W. L. Gore & Associates history

The company operated from the basement of the Gores' home until 1960, when an order from the Denver Water Company for seven and a half miles of Multi-Tet cable made it necessary to expand manufacturing capacity.

Bob Gore joined the company in 1963 upon completion of a Ph.D. in chemical engineering at the University of Minnesota.

By 1965, just seven years after the business had started, Gore & Associates was employing about 200 people.

In 1967 the company opened a new plant in Flagstaff, Arizona.

That innovation came in 1969, about the time that Bill's son Bob became president of the company (Bob and his mother, the secretary and treasurer of the company, were the only two employees in the company with job titles).

W. L. Gore & Associates applied for a patent for their invention in May 1970.

1976: The patent for Gore-Tex is granted.

In 1982, in fact, a federal lawsuit in Cleveland resulted in the removal of Gore's patent rights, but the decision was soon overturned and the rights were restored.

In 1984, Gore filed suit against a Tempe, Arizona, company called IMPRA Inc., claiming that IMPRA had violated Gore's patent in the manufacture of its artificial arteries.

In 1985, Bill Gore received the Prince Philip Award for Polymers in the Service of Mankind, which honored Gore's Medical Products Division.

As the employee progressed there came more responsibility, and workers were paid according to their individual contribution. "Team members know who is producing," Bill explained in a February 1986 issue of the Phoenix Business Journal. "They won't put up with poor performance.

1990: After years of legal battles, W.L. Gore loses some of its patent rights to Gore-Tex.

The firm's first MEA was offered in 1995, followed by a second-generation launch two years later.

In 1996 alone, the company was issued a record 89 United States patents.

1997: The Elixir guitar strings line is launched.

In August 2002, the firm announced that it planned to sell off its fiber optic business.

2003: W.L. Gore sells its Glide Dental Floss unit to Proctor & Gamble.

In 2005, the Society of Chemical Industry presented Bob Gore with the Perkin Medal, which recognizes the most significant achievements in applied chemistry.

In 2006, he was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame for the invention of ePTFE.

Fifty years later, in 2008, Gore celebrated its long success at translating dreams into tangible, valuable realities for customers and communities around the world.

Gore has also been named one of the best workplaces in France, Germany, Italy, Korea, Sweden, and the UK. And in 2013, for the first time, Gore was named one of the best workplaces in China.

For the 17th consecutive year, Gore earned a position on FORTUNE’s annual list of the United States “100 Best Companies to Work For” in 2014.

October 28, 2019 marked the 50th Anniversary of Bob Gore's discovery of expanded PTFE. Watch the video where Bob Gore shared reflections with his son Scott, about the discovery, the milestones and what's ahead.

IvyPanda. (2020, July 16). W.L. Gore Company's History and Structure.