SMITHFIELD – The Rhode Island Manufacturers Association last week reflected on the life and legacy of Henry D. Sharpe, a longtime leader and a “driving force” behind Rhode Island’s manufacturing industry.
That description came recently from David M. Chenevert, executive director of the manufacturers association, but has recurred throughout the history of Sharpe’s business, Brown & Sharpe Manufacturing Co.
Sharpe, who died July 1 at age 99, carried out a legacy dating back to 1883, when father-and-son team David Brown and Joseph R. Brown founded the manufacturing powerhouse.
Stockholm-based Hexagon AB acquired the company in 2001, but Brown & Sharpe products continue to be sold under Hexagon’s manufacturing intelligence division.
Many of today’s contract manufacturers also trace back to Brown & Sharpe, the manufacturers association said. At its height, the company had almost 11,000 employees.
The company’s influence includes controversy – beginning in 1981, when Sharpe was chairman of the company, workers carried out the longest strike in the history of Rhode Island, and one of the longest in the country.
Brown & Sharpe stands out as “one of the most influential businesses in the machine tool industry,” said Craig Pickell, manufacturers association chairman and Bullard Abrasives Inc. CEO.
“The company’s impact to Rhode Island was unprecedented, while the labor and policy decisions made through the course of their more than 150-year history continue to shape the manufacturing landscape today,” Pickell said.
The manufacturers association recently established the Henry D. Sharpe Award in recognition of Sharpe’s “unwavering support for manufacturing in Rhode Island,” Chenevert said, adding, “Sharpe’s handprint remains everywhere in the state’s manufacturing sector.”
Jacquelyn Voghel is a PBN staff writer. You may reach her at Voghel@PBN.com.
