Made in Connecticut: Legrand

Each month, we profile a Connecticut manufacturer, showcasing the ingenuity and innovation driving the state’s economy. For June, we talked with Legrand North & Central America, headquartered in West Hartford.

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Company location(s)?

While Legrand’s global headquarters is in Limoges, France, our LNCA headquarters is based in West Hartford, Connecticut. Prior to being acquired by Legrand, this facility was originally The Wiremold Company and built in 1929.

When was your company founded?

Legrand was founded in 1904. The company acquired The Wiremold Company in 2000. Since we began increasing our presence in North and Central America, Legrand has acquired more than 15 companies.

How many employees work for your company?

Every day, over 39,000 Legrand employees work hard to enhance the buildings of tomorrow. Within our LNCA footprint, there are more than 6,700 associates with approximately 550 associates based in the West Hartford facility.

What products does your company manufacture? Who are your customers?

Representing more than 150 years of innovation, Legrand is the global specialist in electrical and digital building infrastructures.

Our purpose is improving lives by transforming the spaces where people live, work, and meet with electrical and digital infrastructures and connected solutions that are simple, innovative, and sustainable.

Legrand is an industry leader, specializing in wire and cable management, home automation, and lighting control.

At Wiremold, the main product lines are: Metallic Raceway Systems, Infloor Systems, Poke Thru, Floor Boxes, Plugmold, Telepower Poles, and Prewire Raceway.

Our business spans residential and non-residential building markets.

Why did you choose manufacturing?

At Legrand, the passion for manufacturing has been part of our DNA for hundreds of years. That legacy lives on in our West Hartford facility and dozens of other manufacturing sites across our region.

What makes your company unique?

We hold a leading position in every North American market we serve and focus on exceeding our customers’ needs within the commercial, residential, and industrial industries.

We’re proud to fulfill our corporate purpose of improving lives while bringing power, light, and data solutions to the communities in which we live and work. 

Legrand’s commitment to sustainable growth also sets us apart. Earlier this year we launched our fifth consecutive Corporate Social Responsibility Roadmap which lays out commitments in four key areas: diversity and inclusion, reducing our carbon footprint, developing a circular economy and continuing our responsible business practices.

Why did you choose Connecticut?

Connecticut, and West Hartford specifically, has served as an excellent home for Legrand’s North and Central American headquarters for nearly two decades.

The surrounding area is attractive for global organizations like ours—and it is clear that the local government values the contributions of the businesses and manufacturers who have chosen to be based here.

Many of our customers, colleagues, and partners who visit from across the globe have been impressed with the community and the people of West Hartford.

What is the greatest advantage to operating in Connecticut?

Thanks to its convenient location, we can draw on talent from the surrounding area for a broad array of opportunities across our business, engineering, and manufacturing operations.

Where do you see your company in five years? Ten years?

At Legrand we are laser-focused on continuing to exceed the needs of our customers in a responsible and sustainable way.

Legrand continues to grow thanks to the talent amongst our associates and our commitment to R&D/innovation initiatives.

In addition to our research and development teams paving the way, our local teams are determining creative ways to support our customers.

In years to come as current challenges subside, we will truly see the value of this innovation, paving the way for sustainable solutions that can more efficiently provide power, light, and data solutions.

What’s the main thing policymakers could implement to make your company more competitive?

Increasing the visibility and access to programs designed to build a skilled trade environment would be a step in the right direction in enhancing our competitiveness.

These programs should offer some assurance that manufacturers can partner and actually obtain skill trade resources on a part-time or full-time basis.