Founded 1906 | Parent organization Dresser Industries | |
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Waukesha is an American brand of large stationary reciprocating engines produced by GE Energy. Waukesha engines are large internal combustion engines for industrial uses, such as engines that burn natural gas to run large generators for hospitals.
For 62 years, Waukesha was an independent supplier of gasoline engines, diesel engines, multifuel engines (gasoline/kerosene/ethanol), and LNG/propane engines to many truck, tractor, heavy equipment, automobile, boat, ship, and engine-generator manufacturers. In 1906, The Waukesha Motor Company was founded in Waukesha, Wisconsin. In 1957, Waukesha bought the Climax Engineering Co. of Clinton, Iowa, also a noted builder of large engines. In 1968, Waukesha Motor Company was acquired by the Bangor-Punta Corporation. In 1973, Waukesha sold the Climax division to the Arrow Engine Company. In 1974, Waukesha Motor Company was sold to Dresser Industries and became Dresser's Waukesha Engine Division; its typical nicknames afterward were Waukesha Engine and Dresser Waukesha. In 1989, Dresser acquired the Brons company of the Netherlands. In 2010, Dresser, including Dresser Waukesha, was acquired by GE Energy.
On September 28, 2015, GE announced it was closing the plant for good and moving the engine manufacturing operations to Canada. It employed roughly 600 people.