Marconi Instruments Limited[2] (MI) was a British company, one of the Marconi group of companies, formerly part of GEC. Originally formed in 1936,[3][1] there was a buyout of Marconi-Ekco Instruments to form the company Marconi Instruments in 1941.[4]

Marconi Instruments Limited
Company typePublic limited company
IndustryEngineering
Founded1936
Defunct1998
FateSold to IFR Systems Inc. in 1998, which was then acquired by Aeroflex in 2002.
SuccessorIFR Systems
Aeroflex
HeadquartersSt Albans, England, UK
Key people
R. E. Burnett (managing director)[1]
ProductsElectronics

The company was based in St Albans,[5] Colchester and Stevenage (where it eventually consolidated), all in southern England. Prior to the consolidation in Stevenage, its main site was at Longacres[6] on the eastern outskirts of St Albans, where it was the largest employer. There were four other sites, one at Hedley Road, one on Hatfield Road, St Albans (Fleetville Works), one on the Donibristle Industrial Estate in Fife, Scotland and one at Luton Airport, Luton.

The company produced electronic test and measurement equipment and systems,[7] including automatic test equipment.[8][9][10] It was known for its extensive range of signal generators, from audio up to microwave frequencies. It also made oscilloscopes, voltmeters, spectrum analysers, frequency counters, function generators, component (LCR) bridges, impedance analysers, power supplies, distortion analysers, moisture meters and logic analysers. The company operated an approved calibration and metrology laboratory for the electronics industry.[citation needed]

Marconi Instruments was sold to IFR Systems Inc. in 1998, itself acquired by Aeroflex in 2002.[11] The name is no longer used.[citation needed]

Companies with "Marconi" in their name can trace their ultimate origins, through mergers and takeovers, to The Marconi Company Ltd., founded by Guglielmo Marconi in 1897 as The Wireless Telegraph & Signal Company.[citation needed]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Company Profile: Best ever year for Marconi Instruments?". Electronics & Power: 500. 27 June 1974. doi:10.1049/ep.1974.0371.
  2. ^ "Marconi Instruments Limited". Google Sites. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  3. ^ "Marconi Instruments". Grace's Guide to British Industrial History. UK. Retrieved 20 June 2018.
  4. ^ "Marconi-Ekco Instruments". Electronic Engineering. Vol. 14. 1941. p. 648.
  5. ^ Bateman, Aaron (5 August 2004). "Memories of working at Marconi". www.stalbansreview.co.uk. UK: St Albans & Harpenden Review. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  6. ^ Beck, Harold (1962). "1962 Diary & Notes". A Disrupted Life]. UK: www.haroldbeck.org.uk. Archived from the original on 13 May 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  7. ^ "A GSM Digital Radio Communications Test Set". Microwave Journal. 1 May 1997.
  8. ^ "Marconi Instruments". eBay. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  9. ^ "Marconi Test Instruments". Yahoo Groups. Yahoo. Archived from the original on 8 May 2014. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  10. ^ "History of the radio manufacturer Marconi Instruments Ltd., St. Albans". www.radiomuseum.org. Radiomuseum. Retrieved 9 May 2014.
  11. ^ GEC Sells Marconi Instruments, Archive.org, 1998.