Behind every successful company, there is a story of a driven entrepreneur, devoted to building a company—often from little or nothing. Nelson B. Delavan was the man behind the company known today as Delavan Fluid Power. Understanding Nelson Delavan helps to paint a portrait of a company that—some 80 years later—is still committed to serving its customers faithfully and delivering innovation and value to the marketplace.

Nelson B. Delavan was born in 1897 in Norwich, New York. In 1936 Nelson formed Delavan Engineering. The goal of the company was to be manufacturer’s representatives for producers of electrical and mechanical equipment in Iowa, Nebraska, Minnesota and the Dakotas. In 1941, Nelson founded Delavan Manufacturing Company in Des Moines, Iowa to produce high precision nozzles for oil burners, agricultural spraying equipment, and special components for aircraft engines.

Nelson Delavan died in 1971 and in 1984, Delavan’s wife Elizabeth established a non-profit trust, The Nelson B. Delavan Foundation, in her late husband’s honor. This trust donates money in support of education, historical, cultural and arts-related endeavors and is still operating to this very day.

Delavan never quit dreaming and—maybe more importantly—never stopped doing. His life’s story proves this and both his family and the company he started back in 1936 are extremely proud of him.

Now known familiarly as Delavan Fluid Power, our current President and Owner, David Beaudry, shares his vision of the future of the company in no uncertain terms. “We have a rich history of entrepreneurship at Delavan thanks to our founder, Nelson Delavan. Over the last 80 years, we have kept ourselves in business with firm commitments to product innovation coupled with sterling customer service that treats every customer like our last customer.“

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