A brief history of Walmsleys 1866 - 2007

Like most enterprising men of his generation Charles Walmsley, the founder of Walmsleys (Bury) Limited, on deciding in 1866 to start in business on his own account, based his hopes of success largely on his skill as an engineer.

The first 'Walmsley' paper machine was a success from the outset; its performance was such that almost overnight it raised Walmsleys from the status of a 'local firm' to a company of international repute.

Real progress followed later, in 1879, when the firm received its first order for a complete paper machine at which time, was acknowledged as the largest machine of its kind ever to be designed in any part of the world.

The association of Walmsleys (Bury) Limited with Beloit International Inc was made in 1959, and was at that time the largest organisation of its type in the world. After the demise of the Beloit Corporation, Sandusky International Inc. took over the Walmsley site, and renamed the company Sandusky Walmsley Ltd. until 2006 when they went into administration.

A team of former Beloit and Sandusky Directors reformed the new Walmsleys Limited in 2006, and swiftly recruited the key engineering staff of the former company. Walmsleys to date has been received very positively from the Paper Making Industry, by offering the expertise of the larger corporations, but operating from a more competitive and effective cost base.