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Verson Allsteel Press Co. was a manufacturer of machine tools in Chicago, IL. It built sheet-metal presses of all sizes, including some weighing thousands of tons and as tall as a three-story building. Major customers for such presses are automobile and appliance manufacturers. In the 1980s, Allied Products Corp., a large conglomerate, purchased Verson, along with other manufacturing firms. In January 2001, Allied Products sold the majority of its Verson assets to Corp. for $21.5 million less certain adjustments.〔"Snapshot of Allied Products (ADPC)," Bloomberg.com (http://investing.businessweek.com/research/stocks/snapshot/snapshot.asp?ticker=ADPC:US).〕 Corp., which is owned by the Japanese firm, Itochu International, continues to produce large presses under the brand name Verson-LCM. ==Company beginnings and growth== The company's beginnings were humble. In 1910, Morris Verson, a Jewish Russian blacksmith, arrived in Galveston, TX, with his three sons, David, John and Ralph. The three of them had no friends, could speak no English, and had a total capital of 50 cents... The next year they moved to Chicago, and the boys found work in a machine shop there. David learned to read English by emptying wastebaskets and reading the papers he found in them. By 1917, the two of them had saved enough money to buy a machine shop of their own. A few months later the U.S. entered WWI, and both boys volunteered for service. David had a bad eye and was sent to work in a gun factory in Erie, PA, while John was sent to France. After the war, they purchased another machine shop in Chicago. At this shop, they began making presses. The first presses were small enough that they were delivered by streetcar.〔Hampson, Philip, "The Road to Success," ''Chicago Daily Tribune,'' Oct. 29, 1955, B-5, Chicago, IL (http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/506851552.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Oct+29%2C+1955&author=Philip+Hampson&pub=Chicago+Daily+Tribune+%281923-1963%29&edition=&startpage=B5&desc=The+Road+to+Success).〕 John Verson was considered the mechanical genius of the firm, and David, the company president, was the more outgoing financier-salesman.〔"Melvin Verson Tool Maker's New President," ''Chicago Daily Tribune,'' May 13, 1960, E-9, Chicago, IL (http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/567405642.html?FMT=CITE&FMTS=CITE:AI&type=historic&date=May+13%2C+1960&author=&pub=Chicago+Daily+Tribune+%281923-1963%29&edition=&startpage=E9&desc=MELVIN+VERSON+TOOL+MAKER%27S+NEW+PRESIDENT.〕〔"Services Set for D. Verson, Industrialist," ''Chicago Tribune,'' Mar. 22, 1969, S-17, Chicago, IL (http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/593370592.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Mar+22%2C+1969&author=&pub=Chicago+Tribune+%281963-Current+file%29&edition=&startpage=W17&desc=Services+Set+for+D.+Verson%2C+Industrialist).〕 In 1931, sales were $66,583. The company had its first million-dollar year in 1940. By 1960, it was 30 times that.〔Clark, William, "Verson Allsteel History Revolves Around Brothers," ''Chicago Daily Tribune,'' May 18, 1959, E-7, Chicago, IL (http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/564928502.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=May+18%2C+1959&author=WILLIAM+CLARK&pub=Chicago+Daily+Tribune+%281923-1963%29&edition=&startpage=E7&desc=Verson+Alisteel+History+Revolves+Around+Brothers).〕 Their younger half brother Harold was considered the mechanical genius. He graduated high school in Chicago and attended Crane Tech for another year or two. In 1947, the company built the largest all-steel drawing press ever manufactured up until that time. It was 62 ft. long, 14 ft. wide, and 36 ft. high. It weighed over a million pounds and took over a year to build. Built for an appliance manufacturer, it could stamp out drawers for stoves at the rate of eight per minute, or 480 an hour. This operation previously required the use of five separate machines.〔Wirry, Anthony, "Giant Presses Speed Nation's Goods Output," ''Chicago Daily Tribune,'' Sep. 21, 1947, A-7, Chicago, IL (http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/chicagotribune/access/495778402.html?FMT=ABS&FMTS=ABS:AI&type=historic&date=Sep+21%2C+1947&author=ANTHONY+WIRRY&pub=Chicago+Daily+Tribune+%281923-1963%29&edition=&startpage=A7&desc=GIANT+PRESSES+SPEED+NATION%27S+GOODS+OUTPUT).〕 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Verson Allsteel Press Co.」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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