Whirlpool Corporation

Whirlpool Corporation is an American home appliance manufacturer headquartered in Benton Charter Township, Michigan, the largest home appliance maker in the world by revenue. It was founded in 1911 in Saint Joseph, Michigan, as the Upton Machine Company, an early maker of electric motor-driven wringer washing machines, and the company took the Whirlpool name in 1950 after decades of selling washing machines to Sears under the Kenmore brand alongside its own. Whirlpool expanded through the twentieth century into a full line of major home appliances, including refrigerators, ovens, and dishwashers, and it grew its global reach substantially through the 2006 acquisition of Maytag, a longtime rival American appliance maker.