GE Overview

As the world’s tenth largest company, as per market cap valuation, General Electric (GE) is a multi-national technology and services conglomerate that also has dealing in the media and financial arenas.

General Electric is one of the first 12 companies to comprise the newly formed Dow Jones Industrial Average, GE was founded in 1896 and is the only original company remaining on the Dow Jones. Although the company has remained a part of the Dow for more than 112 years, GE has not been listed continuously on the Dow throughout all those years.

In the corporations early years, GE absorbed a company named National Electric Lamp Association in 1911, which helped bolster the company’s existing lighting business. GE then established their lighting headquarters in Cleveland, Ohio at a place called Nela Park. Historically, Nela Park became the world’s first “industrial park” and was later added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1975. To this day, GE’s lighting business is still headquartered there.

The company today operates in five very distinct business segments, Energy Infrastructure, Technology Infrastructure, NBC Universal, Capital Finance and Consumer & Industrial. General Electric’s products and services include aircraft engines, water processing, power generation, medical imaging, security technology, business and consumer financing, media content and industrial products.

GE’s Energy Infrastructure business operates in the field of development and implementation of products and technologies. With operations in North America, Europe, Asia, South America and Africa, GE Energy is a supplier of power generation and energy delivery technologies in all areas of the energy industry, including coal, natural gas and nuclear energy, as well as water, wind, solar and alternative fuels.

This segment produces gas, steam, and aero-derivative turbines, generators and combined cycle systems within the energy sector. The Energy Infrastructure segment also sells surface and sub sea drilling and production systems, compressors, turbines, floating production platform equipment, turbo-expanders, and high-pressure reactors to oil and gas companies.

The company also provides water treatment services and equipment. GE’s water and process technologies offer water treatment solutions for industrial and municipal water systems. GE offers services that include the supply and related services of specialty chemicals, water purification systems, filters and fluid handling equipment for wastewater and processing systems.

GE’s Technology Infrastructure is dedicated to the dealings within building healthcare, transportation and technology infrastructure.

The segment consists of the Aviation division, which manufactures jet engines, turboprop and turbo shaft engines, aerospace systems and equipment. In addition, the segment provides repair and maintenance services for commercial aircraft and military aircraft, includ¬ing tankers, surveillance aircraft, bombers, fighters and helicopters. The Aviation segment also produces global aerospace systems and equipment, including airborne platform computing systems, mechanical actuation products, power generation and distribution products and landing gears.

The Technology segment also produces Healthcare products, which manufacture, sells and services a range of medical equipment. These products assist doctors in seeing broken bones, diagnosing trauma cases, viewing the heart and its function, and identifying early stages of cancers or brain disorders. Furthermore, the Healthcare sector also provides technologies that include diagnostic cardiology, patient monitoring, bone densitometry, ultrasound, anesthesiology and oxygen therapy, and neonatal and critical care devices.

The company’s Transportation business provides technology solutions for customers in a variety of industries, including mining, railroad, oil and gas, power generation and transit. This business division manufactures high-horsepower diesel-electric locomotives and locomotive enhancements, along with gearing technology for applications such as wind turbines.

NBC Universal is a diversified media and entertainment company and a subsidiary of General Electric, which is focused on the development, production and marketing of entertainment, news and information, as well as theme parks. With 80% owned by GE and the other 20% owned by Vivendi S.A., NBC is engaged in the production and distribution of television programming and the broadcast of network television through owned and affiliated television stations within the U.S.

Its cable/satellite television networks include the USA Network, Bravo, and CNBC, the Sci-Fi Channel, MSNBC, Oxygen and various channels across Europe, Asia and Latin America. As of December 2008, NBC Universal owned and operated 26 television stations. GE’s NBC Universal segment is also involved in the production and distribution of films. Its film company, Universal Pictures, is in the business of production and worldwide distribution of theatrical and home entertainment.

GE’s Capital Finance offers a range of financial products and services worldwide, including commercial loans, credit cards, operating leases, financial programs, home loans, fleet management and personal loans. GE Money, a provider of financial services to consumers and retailers in over 50 countries worldwide, has a range of financial products that include mortgages, personal loans, private-label credit cards, auto loans and leases, debt consolidation, and home equity loans.

The company’s final division, Consumer & Industrial, sells and services household appliances, including washers and dryers, dishwashers, refrigerators, freezers, cooktops, electric and gas ranges, microwave ovens and air conditioners. GE also manufactures and sells a variety of lighting and lamp products for commercial, industrial and consumer markets, including fluorescent, incandescent, halogen and light emitting diode (LED) products.

GE currently has the fourth most recognizable brand in the world, worth nearly $49 billion. In 2004, with the addition of new CEO Jeffery Immelt, GE made several changes to their image, including a new corporate color palette, small modifications to the GE Logo, a new customized font (GE Inspira), and a new slogan, "imagination at work" replacing the longtime slogan "we bring good things to life."

General Electric currently competes will several conglomerates, which include Dover Corp. (DOV), Emerson Electric Co. (EMR), Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A), Brunswick Corp. (BC), Bunge Ltd. (BG), Dell (DELL), Fortune Brands (FO), General Motors (GM), Hewlett-Packard (HPQ), Johnson & Johnson (JNJ), Microsoft (MSFT), News Corp. (NWS), Proctor & Gamble (PG), Time Warner (TWX), Walt Disney Co. (DIS), Wal-Mart (WMT), and Minnesota Mining & Manufacturing Co. (3M).

By BetterTrades