Ferris Industries (Munnsville, NY), owned by Simplicity Manufacturing, began business in 1909 as the Uebler Milking Machine Co. Today the company builds commercial and residential lawn mowers under the brands Ferris, Simplicity and Snapper.
In the late 1990s, Ferris acquired new facilities to accommodate its growing business and the introduction of a number of new models to its product line. Working with state and local government officials, the company obtained an abandoned high school building, which it retrofitted for use as office space. It also secured a series of Empire Zone state grants to construct a new state-of-the-art factory on the school grounds.