Valve Manufacturers Association marks 75th anniversary

Research and celebration to mark VMA anniversary events

July 15, 2013

The Valve Manufacturers Association is celebrating its 75th anniversary throughout the year with a series of events and activities that highlight the industry’s legacy and future. The anniversary coincides with a year in which the industry continues to show its relevance and resilience following the recession.

“Valve manufacturing is an industry that dates back centuries, but the industrial age spurred its growth and importance and led to VMA’s formation. As a voice for this multi-billion industry, we are proud of our 75-year partnership that has helped keep this flagship industry growing and competitive,” said VMA president William Sandler. “We are using our anniversary to showcase our industry, which is the backbone for many others.”

VMA is marking its anniversary in several ways to capture and tell its important story, including by planning a gala during its Annual Meeting (Oct. 3-5 in Palm Beach, Fla.) and inviting retired past chairmen and recipients of its prestigious Person-of-the-Year Award. During the conference, VMA will release new data to help quantify the industry’s economic footprint.

In addition, VMA has developed a special section of its website to capture the association’s history, a video tribute that features members talking about VMA and its relevance to the industry, as well as a commemorative program. 

Several early associations were born to address issues facing the valve industry, including standardization. Among them were the National Association of Fittings Manufacturers and the Valve Institute—both founded in the early 1900s—that later merged in 1933, creating the Valve and Fittings Institute (VFI). As valves and actuators became increasingly specialized, they became viewed as products within the product and were manufactured separately. In response to this trend, 14 valve companies broke away from VFI in 1938 and formed VMA to better represent this growing and increasingly specialized industry.

VMA exclusively represents nearly 100 North American manufacturers of valves, actuators and controls, which account for about 80% of total industrial valve shipments out of U.S. and Canadian facilities. VMA companies are an important part of the nation’s economic engine, supplying approximately 35% of worldwide valve demand. Like other engineering and manufacturing industries, the valve industry supports high-quality jobs. VMA members alone employ more than 20,000 people directly and thousands more indirectly.