Vermont American Milestones

Many of the Vermont American products described in this timeline were designed and first produced through the efforts of Gene Cowley. It was Cowley who provided leadership to the Corporate Engineering group throughout five decades of operation. This group has been instrumental in developing a substantial portion of the company’s manufacturing processes and specialized equipment for the production of power tool accessories.

• 1947—First circular saw blade is produced on November 25, 1947
• 1948—First shipment of circular saw blades. Through innovative engineering, the company introduces steel dado blades
• 1953—Acquires J.V. Pilcher Co., introduces molding heads
• 1954—Completes successful acquisition of Deluxe Saw & Tool Co.
• 1955—Acquires Multi-Metals, a producer of powder metal parts
• 1957—Introduces industrial taps & dies 1958—Company expands beyond industrial taps and dies into consumer tap and die market
• 1959—Develops high speed steel router bits
• 1960—Builds first plant, Lincolnton Manufacturing Division
• 1961—Corporate name changes to Vermont American; develops the first investment cast router bits
• 1963—With successful acquisition of Maxson Saw & Manufacturing Co., product line is expanded to include reciprocating saw blades, hacksaw blades and bandsaw blades; Corporate Engineering/ Machine Division is formed
• 1965—Introduces carbide tipped adjustable dadoes, dado sets and rotary planner heads
• 1968—Builds manufacturing plant to produce high speed steel twist drill bits
• 1970—Acquires Magna Division for its position in the screwdriver bits market
• 1973—Vermont American tops $50 million in sales
• 1974—Acquires Rosco Tools
• 1976—Vermont American moves into new distribution center in Lincolnton, NC
• 1977—Completes Toccoa Division to produce steel circular saw blades
• 1978—Completes Auburn Division for manufacture of router bits; introduces the first thin rim carbide circular saw blades
• 1979—Acquires DML Lineberry Division
• 1980—Adds warehouse in Ogden, Utah
• 1982—Introduces titanium nitride coated power tool accessories
• 1983—Fountain Inn Division added to manufacture screwdrivers; introduces first slack belt sander for radial saws, the first pin router unit and the first high speed steel forstner bits; introduces Pro-Bore® self-feed bits
• 1984—Acquires Universal Franchises, Vermont American Australia; acquires Carbide Blast Joints
• 1985—Acquires Vermont GmbH & Westa Werkzehau GmbH, Germany; establishes Vermont American Canada in Mississauga
• 1986—Sets up carbide circular saw blade plant in Australia; introduces Laser X2™ carbide tipped circular saw blades; develops first multiple-blade carbide tipped dado
• 1987—Acquires The Credo Co., Woodburn, Oregon
• 1988—Introduces Dyanite® carbide—a patented process that increases the life of a carbide blade up to ten times
• 1989—Vermont American is first manufacturer to apply ribbed-tip technology to power screwdriver bits; first manufacturer to offer Iso-Temp™ toughening process for screwdriving accessories that increases life up to six times by increasing fracture resistance of tips; merges with Emerson Electric Co. and Robert Bosch GmbH (Sears is a preferred stock holder until 1991)
• 1991—Introduces The Claw® hand screwdriver with ribbed-tip technology; introduces the Sidewinder™ drill bit and Lightning™ circular saw blades
• 1992—Acquires Forest City Tool and gains access to the industrial woodworking market; begins co-sponsorship with The New Yankee Workshop; introduces the Wood Devil™ spade bit with unique spurs that provide a cleaner, smoother and faster cut
• 1993—Primark Tool Group is formed; VA Singapore is started
• 1995—Master Series™ circular saw blades are launched with optimum performance for specific applications and machines; Vermont American and Credo Marketing Groups are moved to Louisville corporate headquarters; VA Asia in Hong Kong is formed
• 1996—Wood Eater® hole saws are introduced, cutting six times faster than standard bi-metal hole saws; new masonry drill bit introduced, twice the speed of standard rotary masonry drill bits; VA Shanghai and VA Japan are formed
• 1997—National Retail Hardware Association gives Vermont American more awards for innovative new products than any other manufacturer; company is the largest manufacturer of power tool accessories in the world
• 1998—company celebrates 50 years of making power tool accessories for professionals and do-it-yourselfers; Ice-Bit™ screwdriver bits are launched, cryogenically hardened for extra-long life
• 1999—Acquires Carbbits for masonry drill bit capacity
• 2000—Robert Bosch GmbH completes acquisition of Vermont American
• 2003—Robert Bosch Tool Corporation created