L. S. Starrett Company
The L. S. Starrett Company () is an American manufacturer of tools and instruments used by machinists, tool and die makers, and the construction industry. The company was founded by businessman and inventor Laroy Sunderland Starrett in 1880. The company patented such items as the sliding combination square, bench vises, and a shoe hook fastener. It makes precision steel rules and tapes, calipers, micrometers, and dial indicators, among others. In addition, Starrett manufacturers a wide variety of saw products including bandsaws, hole saws, jigsaws, amongst other power tool accessories and cutting tools. More recently, they have expanded their high-end metrology equipment solutions including optical comparators, vision systems, laser measurement, force and material measurement testing. Starrett employs about 2,000 people worldwide, and the company claimed (as of 2008) to be the last remaining full-line precision tool company to be manufacturing their products within the United States. If so, much of the firm's manufacturing nevertheless takes place at facilities in the People's Republic of China, Brazil, Germany, and the UK, with 28% of Starrett's worldwide sales being in Brazil in 2013. History The Starrett corporation has continuously expanded through its history through the patenting of products and takeovers of other manufacturers. In