Kerr Pump & Supply was founded in Detroit, Michigan in 1905 by David M Kerr as Kerr Machinery Corporation. We are Michigan and Northwest Ohio’s oldest and largest distributor. We have been providing the industry’s most highly engineered, cost-effective, efficient and reliable equipment since our inception.
Today, Kerr represents corporate America, Europe & Asia’s premier names in fluid and air handling equipment including:
- Aurora – Pentair
Alfa Laval- Busch Vacuum
- Crane-Deming
- Ebara
- Fair Banks Morse – Pentair
- Fuji
- Hydromatic – Pentair
- MD Kinney (Tuthill)
- Netzch
- Teikoku – Chempump
- Viking Pump – IDEX Corporation
- …and more
The future of our industry is bright. We look forward to keeping up with technological advancements in our field and to serving our customers for another century.
Kerr History
Kerr began manufacturing electric and steam driven centrifugal pumps under the name of Kerr Machinery & Supply, founded in 1905 by Alexander M. Kerr, along with his two sons, David and Robert, and incorporated in 1907.
A profile written about Robert Kerr in the book, The City of Detroit Michigan, 1701 – 1922, Volume 1, highlights his business ethics: “As the head of this and subsidiary companies, he succeeded in building up a business second to none in the state, achieving splendid results through honesty, square dealing and by reason of the value and worth of his products.”
These same practices have been carried on through generations and continue today under the leadership of Tom Gross, President.
Kerr Location – Detroit, Michigan
Headquartered just north of the Detroit city limits, Kerr initially ran operations out of the basement of the Dime Bank Building in the heart of the city, where we successfully built pumps until 1914. Growth and expansion led to the enlistment of the famous architect, Albert Kahn, to design a modern 6-story Kerr Machinery Building, located at the corner of Fort and Beaubien streets.
In 1964, Kerr moved to their current facility. It is here that we manufacture the Kerr and Haynes line of vertical process and vertical sump pumps. Additionally, we represent numerous different lines of pumps (Viking remains a top line)—from gear pumps, to centrifugal, vacuum, and air operated pumps—as well as other products, like heat exchangers, blowers, tanks, valves, packaged systems, and control panels. These offerings span diverse industrial applications, providing solutions for manufacturing processes, municipal projects (water and wastewater), and interesting one-off jobs, such as helping with a pump motor issue at the Detroit Zoo.