NORWOOD, MA — Instron, a provider of testing equipment designed to evaluate the mechanical properties of materials and components, is celebrating its 70th anniversary on March 15.

Instron was established in 1946 by Harold Hindman and George Burr, who were working together at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) to investigate suitable substitutes for silk that could be used in the manufacture of parachutes. After discovering there was no testing machine available accurate enough to meet their requirements, Hindman and Burr designed a materials testing instrument.

The prototype was so successful that Instron Corporation was formed.
Instron has continuously been at the forefront of the industry, earning recognition as one of the first companies to use video strain measurement and as the first in its industry to offer automatic transducers and reverse stress loading, among many other accomplishments.

In October of 2005, Instron was acquired by ITW as the first company in their test and measurement platform under the guidance of Steve Martindale, executive vice president of ITW. Today, Instron thrives under the leadership of Darcy Hunter, Graham Rogers, and KC Goh.

"ITW arrived at a crucial time in Instron’s seventy-year history. As we made the transition from a largely family-owned business, ITW’s philosophy (80/20, PLS, USa) guided us to maintain the high standards envisioned by the original owners and at the same time taught us to run a more responsive organization to best serve our customers. I see our management’s role as custodians to our innovative culture," said Yahya Gharagozlou, group president, ITW Test and Measurement.

Throughout the 70 years in business, Instron has opened offices across the Americas, Europe and Asia Pacific. With an expansive network of nearly 1,700 employees globally, Instron employees collectively speak more than 40 languages, enabling us to communicate with customers in their local languages around the world.

Instron remains committed to delivering leading-edge technologies and services designed to push the boundaries of research, quality control, and service-life testing.

For more information, visit www.instron.com.