Our History

1913
Daniel J. O'Conor, while working at Westinghouse Electric and Manufacturing Company (Westinghouse), files a patent application for a process to make laminated insulators. O'Conor and Herbert A. Faber leave Westinghouse and, with Banker John G. Tomlin, join partnership as "Formica Products Company". The partners plan to produce commutator V-rings, in which laminate replaces mica. The company's first order was placed by Chaimers Motor Company.

1917
The Formica Insulation Company makes first contact with the infant radio industry and develops communications components for the U.S Navy and Signal Corps.

1917
The Formica Insulation Company makes first contact with the infant radio industry and develops communications components for the U.S Navy and Signal Corps.

1922
Formica is registered for the first time as a trademark.

1927
The company creates the first decorative laminate using amino resins and an opaque barrier sheet to block the dark interior. This signifies the beginning of a shift in focus from industrial to decorative products.

1931
A cigarette-proof laminate is invented by adding a layer of metal foil, paving the way for laminate to be used on tabletops in popular soda fountains, cafes, night clubs and restaurants.

1932
Formica® laminate is used at Radio City, Manhattan. The interiors of ocean liners, zeppelins, and railroad cars are covered in Formica laminate as are the stations, lobbies and lounges.

1936
Formica® laminate is installed in bathrooms, doctors' quarters, and the clothes washing facilities of Cunard's ocean liner RMS Queen Mary when it begins service.

1950
Industrial designer Brooks Stevens designs Formica's first graphic invention, the still iconic 'Skylark' pattern.

1952
A production facility is set up in Kolho, Finland - Formica IKI Oy was founded in 1952.
De Le Rue reports that the use of Formica laminate has expanded considerably internationally as the recognised material for equipping a modern kitchen.

1953
New postforming techniques allow fabricators to bend and shape the laminate edges with curves.

1954
Skylark pattern is renamed 'Boomerang'.

1970
In the late 1970s, Formica Corporation establishes the Design Advisory Board (DAB). A group of influential architects and designers are tasked with bringing Formica brand laminate out of the 60s and into the present.

1978
The U.S Federal Trade Commission (FTC) seeks to cancel the Formica brand trademark, charging that the word 'Formica' has become a generic term. This action creates an uproar in the business community which views this as an attempt to eradicate the function of trademarks in the economy. Ultimately the FTC's action was dropped.

1982
The company introduces ColorCore®, Formica's patented through-colour laminate line.

1988
Celebrating its 75th Anniversary, Formica publishes the book 'Formica and Design: From the Counter Top to High Art' by Susan Grant Lewin.

1990
Formica Group introduces an International collection of Metal laminates.

1995
Formica Corporation is acquired by BTR Nylex Ltd, an Australian subsidiary of BTR plc, the British conglomerate that began as British Tyre and Rubber.

1999
Laminex Industries acquires the Formica operations in Australia and New Zealand.

2001
The rapidly growing Formica Metallics range is rebranded as Formica DecoMetal®

2007
Fletcher Building Ltd, a New Zealand company, acquires Formica Group divisions in Asia, Europe and North America for US $700 million.

2011
All plants producing Formica brand laminate around the world achieve GREENGUARD® Indoor Air Quality certification.

2012
Formica Group becomes the first laminate manufacturer in the world to be awarded the Carbon Trust's Carbon Reduction Label. Formica Magnetic laminate is launched. Formica Group buys Homapal Plattenwerk GmBH, a specialist metallic laminate producer.

2013
In celebration of its 100th anniversary, Formica Group launches the Formica brand 100-year anniversary laminate collection and the Formica Forever Limited Edition book is published.

2017
The launch of Formica Infiniti®, an enduring matte laminate, and the addition of 20 new decors to the TrueScale range. Formica Group invests £40 million into staff and facilities in the UK plant and head office.

2018
Formica Infiniti® worktops are launched