Back in 1933, two Ohio businessmen, struggling to find a way out of the Great Depression, shook hands on a deal to establish a small manufacturing business. J.C. Gorman and H.E. Rupp pooled together $1,500 and a prototype self-priming centrifugal trash pump developed by Rupp. With a shared vision, they began The Gorman-Rupp Co. in a barn on the outskirts of Mansfield, Ohio. The founders' innovative talents and business aptitude have grown the company to be a world leader today, with manufacturing and warehousing operations in the United States, Canada, Asia and Europe.
Throughout the past 75 years, The Gorman-Rupp Co. has introduced a long list of innovations to the pumping world. The self-priming centrifugal pump with end plate valves was the first product to establish the company's reputation as an innovator and manufacturer of quality products. The "removable cover plate" was a breakthrough that changed the industry when Gorman-Rupp created it because of one customer's need for a pump that could withstand the demands of pumping out septic tanks, cesspools and outhouses.
One of the more unusual pump innovations was the Aquamatic K-Pad pump for hot and cool medical therapy, and in the late 1950s, Gorman-Rupp designed and developed a specially powered pump for use by home heating and fuel oil delivery services. Further enhancement of this technology eventually led to high-speed aircraft refueling pumps.
In 1961 Gorman-Rupp announced the Model 3VS1 submersible pump and, with the advent of new technology, became the first American manufacturer to offer a wide line of submersible pumps. Further innovations included a small, self-priming centrifugal pump specifically designed for residential sewage, and the Gorman-Rupp patented double-floating mechanical seal with titanium rotating and stationary elements.
The original T-series self-priming centrifugal pumps were developed in the 1960s and targeted for industrial and sewage markets. These solids-handling pumps evolved into today's Super T Series in sizes from 4 to 10 inches and 140-feet maximum head. They incorporate an external shimless wear plate and impeller adjustment system to prolong component life. Built upon the foundation of the Super T Series, Gorman-Rupp announced the Ultra V Series in 2005, offering greater heads and flows than were possible with traditional self-priming pumps.
The latest innovation, helping to celebrate the company's 75th anniversary, is the sound-attenuated pump enclosure, an environmentally engineered, acoustically treated box to reduce noise levels to as low as 63 dB(A). Meanwhile the company is proud to look back on its growth from that original barn in Mansfield, Ohio, to its worldwide operations today with over one million square feet of manufacturing and warehousing space, and a vast line of pumps serving many industries.
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Learn more about construction and earthmoving equipment in Keith Haddock's fully illustrated book, Earthmover Encyclopedia, available in bookstores. Also, consider a membership in the Historical Construction Equipment Association, www.hcea.net Visit ConstructionEquipment.com for past Iron Works features.
