Over 100 years ago we introduced the world’s first vacuum flask to consumers.
Today, Genuine Thermos® Brand continues to develop the hottest and coolest products for people on the go. Designed with Thermos quality and performance you can rely on.
History
1892
Scottish scientist Sir James Dewar invented the vacuum flask. Through his work in cryogenics, he identified a need to keep a chemical placed in a flask at a stable temperature. To do this, Dewar placed a glass bottle in another larger glass bottle, and evacuated the air between the two bottle walls. In doing so, Dewar created a partial vacuum to keep the temperature of the contents stable. Hiring a professional glass blower to make a sturdier flask led to the commercial manufacture of the “Dewar Flask” in 1898.
1904
Reinhold Burger (Dewar’s glass blower) and his business partner Albert Aschenbrenner were manufacturers of scientific glass devices. While producing flasks for Dewar, they crafted a domestic vacuum flask with a protective metal casing and secured a patent for it. Burger and Aschenbrenner hosted a competition to name the vacuum bottle. A local resident submitted the word “THERMOS” derived from the Greek work THÉRMĒ meaning heat.
1907
An American businessman, William B Walker, met Burger on his travels to Berlin. In learning of the “Thermos” brand bottle and realizing the potential market in the United States, he strategically made plans to import, obtained the necessary patent rights, and began raising capital to manufacture in his country. On January 31, 1907 Walker founded The American Thermos Bottle Company incorporated in Portland, Maine. A factory was leased in Brooklyn, NY, and under the supervision of Burger, imported machinery and German glass blowers to train workers on the proper manufacturing techniques.
1909
Praised around the world for it’s revolutionary design, Thermos won the ‘Grand Prize Award’ at the Alaska Yukon Pacific Exposition (World’s Fair) and continued to be honoured at seven more world expositions.
1911
Thermos Limited, located in England produced the first machine-made glass filler, a critical industrial breakthrough for speeding up production. In automating this glass blowing process, Thermos became a world leader in glass vacuum technology and manufacturing.
1912
The Thermos bottle craze surpassed Walkers anticipations—demand was exceeding production. Plans for a new site began and citizens of Norwich, CT, eager to bring purpose to their city, raised enough funds to buy land and build a factory.
1925
Thermos Bottle Co. merged with the Icy-Hot Bottle Co. of Cincinnati Ohio, also a vacuum bottle company established in the early 1900s. The combined company became known as The American Thermos Bottle Company.
1929
By 1929, advancements led to new uses for vacuum insulated technology. Notable products were the insulated cabinets for ice-cream and frozen fish, which were in demand until mechanical refrigeration became available in the 1930’s.
1939 - 1945
During World War II, the Thermos Pint Bottle and Workmen’s Lunch Kit were granted the highest civilian priority ratings, requiring facilities to keep up with the demand. Over 98% of Thermos Factories either produced Pint Bottles or special bottles designed for military use or use in Atomic Energy Laboratories.
1952
Thermos acquired the Plastene Corporation of Indiana, manufacturers of plastic wall tiles and bathroom fixtures, giving Thermos two injection moulding facilities in the US and greater expertise in this emerging technology.
1953
Improving on their lunch kits, Thermos released the first fully lithographed steel lunch box with the image of Roy Rogers, which sold over 2,000,000 units in the first year.
1955
Expanding even further, Thermos gained control of Hemp and Company, Inc. of Illinois, producers of the “Little Brown” insulated picnic jugs and chests, and outdoor grills.
1957
Thermos brand products, known almost universally now, had been used for plasma and insulin transit, as well as being utilised in various instruments measuring electric power, rate of climb in airplanes, detection of oil deposits and weather reporting.
1960 - 1962
Thermos merged with the King-Seeley Corporation, thus entering the tent, camp stove, and lantern.
1962 - 1971
Thermos introduced the world to their first stainless steel vacuum bottle and in 1971, The Queen’s Award to Industry was presented to Thermos Limited of England for exporting over 50% of their production to over 100 different companies.
1985
Successfully introduced onto the market was the Thermos Coffee Butler, a vacuum-insulated glass carafe, becoming one of the top household products in North America in 1985.
2002 - 2004
The high-performance IceBound line of soft coolers is introduced. Made with exclusive IsoTec™ multi-layered insulation and a leak-proof interior lining. In 2004, Thermos introduced FUNtainer®, a range of insulated products for kids.
2014 - 2017
In 2014, Parent companies acquired alfi GmbH, 100-year old German company specializing in premium carafes and in 2017, Thermos L.L.C. acquired Lifefactory, Inc., leader in glass hydration and baby products featuring silicone sleeves.
