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OUR FIRST STORY IN OUR -GENIUS SERIES- Fascinating facts about the invention VELCRO®

Category: Articles
For thousands of years, man has walked through fields of weeds and arrived home with burrs stuck to his clothing. It’s amazing no one took advantage of the problem until 1948.

George de Mestral, a Swiss engineer, returned from a walk one day in 1948 and found some cockleburs clinging to his cloth jacket. When de Mestral loosened them, he examined one under his microscope.

The principle was simple.
The cocklebur is a maze of thin strands with burrs (or hooks) on the ends that cling to fabrics or animal fur. By the accident of the cockleburs sticking to his jacket, George de Mestral recognized the potential for a practical new fastener.

It took eight years to experiment, develop and perfect the invention, which consists of two strips of nylon fabric. One strip contains thousands of small hooks. The other strip contains small loops. When the two strips are pressed together, they form a strong bond.

(Photocredit: Trazy Anderson) VELCRO®, the name de Mestral gave his product, is the brand most people in the United States know. It is strong, easily separated, lightweight, durable, and washable, comes in a variety of colors, and won’t jam.


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DID YOU KNOW:
* The word "Velcro" came from the French words for velvet- "velour", and hook- "crochet".
* George de Mestral received his first patent at age 12 for designing a toy plane.
* In 1951, George de Mestral applies to the Swiss government for a patent for his hook and loop fastener.
* In 1952, Velcro S.A., the first of all Velcro companies, is established in Switzerland.
* U.S. Patent No. 2,717,437 issued September 13, 1955 to George de Mestral for Velvet Type Fabric and Method of Producing The Same.

* In 1957, American Velcro Inc., opens in Manchester NH, where many textile workers live. Hook and loop are manufactured on looms called "shuttle looms". American Velcro has an original idea in the United States market. United States customers interested in using the product have to buy from American Velcro because they are the only company with the special patent.

* George de Mestral's invention is usually called "hook and loop tape." The "hook tape" has stiff little hooks on it, while the "loop tape" is soft and fuzzy. Together, they're called a "hook and loop fastener" or a "touch fastener."


* So, what exactly is "Velcro"? It is actually the name of a group of companies and it is a trademark owned by Velcro Industries, but it is not the hook and loop product itself. This means today, only the Velcro companies make genuine VELCRO® brand hook and loop fasteners, while other companies make hook and loop fasteners.