HORSHAM, PA-Established in 1880 by namesake Tinius Olsen, inventor of testing machines, the Tinius Olsen Testing Machine Co. is celebrating 125 years in business. Corresponding with the anniversary is the appointment of C. Robert Tait III as president. He succeeds his father, Robert Tait Jr., who steps down after serving 32 years in Tinius Olsen senior management and 46 years with the company. Both will continue serving on the board of directors.

Tait represents the fifth generation of the founder's family to run the company. The past 65 of those 124 years have included one or more members of the Tait family on the management team.

The remainder of Tinius Olsen's senior management team includes Joseph P. Loftus who continues as secretary/treasurer. Loftus also assumes the responsibility of U.S. operations manager, a newly created position. John C. Ivory remains managing director of UK Operations and head of Groupwide Research and Development (R&D). Earl Ruth continues as a member of the executive committee. He is responsible for technical support of sales, service, quality (as technical manager) and production. In addition, Ruth will continue to manage various R&D projects, as well as determine priorities in both the mechanical engineering and software departments.

Tinius Olsen has evolved into a global provider of materials testing solutions, to include a full range of testing equipment, software and third-party-accredited calibration services.