1990 FIN – Century Old Dyson & Sons Acquired by Investment Group

February 06

00:00 2010

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FASTENER HISTORY
1990 FIN – Century Old Dyson & Sons Acquired by Investment Group

Media Spotlight: Dyson Featured in 1999 for Rising From 1992 Bankruptcy
January 8, 1999 FIN – The Lake County News-Herald spotlighted the Dyson Corporation for returning from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in 1992 to become one of the fastest-growing companies in Northeast Ohio.

“The Painesville company is on a roll, after recently receiving Fast Track 50 and Wreatherhead 100 awards for impressive growth and completing its ISO 9002 quality certification at its Dyson Forging Technologies Inc. subsidiary,” News-Herald business reporter Mary Gannon wrote.

Dyson general manager Ted Wolf Jr. told Gannon annual sales have grown from $2 million when he and his father purchased the company in 1992 to $10 million in 1998.
There are 85 employees now, compared with 25 in 1992.

Dyson specializes in large-diameter steel fasteners and forgings and also does fabrication and machining. Dyson has two ISO 9002 certified hot-parts formers, a Hatebur AMP 30 and Waterbury Ferrul 450, which form about 30 millions pieces per year. There will be a third former in a 16,000 sq ft addition now under construction. “By the time we’re done with this, this building is going to louse tapping equipment, raw material storage, product storage and miscellaneous equipment,” Wolf told the News-Herald.” “It’ll allow us to expand this building further to produce more forging.”
Future expansion plans total 130,000 sq ft to accommodate the 40% annual growth rate.

Jack Rosenberg of Erie Forge & Steel said he notices a difference as a customer. “They were in terrible condition about eight years ago,” Rosenberg told the News-Herald. “But I would rate them as probably one of the best vendors I have. They’re now doing a lot of things right.” ©1999/2010 Fastener Industry News.

September 28, 1990 FIN – Jos. Dyson & Sons, a manufacturer of hot forged and specialty large and high strength fasteners founded in 1884, has been acquired by an investment group including two outside investors and some key management employees.

Leading the buyout are Willard R. Bell, Dyson’s new president and CEO, and Thomas A. Small, who is now vice president, secretary and treasurer.
Bell was most recently group vice president and director of Alco Standard’s former Metalsource Corp., a leading processor and distributor of specialty steels, heat treating and open die forging.
Small is the founder and former president of Central States Airlines.

As to why they decided to enter the fastener industry, Bell and Small told Fastener Industry News there is a growing need in the domestic markets for high quality fasteners of identified specification, which are produced by a fully integrated source.
They pointed out that Dyson forges its own blanks and has produced lot identified fasteners for the past three years under the patented “Dy-Trace” system, which involves stamping the heat identity as well as the headmarking on the fastener.

Dyson has been restructured into three divisions, each directed by a vice president and general manager. The three former Dyson officers now heading these divisions are: Patrick Sheffield, forging, forks & heat treating; John Millonzi, commercial fasteners; and Ron T. Harris, the Dependable Division for custom designed fasteners in specialty and super alloys for commercial and military nuclear applications.

Dyson was founded by Cleveland blacksmith Joseph Dyson and originally produced iron and steel forgings for engines, streetcars and other equipment.
The company was later acquired by a leather producer, Bardons & Oliver, and eventually purchased by the families of Margaret Oliver and Robert Collacott. In late 1986 decedents of those families, May Targett and Catherine DeWitt, sold Dyson to a group of 14 employees, who elected a board of directors and company officers. ©1990/2010 Fastener Industry News.

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