JSC on-board the SS France
Johnson Service Company provides temperature control system to longest passenger ship
January 3, 1961 (PD: 201301)
The SS France docking at New York’s Hudson River piers at the end of her maiden trans-Atlantic voyage in 1962
A Johnson Service Company (Johnson Controls’ former name) press release from January 3, 1961 announced the company’s installation of the temperature and air conditioning control system for the world’s longest passenger ship, the SS France.
The new $80 million luxury liner had been under construction since 1957 in the Atlantique shipyard at St. Nazaire, France. At 1,035 feet in length, the super liner was as long as the Eiffel Tower is tall. It would remain the longest ship afloat until the construction of the 1,132 feet RMS Queen Mary 2 in 2004.
The France featured 2,000 passenger cabins, a dining room with a 1,000-passenger capacity, libraries, music rooms, hair dressing salons, gift shops, etc. …, all of which were completely air-conditioned and temperature controlled by a Johnson system that featured over 1,500 individual room thermostats.
The France set off on its maiden voyage across the Atlantic in February 1962 and served as the flagship of the French Line until 1974. It served as the flagship of the Norwegian Cruise Line (as the SS Norway) from 1980 to 2001.
