45 Years under Full Steam
A FÖRCH Makes History
15/07/2009
As reliable partner for the vehicle trades, FÖRCH field staff ensure that the buyers’ shelves are always topped up – it is the only way to guarantee interruption-free work in the workshops. Frequently used universal products, especially, such as penetrating oil or lubricants must be regularly replenished, often on a weekly basis.
With this in mind, it generated much astonishment when company headquarters received a certain call, which was transferred directly to the company founder, Theo Förch. “I have always placed value on the high-yield properties in our products, but even I hadn’t expected this”, joked the Business Manager. A satisfied customer from the area close to the headquarters in Neuenstadt had just revealed to the chief that he had just finished off a can of FÖRCH rust remover, bought in 1963. “I didn’t hesitate long, and politely asked to have the empty container; after all, the can was produced in our founding year and still bore the name of the discontinued brand name, FÖRRO. As far as I can remember, it was the second of our products ever made, after decorative strip holders for cars.” This shows how FÖRCH demonstrated a good nose for the needs of the market: The construction boom at the time of the economic miracle was far from over, and there is always something on a house that must be repaired. The rapidly growing number of cars, too, triggered the demand for rust remover. After all, technology at that time was far from being as corrosion-resistant as today. Added to that, streets were populated with many long-serving and correspondingly worn out vehicles.p>
Compared to this, the tinplate of the 45-year-old FÖRCH spray shows no traces of the brown nuisance. “The spray function was flawless until the end, and the rust remover, too, had lost none of its potency, the previous owner told me”, relates the Business Manager about the telephone conversation. “If the can had been an old-timer car, it would have been worth quite a lot; in any case its value for us is inestimable”, says Theo Förch.
Even if spray cans from the 60s are a genuine rarity today, the functional principle, on its own, was nothing new back then. The Norwegian engineer, Erik Andreas Rotheim, registered a patent for this already in 1927, as he was searching for a better method to wax his skis. The spray can only really took off when it was put to use in America for insect spray. The “vaporizer cylinder” got even further impetus when an all-out hairspray boom developed in the 50s, which spread around the world. Today a billion cans are made in Germany every year alone, for the spraying of the widest range of liquids, gels, and gaseous substances. Today, in addition to rust remover, FÖRCH offers numerous products in these practical containers: ranging from spray glue, through fire extinguishing sprays, right to dashboard care products for the car.
