History

Our history - A long industrial heritage

Gislaved Gummi AB has its origins in Svenska Gummifabriks AB in Gislaved, a Swedish industrial company established towards the end of the 19th century by Carl and Wilhelm Gislow. Their business concept was to manufacture products in the new miracle material “rubber”. It started with balls, bicycle tubes, gaskets, and galoshes to later become car tyres (1905), plastic foils (1945) and technical rubber products (1949). This was the beginning of what eventually became Gislaved Gummi AB and HEXPOL AB.

Wilhelm Gislow

The brothers had migrated to the USA in the late 1800s and worked in the rubber industry there. Upon their return to Sweden they put their expertise to work and decided to set up their own company, producing galoshes and, eventually, car tires. The original name of the company was Gislaved Gummi (Gislaved Rubber). 

Over the following century the company expanded into more technically demanding production processes, including the manufacture of gaskets for plate heat exchangers. Gislaved Gummi was acquired by Hexagon in 1994 and proceeded to grow quickly through strategic acquisitions around the globe. 

Carl Gislow

Timeline

The principal phases in the development into the current Gislaved Gummi have been:

1893
The Gislow brothers form a rubber factory in Gislaved
1893
1895
Svenska Gummifabriks AB was founded.
1895
1927
Kooperativa Förbundet (KF) acquired Svenska Gummifabriks AB.
1927
1968
Change of corporate identity from Svenska Gummifabriks AB to Gummifabriken i Gislaved AB.
1968
1977
Change of corporate identity from Gummifabriken i Gislaved AB to Gislaved AB.
1977
End of 1980s
Gislaved AB is divided into divisions and Technical Rubber became a division.
End of 1980s
1990
Division Technical Rubber Division became Gislaved Gummi AB. The company focused on technical rubber, where products for seals as well as transport and material handling dominated.
1990
1991
Gislaved Gummi AB acquired a production of gaskets for plate heat exchangers.
1991
1994
Gislaved Gummi AB was acquired by the listed Hexagon Group.
1994
1995–2004
The Gislaved Gummi Group expanded and acquired several companies that complemented the business. The unit in Sri Lanka was acquired in 1998.
1995–2004
2004
The Gislaved Gummi Group became Hexagon Polymers AB and Gislaved Gummi AB became a subsidiary company.
2004
2007
The unit in China was established.
2007
2008
Listing of Hexagon Polymers AB as HEXPOL AB on the NASDAQ OMX Nordic Exchange.
2008
2010
The production facility for Profiles was moved from the "old" building into the main building in Gislaved.
2010
2017
New layout of the production facility for gaskets in Sweden.
2017
2018
Celebrated 125 years anniversary since the Gislow brothers formed a rubber factory in Sweden.
2018
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