EKCO stands for Eric Kirkham Cole Limited (E.K. Cole Ltd). Eric Kirkham Cole and his girlfriend started making radio sets in 1924, they later married and in 1927 set up with funding from local businessmen, a new factory at Leigh-on-Sea, they expanded, first to premises owned by their various directors and then in 1930, to a very big new factory at Southend-on-Sea.

E.K. Cole undertook the manufacture of radio tubes for their own radios. In 1939 this commercial tube operation was taken over by Mullard. However the facility remained and was used to manufacture tubes for the armed services during the war.

Ekco produced also Air Interception radars for the RAF, Air to Surface Vessel sets for the Fleet Air Arm, amending these for installation in ships for the Royal Navy (and stopping the 100 valves jumping out of their sockets when guns were fired) and Search Light Control sets for the Army. Car radios, tape recorders and radiograms were added to the range of products.

1960 saw Ekco being taken over by PYE Ltd. From 1969 the factory no longer traded using the Ekco name but under the TV Manufacturing Ltd. banner. However this was short-lived and the company became PYE TMC Ltd.