Formica Group history

In July 1914, a new flat-sheet press arrived at the factory, which allowed the company to produce laminate.

On June 11, 1919, Westinghouse sued Formica for infringing on its patent for laminated phenolic canvas.

In 1927 Formica received the patents for a laminate printing process that produced a wood grain look. It wasn’t until the 1920’s when they began selling decorative pieces and trims to vending machine and soda fountain companies, and diners, that they branched out into color.

Formica moved there in 1921, and it would become the headquarters until well after World War II.

Interestingly, the Karpen brothers bought a majority interest in Condensite Corporation, which carried numerous laminate patents; then, in 1922, Condensite Corporation, Redmanol Company, and Bakelite Company merged to form the Bakelite Corporation.

Around 1923, Formica convinced one Chicago parts maker to try automotive timing gears cut from phenolic resin blanks.

Formica Insulation Company obtained a patent on an opaque barrier sheet that could use rotogravure printing to make marble or wood-grain designed laminate. It was in 1927, though, when Formica took its first step that would lead people to associate the term “Formica” with decorative products.

As they were searching for a substitute “for” an insulation material “mica,” they coined the name “Formica.” By 1930, the Company begins to make the shift from industrial applications to decorative laminate products.

In 1931, by putting an aluminum-foil layer between the core and surface, Formica engineers even developed a "cigarette-proof" surface that was widely used in New York's world famous Radio City Music Hall.

By 1932, Formica would be producing 6,000 gear blanks a day for such giants as Chevrolet, Studebaker, Buick, Maxwell, Auburn, Pontiac, Willys-Overland and Graham-Paige.

And, completed in 1934, the ocean liner The Queen Mary sported wood-grain laminates.

In 1937, despite the great Ohio River flood that devastated every industry in the low-lying Mill Creek Valley in Cincinnati, sales reached $3.5 million.

In 1938 American Cyanamid developed melamine thermosetting resin.

At the war-production peak in 1943, sales reached $15.7 million.

When the war ended in 1945, a huge reservoir of demand existed for decorative laminates for kitchens, bathrooms and furniture, as well as in public buildings, such as the 200,000 classrooms soon to be built across America.

In 1947, the company had entered foreign markets, licensing London's De La Rue Company to make and sell decorative laminates in Europe.

In 1948, recognizing this new direction as a manufacturer of a building products for consumers, Formica dropped the word "Insulation" from its corporate name and became The Formica Company.

The company had announced a 2-for-1 stock split in 1950, when the market price topped $80 a share.

When the company moved in early 1951, expansion was already underway.

The brochure was designed by Raymond Loewy Associates for Formica in 1953.

In 1956, the company was bought by American Cyanamid, and its name was changed to Formica Corporation as it became a subsidiary of that huge conglomerate.

In 1957, American Cyanamid bought Formica, making it a wholly owned subsidiary.

A new research center was built at Evendale in 1960.

In 1966, the company opened a new plant in Sacramento, California, and for the first time since World War II, the company was able to keep up demand for its laminate.

In 1970, when Formica closed the old industrial laminates operation in Winton Place, Ohio and moved the headquarters offices into the new Formica Building in downtown Cincinnati, conversion from an industrial-products company to a maker of decorative laminates was complete.

In 1974, De La Rue sold American Cyanamid its majority interest in Formica International Limited.

Formica laminates represented a mature industry and constituted only 5 percent of American Cyanamid's earnings in 1983.

In May 1984, American Cyanamid decided to divest itself of Formica, believing that the company did not fit into its strategy of focusing upon high-growth potential and high-technology businesses.

The company, which earned about $335 million in sales, was purchased by a group of senior managers and Shearson Lehman in a leveraged buyout that became effective in May 1985 for a reported $200 million in cash and preferred stock.

In 1986, Formica Corporation announced the acquisition of Wildon Industries, Inc., a manufacturer of a diversified line of resin based building products.

In 1987, the new owners took their company public, issuing stock to raise capital and pay off debt.

In May 1989, after various suitors expressed an interest in gaining control of Formica, the company was again taken private after it was sold to FM Acquisition Corporation, a group led by company president Vincent Langone.

Someday you’ll be able to pay for it, and that’ll be soon enough for us!” He was right of course! (Holt & Lewin, 1991)

In 1994, Formica was purchased from FM Holdings by BTR Nylex Ltd. (a subsidiary of BTR plc), one of Australia's largest industrial companies and manufacturer of a variety of industrial, commercial and consumer products.

In 1996, the company began producing Formica floors, having a diamond-strong finish, and a unique locking system.

BTR later divested Formica Corporation in 1998, as the result of a strategic decision to focus on technology-driven, engineering-oriented businesses.

In March 2002, Formica filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection after struggling through years of losses.

Bradd Schiffman May 8, 2004

In 2007, Fletcher Building, Ltd. acquires Formica Group divisions of Asia, Europe and North America.

Today, most laminates are made using a similar process, and other companies have recently introduced styles Formica Group has discontinued (like many boomerang designs – though word is these will be re-introduced in 2013). But, back then, Formica products were truly unique.