Joe Donnelly: “today I recognize the 100th anniversary of Allison Transmission, a company that traces its history back to the founding…”

“today I recognize the 100th anniversary of Allison Transmission, a company that traces its history back to the founding of the Indianapolis Speedway Team Co. in 1915. As a co-founder of the Indianapolis Motor Speedway and part owner of several racing teams, James A. Allison established a machine shop on Main Street in Speedway, IN. Allison's initial focus was racing. However, in 1917 when the United States entered World War I, Allison shifted focus to produce parts and tooling for Liberty engines used by many Allied airplanes in the war. After a brief return to racing at the war's end in late 1918 and a win at the 1919 Indianapolis 500, Allison continued to focus on engineering aircraft and marine products. When James Allison died in 1928, General Motors bought the company. Shortly before the start of World War II, aircraft engines became the Allison Division's focus. Later, as part of GM, Allison Transmission developed the first cross-drive hydraulic unit for the M-41 Patton tank. Since then the company has made transmissions for most of the U.S. military's armored and tactical wheeled vehicles. Further development of transmissions for buses, automatics for trucks and buses, hydraulically controlled trucks and buses, and transmissions with electronic controls were developed by Allison from the 1950s through the 1990s. GM sold Allison Transmission in 2007 to a pair of private equity firms, and in March 2012, Allison Transmission Holdings Inc.…”