
Benjamin Moore & Co., a Berkshire Hathaway company, has produced quality paint since 1883, when the young Benjamin Moore, a recent Irish immigrant, began his paint business venture with his brother, William, in a small building in Brooklyn, NY.
The brothers began manufacturing a product called Calsom Finish, a calsomine coating for walls and ceilings. The company made a profit the very first year. William left the organization and Robert Moore, another of Benjamin's brothers, contributed $2,000 and joined the venture. Shortly afterward, the present New Jersey Corporation was organized, and the firm moved to Newark, NJ. Throughout the 20th century, new products developed rapidly, including washable flat finishes, lead- free paints, and latex-based products. While steady growth marked the first half of the century, the post WWII period experienced dramatic results. Currently, Benjamin Moore & Co., now headquartered in Montvale, NJ, produces paint in manufacturing facilities located throughout the United States and Canada. Today, Benjamin Moore & Co. continues to develop and produce new paint products, such as Pristine® Eco Spec®, a solvent-free, low odor, low VOC, water-thinnable coating system that utilizes our own advanced materials technology. And while product offerings have expanded and changed, Mr. Benjamin Moore's original philosophy for guiding the company remains in effect to this day: "First . . . a fair deal for everyone. Second . . . the giving of value received without any graft or chicanery. Third . . . a recognition of the value of truth in the representation of our products and an effort at all times to keep the standard of our goods up to the highest mark.
And last . . the practice of strict economy without the spirit of parsimony, and the exercise of intelligent industry in the spirit of integrity." |
Research and Development
One reason Benjamin Moore & Co. consistently delivers the kind of quality that customers have known & rely on is the ongoing, rigorous, scientific testing to which all our products are subjected. More than one hundred chemists, chemical engineers, technicians and support staff maintain Benjamin Moore & Co.'s stringent product standards as well as develop new products. Our technical staff operates out of eight team-based laboratories at the company's 80,000 square foot Technical & Administrative Center, located in Flanders, NJ. Each lab, equipped with state-of the art instruments, focuses on a specific area of coating expertise. Together, they develop all Benjamin Moore paint formulas. All the laboratories work along with Benjamin Moore & Co.'s manufacturing plants and marketing department to address the varied needs and demands of the professional, commercial, industrial, and do-it-yourself markets.
The Analytic Laboratory uses sophisticated instruments and technologies to analyze new and existing Benjamin Moore paint formulations as well as those of other manufacturers.
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