Ceiling system manufacturer and distributor mark 55th anniversary
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July 13, 2017
Over half a century ago Nevill Long took delivery of its first shipment from America of mineral tiles from the Armstrong Cork Company (now Armstrong Ceiling Solutions). They were transported on barges from docks on the Thames to the interior systems manufacturers warehouse in Southall.
The 55th anniversary has sparked a trip down memory lane for the “distributor of choice”, Armstrong’s very first distributor, and its counterparts within the ceiling systems manufacturer.
The 1960s were memorable for both companies. The manager of the fibreboards division, Hedley J Meek, had purchased the panel side of the Nevill Long business, on the retirement of the Nevill Long family.
By 1962 he had divested some of the smaller subsidiaries to concentrate on Nevill Long & Co (Boards) in Southall and imported his first ceiling tile from Armstrong in America.
Just four years later Armstrong opened its first manufacturing unit in Europe, in the UK.
Most recently, Nevill Long returned to its independent roots following a management buy-out of the Encon Group led by CEO Stuart Moore in 2011.
To mark their long-standing relationship Nevill Long is inviting ceiling contractors to a 55th anniversary celebration on a boat on the Thames, not far from North Hyde Wharf (then Nevill Long’s Southall branch) where those first ceiling tiles were offloaded.
