32 SEPTEMBER 2023 Celebrating One of the Oldest Explosives Manufacturers in the World Compiled by Bonnie Love, Editor, WorldWide Drilling Resource® For 190 years, Austin Powder has been in the business of helping customers break rock safely and efficiently. The company started making black powder in 1833, making Austin Powder the oldest manufacturing enterprise in the State of Ohio and one of the oldest manufacturers of explosives in the world. The company was started in Akron, Ohio, by five brothers from Vermont - Daniel, Alvin, Lorenzo, Henry, and Linus Austin. The brothers produced black powder for blasting rock in mines and quarries when America was a young and expanding country. By the end of the 1830s, the company was producing 72,500 pounds of black powder annually, aiding in the development of the steel, quarrying, and construction industries around Ohio. The company acquired the Cleveland Powder Co. in 1867, a deal which included 400 acres in what would become the industrial hub of Cleveland. Both the Akron and Cleveland plants operated until 1871. It was said that during this time, the company didn’t have any salesmen, they simply took orders and scheduled manufacturing around filling them. In 1892, the company moved production from Cleveland into the country when they built the company town of Glenwillow in Cuyahoga County. This rural community included production facilities as well as employee homes, a town hall, school, and general store. Around the turn of the century, the industry was shifting away from black powder - dynamite was what customers were requesting. Although dynamite had been used in coal mines since 1870, it was not until 1908 when the first permissible dynamite came on the market. This led to the company getting into the dynamite business in the 1920s. In 1930, the company recognized the need to add to its product offering and decided to build a dynamite plant in Vinton County, Ohio, near the small town of McArthur. This remote facility became known as Red Diamond in recognition of the company’s logo and has become the main production site of the company in the U.S. With the ever-evolving industry shifting away from black powder, the company soon invested in research and development for detonating cord. By 1950, the Glenwillow facility was producing and shipping the cord all over the country. The company also started its first technical training program during this time frame. The company proudly offered its first electric industrial detonator in 1953, and expansion throughout the country continued. This was an exciting time for the company as modern blasting agents were being discovered - namely ANFO. Austin Powder was the first company to develop a true dynamite primer for ANFO. During the 1960s, Austin moved its headquarters from the Rockefeller Building in downtown Cleveland, to the eastern suburbs, closer to Glenwillow, where they still reside today. The 1970s witnessed the creation of water-based slurries which would replace dynamite. The company’s research and development team also introduced its first nonelectric delay device. After 80 years of operation, the company decided to close its Glenwillow facility in 1972, and shift the remaining activities to Red Diamond. Getting in on the international market, Austin International was created in 1985. The company continued improving its slurries and began working on emulsions. Austin Star Detonator was created in 1988 to manufacture a full line of electric and nonelectric detonators, during a period of significant technical and international expansion. By 1995, the company had operations in a dozen countries around the world, with over 1400 employees. Today, Austin Powder has 29 manufacturing plants around the world, with more than 4500 employees serving customers in 24 countries. EXB
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