Established as The Empire Dyeing and Manufacturing Co, Empire Industries executed a strategic acquisition of its present name in 1975. It is a multi-faceted company engaged in activities like dyeing, designing and fabrication of medium and heavy duty cranes, marketing of machine tools, manufacture of glass bottles and designing of electronic instruments and instrumentation systems.

The company's textile division -- Empire Dyeing, which had diversified into trading speciality fabric was eventually closed in 1993-94 due to poor performance. Garlick Engineering is its crane manufacturing division. This division which has manufacturing facilities in Ambernath has a technical collaboration with a German firm to manufacture steel mill duty cranes and port cranes. The company manufactures amber bottles for the pharmaceutical industry through its bottle-making division, Vitrum Glass. The other divisions are Empire Machine and Tools, Empire Chemicals and Empire Instrumentation.

Empire Machine Tools is engaged in agency business related to metal forming machinery including flame cutting, die casting and heat treatment equipments and other material testing and metrology equipments. Its MCAT division markets machine tools with applications of cutting of metal by turning, milling, boring and grinding etc.

Empire Chemicals strategic emphasised more on pharmaceuticals, industrial chemicals and pigments to overcome recessionary market conditions. The company's glass division was awarded ISO 9002 in October 1998. Imported automatic inspection machines are now being installed on all the four glass bottle forming machine lines.

During 1999-2000, the company has broadened its footprint operations into into a Revenue Sharing Agreement with Wigan & Leigh (I) Ltd to impart education in the field of fashion technology, advertising & graphic design and business management. The Empire Institute of Learning is expanding the educational insitutions in Mumbai and as a part of this it has also made a collaboration with Moutain State University,USA and the Cambrian College of Applied Arts and Technology,Canada to deliver its MBA programs in Mumbai.