Published June 2001

Fluke has history
of innovation,
community service

By John Wolcott
Herald Business Journal Editor

Fluke Corp., with world headquarters in Everett near Boeing’s aircraft assembly plant, was founded in 1948 by John Fluke Sr. in the basement of his house in Springdale, Conn.

His first product was a precisely accurate bench-mounted power meter. The first units were shipped to General Electric Co.

Later came differential voltmeters — rugged, portable tools with the precision of laboratory instruments.

Moving to Everett in 1959, John Fluke Manufacturing Co. quickly became the world leader in portable, durable testing tools, inventing the digital voltmeter in 1969, a revolution in the industry, and creating a series of breakthrough products ranging from hand-held digital multimeters to multifunction calibrators.

In 1981, the company built its 500,000-square-foot, $42 million, campus-style corporate headquarters in Everett, later introducing the first automotive multimeters designed especially for vehicle technicians.

Building on a 1987 alliance established with Philips Test & Measurement Co., Fluke and Philips jointly developed the ScopeMeter test tool in 1991, a significant product that was voted the best new product of the year by three major electronics industry trade journals.

In 1993, the company changed its corporate name to Fluke Corp. and acquired most of Philips Test & Measure from its parent company, Philips Electronics of the Netherlands.

During the remainder of the 1990s, Fluke developed Microsoft Windows software for calibration, created Fluke Networks to focus on the growing computer network market, formed a product distribution alliance with Hewlett Packard, opened more overseas divisions and was acquired — in 1998 — by Danaher Corp. of Washington, D. C.

In 2000, the company introduced the 180 series of enhanced, multifunction digital multimeters, then produced the 110 and 170 series of digital multimeters early in 2001, along with its new line of Meterman multimeters, the first products carrying a non-Fluke brand.

Since it was founded, Fluke has defined and grown its own unique technology market, creating a wide range of testing, calibrating and troubleshooting tools that have earned the company a global reputation for quality, durability and precision performance.

Fluke is the world leader in test tools for field calibration and maintenance of control instrumentation in process industries, including chemicals, petroleum, pulp and paper, beverage manufacture and waste-water management.

Today, the company holds a solid grip on the No. 1 or 2 positions in every one of its competitive markets and employs 2,400 people worldwide, including about 1,500 in four Everett-area facilities. Separate sales and earnings figures are no longer available since the company has become part of the Danaher Corp., a holding company for nearly 60 technology businesses. The parent company reported $82.6 million in net earnings for the first quarter of 2001, up 15 percent over a year earlier, on sales of $1 billion, up 16 percent over the year.

Long active in community service, the company and its employees are involved in charitable donations, in-kind services and volunteer services for a long list of groups and projects, including the Arts Council of Snohomish County, Boy Scouts, Campfire, Rotary, YMCA, Habitat for Humanity, American Cancer Society, Providence General Foundation, United Way, Junior Achievement and Pathways for Women.

Last year, the company donated almost $25,000 in new multimeters, scope meters, pulse generators, power supplies and other equipment to the Everett Community College Foundation for use in physics, engineering and aviation maintenance classes.

Before John Fluke Sr.’s death in 1984 — when mourners at his funeral included Washington’s governor, two university presidents and electronic industry pioneers William R. Hewlett and David Packard — he gave the University of Washington, his alma mater, $2 million in cash and equipment to launch a manufacturing engineering program focused on improving production techniques. He also was one of the driving forces in founding the South Snohomish County Chamber of Commerce and served as its first president.

For more information, contact Fluke Corp. at P.O. Box 9090, Everett, WA 98206, call 1-888-492-7542 or 425-446-5116, send e-mail to fluke-info@fluke.com or visit the company’s Web site, www.fluke.com.

Related: Fluke president attributes growth to company's passion for quality

Related: Fluke enters new market niche with Wavetek

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