The first electric thermostat patent was done by Warren S. Johnson in 1883. With his invention, Mr. Johnson decided to create a company. So, he and a group of investors from Milwaukee founded the Johnson Electric Service Company in 1885. Its objective was to manufacture and install the temperature regulation systems for buildings.
Warren S. Johnson died in 1911. The company continued more specialized in the temperature control business. They made some innovations like introducing the Pneumatic Control Center, that transformed many control points in a large building into one monitor control temperature central site.
By 1974, the company changed its name to Johnson Controls, its current name. In 1978, the company bought Globe Union dedicated to manufacture automotive batteries. Now, Johnson Controls has a primary role as producer of lead acid automotive batteries in North America and has several business operations in Asia and South America.
In 1985 Johnson Controls acquired the Michigan location of Hoover Universal so the company got into the automotive seating business. At present Johnsons plants are found in five continents. They also have an elaborated system to service just in time to the customer, which consists in assembling the seats, load in a truck and delivering to the customers in 90 minutes.
In 1990, Johnson Controls began in the cars and lights trucks area offering interior component as headliners and door trim. Because of the acquisition of Prince Automotive Company, Johnson Control expanded its operations to manufacture all complete interior aspects, such as the overhead systems, floor consoles, door systems, instrument panels and seat systems.
The result of this growing history is that Johnson Controls is divided in two big operational units: the automotive group and the controls group. Particularly, at the battery manufacturer business, the company provides the original battery equipment to Daimler Chrysler, Ford, Honda, Nissan and Toyota.