High Voltage Laboratory Lease Between Southern California Edison and Caltech

High Voltage Laboratory Lease Between Southern California Edison and Caltech

This lease contract between SCE and Caltech describes the terms for the High Voltage Lab, which marks the most direct collaboration between Caltech and industry since Caltech’s founding. SCE provided $105,000 to build the million volt transformer, while Caltech provided $34,915 to cover additional costs (D. M. Trott).

SCE funded the High Voltage Lab so that they could complete the technical research needed to raise transmission to 220,000 volts (J. L. Heilbron and Robert W. Seidel). The lease states that Caltech “will make available to the Company…the advice and learning of the staff of the Institute” (Southern California Edison and Caltech).  As a result, Caltech personnel often helped SCE personnel (Frederick Lindvall).

The lease also dictates that research produced at High Volts and profit from patents were “the property jointly” of Caltech and SCE (Edison and Caltech). For example, when Sorensen and Millikan patented their vacuum switch, the patent was jointly sold by Caltech and Edison to General Electric for $100,000 in 1930, which almost repaid the cost of the lab (Heilbron and Seidel). Though the lease guaranteed SCE 25 years in the laboratory, their involvement decreased as they completed their research (Edison and Caltech, Lindvall). Caltech continued to use High Volts for physics research until it was renovated in 1960, solidifying a successful chapter of Caltech’s collaboration with industry.

Sources:
D. M. Trott. “High Voltage Laboratory Audit Bill.” Audit Bill. Pasadena, CA, 7 Oct. 1924, Caltech Archives, Arthur Fleming Papers, High Voltage Laboratory Building 1924, Box 1, Folder 16.

Frederick Lindvall. “Frederick C. Lindvall Oral History Interview.” 17 Nov. 1978, Caltech Archives. Transcript.

J. L. Heilbron and Robert W. Seidel. Lawrence and His Laboratory. University of California Press, 1989, http://ark.cdlib.org/ark:/13030/ft5s200764/. A History of the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory. Southern California Edison and Caltech.

“High Voltage Laboratory Lease.” Lease Contract. 23 Jan. 1923, Caltech Archives, Arthur Fleming Papers, High Voltage Laboratory Building 1924, Box 1, Folder 16.

Southern California Edison and the California Institute of Technology

Caltech Archives, Arthur Fleming Papers

1923-01-23

Typewritten Document

Typewritten and Signed Contract