Charles P. Crowley Company - History

Yesterday

The Charles P. Crowley Company is a family-owned manufacturers’ representative firm, founded in 1932 by Charles P. Crowley, Sr., a Stone & Webster engineer originally from Springfield, MA. A graduate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (M.I.T.), Crowley was sent West in 1924 to build the first Edison Company steam plant in Long Beach, CA. The completion of that plant in 1931 coincided with the beginning of the Great Depression, resulting in the loss of jobs for most Stone and Webster engineers, including Crowley.

In 1932, Crowley became a manufacturers’ representative. Starting with lines including Builders Iron Foundry (BIF), Badger Manufacturing, Moore Steam Turbine, Elgin Softener and others, he opened the business as a single–man representative agency in downtown Los Angeles. In 1955, the company moved to the City of Commerce, where it grew substantially and remained for 40 years. Charles P. Crowley Sr. retired in 1962 and died in San Marino, CA in 1973.

Paul Crowley, a graduate of the University of Arizona (B.S. in Mechanical Engineering) directed the firm from 1962 to 1993. The company gradually expanded its emphasis from steam–oriented products to include water and wastewater treatment equipment, chemical feed systems and flow measurement equipment. The company established itself during these years as a worldwide leader in liquid and dry chemical feed systems integration.

In 1993, management was passed to Jon Crowley (A.B. in Economics from Occidental College, M.S. in Environmental Science from Loyola Marymount University). In 1995, CPC Co. moved to San Dimas, California, 30 miles east of its original location. In 2004, CPC Co. moved to its present location in Irwindale, California, 20 miles east of Pasadena. The company continues to capitalize on its strengths in chemical feed and equipment packaging, while also offering select process equipment. The Charles P. Crowley Company has outlived all but one of the principals it originally represented in 1932.

Today

In its third generation, the Charles P. Crowley Company serves its customers in two capacities: as a Manufacturers’ Representative and as a Systems Integrator. The company remains an Exclusive Representative for quality engineered equipment manufacturers in the following markets:

• Municipal Water and Wastewater
• Industrial Water and Wastewater
• Petrochemical Industry
• Power Industry
• Food/Beverage Industries
• Industrial Process Applications
• Resale/OEM

In most cases, the Charles P. Crowley Company also serves as a stocking distributor and as a Factory Authorized Service Center. Representative contracts include the states of California, Nevada and Arizona. Municipal sales coverage includes water and wastewater plants, consulting engineers, and contactors; Industrial coverage includes engineering contractors, industrial facilities and resale accounts. The company’s internal Systems Integration group continues to provide “value-added” equipment packages for its customers, including engineering design and custom drawings.