Yale protects millions of homes and businesses worldwide.

All over the world, people are actively securing all they care about; their home, their family, their personal belongings or their business with the name they trust the most, Yale. That’s why we proudly say that Yale is“the world’s favourite lock”.

Yale is the brand behind locks of every design and function in over 125 countries.

As one of the oldest international brands, today’s Yale is among the best-known and most respected names in the lock industry, with millions of Yale locks in use worldwide.

At Yale, we take great pride in our beginnings. Everything we are today, we owe to the inspirational ingenuity of Linus Yale Senior and Linus Yale Junior.

Yale is a part of the ASSA ABLOY Group. At ASSA ABLOY, we believe that freedom enriches people and that fear makes us poorer.  To realize freedom, we must firstly feel safe and secure. That’s why the ASSA ABLOY Group of companies is committed to creating high quality door opening solutions.

Our overall aim is to make our customers feel so safe and secure that they are free to enjoy their life fully, free of worries and free to choose what they want to do. Sometimes we express this with the words Unlock your life; the ASSA ABLOY Brand Idea.  The ASSA ABLOY Brand Idea supports and works well together with the Yale philosophy. Because this is equally true for Yale: when you feel secure, you are free to enjoy life!

 

The History of Yale

Yale – the world’s favourite lock

Yale is one of the oldest international brands in the world and probably the best-known name in the locking industry. The Yale history captures major innovations that have marked the evolution not just of Yale, but of the entire locking industry.

Beginnings

Yale has its roots in colonial America. The Yale family decided to emigrate to the New World from North Wales. A few generations later, about 1840, Linus Yale Sr., began designing and manufacturing a series of innovative, high security locks at his Yale Lock Shop in Newport, New York. He specialized in expensive, handmade bank locks.

Pioneer innovation

Linus Yale Sr.’s son joined his father in the business in 1850 and perfected and patented his father’s pin tumbler cylinder lock and became the considered locking expert of his time. In 1862, Yale Jr. introduced the Monitor Bank Lock, marking the transition in bank locks from key locks to dial or combination locks. The principles, embodied in his Monitor Lock, are now standard in combination locks throughout the USA.

Yale Jr.

Yale Jr. was also experimenting with a lock based on a mechanism first employed by the ancient Egyptians over 4,000 years ago. Granted patents in 1861 and 1865, Yale finally succeeded in creating his most important invention – the Yale cylinder lock. Linus Yale Jr. transformed the locking industry forever with his many breakthrough inventions.

Worldwide expansion

Relying on Yale patents, Yale’s sterling name and sheer ingenuity, Yale Jr. and his colleague Henry Towne established the Yale & Towne company in 1868, at the time employing 35 people.

The company grew and broadened its scope with manually operated chain hoists, battery powered platform trucks and in 1879 a line of padlocks was introduced. Yale & Towne purchased Norton door closer company and H. and T. Vaughan Ltd.

In the early 20th century, the company expanded worldwide and employed more than 12,000 people. Throughout the 20th century, purchases, acquisitions and joint ventures have made Yale locks well-known worldwide.

In August 2000 Yale was purchased by the ASSA ABLOY Group, and has since then been an important part of the global leader in door opening solutions.