Cole Hersee

About Cole Hersee

Cole Hersee has been a cornerstone of heavy-duty electrical engineering for over a century. The company traces its roots to 1914, when the Henry Cole Company was established in Boston, Massachusetts. In 1924, Leo Mayer acquired that firm, and by 1935 he had also purchased the F.C. Hersee Company — a specialist in automotive electrical components. The two were formally merged into the Cole Hersee Company in 1941, creating a brand whose name has since become synonymous with durable, purpose-built electrical components. In 2010, Cole Hersee was acquired by Littelfuse, Inc., expanding its reach and resources while preserving its long-standing commitment to quality.

Cole Hersee is recognized as a pioneer and leader in developing heavy-duty electrical products for the vehicle industry. The company collaborated on many foundational industry standards and today supplies over 2,000 dependable products and accessories for construction, agriculture, military, commercial trucking, and marine applications. It holds ISO 9001 certification, a testament to its rigorous manufacturing and quality management standards.

What sets Cole Hersee apart is its focus on purpose-built engineering for the harshest environments. Whether a component is destined for an offshore vessel, a long-haul semi-truck, or heavy construction equipment, Cole Hersee designs its products to withstand extreme conditions — resisting moisture, corrosion, UV exposure, and mechanical vibration. For decades, leading OEMs have chosen Cole Hersee as a preferred supplier, making their parts a familiar sight in factory-installed electrical systems across the globe.

Core Product Categories

Cole Hersee's catalog spans a wide range of critical electrical components. Their battery disconnect switches have been an OEM staple for heavy-duty vehicles for over forty years, providing a reliable means to cut off battery current and guard against theft, drain, and electrical fires. The company's extensive line of toggle switches — including SPST and DPST configurations in brass and nickel-plated housings — are trusted in automotive, marine, and industrial panel builds alike. For those requiring additional circuit configurations, Cole Hersee's broader toggle switch range covers specialty and heavy-duty variants suited to demanding electrical systems.

On the power-switching side, Cole Hersee's solenoids and starter solenoids are workhorses found in trucks, buses, boats, and off-road equipment. Designed to switch high-current circuits remotely and reliably, they come in multiple configurations — including solid-state and high-current variants — to suit a wide range of applications. Whether you're sourcing a replacement for a heavy equipment starter circuit or building a custom electrical system from scratch, Cole Hersee's solenoid lineup delivers the performance professionals depend on.

Why Choose Cole Hersee?

• Century-long heritage: Over 100 years of electrical component engineering for the most demanding industries.
• OEM trusted: Specified as original equipment by leading commercial vehicle and marine manufacturers worldwide.
• Built for harsh environments: Components engineered to resist corrosion, moisture, UV, and vibration.
• ISO 9001 certified: A quality management standard that backs every product off the line.
• Broad catalog: More than 2,000 products spanning switches, solenoids, relays, battery isolators, and connectors.