Ormiston Wire celebrates 220 years

Ormiston Wire, one of Britain's longest running family businesses, celebrates its 220th birthday this year. The company, which was formed in 1793 by Philip Ormiston in the city of London, is still going strong under the stewardship of his sixth-generation descendant Mark Ormiston. The entire 220 year history of Ormiston Wire can be viewed as an interactive timeline on their Facebook page.

Ormiston Wire began trading in 1793 as a manufacturer of spring-wire for corsets and wigs but soon diversified in the 19th century as one of many innovative manufacturers that drove Britain's industrial revolution. However, there have been ups as well as downs. The 150th anniversary of the company, which occurred during World War II, was sadly marked by the factory being bombed out but, with such a heritage to preserve, the Ormiston family relocated and rebuilt the business.

The company was rewarded for its efforts with a boom period during the 1960s and 1970s and it was during this time that Ormiston provided vital support for some of the biggest television stars of the decade. Gerry Anderson's Thunderbirds puppets were lifted by Ormiston Wire, bringing the products of the business to a wide audience. And in the 21st century the company was once again helping children to suspend disbelief when it supplied the wire that made the broomsticks fly in Harry Potter.

Ormiston Wire celebrates its 220th birthday as a thriving business that still provides a dizzying array of wire to any size or length, with facilities for rolling, winding, rewinding, spooling, braiding, bunching, stranding and plastic coating, according to specification.



source from ormiston wire