Erdco Engineering Corporation

What Erdco Engineering Corporation does

ERDCO Engineering Corporation is a privately held, Evanston, Illinois-based industrial instrument manufacturer founded in 1946 that designs and builds flow measurement hardware for utility fluids including water, compressed air, lube oil, steam, coolants, and nitrogen. The company's portfolio is organized into five product brands: See-Flo (sight flow indicators and direct-reading flow rate meters for transparent liquids and gases), Armor-Flo (variable-area flow meters for liquids, gases and steam in opaque service with optional reed-switch limit switches, 4-20 mA loop-powered transmitters, and UL Listed hazardous-area enclosures), Flex-Flo (economy cast-aluminum variable-area flow indicators), Turbo-Flo (insertion turbine probes for water and aqueous solutions in pipe sizes up to 72 inches, including stainless steel, Delrin, PVC and hand-held velocity probe variants), and Rapid Tester (ASTM/DOT/IATA-compliant 2 ml closed-cup and open-cup flash point and combustibility benchtop instruments, plus Specification Grade Wicks consumables). Underlying technology is mechanical and electromechanical: wedge-shaped self-cleaning variable-area housings with magnetic coupling between wetted and dry sides, magnetic pulse-output turbine probes that operate without external power, and NIST-traceable digital temperature circuitry with LCD displays on the testing line.

ERDCO operates a configured-to-order, quote-based sales model in which every meter is individually calibrated to the application conditions (fluid type, specific gravity, viscosity, density, operating pressure and temperature, connection size and type) specified by the customer through an online inquiry form. The company has no published list pricing. Go-to-market combines a global network of technically oriented representative firms in major markets worldwide with factory-direct application engineering support. End markets served include Process, Environmental, Water Treatment, and HVAC industries. The company employs 11-50 people, has no public listing, no disclosed investors, and no M&A history; it operates as an independent closely held corporation from its 721 Custer Avenue, Evanston headquarters.

Name

Erdco Engineering Corporation

Legal name

ERDCO Engineering Corporation

Website

https://erdco.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1946

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Erdco Engineering Corporation is a privately held, Evanston, Illinois-based industrial instrument manufacturer (founded 1946) that designs and builds flow meters (variable-area, rotameter, turbine, thermal dispersion) plus ASTM/DOT/IATA-compliant flash point testers for the Process, Environmental, Water Treatment and HVAC industries.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Flow Measurement Instruments

NAICS

Totalizing Fluid Meter and Counting Device Manufacturing (334514), Measuring, Dispensing, and Other Pumping Equipment Manufacturing (333914)

SIC

Totalizing Fluid Meters & Counting Devices (3824)

akta.pro primary industry

Gas Flow Measurement & Remote Metering Operations (Flow Computers, EFM) (EUAJAFAF)

akta.pro secondary industries

Metering Equipment Testing, Calibration & Certification (EUAJAKAA), Specialty & Metering Pumps (IMAHANAC), Sensors & Feedback Devices (Pressure, Flow, Position, Encoders, Transducers) (IMAHAGAK), Gas Metering, AMI/AMR & Measurement Services (Distribution) (TLAGADAD)

Keywords

• Industrial flow meters
• Variable area flowmeters
• Insertion turbine probes
• Flash point testers
• Process measurement instruments

Headquarters

HQ city

Evanston

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Configured-to-order flow meter hardware sales: Customers specify fluid, operating pressure and temperature, connection type and size through an inquiry form; ERDCO then individually calibrates each meter for the application conditions specified, indicating project-based, custom-configured one-time hardware sales rather than shelf inventory.
2. Distributor / representative channel sales: Technically oriented firms in major markets worldwide offer ERDCO products, indicating indirect revenue flow through independent channel partners who resell into local industrial markets.
3. Rapid Tester® flash point instrument sales: Standalone product line (RT-01 closed cup, RT-02 open cup) sold as bench instruments for QA, compliance testing and fuel dilution analysis in laboratories, with disposable fuel tank and NIST-traceable thermometer as recurring consumable / accessory revenue.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Core offering

ERDCO Engineering Corporation manufactures flow measurement instruments (variable area/rotameter sight flow indicators and flow rate meters, insertion turbine probes, and thermal dispersion flowmeters) for utility fluids including water, compressed air, lube oil, steam, and nitrogen. The company also produces benchtop Rapid Tester flash point/combustibility testers (closed-cup and open-cup) with 2 ml samples and one-minute test cycles, plus consumable Specification Grade Wicks. Each flow meter is individually calibrated to the customer's specified fluid type, specific gravity, viscosity, density, operating temperature and pressure, maximum flow rate, and connection size.

Product overview

Erdco Engineering Corporation is an established (founded 1946) industrial instrumentation manufacturer offering a portfolio of independent product brands rather than a single unified software platform. Its core offering is a family of flow measurement instruments organized by application: See-Flo® (sight flow indicators and direct-reading flow meters for transparent fluids — 3100/3200), Armor-Flo™ (variable area flow meters for liquids/gases/steam with optional reed-switch limits and 4-20 mA transmitters — 3400, 3500, 3600, and 3700 hazardous-area series), Flex-Flo™ (economy aluminum variable-area flow indicators — 700 series), and Turbo-Flo™ (insertion turbine probes — 20 stainless steel, 25D Delrin, 25P PVC, and the HP-302 hand-held velocity probe). Complementing the flow family is a separate testing equipment line, Rapid Tester® (RT-00001 closed-cup flashpoint and RT-00002 open-cup combustibility testers, 2 ml sample / one-minute cycle) with its consumable Specification Grade Wicks™. The See-Flo®, Armor-Flo™, and Flex-Flo™ lines share a common wedge-shaped variable-area architecture but differ in materials, pressure/temperature ratings, and signal output options; the Turbo-Flo™ probes complement them by addressing large-pipe and insertion installations. The Armor-Flo™ 3600 and 3700 add 4-20 mA two-wire transmitters, and the Turbo-Flo™ 20/25D/25P probes accept optional displays (TF-15350-2, TF-15390, TF-15385) and wall-mounted flow controllers (TF-15275), providing a hardware-only integration pathway rather than a software API.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• See-Flo®: Variable-area sight flow indicators and flow rate meters for transparent liquids and gases (3100 and 3200 series).
• Armor-Flo™
• Flex-Flo™
• Turbo-Flo™
• Rapid Tester®
• Specification Grade Wicks™

Products and services

• See-Flo® Sight Flow Indicators and Flow Rate Meters Variable-area (rotameter-style) sight flow indicators and direct-reading flow rate meters for visual inspection and measurement of transparent liquids and gases; includes the 3100 sight flow indicator (aluminum, brass, or 316 stainless steel; NPT, tri-clamp or ANSI flange connections up to 6") and the 3200 flow rate meter (10:1 turndown, dual units, 200 psig pressure limit, up to 250°F). For industrial process plants and utilities.
• Armor-Flo™ Variable Area Flow Rate Meters Variable-area flow rate meters for opaque liquids, gases, and steam with wedge-shaped self-cleaning housing and Teflon-encapsulated cobalt magnet coupling; available with optional reed-switch limit switches and 4-20 mA loop-powered transmitters. Includes the 3400 (general purpose, 1/2"-12", up to 1000 psig, up to 400°F), 3500 (with adjustable lo/hi SPDT reed switches, Class I Div 2), 3600 (with 4-20 mA two-wire transmitter, NEMA 4/4X), and 3700 (hazardous-area, UL Listed Class I Groups C&D / Class II Groups E,F&G). For process, water treatment, environmental and HVAC industries.
• Flex-Flo™ Variable Area Flow Indicators Economy cast-aluminum variable-area (rotameter-style) flow rate indicators with self-cleaning wedge-shaped housing and orientation-independent flexing vane that supports horizontal or vertical (up or down) installation, unlike conventional float-type rotameters. The 700 series targets air, water, and other transparent fluids at moderate pressures and temperatures; 100 psig / 212°F limits, ±5% full scale accuracy, 1/2"-4" NPT connections.
• Turbo-Flo™ Insertion Turbine Flow Probes Insertion turbine flow probes for water and aqueous solutions in pipe sizes up to 72", with magnetic pulse output proportional to flow rate (no external power required). Includes the 20 Series stainless steel probe (304 sst, 1000 psig, ±1.0% accuracy, 30:1 turndown), 22 hot-tap probe, 25D Delrin non-metallic probe, 25P PVC non-metallic probe, and HP-302 hand-held open-stream velocity probe (anodized aluminum, swiveling turbine head, up to 21 ft extensions). Compatible with TF-15350-2, TF-15385, TF-15390 displays/transmitters and TF-15275 flow controllers.
• Rapid Tester® Flash Point and Combustibility Testers Small-sample (2 ml) benchtop flash point and combustibility testers with one-minute test cycles, LCD digital displays, and NIST-traceable thermometers. Includes RT-00001 closed-cup flash point tester (ASTM D 3278, D 3828, ISO 3679, ISO 3680, DOT CFR 49-173.115, IATA Resolution 618, OSHA 29CFR 1910-106/1200) and RT-00002 open-cup combustibility tester (ASTM D 4206, BS-3900 Part A-11, DOT CFR 49-173.115, ISO 9038, UK Factories Act, UN ST/SG/AC.10/1/Rev 8); correlation ≥0.994 with ASTM D 56 (Tag) and D 93 (Pensky-Martens). For QA, compliance, and fuel dilution analysis laboratories.
• Specification Grade Wicks™ Specification-grade consumable testing wicks used with ERDCO Rapid Tester testing equipment for flash point and smoke point testing applications. Sold as a recurring consumable/accessory to support the Rapid Tester product line.

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Recent moves5 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Broad incumbents

• ABB: Diversified industrial automation and process instrumentation provider with a broad flow measurement portfolio (swirl, Coriolis, electromagnetic). Competes with ERDCO in process and water applications but with significantly broader scope and global scale.
• Endress+Hauser: Global leader in industrial process measurement with a comprehensive flow portfolio (Coriolis, ultrasonic, electromagnetic, vortex). Operates broadly in the same end markets as ERDCO but at vastly larger scale and with full digital/IIoT capability.
• Yokogawa Electric Corporation: Industrial automation incumbent offering a wide flow measurement portfolio alongside DCS and process control systems. Overlaps with ERDCO in process-industry flow applications but serves customers as part of a much broader automation stack.
• Siemens Process Instrumentation: Industrial conglomerate with a large process instrumentation portfolio including SITRANS flow meters. Overlaps with ERDCO in process-industry applications but as one product category within a much wider automation and digital industries portfolio.

Others

• Omega Engineering: Broad-line industrial measurement and process control catalog supplier selling flow meters alongside thousands of other instrumentation SKUs. Comparable to ERDCO's variable-area and turbine flow offerings from a catalog/channel perspective rather than as a direct specialty competitor.

Direct peers

• Koehler Instrument Company: Manufacturer of petroleum testing equipment including flash point, viscosity, and distillation instruments. Directly comparable to ERDCO's Rapid Tester® line for ASTM/DOT flash point and combustibility testing.
• Brooks Instrument: Established flow measurement manufacturer offering variable-area (rotameter) meters, thermal mass flow controllers, and turbine meters for industrial and laboratory applications. Overlaps directly with ERDCO's variable-area and thermal dispersion product families.
• McCrometer: Specializes in flow measurement for water and process applications, including insertion propeller and electromagnetic meters. Comparable to ERDCO's Turbo-Flo™ insertion turbine line in serving large-pipe water and aqueous-solution flow measurement.
• King Instrument Company: Manufacturer of rotameters, sight flow indicators, and variable-area flow meters with custom-calibrated product lines very similar to ERDCO's See-Flo® and Armor-Flo™ offerings. Targets the same process, water treatment, and HVAC end markets through industrial distribution.
• Blue-White Industries: Manufacturer of flow meters (including variable-area and insertion turbine types) and chemical metering pumps targeted at water treatment and industrial process customers — a near-direct overlap with ERDCO's water/process focus and Turbo-Flo™ insertion probe line.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/erdco-engineering-corporation

Compliance3 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Erdco Engineering Corporation