Essex Industries is celebrating its 75th year anniversary as an aerospace and defense solutions provider. After serving in England as a private in World War II, Harold Guller founded Essex in 1947 recognizing the need to support the emerging aerospace jet-age with highly engineered products. Upon completing his college degree, Harold’s brother Sidney Guller joined the young company. The brothers grew the business out of their father’s St. Louis, Missouri, basement and shaped Essex into a leading aerospace and defense products manufacturer that prioritized taking exceptional care of their customers and employees.
Essex products are on board nearly every U.S. fighter, trainer, bomber, cargo aircraft, and various ground combat vehicle currently in operation worldwide. As a part of virtually every major military and commercial aerospace program since 1947, Essex supplies human-machine interface controls, including hands-on throttle and stick (HOTAS) grips, hands-on cyclic and collective, pedestal assemblies, control wheels, weapons system officer (WSO) hand controls, and cockpit control panels for fixed-wing, rotary-wing, and land combat vehicles. Also, thousands of Essex’s precision manufactured aircraft components and sub-assemblies are part of fuel, hydraulic, pneumatic, and oxygen systems.
Essex entered the cryogenics market in 1963 with designs and the capability to manufacture liquid oxygen (LOX) converters, a highly efficient oxygen storage and delivery method. Initially used by aircraft pilots and crew, this technology has readily transferred to air and ground-based medical life support equipment for both military and commercial applications.
In 1991, Essex acquired the Portable Breathing and Rescue Products Division from The DuPont Corporation, which became the foundation for the company’s Emergency Breathing Equipment line of business. Essex is proud to serve its military and commercial aviation customers around the world with these critical safety products.
Currently, Essex reaches from coast to coast, with 400 employees in its five locations in St. Louis, Missouri, Huntington Beach, California, and Milford, Connecticut. The business remains family-owned and operated. Third-generation CEO, Evan Waldman, who now leads the company, is excited about the future and the company’s continued growth. “Essex’s 75th anniversary is a testament to so many talented and committed people that have worked in this business over the years,” Waldman said. “It is also a call to action for the incredible team working at Essex today to write the next chapter in the Essex story.”
“Whether the Essex team is designing and qualifying our own products to meet customer specifications or collaborating with our customers to bring their product designs to life, we are energized for the future and filled with purpose.”
This press release was prepared and distributed by Essex Industries.
