MACHESNEY PARK, Ill. — Crandall Stats & Sensors celebrated its fifth anniversary in March and completed the acquisition of the building it’s located in.

Although Crandall is only five years old, its history dates back to the 1890s when the Barber Colman Co. was launched. Founder Howard Colman was a prolific inventor, and among his interests were thermostats and sensors.

The Barber Colman Co. was split up in the 1980s, and the thermostats and sensors business was combined with other products under Schneider Electric. In 2012, Schneider announced it was moving manufacturing operations out of Loves Park and exiting the former Barber Colman thermostats and sensors business.

Mike Crandall had been involved with thermostats and sensors in a variety of roles for decades and was nearing retirement. Crandall, his wife, Kathy, and son, Adam, decided to buy the business and save 30 jobs for the Rockford region.

Today, Crandall Stats & Sensors manufactures and services more than 400 different thermostats, humidstats, temperature and pressure sensors, and pneumatic relays. The Crandalls launched the business within the Schneider operation on Clifford Avenue in Loves Park.

In 2017, they moved the business to 9918 N. Alpine Road in Machesney Park in a rented building. Purchasing the building to celebrate its anniversary demonstrates the company’s commitment to growing beyond its current technology and offerings.

Publication date: 5/1/2019

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