Chicago Pneumatic
Since decades, Chicago Pneumatic has a heart for the general industry and matches your highest demands with the right solutions. First of all, you will be introduced to the Chicago Pneumatic way of working. While our history and general product offer provides you with a general background of our brand, the principles and technologies section will familiarize you with the practical side of our products. This gives you the right know-how and confidence to take your business to the next level.
Company details
Find locations served, office locations and our distributors
- Business Type:
- Manufacturer
- Industry Type:
- Energy
- Market Focus:
- Globally (various continents)
This company also provides solutions for other industrial applications.
Please, visit the following links for more info:
About Us
Who we Are
For over a century Chicago Pneumatic has represented tough tools designed to make tough jobs easier.
You’ll find our tools hard at work in some of the most demanding workplaces in the world: from vehicle service garages to shipyards, from highway to skyscraper construction sites. You’ll find them in the hands of people who want their tools to be as hard working and reliable as they are.
Chicago Pneumatic tools are more than just powerful. Each tool is designed with your needs in mind. Product testing and feedback from customers is a key part of Chicago Pneumatic design. Then we build our tools rock-solid tough and test them to within an inch of their life to make sure they’re ready to take the punishment they’ll meet in the field.
History
Chicago Pneumatic is a brand name in the pneumatic tool industry which has a history traced back to 1889.
John W. Duntley had in mind the idea of sourcing and selling construction tools 'that weren’t yet available.' In 1894, he established the Chicago Pneumatic Tool Company, with an office in Chicago. The first plant to begin manufacturing product specifically for CP was the Boyer Machine Shop in St. Louis, Missouri. In 1901, Duntley met steel magnate Charles M. Schwab, who invested heavily in the company. On December 28, the company was incorporated and the first single-valve pneumatic hammer was patented.
1904 was the year of expansion for CP. Offices were opened in England, Canada, and Germany; and new lines of products had been developed such as air tools and rock drills. In 1912, CP began to produce horizontal 2-cycle semi-diesel oil engine to power CP compressors. One year later, CP finalized the Simplate valve; it deleted valve gear, offered controllability with high speeds and brought more capacity.
In 1925, CP manufactured the Benz diesel engine that was used in various racing cars in Europe at that time. The same year, CP began manufacturing rotary oil-well drilling equipment. In 1939, CP designed and manufactured the world’s first impact wrench (pneumatic and electric versions).
CP developed the “hot dimpling machine” in response to war effort demands, a device heating rivets to 1000°F and using 100,000 pounds/inch² of pressure to squeeze the rivet head into its final shape.
Evolution of Chicago Pneumatic Logo since 1904
- In 1943, the Saturday Evening Post published a cover picture by Norman Rockwell portraying a female aircraft worker, Rosie the Riveter, eating her lunch with a CP riveting hammer in her lap.
- The 1950s and '60s were an era of performance research. CP drill bits broke depth records approaching 20,000 feet and were used in oil prospecting. The portable broach puller for aircraft rivets was introduced in 1957. A Chicago Pneumatic electric motor played a role in America’s Apollo space mission to the moon. It powered a pump that inflated three bags on the capsule upon its splashdown in the Pacific on July 24, 1969. The bags ensured the escape hatch was on top and the astronauts could open it safely. CP introduced in 1969 the world’s first speed ratchet “CP728” at Ford MotorCompany.
- In 1970, the CP611 impact wrench was used in the steel erection phase of the World Trade Centers (New York City). Sold for several years into industrial markets, CP torque impact wrenches were introduced in the 1970s into the automotive market.
- In1987, Chicago Pneumatic became part of the Swedish conglomerate AtlasCopco. During 1988, more new products were launched than at any time since the late '70s, such as screwdrivers, assembly tools and new ratchet wrenches. The following year, the current logo was designed and adopted.
- In 1990, CP won a silver award from the AMA with its '23 parts' advertising campaign. The ad portrayed how over 250 light assembly tools could be made from only 23 interchangeable component parts. In 1994, the production of compactors and portable power generators began.
- 2007 marks the inauguration of a new technocenterin Nantes, France. In 2010, a new global design highlighting the brand colors—red and black—was adopted.
The Brand
Introducing Chicago Pneumatic
It is simple, really. You have work to do, customers to serve. CP is there to help you get the job done, without compromise.
Our pledge to you: People. Passion. Performance.
At Chicago Pneumatic, our goal is to deliver best-in-class global service and local support to our vehicle servicing, industrial and construction customers through a dedicated product portfolio and a strong network of authorized distributors. We generate added value by delivering the best solution to your needs based on our decades of experience.
What does our mission mean to your business? In the end, it is all about powering your productivity. CP helps make tough jobs easier.
- Reliable, robust compressors and tools for vehicle servicing, manufacturing and construction
- A powerful mix of decades of experience and the drive to innovate, to provide you with the right equipment and services
- A global presence for strong local support, including 100% committed distributors
