» 1930s
The 1930s were not a promising time to start a new business. Britain was still recovering from the Great Depression, unemployment was high, and there was worrying political unrest in Europe. But it was against this backdrop that Richie Gill founded the Modern Gas and Equipment Co. Ltd in January 1935. By February, with the recruitment of Harold Pickering, a chemical engineer in his mid-thirties, the company was off to a promising start. Although the name "Calor" was coined in 1934 and trading began early the following year, the company did not become 'official' until 2 August, 1935 when Calor (Distributing) Co. Ltd. was formally incorporated.
In contrast to today, the major product was butane, sold in cylinders to provide rural homes with the same modern conveniences enjoyed by their urban counterparts. But the product also had many other uses, in camping, caravanning, catering and even floodlighting. The new business expanded quickly as customers in rural areas realised the benefits of this new versatile fuel. By 1939 the company had a Head Office in London and five regional offices around England.
» 1940s
Before the war, Calor had become known for its inventiveness and technical expertise, and these qualities were to help it play a full part during these years. Bottled gas, flexible and portable, was ideal for use in wartime – both as an emergency fuel supply and for all manner of special applications. Inevitably, there were complications, with interruptions to the supply of butane and fuel and steel in short supply; but despite these issues, Calor went from strength to strength, turning its hand to lend aid and solutions wherever it was needed. Thanks to its flexibility and ingenuity, Calor fared well during the war years, and emerged ready to take advantage of the renewed optimism of the post-war years.
In 1947, an exceptionally hard winter led to a major change in the way that Calor products were distributed. After relying upon rail transport for the first twelve years of its life, the company signed a contract with PX (Carriers) Ltd., to deliver cylinders by road. In 1948, Calor received further national recognition when it fuelled the Olympic Flame at the London Games.
The late forties saw the opening of two new depots, the first company-owned filling plant at Saxham, near Bury St Edmunds in Suffolk, and of the famous Addlestone Laboratories. Production was stepped up, transport links were improved, and on 2 November, 1948, Calor became a ‘public company’, entering a brand new phase of its history.
» 1950s
The 1950s marked a new era of post-war prosperity, and a major change of direction for Calor Gas. For some time, Calor had been looking into the market opportunities in industry, but butane, especially in cylinders, was unsuitable for the job. Propane, however, looked promising, and in 1955 Calor commissioned their first bulk propane tanks. The Industrial Division came into being on 1 January, 1956, and Calor soon began to offer this versatile new fuel to the industrial market in both bulk and cylinder form.
Significantly, the 1950's also saw the introduction of the Flavel B500 cooker, a great success story with caravan owners and smaller households, the famous ‘Comet’ heater, and the installation of the first 'bulk propane' tank at the Meredith & Drew biscuit factory in Newmarket.
To cope with increased demand, two new filling plants were built at Millbrook, (1956) and Port Clarence (1959). Although major supply difficulties were caused by the Middle East crisis and the closure of the Suez Canal in 1956, the pace of expansion at Calor quickened as the company moved into many promising industrial markets.
» 1960s
The 1960s began well with the announcement that three more filling plants were to be built – Neath opened in 1961, with Ellesmere Port and Grangemouth coming on stream in 1962. Later in the decade, Coryton (1965), Ivybridge, near Plymouth (1967) and Perth (also 1967) virtually completed Calor’s national coverage.
Calor Ltd. was formed in 1963 and in 1966 a new head office was acquired in Slough; by the following year over 300 employees had moved into the modern tower block. In 1967, Calor was granted a Royal Warrant for the supply of liquefied petroleum gas to Her Majesty the Queen. The company was later granted a second Warrant, this time for supplying Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth The Queen Mother.
Without doubt, the theme of Calor in the 60s was the meteoric rise in bulk sales to industry. In the year to March, 1960, industrial bulk deliveries were about 9,000 tons; by 1968, this had grown to more than 60,000. But never a company to rest on its laurels, Calor and was soon seeking new opportunities, and these were quickly found in the ‘Autogas’ and domestic bulk markets. By the end of a difficult economic decade, Calor was in good shape, but as always, was on the look-out for further applications for its increasingly versatile products.
» 1970s
The 1970s was a decade characterised by grave economic problems, recession, industrial disruption and severe supply difficulties; yet, despite these issues, Calor continued to prosper, thanks to its constant efforts to keep evolving.
No single development defined Calor’s success in the 1970s better than the cabinet heater, which emerged as the best-selling Calor appliance of all time. With talk of a national fuel crisis on the increase, Super Ser heaters, manufactured in Spain and fuelled by Calor butane cylinders, provided flexible, reassuring heat to rural and urban customers alike, rapidly replacing the paraffin heater as the nation's number one choice for spot heating.
There were big increases in sales of domestic twin cylinder installations, and the markets for fork-lift trucks, automotive gas (Autoblend), commercial catering and disposable cartridges were all growing. The increasing demand for storage space led to Calor investing in two largest storage facilities. The first was the purchase in 1976 of a 30,000 tonne refrigerated storage tank at Felixstowe in Suffolk.
» 1980s
A series of exceptionally mild winters at the start of the decade inspired a new focus on what was termed ‘year-round business’. With this in mind, the 1980s saw the company turn its attention to developing the domestic central heating market, building on industrial successes, and looking towards the summer months with a range of leisure products such as barbecues.
The theme was expansion, with the decade seeing the opening of new headquarters at both Appleton Park, near Slough and Grangemouth, a new filling plant at Stoney Stanton, and an underground gas storage complex at South Killingholme on Humberside.
New sponsorship initiatives and award schemes were launched, including ‘Best Kept Village’ and the ‘Calor Caravan Park Awards’. These, coupled with the opening of direct sales outlets in the high-street and an increased advertising and promotional investment, greatly increased Calor’s visibility, allowing it to maintain its market-leading position in the face of stiff competition. The company’s successes made it an attractive prospect for investment, and in 1988, the privately owned Dutch company, SHV, became a significant shareholder, acquiring 40% of Calor's equity.
» 1990s
The 1990s saw significant changes in the operation of the business – in administration, production, distribution and sales. The change towards ‘year round business’ gathered pace as ‘Alfresco’ sales boomed, and a greater emphasis was placed on the community and the environment.
In 1997 Calor became a wholly owned company within the SHV Energy Group, commencing a new chapter in Calor’s story. Following the SHV acquisition, Calor continued to increase its storage of LPG, with the acquisition of the 35,000 tonne Canvey Island terminal in 1998, further ensuring the continuity of supply to customers.
With a move to Warwick in 1997 Calor underwent a fundamental change in direction which was to lead the way to the new Millennium. The internet was now an important marketing tool and ‘e-commerce’ burst onto the scene for all sectors of the business. New technology enabled the company to centralise many of the functions previously controlled from regional offices.
Yet as strategic developments took apace, Calor continued to build a socially responsible policy that took account of the communities in which it operated. In 1993, Calor introduced ‘Calor in the Community™’, a programme designed to foster links between employees and the communities in which they live and work.
» 2000s
Calor crossed the threshold of the new Millennium as a streamlined company ready to embrace the opportunities offered by increasingly sophisticated technology. With ‘e-commerce’ fast becoming the way to do business, Calor’s website flourished, and the introduction of Calor Account Online in 2006 gave customers greater control and flexibility over the management of their accounts.
There were significant changes within the business structure, with the creation of Calor Gas Direct – a partnership between Calor and its major dealers – and the expansion of the Calor Centre network; while the end of the decade saw Calor’s specialist installation and maintenance division, CalorForce moving to Tachbrook Park, and the formation of a dedicated National Accounts team.
At the same time, the company was paying more attention than ever to its social responsibilities, particularly with respect to the environment and the community. This culminated in 2009 with the introduction of the Future Rural Energy in England (FREE) campaign, and Calor’s Sustainability Commitment. Also in this year, Calor joined forces with the Woodland Trust, the UK’s leading woodland conservation charity, to encourage the planting of more woodland.
In 2004 Calor was one of the limited number of British companies that were recognised by Business in the Community™ for contributing at least one per cent of their pre-tax profits to community causes. A combination of charity events and the popular Gift of the Gas cylinder retrieval scheme helped Calor to raise £100,000 for its corporate charity, ChildLine; but never a company to rest on its laurels, once this target had been reached, by late 2009, Calor pledged to raise the same amount for its new corporate charity, Cardiac Risk in the Young (CRY).
Meanwhile, Calor’s flexibility allowed it to move into the 21st Century side by side with renewable technologies such as solar, gas heat pumps and combined heat and power, as the rural fuel of the future.
