Stamford's Accurate Lock & Hardware Plans for Major Growth

Accurate Lock and Hardware, a custom lock and hardware manufacturer with roots traced to Yale & Towne Hardware, is a third generation company founded and headquartered in Stamford, planning for major growth within the next two years. Today, Accurate employs 83 people, 85% who live in Stamford and 30% who walk to work. Accurate is one of the most unique, native Stamford companies that still thrives as a local manufacturer eager to expand to meet the growing demand of an International client base. Accurate furnishes hardware for a diversified clientele including the high-end residential, commercial, institutional, hospitality and historic restoration markets.

Today, Accurate’ s employee population has already grown from 60-85 in less than two years. By 2014, Accurate plans to increase their workforce by 25%. Accurate traces its origins to Yale & Towne Manufacturing Company where Accurate’s co-founder, Carmine Salvatore, learned his trade and worked as foreman of the tool and die department. When Yale, one of the largest employers in Stamford for more than 90 years (1868-1960) and the inspiration for Stamford’s moniker “The Lock City”, left Stamford in 1960, Carmine started Accurate Tool & Die. The company produced custom tools and dies for major manufacturers including Yale, Electrolux Vacuum, Raytheon/Machletts and CBS. A small division of Accurate
Tool was dedicated to making lower volume lock and hardware items as a subcontractor for Yale.

Ronald  Salvatore, Carmine’s son, with wife Joanne formed Accurate Lock and Hardware in 1972 as an independent company beginning with three part time-employees. The company began to focus on designing and producing original lines of hardware to meet a growing demand for code compliant retrofit hardware for the Institutional and
detention center marketplace. In fact, in response to the Attica prison riots Accurate was commissioned to build high security locks to help prevent future incidents.

Ron takes great pride in hiring local neighborhood residents to be trained and taught the skills of machining
and manufacturing. Very often, the company posts signs on the corner of Annie Place and West avenue when it needs to hire additional personnel. Today, Ron’s son Rodd helps manage a diversified and rapidly growing company.

Accurate is one of the gems of Stamford in that despite its relative anonymity within the local community it is well known around the world as the premier manufacturer of specialty door hardware. Some prestigious projects include the White House, Ellis Island,The Diet Building in Tokyo, the residence of Bill Gates and many more. Closer to home, Accurate recently reproduced new knobs to match the original knobs as part of  the historical renovation of the old Town Hall, complete with original emblem.

While most of the major lock and hardware manufacturers have been purchased by conglomerates and source out
their manufacturing overseas, Accurate still manufactures all of its products right here in Stamford.  While Accurate still utilizes a few machines originally from Yale & Towne, the key to its continued success has been a focus on investing in modern, technologically advanced equipment and in training and empowering employees to operate the equipment. Case in point, Accurate recently completed a small expansion to the plant enabling enough space to house a state of the art laser cutting machine. Four employees were hired and schooled to operate this machine and, as a direct result, has lead to a 7% increase in revenue, most of which had been lost to Chinese manufacturers several years ago.  

Accurate makes over 3,000 catalog products not including custom products that account for 35% of production. Accurate, nostalgically, is one of the only manufacturers that still stands today in the heart of Stamford. In fact, Accurate still produces 15 hardware lines originally made at Yale, some dating back to the late 1800’s. Despite the International destination of its products, Accurate remains true to its core as a neighborhood company. “Fortunately, because of Accurates’ favorable location, 30 % of the employees can walk to work and 85 % of the employee
population live in Stamford.” “Investing in our people and in our future workforce is important to us,” says Ron Salvatore. “We have been consistently training our employees with cutting edge technology and software
that is vital to our manufacturing business therefore we are committed to providing an environment that continues to nourish and prosper – we have a very symbiotic culture.” says, Rodd.  “And, we look forward to being able to continue to provide jobs right in our hometown.” Accurates’
workforce is probably one of the most diverse you will find in Fairfield County with natives  of various  countries in  South America, Central America, Europe and Asia.  “The irony and charm about all this is that we are one of the few manufacturers still producing right here in Stamford. In
fact, if you google Yale & Towne, the first thing that comes up is an ad for luxury apartments (a reference toward the new housing development in the South end at the former site of Yale & Towne) meanwhile we are still manufacturing
original Yale Hardware across town fifty years after they left our city. We have old catalogs from Yale dating back to the late 1800’s that we still utilize as source for inspiration and perspective. It is full circle.“ says Rodd. 

Accurate is planning to grow their facilities to meet the needs in the marketplace. By the year 2014, Accurate expects to add at least 25% to their existing workforce.  “It makes us feel good that we have jobs that match the demographics of the Stamford,” says Rodd.”” In many cases, companies in Stamford do not have jobs like ours that mirror our local community.”