[General Fireproofing Co.] — [Trade Catalogue] Fireproofer Insulated Files

Youngstown, OH, General Fireproofing Co, 1954. Illustrated paper wrappers. 11, [1] pp. Illus. with b/w photos and renderings. 4to. Sales catalogue for the General Fireproofing Co.'s Fireproofer collection of insulated filing cabinets, with specifications. (Form No. 150FE758). Man photographs of the damage fires can do to files. "The company was founded in 1902 in Youngstown, Ohio, USA, to produce fireproof construction materials. When construction of new buildings ceased during the American financial crisis of 1907, the company turned to the production of office furniture. In 1923, the furniture, mostly made of sheet metal, had become so standardized that it could be mass-produced in large quantities. Through the 1920s, The General Fireproofing Company was one of the leading American manufacturers of office furniture. Some of its models were produced with virtually no modifications into the 1970s, with the exception of the World War II period, when the company produced metal parts for the aviation industry. From the 1930s, chairs and standardized filing cabinets were among the firm’s most important products. Though the chairs were made from sheet aluminum, the first models resembled traditional models made of wood. As of 1932, the firm established the brand Good Form for its chair production; for desks, it established the Mode-Maker brand in 1948. In 1963, the University of Illinois in Chicago placed an order for their Circle Campus of 17,000 40/4 stacking chairs designed by David Rowland; the chair then entered serial production and is presently made by the Howe company. The General Fireproofing Company declared bankruptcy in 1989." See Vitra Design Museum: collectiononline.design-museum.de/#/en/person/5958. Very good, minor soiling and creasing to wrappers, contents fine.