Emeco
Emeco is a privately held company based in Hanover, Pennsylvania. The Emeco 1006, known as the Navy Chair, has been in continuous production since the 1940s. Today, Emeco manufactures furniture designed by notable designers and architects such as Philippe Starck, Norman Foster, and Frank Gehry. History Wilton C. Dinges founded the Electric Machine and Equipment Company (Emeco) in 1944 with $300 in savings and a used lathe for machine-work. He started bidding on government manufacturing contracts out of a loft in Baltimore, Maryland, beginning with experimental antennas and jet engine parts. Dinges moved to Hanover, Pennsylvania in 1946 in order to take advantage of the local labor market. He obtained 10,000 pounds of aluminum scrap metal at an attractive price and started using it to build dining table legs. Later Emeco manufactured chair frames and eventually focused completely on aluminum chairs in 1948. The Emeco 1006 Navy Chair for which the company is known was one of several furniture products made out of anodized aluminum, such as bunks and lockers, that Emeco made for the US Navy's fleet during World War II. The business grew by under-bidding other manufacturers on government contracts for office building furniture. By 1953, there were