History

From humble beginnings in a small garage in South Melbourne, Wilson Transformer Company has grown to become the largest Australian manufacturer of power and distribution transformers. The company was founded by Jack Wilson, the father of the present Managing Director. The “Chief”, as he was known to most of his early employees, was a man of vision, with the ability to turn ideas into reality - a difficult task in those days, when technical experience, equipment and capital were limited. Despite these difficulties, the company grew steadily – by reinvesting its profits in people, technology and assets.

The business commenced manufacturing in South Melbourne in 1933.

In the early 1950’s after outgrowing premises in South Melbourne and Port Melbourne, the Company moved its operations to Glen Waverley, the present site of its Head Office and Power Transformer manufacturing operations. This plant has progressively developed and expanded over the years.

Between 1963 and 1982, the Company operated a small distribution transformer manufacturing plant in South Australia to supply the South Australian market. This plant was closed after the establishment of the Wodonga operations.

For a period the Company also produced distribution transformers and locomotive transformers in a small plant in Maryborough, Queensland, which it acquired with the takeover of Baldwin Transformers. The Queensland plant was closed in 1989.

In 1981 the Company moved part of its existing distribution transformer manufacture to a new plant in the Albury/Wodonga National Growth Centre. This greenfield site enabled the Company to utilise modern manufacturing techniques and production flow to produce its newly developed range of distribution transformers.

A strategic decision was made in 1994 to create separate Power and Distribution Business Units to generate focus within the businesses. Following this decision, the remaining distribution transformer manufacture was transferred from Glen Waverley to Wodonga. As the market recovered in the 1990’s this decision necessitated two expansions to the Wodonga site, which enabled the operation to be further developed into a world class facility.

Today the Company operates from both factories in Glen Waverley and Wodonga, employing over 500 people. A Sales support office has been opened in West Sussex, United Kingdom for Sales and Marketing operations in the UK, Europe and the Middle East.