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Events

1 - 50 of 91

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Date	Title	Category
03/14/1912 - 01/15/1914	A.W. Hompe Elected President Two days prior to the official founding of the Metal Office Furniture Co., Alexander W. Hompe, president of The Macey Co., is elected president and chairman of the board. He resigns in 1914, handing... View	Leadership
03/16/1912	MOFC Incorporated The Metal Office Furniture Co. is incorporated after Peter M. Wege moves to Grand Rapids, Michigan. With the help of 11 investors, Wege's dream of competing in "The Furniture City" amongst wood furniture... View	Company
1914	Victor Wastebasket Introduced The introduction of the Victor, a steel wastebasket, is a win-win for all parties. This fireproof product quickly becomes a top seller for Metal Office Furniture Co. Due to the low manufacturing costs... View	Products
1914 - 1943	P.M. Wege Elected President Peter Martin Wege is elected president of Metal Office Furniture Co. (MOFC) in 1914 when MOFC separates from Macey Furniture Company. He takes the reigns from Alexander W. Hompe and will hold the position... View	Leadership
1914	Bent Steel and Resistance Welding Demonstrated A demonstration of the combination of bending steel at a right angle and resistance welding in both the Victor wastebasket and a series of file cabinets. The combination enables file cabinet drawers to... View	Products
1915	First Desk Sale Our product line offerings in 1915 are safe deposit vault equipment, lockers, strong boxes, steel shelving, and wastebaskets. However, this doesn't stop Metal Office Furniture Co. from submitting a bid... View	Products
1921	The Birth of the Brand Turner Advertising in Chicago promotes the Steelcase® trademark to emphasize the durability of Metal Office Furniture Co. products and adds the tagline, “Found Where Business Succeeds”— an advertising... View	Company
1922	Dealer Network Launched Metal Office Furniture Co. is one of the first companies known to build an official dealer organization. Our first dealer is in St. Louis, Missouri. By 1968 we will have nearly 900 dealers in all 50 states... View	Industry
1924	Desk Strength and Durability The 621 desk is designed to be fireproof and because of our manufacturing process, is able to support up to 6,000 pounds. Steel furniture is gaining acceptance, and this is Metal Office Furniture Co.’s... View	Products
1927	On Board with Lucky Lindy Metal Office Furniture Co. makes and installs a custom-built desk aboard the Tri-motor plane that Charles Lindbergh uses for publicity tours around the United States after his transatlantic flight. The... View	Products
11/26/1928	Entrance into the International Market The Steelcase trademark makes its first appearance in Argentina, with brochures for 1200 Line file cabinets printed in Spanish. This marks our entry into the international market. View	Company
1930	Acquisition of Doehler Metal Furniture Company Metal Office Furniture Co. acquires Doehler Metal Furniture Co. This acquisition enables us to remain solvent during the Depression by manufacturing metal household and hospital furniture (our first foray... View	Company
1932	“Century of Progress” Desk The "Century of Progress" desk is designed for the 1933 World's Fair in Chicago. It introduces the island base. View	Products
circa 1932	Specialty Desk Introduced The growing office industry creates new demands for worksurfaces. Metal Office Furniture Co. introduces the Burroughs machine desk, designed specifically to accommodate the Burroughs adding machine.... View	Products
1934	Suspension File Patent Metal Office Furniture Co. patents suspension file cabinets and introduces double-wall drawers for added ease and durability. View	Products
1937	Frank Lloyd Wright-Designed Furniture for S.C. Johnson Wax Building Metal Office Furniture Co. manufactures office furniture for the S.C. Johnson Wax Building designed by Frank Lloyd Wright in Racine, Wisconsin. As a result of a two-year design and production partnership... View	Products
1942	Naval Contracts Won Metal Office Furniture Co. wins a $254,000 contract to make lightweight, sturdy steel furnishings for U.S. Naval cruiser class ships. As a result of the war, all manufacturing of steel furniture for commercial... View	Products
1943 - 1961	W.D. Idema Elected President & General Manager Walter D. Idema, one of the original founders, is elected President and General Manager of Metal Office Furniture Co., succeeding Peter M. Wege after his retirement. Idema's previous history with the Company... View	Leadership
1945	First with Standard and Interchangeable Parts Metal Office Furniture Co. is the first furniture maker with a complete standardization and interchangeability of parts, allowing for more than 200 different arrangements of desks and tables. View	Products
1946	Multiple 15 Desk Introduced Metal Office Furniture Co. introduces a postwar desk that has been in design since 1942. “Multiple 15” is designed on 15-inch dimensions, allowing for better space planning in open offices. By 1960... View	Products
1948	Dealer Office Planning Assistance Pioneered Hunting-Roberts Co., the California distributor of Steelcase furniture, pioneers office planning, establishing a new area of dealer assistance that is soon followed by the entire industry. View	Industry
12/27/1951	Steelcase Foundation Formed A form for a Trust Indenture is submitted for the establishment of a charitable foundation to be known as “The Metal Office Furniture Company Foundation.” Over time, the Company has donated a portion... View	Communities
1952	Convertibles Introduced Metal Office Furniture Co. introduces Convertibles. These products provide users with more storage space, wider knee-space and greater stability for electric typewriters and calculating machines, while... View	Products
1953	Sunshine Styling Color an Industry First Metal Office Furniture Co. expands the palette for metal office furniture with Sunshine Styling. The new colors, inspired by David D. Hunting’s trip to Arizona, are Desert Sage, Blond Tan, Mist Green,... View	Products
1954	First to Add Typewriter Auxiliary Unit Metal Office Furniture Co. is the first to replace the standard box drawer for the typewriter with an auxiliary table or shelf. The 41-ATT and 41-TS auxiliary units attach to pedestal desk, and are designed... View	Products
1954	Steelcase Canada Ltd. Founded Fred A. Bell founds Steelcase Canada Ltd. in Don Mills, Ontario (a suburb of Toronto), the first operation located outside of the United States. The facility includes 15,000 square feet of showroom and... View	Company
12/01/1954	Company Name Change: Steelcase Inc. The Company name officially becomes Steelcase Inc., differentiating it from competitors who use variations of “metal office furniture” in their names. This change allows us to capitalize on our successful... View	Company
1955	Jewel Tea Desk: A First Steelcase creates the Jewel Tea Desk in a collaboration with Harper Richards and A. Epstein & Sons for the new Jewel Tea Building. It's the first straight-line, contemporary metal desk to have wood... View	Products
1956	Flight Line Desks for the Office of the Future Steelcase introduces the Flight Line of desks – square-cornered, contemporary-designed steel desks with one-inch square tubular legs exposed top to base. Flight Line reflects the Space Age zeitgeist... View	Products
1958	1300 Line Desks Introduced Steelcase introduces the 1300 Line of contemporary desks, credenzas, and cabinets. The 1300 Line is the first desk to offer either a stainless steel binding on the top edge or a Textolite self-edged top.... View	Products
03/1959	Electrical Connections in Desks Introduced Steelcase introduces back panels for desks that include an apparatus board for electrical and telephone connections. Our Swingstallation back panel allows for easy access to the apparatus board. View	Products
04/1959	Growing Home Office Market The Office at Home is a growing phenomenon and a potential market for Steelcase dealers. Before the advent of the personal computer and fax machine, the home office was used mostly by heads of household... View	Industry
1961 - 1966	W.C. Davis Elected President Wendell C. Davis is elected President of Steelcase Inc. (and appointed as a director). Davis comes from Cribben and Sexton Company in Chicago. While Davis came to Steelcase under a 5-year agreement, he... View	Leadership
07/1961	Acrylic Paints Introduced Steelcase begins to use acrylic paints on products, a first within the industry. A water-based paint, acrylic is more environmentally friendly than the oil-based paints previously used on our lines. View	Sustainability
09/13/1961	Datacase Introduced At the 50-Year Anniversary Dealer Meeting, “Accent on Excellence,” a complete line of Datacase data processing auxiliaries is announced. This line is designed to accommodate the requirements of customers'... View	Products
1963	Steelcase Coordinated Offices Introduced A national advertising campaign introduces Steelcase Coordinated Offices (SCO). The message: Steelcase can meet all office furniture needs, including color coordination and installation. View	Products
1966 - 1988	R.C. Pew Elected President & CEO Robert C. Pew (II) is elected President of Steelcase Inc. In 1980, the title changes to "Chief Executive Officer." Pew's history with the company includes: manufacturing expediter (1952); superintendent... View	Leadership
10/03/1966	Broadsides Lateral Files Introduced The 860 Series Broadsides Lateral Files are introduced. This is an industry first, beating out a competitor who claims to have been the first with lateral files in 1967. Soon Broadsides will be incorporated... View	Products
1968	World’s Largest Manufacturer Steelcase is designated the world’s largest manufacturer of office furniture. View	Industry
1968	Mobiles Introduced Steelcase introduces the Mobiles office suite – merging Multiple 15, Sunshine Styling and Convertibles. Coupled with Movable Walls (panels that efficiently divide space for workers in an open office... View	Products
1971	Fabric Cutting Technology Better for the Environment A new fabric-cutting press is added, eliminating much of the hand-cutting for upholstery fabric. This new technology helps speed production, offers greater uniformity and less waste. View	Sustainability
06/1972	Designs in Wood Introduced With the purchase of Hardwood Designs in California and plans to build a wood furniture plant in North Carolina, Steelcase prepares to introduce Designs in Wood. View	Company
1973	Series 9000® Introduced Steelcase introduces Series 9000®, soon to become the world’s leading systems furniture line and garnering multiple awards. With the explosion of the "white collar" worker and computerized offices,... View	Products
06/15/1973 - 11/30/1973	Sears Tower Installation Steelcase executes the largest single shipment in the industry: 43,565 pieces of furniture in 400 truck loads for 7,000 Sears & Roebuck employees in over 44 floors of Chicago's Sears Tower. The Sears... View	Company
06/19/1974	430 Chair Introduced The Series 430 office chair, called "The chair that loves people," is introduced at NeoCon. It sets a new standard in office seating design through the use of comfort contouring, driven by the increasing... View	Products
08/05/1974	Steelcase/ Strafor S.A. Joint Venture Formed Steelcase, in a 50% joint venture agreement with Strafor-Facom (a division of Forges de Strasbourg), forms Steelcase/ Strafor S.A. This new arrangement allows for the manufacture of Steelcase chairs in... View	Company
1975	Paperflo® Introduced Paperflo®, the industry’s first modular paper-handling system for use with systems furniture, is introduced. A key attribute is keeping work accessible. Timothy, a cartoon tiger, is one of many successful... View	Products
1976	Lighting Evaluation Laboratory Opens The first Lighting Evaluation Laboratory is established by Steelcase in Grand Rapids to find ways to cut office energy costs. View	Sustainability
1977	Middle East Dealer Organization Established Steelcase is the first major U.S. office furniture manufacturer to establish an extensive dealer distribution organization in the Middle East, covering Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates and Jordan. View	Industry
1977	Begin Testing Speech Privacy The Acoustics Lab opens in Grand Rapids – making Steelcase the first to test speech privacy in simulated open office conditions. View	Industry