Glenfield & Kennedy

Thomas Kennedy came to Kilmarnock from the West Highlands in 1824. He had realised the need for an accurate device for measuring water consumption, and with the help of John Cameron, the local clockmaker, he perfected a design that was patented in 1852. A syndicate of four people was formed to finance the manufacture and marketing of the invention, and this led to the formation in 1896 of a private company called "The Kennedy Patent Water Meter Co. Ltd.". In 1865 the same individuals formed the Glenfield Co. Ltd to make castings for the Meter Company but gradually widened its interests and built up an extensive valve and hydraulic engineering business. In 1899 the two companies merged to form Glenfield and Kennedy Ltd., which became the largest company of its type in the Commonwealth.