Kleinschmidt has been a leading edge supplier of company-to-company communication solutions for over 100 years. Our pioneering work in the field of electronic interchange of business information began when our founder, Edward E. Kleinschmidt, started working with the telegraph in 1893. He opened his own “experimental shop” in 1898. He received multiple patents for his work starting in 1910.

Shortly thereafter, he founded Kleinschmidt Electric Company. In 1914, he was credited with the invention of the teletypewriter/teleprinter. In 1924, Kleinschmidt Electric merged with the Morkrum Company to form Morkrum-Kleinschmidt Corporation. There he worked with Sterling Morton and Howard Krum and received additional patents in the area of teletypewriter development. The name of the company was changed to Teletype Corporation in 1928.

George Seely came to Kleinschmidt’s shop with a partially developed block system for electric trolley car railways in 1906. Seely and Kleinschmidt developed, tested, and patented a number of railway signaling devices. In 1910 a complete apparatus was exhibited at the American Association of Railroads Communications Convention. Kleinschmidt Inc. still provides services to all of the Class 1 North American Railroads and the majority of shortline railroads.

The Teletype Corporation was sold to AT&T for $30,000,000 in stock in 1930. The following year Kleinschmidt Laboratories was founded. Kleinschmidt Laboratories Inc. continued to refine the teletypewriter and do research and development for the Teletype Corporation. During World War II, son Bernard Kleinschmidt learned that the US Signal Corps needed a lightweight, transportable teleprinter. In February of 1944, Edward E. Kleinschmidt demonstrated a working model of his lightweight teleprinter at the office of the Chief Signal Officer. The Kleinschmidt 100-words-per-minute typebar page printer was made the standard for the Military in 1949.

Kleinschmidt Laboratories Inc. faced a serious problem in 1949. The success of its new printer created an order for 2,000 teleprinters. Kleinschmidt purchased a 13-acre parcel of land, facing County Line Road in Deerfield, Illinois, to house the manufacturing operations. This location (450 Lake Cook Road) and the original buildings are the current home of Kleinschmidt Inc.

Kleinschmidt Laboratories Inc. merged with Smith-Corona in 1956. Shortly thereafter, Smith-Corona merged with Marchant Calculators, Kleinschmidt became known as Kleinschmidt, a Division of SCM Corporation.

Kleinschmidt recognized that the teletypewriter business was changing and moved in a different direction. In 1979 the company started to provide network services providing both Electronic Data Interchange (EDI) and Car Location Message (CLM) services. Working again with the Association of American Railroads, the National Industrial Traffic League (NITL), and the Transportation Data Coordinating Committee (TDCC), Kleinschmidt helped pioneer the use of EDI and CLMs between the North American Railroads and their customers.

The year 1986 saw a major change in direction for Kleinschmidt. Hanson Trust acquired SCM Corporation. Harry S. Gaples, then president of the Kleinschmidt division, purchased the company from Hanson Trust. Harry renamed the company Kleinschmidt Inc. and has presided as its President and CEO ever since.

Today Kleinschmidt Inc. is the largest privately owned firm dedicated exclusively to providing network-based eBusiness solutions and services. It is a premier eBusiness Company with a long history of leadership. Located in Deerfield, Illinois, it is the only eBusiness provider that owns and operates a 24x7 second production site in the United States providing system network redundancy and disaster preparedness.

Kleinschmidt is an employee-owned company with a profitable track record. The company is debt free. This gives Kleinschmidt the flexibility to quickly allocate resources to meet customer expectations and requirements without competing for capital funding. Kleinschmidt prides itself in providing outstanding professional service 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.