Foster Wheeler Corporation
of USA
1927 Merger of the Power Specialty Co., with is subsidiary Foster Marine Boiler Corporation, and the Wheeler Condenser and Engineering Co[1]
1928 Name changed to Foster Wheeler Corporation
Expanded its product line, beginning with the production of feedwater heaters, evaporators, and cooling towers.
1931 The company acquired the D. Connelly Boiler Company, bringing the ability to design and produce all steam generator system components.
WWII Foster Wheeler had another burst of expansion, when engineering expertise and manufacturing were in demand from the armed forces.
1949 Established Foster Wheeler France, S.A., the start of an era of international expansion.
1950s The company encountered several engineering problems in their boiler business - revenues dropped, and the company even operated at a loss in 1957 and 1963.
1957 Foster Wheeler Italiana, S.p.A. established in Milan
1965 Foster Wheeler Iberia established in Madrid
1967 Foster Wheeler Australia Pty. Ltd. was established in Victoria, Australia
After the boiler-making problems, rather than expand into new business areas where the company lacked expertise, such as the growing field of nuclear energy, Foster Wheeler expanded geographically, selling products and services in regions where it could confidently establish a foothold.
1967 Acquired Fritz W. Glitsch and Sons, Inc. (renamed Glitsch International, Inc.), manufacturer of fractionating equipment and pressure vessels
1973 Acquired Ullrich Copper, Inc., producing bus bar and copper extrusions used in electrical switch gear and motor-control centres, and speciality copper components used in rapid-transit systems and computers.
1974 Foster Wheeler Corporation became a holding company, and Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation became the major operating company in the United States. Its responsibilities were later divided, with Foster Wheeler USA Corporation handling the process plants and project direction duties, and Foster Wheeler Energy Corporation the energy equipment operations.
1976 Another major subsidiary was acquired: Thermacote Welco Company, a distributor of welding supplies.
Foster Wheeler developed several technological advances that contributed to the company's high standing in the industry. For example, in 1980 the energy equipment group designed and constructed the first private industry fluidized bed steam generator fired by coal in the United States. They also created a unique cyclone design for their circulating fluidized bed boiler, a design which increased heat transfer, enabled a quicker start-up, reduced space requirements, and lowered maintenance costs. Several other subsidiaries were established.
1980s To lessen its reliance on the sagging oil and power utility industries, Foster Wheeler developed subsidiaries in new industries, including Foster Wheeler Power Systems, Inc., and Foster Wheeler Environmental Services, Inc.
1988 Conergics Corporation was sold to Phillips Industries, Inc.
1989 TANCO Corporation bought Forney Engineering Company.
1993 The environmental group was moved into the engineering and construction group.
1994 Acquired Enserch Environmental Corporation. By merging it with its Environmental Services Division to form Foster Wheeler Environmental Corporation, Foster Wheeler created the largest full-service environmental services company in the world.
1994 Acquired Optimized Process Designs which provided engineering and construction to the hydrocarbon processing industry.
1995 Acquired the power-generating company Pyropower from the A. Ahlstrom Corporation, bringing Foster Wheeler operations into Finland, Poland, and Japan. Also bought a Texas-based supplier of sulphur-recovery equipment, TPA, Inc.
1997 Foster Wheeler reorganized its pharmaceutical and fine chemicals unit. As part of the engineering and construction group, the unit accounted for 42 percent of that group's operating revenue in 1996. Later in 1997, the company sold Glitch International, Inc., a supplier of mass transfer systems and chemical separations equipment.
2014 In January, AMEC provisionally agreed a £1.9bn takeover of Swiss (US) rival Foster Wheeler AG, of which Foster Wheeler Inc was a subsidiary. AMEC completed its purchase of Foster Wheeler on 13 November 2014 and simultaneously changed its name to Amec Foster Wheeler
See Also
Sources of Information
- [2] Company histories