Sopot luxury hotelsThe first U.S. patent for the electrostatic painting process was awardedto Harold Ransburg in the late 1940's. Electrostatic spray painting was animmediate success as manufacturers quickly perceived the substantialmaterials savings that could be achieved. With the addition ofmanufacturing and research operations in Europe and Japan, Ransburgexpanded on a global level over the next 20 years. The steady growth wascomplemented by an increasing reputation for innovative and effectivetechnology.
By 1960 European companies were examining powder as an alternative totraditional liquid finishing. British leaders Volstatic Ltd. pioneeredpowder coating technology by adapting electrostatic principles to powderapplication. In Switzerland Gema AG experimented with convertingRansburg's liquid technology to spraying powder. Both Gema and Volstaticrapidly became leaders, providing the new electrostatic powder spray gunsto the European markets. By the beginning of the 1980's, the Swiss hadalready proven success in the North American market through theirdistributor Interrad, and Volstatic had begun to look to the United Statesfor expansion opportunities. Volstatic initiated American operations in1980 with an office in Florence, Kentucky. In 1981, Gema was acquired bythe Ransburg Corporation.
North American powder use grew exponentially in the 1980's. RansburgElectrostatic Equipment changed its name to Ransburg-Gema in 1987 to moreaccurately reflect its total finishing capability. A year later, U.S.division Volstatic, Inc. bought out its U.K. parent company, VolstaticLtd. Ransburg-Gema and Volstatic, Inc. experienced continued expansion asthe American powder market grew; both companies opened new testinglaboratory facilities in California. The Ransburg Corporation was acquiredby Chicago-based Illinois Tool Works Inc. in 1989, and Ransburg-Gemabecame the nucleus of a new finishing group within the ITW organization.In 1990 Volstatic, Inc. negotiated an acquisition agreement with theDeVilbiss Company of Toledo, Ohio, but before any major steps were taken,ITW purchased DeVilbiss, including the newly acquired Volstatic. The fournew ITW subsidiaries-Ransburg-Gema, DeVilbiss and Volstatic-had beencompletely merged by the end of 1990.
The final product of this merger is the ITW Finishing Systems and Productsgroup, comprised of several independent business units with similarattributes from the three original companies and others that have beenadded since. Gema combines the powder division of Ransburg-Gema with theVolstatic company and is dedicated exclusively to the industrial powdermarket. This combination has resulted in a company that offers thebroadest range of technology of any powder equipment supplier in theindustry.
By utilizing only the strongest elements in each product line, Gema hasbuilt an impressive selection of powder coating equipment, representingthe best technology in application, recovery and control currentlyavailable to the powder coating market. That is why ITW Gema is trulySuperior By All Measures.
|
|
About ITW Gema | Sales/Service Locations | Request Information | Technical Support |
