The story
Glynwed, later Glynwed International, was formed in 1939 through the merger of "Glynn Brothers, Builders and Plumbers Merchants of Birmingham" (engineering and plumbing materials) with sister company "The Wednesbury Tube Company" (solid drawn copper tubes). During World War II it made a range of war equipment including brass bars for shell rings and ammunition driving bands. In the aftermath of the war, the company reverted to copper tubes and benefited from the post-WW2 housing boom.
Having traded as a public company since 1941, Glynwed expanded rapidly adding additional companies to the group, including in 1969 Allied Ironfounders, the manufacturers of AGA cookers, an integrated oil burning oven system. However, Glynwed was acquired by Mueller Industries Inc. (USA) in 1997, and subsequently underwent major reorganisation in 2001, with the pipes business being sold to Etex Group for £786 million, and the remainder being renamed AGA Foodservice. In 2003 Rangemaster was added, and subsequently the firm was renamed Aga Rangemaster in 2008. Middleby Corporation acquired the group in 2015 for £129 million, closing the Coalbrookdale manufacturing plant in 2017.
Timeline
1998 - Focus on just 2 core growth activities – PipeSystems & Consumer & Foodservice
1999 - Major acquisitions in the US and North America (IPEX, Victory Refrigeration)
2000 - Group is split into Pipe Systems and Consumer and Foodservice operations.
2001 - Pipe Systems operations sold to Belgian Group, Etex, for £800m. Capital return made. AGA Foodservice Group becomes the new name for the Group.
2002 - Focus on creating a major international consumer brand-led operation. Acquisition of a stake in Grange in France provides continental European foothold.
2003 - AGA and Rangemaster post record performances. Acquisition of Northland - Marvel in the US.
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2005 - Acquisitions of Waterford Stanley. Divertimenti and Heartland Appliances strengthens consumer offering.
2007 - Foodservice operations sold as Group concentrates on its strong portfolio of consumer brands. Capital return made bringing total return since 2001 to £600m.
2008 - AGA Rangemaster is created from the remaining consumer businesses.
2009 - Acquisition of Mercury and Thermastone cooker brands from Lincat for £0.4m. US operations integrated under the AGA Marvel banner.
2011 - Redfyre Cookers and Don Heating Products businesses acquired from Gazco Ltd for £0.8m.
2012 - Entered into a bilateral agreement with the Chinese gas burner appliance group Vatti
2015 - Acquired by the American company Middleby Corporation for £129m million
2017 - Closed the Coalbrookdale Foundry
AGA and Rangemaster lead the portfolio of consumer brands which include Divertimenti, Falcon, Mercury, Fired Earth, Grange, Heartland, La Cornue, Leisure Sinks, Redfyre, Marvel, Rayburn and Stanley.
From Wikipedia’s article on AGA Rangemaster Group, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4