1922 was an important year in world history. The Lincoln Memorial was dedicated in Washington, DC, the Tomb of King Tut was discovered in Egypt, the Reader’s Digest was first published, and the British Broadcasting Company (BBC) was formed. It was also a significant year for Lathrop Trotter, as it was the year of our company’s founding in Cincinnati, Ohio.
Len Trotter and a financial partner originally established the Lathrop Trotter Co. in 1922 as a manufacturer’s representative. The company served the growing coal-fired boiler market with products such as ash handling systems, steam turbines, lubricators, and gears.
Left to Right: Ernie Grimmer, Bill Bissmeyer, Sr., Bob Thomas, Len Trotter
The utility power industry still comprises a significant part of Lathrop Trotter’s business. In fact, we still represent two of the original manufacturers from the 1920’s – United Conveyor Corporation and Terry Steam Turbine, which is known today as Dresser Rand and is owned by Siemens Energy.
Growth and Diversification in the 1960’s
Lathrop Trotter continued to primarily serve the coal-fired steam boiler industry for nearly 40 years after its founding. By the early 1960’s, Lathrop Trotter made its first move to diversify, under the leadership of Bill Bissmeyer Sr., who was the company’s president at that time.
Paul Niklas, a young salesman, who would also eventually become a Lathrop Trotter president, brought on two companies that started the company’s expansion into the industrial and commercial HVAC market. One company was LJ Wing Co., and the other was a new company called Cincinnati Fan, which are companies we still represent today.
Integration of New Fuel Technologies
Over time, as new fuel technologies emerged, Lathrop Trotter has continued to diversify. The company began representing gas turbines partnering with Solar Turbines in the 90’s. Through a merger with Stoermer Industrial Equipment in 2012, Lathrop Trotter moved into the cogeneration and combined heat and power markets. The merger added several industrial boilers, HRSG, and heat recovery lines to the company’s offerings.
Lathrop Trotter Acquired by Koch Air
Lathrop Trotter was acquired by Koch Air, LLC, a subsidiary of Koch Enterprises, Inc. in July of 2021. Koch Air is known for working with Carrier and other HVAC product vendors to provide system solutions in the Midwest. After becoming a sister division of Koch Air and Level Solutions Group, Lathrop Trotter continues to provide boiler and power solutions as a trusted industry brand.
Continuing a Century of Success
Lathrop Trotter is proud to celebrate 100 years of serving our customers with the industry’s best high-performance boilers, customized heating, ventilating, air conditioning, and power solutions. Our team looks forward to continuing to serve our customers with the best industry solutions. We remain dedicated to supporting our customers through long-term relationships to help them efficiently and cost-effectively operate their systems for years of reliable service.
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