About Us
Keeping the World on Time Since 1919
Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, Lathem is one of
the world's leading designers and manufacturers of products for
business. The company specializes in three primary categories: time
and attendance products, synchronized clock systems, and small
business access control solutions. Lathem is proud to celebrate its
90th anniversary, and remains a family-owned and operated US
manufacturer. More than 300,000 companies worldwide use a Lathem
product every day to help manage their business.
In 1919, when George Lathem and his son, Louie Sr., began selling time clocks, factories were one of the few markets for time recorders and night watchman patrol clocks. The Lathems traveled by train throughout the Southeast, getting off at whistle stops and looking for the telltale smokestacks of a potential new customer.
The expansion of the time recorder market began with the passage of the Fair Labor Standards Act in 1938, requiring accurate time records. Increasing wage scales further added to this growing market. Following World War II, the Lathems resigned their sales relationship with another manufacturer and began selling war surplus machines while developing their first Lathem product.
At about the same time, Harrison Hooper came to work for the Lathems. He was the engineering power at Lathem in the early years and helped develop Lathem's first time recorder. In 1947, Louie P. Lathem, Jr., joined the firm. It was the same year that Lathem developed its first security time recorder - the Series 76 Lathem Watchman Clock, named for the company's former address, 76 Spring Street. Over the next 10 years, Lathem began building a network of independent office supply and machine dealers that today stretches worldwide.
In the 1980s, management was ceded to the next generation of the Lathem and Hooper families with the death of Harrison Hooper and the retirement of Louie Lathem. Bill Lathem became the Chief Executive Officer and Ann Hooper became the Chief Financial Officer. The company is now proud to qualify as a woman-owned business with the majority of ownership falling to the daughters, granddaughters, and great granddaughters of the founders.
Lathem - Time, Labor & Security - Evolving with Small Business Needs
Although known many decades for durable time recorders or "punch clocks" and institutional wall clocks, Lathem is now as well known for biometric advancements such as face recognition for automated employee time, attendance and access control.
Other products include electro-mechanical time clocks, innovative data collection terminals, software, wireless & synchronized wall clocks and user-installable security door locks. Lathem's products now span the three categories that matter most to running a small business today.
Lathem has also re-dedicated itself to address the challenges of the economy, while creatively implementing new technology. Engineering, design, manufacturing expertise, and world-wide partnerships all lend themselves to the Lathem brand name. Never one to follow the pack, Lathem invests all of these resources in creating unique solutions that aid a business in optimizing and protecting its assets.
People You Can Rely On Means Products You Can Trust
Lathem employees
average an astounding 18 years of service. Many have tenures of
more than 25 years. This commitment is evidenced in every package
that leaves our facility. Pride of craftsmanship and attention to
detail are at the core of Lathem's culture.
Lathem works diligently to ensure strict quality and cost control at each stage of production. New products are carefully and extensively tested before entering the marketplace, and Lathem's engineering team continuously reviews all products, improving performance and implementing technological advancements.
