WHO WE ARE
Brailsford & Co. is a leader in the field of high-quality, long life, miniature DC pumps, blowers and motors. Since 1944 we have been providing a full range of air and gas moving products for incorporation in precision devices requiring the highest standards of quality and longevity.
Our pumps, blowers and motors are produced in a state-of-the-art manufacturing facility in New England and shipped to customers worldwide. We manufacture almost every component that goes into our products. We wind our own coils, stuff and solder our PC boards, mold our pump housings, assemble and coat motor laminations and operate a fully equipped machine shop, among other operations. Our testing and quality control departments assure that our products meet rigorous standards before they’re sent to the customer. We’ve received pumps back for retrofits still operating after more than 20 years in the field.
Brailsford’s staff is highly trained and skilled in the manufacture of precision products; we take pride in providing the best miniature pumps, blowers and motors available anywhere.
OUR HISTORY
Brailsford & Company was one of the earliest manufacturers of miniature DC motors and is proud to have been issued the first patent in the U.S. for brushless, DC technology in 1955. For over 60 years we have designed and manufactured high quality, long life DC motors and air moving devices for critical performance applications.
Incorporated in 1944, one of our first motors was designed for use in a radiosonde which Brailsford had developed for the U.S. Army Signal Corps during WWII. The Signal Corps was looking for a device that could be dropped behind enemy lines and transmit readings of air temperature, pressure and relative humidity via radio transmitter to a receiver on the ground. The heart of the radiosonde is a motor that had to have very low current drain and Brailsford became the first to successfully provide this capability; others had tried but failed. The radiosondes were widely used during WWII and were critical instruments aboard weather planes sent out prior to the bombing raids that ended the war.
Other radiosondes were suspended from helium or hydrogen balloons. Civil applications of radiosonde technology are still in use today by various weather agencies and for polar and volcanic observation. Many of these instruments continue to incorporate the Brailsford motor. The Brailsford motor has also been used in a wide range of marine research activities. Brailsford timers were used by Radio Free Europe to help spread their message to communist countries during the cold war.
Using our basic T-Motor design and responding to the increasing demand for brushless direct current technology, our product capabilities rapidly expanded to include miniature brushless DC pumps, blowers and fans incorporating the same rigid quality specifications and versatility as our original motor.
Below are some early pictures from our long history of producing high quality products.
Production Dept, circa 1953
Assembly Line, circa 1953
Machine Shop, circa 1949
Trade Show, circa 1955
Brailsford Pump On Board Apollo!
Early Brushless DC Motor