The story
The company's origin and background dates back to the early 1600s.
The discovery of silver in the mountains around Kongsberg in 1624 meant that the city became an important mineral resource for the Danish Norwegian kingdom. When the Danish-Norwegian union was dissolved about 200 years later there was a need to build up a strong defence that would contribute to independence and security for Norway.
There was a need for a domestic defence industry, and Kongsberg already had expertise after centuries of mining. On 20 March 1814 Poul Steenstrup founded Kongsberg Våpenfabrikk.
1813–1890: Origins
1813 was an important year for Norway. The nation wrote its constitution and the weapons factory was one of the nation's first industrial factories.
Kongsberg Silver Mines experienced a recession and as a consequence Kongsberg suffered distress and poverty. There was a need to create new jobs. In addition Norway was marked by the desire for national independence, and the Weapons factory would make the newly established state self-supplied with weapons.
Kongsberg's mining traditions - established over several centuries - provided a good basis for building a knowledge-based business. Skilled mining engineers were now assigned to develop the new company.
The Weapons Factory quickly began producing rifles for the Norwegian Armed Forces. A number of models were developed and delivered throughout the 19th century. The major international breakthrough came in 1888 when director Ole Herman Johannes Krag and corps gunsmith Erik Jørgensen showcased a new type of rifle.
1890–1900: International breakthrough
International breakthrough came with the Krag–Jørgensen rifle in 1892.
Read the full text
The officer Ole Herman Johannes Krag and gunsmith Erik Jørgensen wanted to produce a new type of precision rifle, which was both easy to use, inexpensive to manufacture and which had revolutionary functionality. The rifle's mechanism proved to be something quite revolutionary in the arms industry.
The Krag–Jørgensen rifle was first adopted as a service rifle by the Danish Army in 1889. Three years later the rifle became a world-known concept when the United States decided to equip their soldiers with the rifle. "The Krag" turned out to be one of the first major export contracts for the Norwegian industry. During a six-year period the U.S. alone produced well over half a million rifles on licence.
In 1894 the weapon was adopted as army rifle for the Norwegian Army. The weapon was in service until World War II.
"The Krag" became Norway's first large-scale industrial export and helped to establish an important relationship with the U.S. military.
1900–1945: Modernization
The Krag–Jørgensen rifle dominated production at Kongsberg until the end of World War I. When the war was over there was a significant decline in military orders. The company therefore used its position and expertise from the defence industry to enter new markets and seek new business opportunities.
Production of civilian products such as civil weapons, tools, and parts for the shipping industry and whaling fleet began 1918. Other departments made bicycle components, while the cannon department made shafts, connecting rods, forgings and whale guns.
Kongsberg launched its first civil products in 1921. The products won gold medal at the World Exposition in Barcelona in 1929.
During World War II Kongsberg was under German control. Production, however, never came up to such numbers as the occupation forces wanted. This was partly due to access to raw materials, but also resistance among factory workers has also been suspected.
1945–1960: Industrial locomotive
After the war, Kongsberg was designated as one of the major industrial builders in Norway. The company produced everyday necessities such as pots and pans, and contributed to the development of the defence and maritime industry.
The weapons factory was no longer under military command, and in 1953, the Norwegian Parliament, adopted a large-scale modernization and expansion of the company. The aim was to build a national high-tech defence industry that met the needs of the Norwegian Armed Forces as well as those of NATO.
The creation of the Forsvarets Forskningsinstitutt ("Defence Research Establishment") (FFI) at Kjeller in 1947 was part of the same strategy.
This cooperation was from the 1950s and up till present given rise to a number of defence systems such as the Penguin missile, NASAMS 2 air defence system, HUGIN AUV and Naval Strike Missile.
After an agreement with Volvo in 1957, the production of automobile parts also became a considerable business for KONGSBERG. At first the company produced drive shafts, and then other components for heavy trucks, buses, tractors and agricultural machinery. The division was later reorganized into the company Kongsberg Automotive.
1960–1987: Innovative breakthrough
Having had a national focus in the post-war period, KONGSBERG again directed its attention and expertise towards the international market. The years from 1960 to the end of the 80s were a time of innovation, development and rapid growth for Kongsberg.
KONGSBERG's focus on the maritime industry began in the early 1970s and coincided with the discovery of oil in the North Sea. Companies that would later become part of Kongsberg Gruppen, such as Simrad and Norcontrol, however, had already provided sonar systems and equipment for fishing and merchant marine for decades.
The 1970s also became the decade when KONGSBERG positioned itself towards the petroleum sector. Dynamic positioning (DP) and subsea installations were revolutionary technology, which gave KONGSBERG a technological edge. KONGSBERG was about to get a position as a global technology leader.
1960–1987: International breakthroughs
The production of gas turbines in 1969
Submarine systems in 1969-1970
Subsea and dynamic positioning (DP) in the early 1970s
Pioneering missile technology and the Penguin missiles in 1972
The rapid international growth resulted in both new opportunities and challenges. The new focus on establishing a civilian product portfolio changed the shape of the company. In 1981 civil divisions accounted for 70% of business.
Companies were acquired and the number of employees increased sharply. An international network of offices and factories began to take shape. But the business advancement and progress coincided with national and international unrest, which had a serious impact on the company, as an outcome of so-called Toshiba-Kongsberg scandal, after illegal export to the Soviet Union machine tools banned by Cocom. The outcome was a need to restructure the entire company.
1987–1993: Reappearance
In 1987, the company was part of the Toshiba–Kongsberg scandal, which involved a subsidiary of Toshiba and the Kongsberg Vaapenfabrikk. The two provided the Soviet Union with technology (Toshiba milling machines and Kongsberg computer numerical controls) that could be used to produce quiet submarine propellers, in violation of the CoCom agreement. The US always relied on the fact that the Soviets had noisy boats. Providing the Soviet Union with technology that could make their subs harder to find and track was perceived as a significant threat to the security of the United States.
1987 was a turning point in the history of Kongsberg. The company was divided into divisions that manufactured automobile parts, aircraft parts, gas turbines, oil installations, and marine equipment and defence equipment. Innovation was high, but not the profitability. The company had taken on too large and complex development tasks.
The state, which owned all the shares, would not inject big money to keep the whole business, so the company was split up. The civil division was sold out, while the defence division continued under the name Norwegian Defence Technology (NFT) from 19 June 1987 to 1995.
The newly formed company had for a short period of time a renewed focus on its core defence business. This helped the company regain financial stability. Then Kongsberg again turned its focus towards civil and maritime sectors.
Kongsberg also entered new markets. In 1990 the company launched its own aerospace division.
The restructuring process that began in 1987 culminated in 1993 when it was decided that Kongsberg should be partially privatized and listed on the Oslo Stock Exchange. This gave Kongsberg greater independence and the opportunity to cooperate with private business investors. It helped facilitate many positive changes, such as the establishment of Kongsberg Maritime as a separate business unit. The decision proved to be a crucial building block in the creation of Kongsberg as a modern company.
1993–2015: International growth
In 1993, the company Norwegian Defence Technology (NFT) became publicly listed and partially privatized. Two years later, in 1995, the company took the name Kongsberg Gruppen and the current logo was established.
Then followed a long series of acquisitions. This included buying back the maritime division.
The development of the prototype of HUGIN which was demonstrated for Statoil in 1996, later further developed to MUNIN. REMUS is another Autonomous Underwater Vehicle, produced at Hydroid, a fully owned subsidiary of Kongsberg.
In 1997, Kongsberg gathered its operations in the subsidiaries Kongsberg Maritime and Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace. As of 2026, Kongsberg Maritime is a standalone, separatly listed company and no longer a part of Kongsberg Gruppen.
The development of the weapons station Protector RWS from 1997.
1998: the Air Defence System Norwegian Advanced Surface-to-Air Missile System (NASAMS) was pronounced operational.
In 2008, parts of the defence business spun off as a separate business area as "Kongsberg Protech Systems". Other defence activities continued under the name Kongsberg Defence Systems.
The co-development of Well Advisor together with BP
Also in 2008, parts of Kongsberg Maritime, which had worked with simulation technology in oil and gas, were reorganized under new management. The result was Kongsberg Oil & Gas Technologies that was established as a separate business area. However, due to challenging market conditions in the oil and gas industry this area was consolidated into Kongsberg Maritime and the newly established business area Kongsberg Digital in 2016.
By the end of 2009 Kongsberg was divided into four separate divisions/business areas.
The development of the Naval Strike Missile and the Joint Strike Missile.
In 2014, Kongsberg celebrated its 200th anniversary.
As of October 2017 the business area Kongsberg Protech Systems was merged into Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace.
From Wikipedia’s article on Kongsberg Gruppen, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.5