EMR

Emerson Electric Co.

A maker of automation equipment and software that helps factories, power plants, and chemical plants run on their own, with brands like DeltaV and Ovation controlling complex industrial processes around the world. It grew out of a St. Louis workshop founded in 1890 by John Wesley Emerson, a Civil War veteran and judge who backed two brothers' patents for improved electric motors. Fittingly, the "Emerson" behind the name never ran the company—he was the silent financial backer who sold his stake within two years.