Grimes Aerospace - Father of the Aircraft Lighting Industry

Grimes Manufacturing Company was one of the very first aircraft lighting design and manufacturing company. Now owned Honeywell Aerospace, Grimes Manufacturing Company continues to revolutionize the aerospace industry. This blog will give you some background information on the founder of Grimes Manufacturing Company.Warren G. Grimes is known in history as the "Father of the Aircraft Lighting Industry." In 1898, he was born in rural Montgomery County, a few miles from where the Wright Brothers had lived and worked to develop the very first flying aircraft. Living almost his entire childhood as an orphan, Warren Grimes did not have much adult guidance.

At the age of 15, he ran away from his orphanage in Tiffin, Ohio in order to live with his brother, Frank, in Detroit. Warren began his career by working for Henry Ford at the Ford motoring plant. He left once he became a partner in a small electrical business operation. Henry Ford took notice to this and approached Grimes in the mid-1920s and requested him to design lighting for the Ford Tri-Motor Aircraft. Not only did Grimes produce a light that would change the industry, he completed this task in only 48 hours. Warren Grimes moved to Urbana, Ohio in the 1930s and started his legacy, the Grimes Manufacturing Company. He purchased a farm in which he constructed both an airstrip as well as his own residency. The airstrip that Grimes had built is now known as the Grimes Field Airport. Warren Grimes is the person who developed and manufactured the "familiar red, green, and white navigation lights found on the wing tips and tails of all aircraft we see today." He also invented other electrical fixtures that are still currently used in the aircraft industry including instrumental, landing, and interior lights. By the time World War II started, Grimes Manufacturing Company had grown to a large enough size to support the lighting needs of the American military aviation industry. It has been noted in history that "every American-made airplane flown during World War II was equipped with Grimes lights." Grimes Manufacturing Company is now a division of Honeywell Aerospace and continues to develop new technology of lighting systems for aerospace and transportation industries.

ASAP Semiconductor, through our proprietary and specialized aviation website ASAP Fasteners, works directly with Grimes Aerospace to supply aircraft parts for all your requirements. We are very strong when it comes to inventory and Tier 1 pricing on aircraft lighting. Contact us today at purchase@asap-fasteners.com for a quote to see how we can assist you today.

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1. henry anderson
2. Posted on November 3, 2014
aviation manufacturing

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