having been around only since 2010. ATG prides itself on being one of the largest manufacturers of professional hand and power tools in the world. They serve the industrial, vehicle service and assembly, aerospace, electronics, construction and DIY markets.

ATG offers more than 30 different power tool brands including SATA®, GearWrench®, Weller®, Wiss®, Lufkin®, Cleco® and Crescent®. ATG was born out of a merger of Cooper Tools and Danaher’s Tools and Components. Two years after its founding, it was sold to Bain Capital for an estimated $1.6 billion.

Koki Holdings has been in the business of designing and manufacturing power tools for more than 70 years. Founded in 1948, Koki has grown into one of the world’s largest power tool companies, with 2018 revenue of 191,161 million yen or approximately $1.8 billion. The company is headquartered in Tokyo, Japan and employs more than 6,400 people worldwide.

Koki Holdings has two main divisions – power tools and centrifuges and processing equipment. Their line of power tools includes power tools metalworking, woodworking, cordless, construction and pneumatic tools (nailers, screwdrivers and compressors for nailers), woodworking machines, outdoor power equipment, gardening tools, household power tools, dust collectors, measure laser tools and accessories.

Metabo HPT is the company’s main brand of power tools. HPT stands for Hitachi Power Tools, as the company was part of the Hitachi organisation until its sale to Koki in 2017. It was rebranded as Metabo HTP in October 2018. Metabo HTP is the leading pneumatic brand in North America.

Stihl is a German manufacturer of power tools and is best known as the world’s leading brand of chainsaws. In fact, company founder Andreas Stihl built the very first chainsaw in 1926 and launched his company the same year. Today, Stihl power tools can be found in more than 160 countries around the world.

For the first 50 years of its existence, Stihl was exclusively a chainsaw-producing company. However, in the 1970s, Stihl expanded its product line to include other home-use power tools. They started by adding a line of weed trimmers they sourced from a Japanese company until they built their own models. Today, Stihl offers a wide range of power tools for home use, including blowers, hedge trimmers, lawnmower, drills, concrete cutters, chainsaws and edgers.

Husqvarna is a Swedish-based company whose roots trace back to 1689. Headquartered in both Stockholm and Huskvarna, Sweden, the group is a global leader in power tool cutting equipment. The Husqvarna Group operates in more than 40 countries around the world, employing approximately 13,000 people. In 2018, the group generated SEK 41 billion or just over $4.3 billion.

The Group is divided into three main business divisions – Husqvarna Division, Gardenea Division and the Construction Divisions. The Husqvarna division offers a line of products primarily for tree care and landscaping, such as chainsaws and power lawnmowers. The Gardenea Division focuses on watering and high-quality garden tools. These products are the leading brand of their type in Europe and can be found in more than 80 countries around the world. The Construction division offers machinery and diamond tools for the construction and stone industries.

Makita is a Japanese company that has become a household name in the power tools sector. Founded in 1915 as an electric motor repair company, Makita has grown to become one of the industry leaders. Headquartered in Anjō, Japan, the company earned just over $4.5 billion in revenue in 2018.

Makita is perhaps best known for paving the way for certain power tools and cordless tools beginning in the late 1950s. In 1958, they entered the power tool sector with the introduction of their portable electrical planer. Just over a decade later, they unveiled their 6500D battery-powered drill, which represented the first-ever rechargeable power tool. Today they have a full line of cordless tools including screwdrivers, impact wrenches rotary hammers, angle grinders, planers and metal shears.

The Makita brand of power tools can be found in more than 40 countries around the world. Their products are manufactured in one of 10 production facilities located in Brazil, China, Japan, Mexico, Romania, the United Kingdom, Germany and the United States.

Techtronic Industries Company Limited is the parent company for several well-known and successful power tool brands. Founded in Hong Kong in 1985, the group oversees such heavyweights in the sector such as Milwaukee, AEG, Ryobi, Homelite, Empire, Stiletto, Hoover US, Hart, Oreck, Vax and Dirt Devil. Their product lines include power tools, outdoor power equipment, accessories, hand tools, layout and measuring tools, floor care and appliances.

Techtronic takes great pride in being a global strategy-based organisation. They have built the company on four strategic areas that would drive their success: Powerful Brands, Innovative Products, Exceptional People and Operational Excellence. The bottom-line results suggest they are on the right track.

Stanley Black & Decker is one of the oldest and perhaps best-known brands on this list. In 2018, the company marked their 175th year in business, with just under $14 billion in global revenue. Headquartered in New Britain, Connecticut, Stanley Black & Decker lays claim to being the world’s largest, fastest-growing and most innovative tools and storage company.

Stanley Black & Deckers offers some of the best-known power tool brands in the world including Stanley, Dewalt, Black & Decker, Craftsman, Irwin, Mag Tools, Lenox, Porter & Cable, Lista, Vidmar Bostitch, Proto, Sidchrome, Powers and Facom. The company estimates that they sell 50 tools per second around the world. Stanley Black & Decker continues to enjoy robust growth. In the period 2014-2018, they saw an average organic growth of 5 per cent.

Although not known primarily as a power tool company, industrial giant 3M is one of the world’s largest operations with a line of metalworking power tools. Founded in Minnesota in 1902 as the Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company, the organisation has gone on to become one of the most iconic and successful conglomerates, with several notable inventions such as scotch tape. In 2018, 3M brought in $32.77 billion in combined global revenue.

3M’s power tool division involves mostly metalwork tools. They offer a line of state-of-the-art tools such as cut-off wheel tools, die grinders, disc sanders, grinding tools, portable belt sanders and random orbital sanders.

German-based Bosch tops the list of largest power tool manufacturers in the world with 2018 revenue coming in at just under $89 billion. It was originally launched in Stuttgart-West as the Werkstätte für Feinmechanik und Elektrotechnik, which translates to Workshop for Precision Mechanics and Electrical Engineering. Today it stands as one of Germany’s major conglomerates, with operations divided into four business sectors: mobility solutions, industrial technology, consumer goods and energy and building technology.

Bosch’s line of power tools falls under its consumer goods division, which accounted for 23 per cent of total Bosch Group sales in 2018. The power tools division includes hammer drills, cordless screwdrivers, jigsaws, lawnmowers, hedge trimmers and high-pressure cleaners. The main brands in this division include Dremel, Siemens, Neff GmbH and Gaggenau Hausgeräte.

In this infographic, the size of each company’s hand & power tool revenue is shown by circle area. Stanley Black & Decker is inside the biggest circle because it has the largest revenue from hand & power tools. Close behind is Bosch’s hand and power tool business. And so on until we reach Positec, JPW Industries and Ingersoll Rand with the smaller circles representing their smaller respective revenues.

Statista.com is a data analysis website that has a wide range of free and premium industry reports, statistics and analysis. The most interesting tidbit we found investigating hand and power tools is this:

Most of the companies (who make and who own tool brands) sales figures are available in tax forms and company annual reports. But even with that information some estimations have to be made to arrive at the tools only sales numbers. Here are some notes how we arrived at estimations for the following companies.

The Bosch annual report tells us their Consumer Goods division had 17.1 billion euros revenue (~18.5 billion USD) in 2015. The division consists of power tools (drills, jigsaws, impact screwdrivers, lawn mowers, best pressure washers etc.) and household appliances (fridges, washing machines, dryers, ovens etc.).

The household appliances portion of the Bosch Consumer Goods division was a 50:50 joint venture with Siemens until Bosch bought out Siemens for 3 billion euros (~3.25 billion USD) in late 2014. That was for the 50% share that Siemens owned, valuing the total household appliance company at 6 billion euros (6.5 billion USD). The company reported 10.5 billion euros revenue in 2013. So what’s the 2015 revenue to give us the portion that is power tools? With a growth rate of 4% yearly the revenue is 11.36 billion euros in 2015 leaving 5.74 billion euros (~$6.2B USD) as power tools revenue.

You’ll notice there is an ‘Other’ row in the above table. In that row are Home Depot, Lowe’s and Harbor Freight Tools. Since these companies don’t manufacture their own tools they were not included in the above infographic. However, they still collect substantial revenues from the global tool market with their home brand tools – Husky, Kobalt and US General, for example.

Looking at Home Depot and Lowe’s, we estimated both companies are collecting around $500M for home brands and $4.5B from selling other companies brands on their shelves. This estimate came from looking at their online stores portion of products that are home brand vs. external brands in the tools & hardware categories. When you include cost to purchase the home brand tools from the OEM and the consignment cost of the external brands’ tools, the cut they get of the total is probably around 30%. That gives Home Depot and Lowe’s somewhere close to $1.5B in global tool market revenue each. And leaves Harbor Freight around the same.

In this graphic, the outer rectangles contain logos of brands owned by the parent companies in the middle. Not all brands owned by the parent companies are in the rectangle – just the most well-known. Hilti and Makita only sell tools under their own names. Take a look. What brands owned by parent companies surprise you?

The Home Depot, Lowe’s and Harbor Freight are not original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) or original design manufacturers (ODMs). They are purchasing companies who form partnerships with OEMs and ODMs (like Stanley Black & Decker) to get their tools made for them to distribute under their own brand names.

In many tool categories these big-box hardware stores simply buy from an OEM and slap their Husky, Kobalt or Drillmaster stickers on the product for sale. In other categories, they approach ODMs with specific product specifications and then work with them to get the tool built to their specs. Exactly which categories of Husky, Kobalt and Harbor Freight tools are ODM or OEM is impossible to find in their tax documents or annual reports.

Bosch’s Consumer Goods division sells power tools and household appliances. They own many brands in both industries. Their Global HQ is in Gerlingen, Germany. It is 9km west of Stuttgart.

Fortive Corp. spun out from Danaher Corp. in 2016 to become its own company. It is foremely the Tools & Measurement division of Danaher. It operates out of the Fluke Corp. headquarters in Everett, Washington.

Hilti is still a family owned company based in Schaan, Lichtenstein. They are known for their professional tools and are very popular throughout the world. Hilti has more than 23,000 employees.

Makita is a large power tool manufacturing company based in Anjo, Japan. They are well-known for their rechargeable power tools and were the first to produce a rechargeable drill. They introduced it in 1969.

Snap-on is best known as the company / tool brand that visits you at work with a van full of tools for you to buy. They started as a socket wrench company and now offer a wide-range of tools for professionals in the automotive, aviation, marine and railroad industries. The Snap-on Global HQ is in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Emerson Electric is a massive company with a sizeable tools business. They are best known for their process-automation products and services (valves, regulators, measurement & analytical instruments). The Emerson Global HQ is in Ferguson, Missouri.

Harbour Freight buys their tools direct from manufacturer and then offer them as home brands for affordable prices. Here is a selection of the brands they own and sell under:

Hitachi Koki operates as a subsidiary to Hitachi, Ltd. Hitachi Koki manufactures and sells power tools and power equipment. It has HQ in Tokyo, Japan.

Textron is a diversified manufacturer in aircraft, industrial and automotive products. Within their industrial segment they make tools and equipment and sell them under the brands shown here:

The Home Depot owns two home brands in the tools category. They also exclusively sell brands of power tools and equipment such as Ryobi and WORX. Overall, they have sales of hand and power tool/equipment over $5 billion per year.

Ideal Industries is based out of Sycamore, Illinois. Ideal Industries is now well-known for their Pratt-Read, Western Forge brands and SK Tools brands, which they acquired in three separate deals in 2010. It is rumoured they paid ~$50 million for Western Forge and a fair bit less for Pratt-Read.

JPW Industries is based out of La Vergne Tennessee. It was originally known as Walter Meirer Manufacturing, Inc., and represented the tools arm of Swiss based Walter Meier AG. In 2013, Tenex Capital Management purchased Walter Meirer Manufacturing, Inc. and named it JPW Industries to represent the three main brands – JET, Powermatic and Wilton.

Who makes Ryobi tools? Techtronic Industries (TTi) is the OEM for Ryobi. TTi owns the Ryobi brand of power tools in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. They are sold exclusively at The Home Depot in United States. Ryobi Limited, which sold the power tools businesses to TTi in 2000/2001, is a Japanese company that sells power tools, die castings, hardware and printing equipment in Asia, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Who makes Kobalt tools? Chervon the Chinese OEM (not Chevron the oil company) makes many of Kobalt’s power tools. In 2016, Lowe’s awarded them a vendor award in innovation for the Kobalt 24-Volt cordless power tools. Sunrise Global/Greenworks Tools is the OEM for Lowe’s Kobalt cordless 80-volt outdoor power equipment (they were awarded 2015 innovation award).

What happened to Danaher the tool maker? Danaher spun out their tool and power tool brands and OEM capability to a company called Fortive Corp. in 2016. Danaher tools are now Fortive, essentially. Fortive operates out of the Fluke HQ just north of the Boeing Everett Factory.

Where are Milwaukee tools made and who owns Milwaukee brand? Dongguan, China. In Aug-2004, TTi Group acquired two divisions (Milwaukee Electric Tools and AEG Power Tools brands) of Atlas Copco’s Industrial Technique business for a total sum of $627 million ($797 million in 2016 dollars). By 2004, all of Milwaukee’s tool production facilities had left Wisconsin for Mississippi. And in 2008, when TTi opened their massive Dongguan facility, the move for Milwaukee Electric Tools from U.S.A. to China was complete.

Who makes Snap-on tools? Snap-on makes Snap-on tools. Snap-on is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and they make tools in their vast production facilities.

Who makes Ridgid tools and who owns the brand? TTi Group makes Ridgid brand tools through a partner agreement with Emerson and their OEM subsidiary One World Technologies. They first entered into an agreement in 2003 for TTi to make Ridgid woodworking power tools (and have since furthered the partnership to other tool categories). Ridgid has been a subsidiary of Emerson Electric since 1966. The brand is targeted at plumbers and heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) trades.

When did Stanley and Black & Decker merge? Officially, Stanley Works acquired Black & Decker for an all stock deal worth $4.5 Billion ($3.5B stock and $1B debt), which was announced in Nov-2009. The “merge” was finalized in Mar-2010. At the time Stanley Works owned the popular brands Stanley, Facom, Bostitch, Proto, Mac Tools, Vidmar (and others) and Black & Decker owned Black & Decker, DeWalt, Porter-Cable, Baldwin, Emhart, Kwikset, Price Pfister (and others). The combination of the two created a tool and equipment powerhouse valued at nearly $10B.

Who makes Husky tools? Husky is a home brand of Home Depot. The tools are made by various OEMs including Stanley Black & Decker, Western Forge and Apex Tool Group.

Who owns DeWalt tools brand? DeWALT is owned and made by Stanley Black & Decker. Black & Decker owned DeWALT since 1960. In 2010, when Stanley Works and Black & Decker merged the new company, Stanley Black & Decker, became the owner of DeWALT.

Who makes and owns Craftsman tools? Craftsman tools are made in factories around the world. Depending on the tool category, it could be made in USA, Mexico, India, Honduras, Japan, Taiwan, China, Germany or France. Many manufacturing companies have been contracted to make different tools for Craftsman over the years. These include: TTi Group, Stanley, Apex Tool Group, Western Forge, Easco, Danaher and Pratt-Read. Sears, the creator of the Craftsman brand, never made Craftsman tools – they owned the brand. In 2016, Sears sold the brand to Stanley Black & Decker for $900 million. With the sale, it is more than likely all manufacturing of Craftsman Tools moving forward will be done in Stanley Black & Decker manufacturing plants.

In this infographic, the size of each company’s hand & power tool revenue is shown by circle area. Stanley Black & Decker is inside the biggest circle because it has the largest revenue from hand & power tools. Close behind is Bosch’s hand and power tool business. And so on until we reach Positec, JPW Industries and Ingersoll Rand with the smaller circles representing their smaller respective revenues.

Statista.com is a data analysis website that has a wide range of free and premium industry reports, statistics and analysis. The most interesting tidbit we found investigating hand and power tools is this:

Most of the companies (who make and who own tool brands) sales figures are available in tax forms and company annual reports. But even with that information some estimations have to be made to arrive at the tools only sales numbers. Here are some notes how we arrived at estimations for the following companies.

The Bosch annual report tells us their Consumer Goods division had 17.1 billion euros revenue (~18.5 billion USD) in 2015. The division consists of power tools (drills, jigsaws, impact screwdrivers, lawn mowers, best pressure washers etc.) and household appliances (fridges, washing machines, dryers, ovens etc.).

The household appliances portion of the Bosch Consumer Goods division was a 50:50 joint venture with Siemens until Bosch bought out Siemens for 3 billion euros (~3.25 billion USD) in late 2014. That was for the 50% share that Siemens owned, valuing the total household appliance company at 6 billion euros (6.5 billion USD). The company reported 10.5 billion euros revenue in 2013. So what’s the 2015 revenue to give us the portion that is power tools? With a growth rate of 4% yearly the revenue is 11.36 billion euros in 2015 leaving 5.74 billion euros (~$6.2B USD) as power tools revenue.

You’ll notice there is an ‘Other’ row in the above table. In that row are Home Depot, Lowe’s and Harbor Freight Tools. Since these companies don’t manufacture their own tools they were not included in the above infographic. However, they still collect substantial revenues from the global tool market with their home brand tools – Husky, Kobalt and US General, for example.

Looking at Home Depot and Lowe’s, we estimated both companies are collecting around $500M for home brands and $4.5B from selling other companies brands on their shelves. This estimate came from looking at their online stores portion of products that are home brand vs. external brands in the tools & hardware categories. When you include cost to purchase the home brand tools from the OEM and the consignment cost of the external brands’ tools, the cut they get of the total is probably around 30%. That gives Home Depot and Lowe’s somewhere close to $1.5B in global tool market revenue each. And leaves Harbor Freight around the same.

In this graphic, the outer rectangles contain logos of brands owned by the parent companies in the middle. Not all brands owned by the parent companies are in the rectangle – just the most well-known. Hilti and Makita only sell tools under their own names. Take a look. What brands owned by parent companies surprise you?

The Home Depot, Lowe’s and Harbor Freight are not original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) or original design manufacturers (ODMs). They are purchasing companies who form partnerships with OEMs and ODMs (like Stanley Black & Decker) to get their tools made for them to distribute under their own brand names.

In many tool categories these big-box hardware stores simply buy from an OEM and slap their Husky, Kobalt or Drillmaster stickers on the product for sale. In other categories, they approach ODMs with specific product specifications and then work with them to get the tool built to their specs. Exactly which categories of Husky, Kobalt and Harbor Freight tools are ODM or OEM is impossible to find in their tax documents or annual reports.

Bosch’s Consumer Goods division sells power tools and household appliances. They own many brands in both industries. Their Global HQ is in Gerlingen, Germany. It is 9km west of Stuttgart.

Fortive Corp. spun out from Danaher Corp. in 2016 to become its own company. It is foremely the Tools & Measurement division of Danaher. It operates out of the Fluke Corp. headquarters in Everett, Washington.

Hilti is still a family owned company based in Schaan, Lichtenstein. They are known for their professional tools and are very popular throughout the world. Hilti has more than 23,000 employees.

Makita is a large power tool manufacturing company based in Anjo, Japan. They are well-known for their rechargeable power tools and were the first to produce a rechargeable drill. They introduced it in 1969.

Snap-on is best known as the company / tool brand that visits you at work with a van full of tools for you to buy. They started as a socket wrench company and now offer a wide-range of tools for professionals in the automotive, aviation, marine and railroad industries. The Snap-on Global HQ is in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

Emerson Electric is a massive company with a sizeable tools business. They are best known for their process-automation products and services (valves, regulators, measurement & analytical instruments). The Emerson Global HQ is in Ferguson, Missouri.

Harbour Freight buys their tools direct from manufacturer and then offer them as home brands for affordable prices. Here is a selection of the brands they own and sell under:

Hitachi Koki operates as a subsidiary to Hitachi, Ltd. Hitachi Koki manufactures and sells power tools and power equipment. It has HQ in Tokyo, Japan.

Textron is a diversified manufacturer in aircraft, industrial and automotive products. Within their industrial segment they make tools and equipment and sell them under the brands shown here:

The Home Depot owns two home brands in the tools category. They also exclusively sell brands of power tools and equipment such as Ryobi and WORX. Overall, they have sales of hand and power tool/equipment over $5 billion per year.

Ideal Industries is based out of Sycamore, Illinois. Ideal Industries is now well-known for their Pratt-Read, Western Forge brands and SK Tools brands, which they acquired in three separate deals in 2010. It is rumoured they paid ~$50 million for Western Forge and a fair bit less for Pratt-Read.

JPW Industries is based out of La Vergne Tennessee. It was originally known as Walter Meirer Manufacturing, Inc., and represented the tools arm of Swiss based Walter Meier AG. In 2013, Tenex Capital Management purchased Walter Meirer Manufacturing, Inc. and named it JPW Industries to represent the three main brands – JET, Powermatic and Wilton.

Who makes Ryobi tools? Techtronic Industries (TTi) is the OEM for Ryobi. TTi owns the Ryobi brand of power tools in North America, Europe, Australia and New Zealand. They are sold exclusively at The Home Depot in United States. Ryobi Limited, which sold the power tools businesses to TTi in 2000/2001, is a Japanese company that sells power tools, die castings, hardware and printing equipment in Asia, Latin America, Middle East and Africa

Who makes Kobalt tools? Chervon the Chinese OEM (not Chevron the oil company) makes many of Kobalt’s power tools. In 2016, Lowe’s awarded them a vendor award in innovation for the Kobalt 24-Volt cordless power tools. Sunrise Global/Greenworks Tools is the OEM for Lowe’s Kobalt cordless 80-volt outdoor power equipment (they were awarded 2015 innovation award).

What happened to Danaher the tool maker? Danaher spun out their tool and power tool brands and OEM capability to a company called Fortive Corp. in 2016. Danaher tools are now Fortive, essentially. Fortive operates out of the Fluke HQ just north of the Boeing Everett Factory.

Where are Milwaukee tools made and who owns Milwaukee brand? Dongguan, China. In Aug-2004, TTi Group acquired two divisions (Milwaukee Electric Tools and AEG Power Tools brands) of Atlas Copco’s Industrial Technique business for a total sum of $627 million ($797 million in 2016 dollars). By 2004, all of Milwaukee’s tool production facilities had left Wisconsin for Mississippi. And in 2008, when TTi opened their massive Dongguan facility, the move for Milwaukee Electric Tools from U.S.A. to China was complete.

Who makes Snap-on tools? Snap-on makes Snap-on tools. Snap-on is an original equipment manufacturer (OEM) and they make tools in their vast production facilities.

Who makes Ridgid tools and who owns the brand? TTi Group makes Ridgid brand tools through a partner agreement with Emerson and their OEM subsidiary One World Technologies. They first entered into an agreement in 2003 for TTi to make Ridgid woodworking power tools (and have since furthered the partnership to other tool categories). Ridgid has been a subsidiary of Emerson Electric since 1966. The brand is targeted at plumbers and heating ventilation and air conditioning (HVAC) trades.

When did Stanley and Black & Decker merge? Officially, Stanley Works acquired Black & Decker for an all stock deal worth $4.5 Billion ($3.5B stock and $1B debt), which was announced in Nov-2009. The “merge” was finalized in Mar-2010. At the time Stanley Works owned the popular brands Stanley, Facom, Bostitch, Proto, Mac Tools, Vidmar (and others) and Black & Decker owned Black & Decker, DeWalt, Porter-Cable, Baldwin, Emhart, Kwikset, Price Pfister (and others). The combination of the two created a tool and equipment powerhouse valued at nearly $10B.

Who makes Husky tools? Husky is a home brand of Home Depot. The tools are made by various OEMs including Stanley Black & Decker, Western Forge and Apex Tool Group.

Who owns DeWalt tools brand? DeWALT is owned and made by Stanley Black & Decker. Black & Decker owned DeWALT since 1960. In 2010, when Stanley Works and Black & Decker merged the new company, Stanley Black & Decker, became the owner of DeWALT.

Who makes and owns Craftsman tools? Craftsman tools are made in factories around the world. Depending on the tool category, it could be made in USA, Mexico, India, Honduras, Japan, Taiwan, China, Germany or France. Many manufacturing companies have been contracted to make different tools for Craftsman over the years. These include: TTi Group, Stanley, Apex Tool Group, Western Forge, Easco, Danaher and Pratt-Read. Sears, the creator of the Craftsman brand, never made Craftsman tools – they owned the brand. In 2016, Sears sold the brand to Stanley Black & Decker for $900 million. With the sale, it is more than likely all manufacturing of Craftsman Tools moving forward will be done in Stanley Black & Decker manufacturing plants.

Apex Fastening Tools, Belzer, Campbell, Cleco, Crescent, Delta, Dotco, Erem, Gearwrench, HKP, Jacobs, Jobox, Lufkin, Nicholson, Recoules Quakenbush, SATA, Weller, Wiss, Xcelite

Pliers, screwdrivers, nut drivers, wire pulling and stripping tools, crimping tools, scissors, snips, shears, cable and bolt cutters, conduit benders, personal protective equipment, tool bags for the electrical trade

The only affiliation between GE and Hitachi that I am aware of is their joint nuclear energy business. Hitachi power tools are not – to my knowledge – connected to GE in any way.

The lines are so blurred it’s hard to tell. Williams is a Snap-on Industrial brand. Even if certain tools appear similar, there might be small nuances that differentiate the Snap-on tools from Williams ones.

OEM and private label tools is tough to follow as well, as contracts and arrangements change every now and then. Right now, I have no clue as to who else Williams manufacturers tools for outside the Snap-on corporate family.

Williams is much better than bluepoint. A lot of Williams tools are US made, a lot of bluepoint tools are not. And besides, most bluepoint stuff is rebranded anyway.

Danaher is making Craftsman tools now, Danaher started making them in China, Its interesting to know Danaher is owned by Bain capitol which was founded an owned by Mitt Romney, no wonder Craftsman tools are being made in China, Romney absolutely hates American workers!, after finding this out I will never buy another Craftsman tool, I would rather overpay for SK, or Snap On than buy a piece of shit Chinese made Craftsman tool!!!!

Whilst Mitt Romney was a co founder of Bain Capital though his being a partner in the Bain and Company consulting firm, he was also a co owner, not THE owner. In any event he apparently retired as CEO of the firm in 2002, at which time Bain Capital also retired the position of CEO. Since that time Mr Romney has had nothing to do with Bain Capital’s management or with what acquisitions it has made. Sorry if you don’t like Mitt Romney, or believe that he hates American workers, because he had nothing to do with Danaher, Craftsmen tools being farmed out to China, or even Bain Capital purchasing the Apex Tool Group from Cooper Tools and Danaher.

Boy, you got that all wrong. Danaher never made anything in China. Danaher and Cooper group spun off their tool divisions to form Apex . They sold Apex to Bain Capital that has been closing tool divisions like Armstrong, Allen and KD and making tools in Taiwan. Mitt Romney has had nothing to do with Bain for many years so your attempt to tie him to the current situation is just you political viewpoint.

Regardless of when, from whom, or where these acquisitions and transfers took place, the story is fundamentally the same. These corporate conglomerates are nothing more than profit drones – machines in their own right. “They” have no concern for quality, American workers (or any workers for that matter), or the consumers who buy their tools.

Long gone is the norm of companies who took pride in the tools they produced, whose principle concerns were quality and reputation while making enough of a profit to keep the business going, i.e., companies who took satisfaction in creating something of real and lasting value. Sounds quaint doesn’t it?

So where’s the list of people like Thomas Lie-Nielsen of Lie-Nielsen Toolworks who created and carefully built a company based on the principles of quality and reputation, and whose success is one of the rare bright spots in an otherwise dismal industry? Yes, it would be a very short list of a few rare individuals, but it would be nice to provide some recognition for these folks who are not hell bent on destroying everything they touch for the sake of their personal wealth and power.

So where’s the list of people like Thomas Lie-Nielsen of Lie-Nielsen Toolworks who created and carefully built a company based on the principles of quality and reputation, and whose success is one of the rare bright spots in an otherwise dismal industry? Yes, it would be a very short list of a few rare individuals, but it would be nice to provide some recognition for these folks who are not hell bent on destroying everything they touch for the sake of their personal wealth and power.

I can’t praise individuals I haven’t met and don’t know much about. I don’t have experience with Lie-Nielsen tools, although I am quite aware of their reputation.

Other than Bosch (Germany) and TTI, all of the companies are headquarted in the US. It still burns me that TTI is a Chinese owned company and it produces Milwaukee tools. Not knocking their products, they make nice stuff, I just have a hard time seeing the profits go back to China too.

Cleveland, Bassett, Chicago-Latrobe, Cli-Line, Putnam Tools, and Vermont Tap & Die are part of Greenfield Industries, which is owned by Dalian Far East Tools, which is based in China.

It is not the Liberal government that is making all the regulations–many have been instituted under republican admins as well—It has to do with “not in my back yard” mentality. Every one wants energy independence and manufacturing jobs–but not in my backyard–don’t spoil my view. Ps, while I am fine with paying more for my American made tools, to ensure domestic workers have decent wages and conditions the rest of the Wal-mart connoisseurs are only about the cheap price with no regard to the fact their neighbor lost his job and now his kids qualify for free lunch at school because they refuse to look for the USA label.

The same way I would not underestimate Taiwan and Korea as industial powers. Some of the biggest brands in cell phones and computers and parts are from Taiwan. Just to mention a few – Asus, HTC, Acer.

Taiwan is very strong on tools, and I feel most on the tool inovations of the last decades came from there, such as the ratcheting wrench. In fact, the Gearwrench brand is owned by a Taiwaneese company (Lea way), now owned by the Apex group.

Not to mention the fact that TTI is also producing power tools for Ridgid under a negotiated contract. They are probably making those tools overseas to. It is unclear exactly what tools TTI is manufacturing for Ridgid? If anyone knows I would like to know.

TTI designs and manufacturers Ridgid power tools under a licensing agreement with Emerson (Ridgid’s parent company), exclusively for The Home Depot. TTI is the OEM for a lot of Ridgid power tools, but does not own the brand.

From the photos I’ve seen, many Ridgid tools are simply relabeled AEG in other parts of the world. So its not so much that there are two lines of tools, but rather two name plate stamps at the factory.

I would say its the opposite – TTI has the global brand AEG. In the USA they sell AEG tools under Home Depot’s private label Ridgid (Which, as mentioned above, is actually owned by Emerson, and made its name making plumber tools).

TTI develops and produces Ridgid tools and some Craftsman power tools. Chervon also produces certain Craftsman power tools, and Black & Decker produces the Craftsman Matrix modular power tools.

Craftsman’s hand tools come from EVERYWHERE. Apex Tool Group makes a lot of their mechanics tools, Vaughan makes some of their hammers, Stride used to make some of Craftsman’s wire strippers (and Klein’s as well), Knipex made two Craftsman water pump-style adjustable pliers, Keter makes some of Craftsman’s tool boxes, Waterloo makes a lot of Craftsman’s tool chests and cabinets, Bosch produces some of Craftsman’s power tools (e.g. Dremel-style rotary tools) and accessories, Wilde used to make Craftsman’s pry bars, and Western Forge produces (or used to produce) some of Craftsman’s screwdrivers and pliers.

Good article, now you should make one about where these brands produce their tools so that people aren’t surprised when they find out their products aren’t built here.

Under the Stanley-BD umbrella, the Facom brands are missing – Bost (France), USAG and Pastorino (Italy). Those companies still manufacture many of the global SBD tools – mostly under the FACOM name, but not only – for example, Stanley Fatmax screwdrivers (at least in Europe) are rebadged Bost.

The inconsistencies are not deliberate, but result from discretionary decisions. I refrain from mentioning some of the more esoteric industrial parts brands, but mention ITW’s Tapcon and Red Head brands. I tried to focus on tools, in a semi-strict sense, as much as possible.

Thanks for all the tool listings. It really surprised me to learn of the mother companies of a lot of tools I possess. I had no idea that Ideal owed S*K tools. Which is one of my most favorite brands. I always thought Faacom was affiliated with S*K. Tells you what I know.

A mechanical engineer friend of mine awhile back printed several pages of “Who Owned What Tool Company.” I’m sure it is very inaccurate now due to drastic changes in marketing. On the list it showed that Stanley tools formerly made Craftsman hand tools and this was taken over by Danaher. I was always under the impression that Danaher was still making the hand tools for Sears. It looks like to me that the process was part of the Cooper/Danaher merger that was sold to Bain Capital and made into a new company called Apex. Bain seems like such a dirty four lettered word to me. This company knowingly buys big conglomerate companies and breaks them up into little pieces and spits them out all over the place to maximize their profits. Being involved with Bain is what partly hurt Mitt Romney’s chances of election. I shudder when I hear that Bain is part of an acquisition, especially tools.

Danaher was the primary OEM for Craftsman mechanics tools before Danaher and Cooper joined forces, and t