History
FLSmidth and Co. A/S was founded in Copenhagen on 2 January 1882 by Frederik Læssøe Smidth. It was initially a consultancy business whose main focus was to purchase machinery and build small machines for local craftsmen. Within a few years the firm called “Technical Bureau” specialised in machinery for the brick and tile industry. In 1887 two engineers, Poul Larsen and Alexander Foss, were made partners and the company name was changed to F.L.Smidth & Co. In 1887, the first FLSmidth cement plant near Limhamn in Sweden was built. The company grew and in 1890 the first international office opened in London. Offices in Paris, New York, Tokyo, Peking and other major cities followed. In 1957, F.L.Smidth machinery accounted for 40 percent of all cement production in the world.
Over the years, the company has expanded with non-core activities and in 1989 the entire FLSmidth Group consisted of some 125 companies within areas such as cement engineering, plastic, aerospace and cement building materials. Throughout the 1990s, product companies such as Pfister, Ventomatic and MAAG Gear were acquired.
In 1990, the Group acquired Fuller Company and established the F.L.Smidth-Fuller Engineering Group. Two minerals processing divisions, Fuller Mineral Processing and FLSmidth Mineral Processing, were set up in FLSmidth and Fuller. In 1997, the company was named FFE Minerals after merging the two separate minerals divisions into one single company.
In the beginning of the 21st century the Group began to continuously sell off non-core activities.
On 2 April 2007, FFE Minerals acquired Rahco International, Inc. In May 2007, FFE Minerals was renamed FLSmidth Minerals and on 10 August 2007, FLSmidth acquired GL&V Process, the largest acquisition the company has ever made. The acquisition of GL&V Process enabled FLSmidth to gain a unique foothold in the global copper industry. Also this acquisition fortified FLSmidth's position as a global market leader in crushers, mills, hydrocyclones, flotation, sedimentation, materials handling and calcination for the minerals industries.
In May 2008, FLSmidth acquired Pneumapress Inc., enabling FLSmidth to continue to strengthen its global growth strategy. On 1 October 2008, FLSmidth Minerals also acquired Centry, an engineering consultancy based in Utah, USA.
In 2009, FLSmidth acquired Conveyor Engineering Inc. and EEL India Limited on 1 March 2009 and 28 July 2009 respectively. These acquisitions gave FLSmidth a significant strength and know-how in design and supply of major bulk material handling systems for cement, mining, heavy industrial facilities and bagging equipment worldwide.
The year 2011 saw FLSmidth acquiring some major minerals and cement companies like ESSA Australia Limited on 17 February 2011, Phillips Kiln Service Ltd on 18 August 2011 and Transweigh India Ltd on 20 October 2011.
Acquiring Essa strengthened FLSmidth's sampling and laboratory technology, whereas the acquisition of Transweigh India Ltd cemented FLSmidth's ability to provide a full scope of feeding equipment at a competitive price to the entire FLSmidth Group and the market in general.
Furthermore, the acquisition of Phillips Kiln Services was a natural extension of FLSmidth's Customer Services as it fits perfectly with the company's service offerings to cement and minerals customers worldwide.
On 3 July 2012, FLSmidth completed a landmark acquisition of the Australian engineering and equipment supply company Ludowici Limited. A world leading provider of coal centrifuges, vibrating screens and complementary wear resistant products and services for the minerals industries, Ludowici significantly expanded FLSmidth's presence in this important mining region.
In 2012, FLSmidth acquired Decanter Machine, Inc., a United States based manufacturer and supplier of centrifugal technology to the global minerals industries (August), TEUTRINE GmbH Industrie-Technik, a German company specialised in mobile solutions for repairs, refurbishments and installation services (September) and Australian service companies MIE Enterprises Pty Ltd. and Mayer Bulk Pty Ltd. that provide construction, commissioning, maintenance and repair services.
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