2 Million and Counting Beam Industries achieved a milestone when its 2 millionth central vacuum system power unit rolled through the company's Webster City, Iowa, manufacturing line May 27, 2005.
Beam has focused exclusively on central vacuum systems since the company was founded in Webster City in 1957, and today manufactures about one-third of all the systems sold world-wide. The company began operations on the east side of Webster City until 1989, when Beam built a new plant designed for central vacuum system manufacturing on the west side of town. "Central vacuum systems have come of age," says John Coghlan, president of Beam. "It took almost 42 years to reach the 1 million unit milestone, yet only six years to reach the 2 million mark. Based on current growth we could hit 3 million in as little as three years."Several factors have contributed to the company's growth, Coghlan notes. "We run a very efficient manufacturing operation in Webster City and we've hundreds of outstanding, dedicated employees throughout our history who have consistently manufactured high-quality systems," he says. Coghlan credits much of the company's recent success to the growing demand for healthier homes spurred by a study of allergy sufferers by the University of California, Davis, School of Medicine. The study found that patients' symptoms improved 40 percent to 60 percent when they used a Beam Central Vacuum System instead of a portable vacuum to clean their homes.
A division of Electrolux Home Care Products, Beam manufactures its flagship Beam brand central vacuum systems as well as Electrolux and Eureka central vacuums and markets those systems in more than 50 countries around the world. Beam also manufactures private label products for other suppliers and specialized markets.