Twyford Bathrooms facts for kids

Quick facts for kids
Twyford Bathrooms

Type	Private (subsidiary of Geberit AG)
Industry	Bathroom fittings
Founded	1849
Founder	Thomas Twyford & Thomas William Twyford
Headquarters	Alsager, Cheshire , England
Products	Sanitaryware

Twyford Bathrooms is a company from England that makes things for bathrooms, like toilets and sinks. They are based in a town called Alsager in Cheshire.

The Story of Twyford Bathrooms

Thomas Twyford and his son, also named Thomas William Twyford, started the company in 1849. They began in a place called Hanley, which is part of Stoke-on-Trent. People all over the world soon wanted their bathroom products. This led to building a brand-new factory in 1887. This factory, located in Cliffe Vale, Stoke-on-Trent, was the first factory ever built just for making bathroom items!

Today, Twyford Bathrooms is part of a bigger company called Geberit AG. Geberit is a major European company that makes bathroom equipment. They bought Twyford's parent company, Sanitec, in 2015.

In 1999, Twyford Bathrooms received a special honor. They were given the Royal Warrant by Queen Elizabeth II. This means the Queen used their products!

Key Moments in Twyford's History

Early Beginnings

• 1680: A man named Joshua Twyford was the first in the Twyford family to make pottery. You can see some of his old work in a museum in Hanley.
• 1729: Joshua Twyford passed away. The family kept making pottery in the area.
• 1827: Thomas Twyford, who would later start the company, was born.

Founding the Company

• 1849: Thomas Twyford opened two factories. They made simple washbasins and toilet pans. One factory was in Hanley, and the other was in Bucknall. Twyford started sending its products to many countries. These included America, Russia, Australia, France, and Germany.
• 1849, September 23: Thomas William Twyford, Thomas's son, was born.
• 1870: This year was a big one for toilets! The company grew a lot over the next 30 years. Many new bathroom inventions came out during this time.
• 1872: Thomas Twyford died. His son, Thomas William, was only 23. He took over the growing company.

New Inventions and Growth

An advertisement for Thomas Twyford products from 1884

• 1883: Thomas William Twyford created the "Unitas" toilet. This was the first all-ceramic, one-piece toilet. It didn't need a wooden cabinet around it. The Unitas was sent all over the world. In Russia, the word "Unitas" (унитаз) is still used to mean "toilet" today!
• 1887: Twyford built its "model" factory in Cliffe Vale. Government inspectors used it as an example for other factories. It had good ventilation, and every worker had their own window.
• 1889: Twyford introduced the first washbasins with built-in overflows.
• 1896: Twyford became a private limited company.
• 1901: Twyford built a factory in Germany. They left it in 1914 because of World War I. Another company, Keramag, later used this factory to make bathroom items.

Becoming a Public Company

• 1919: Twyford became a public limited company. This means people could buy shares in the company.
• 1921: Thomas William Twyford died. He was known as the "father of British bathrooms." He helped make bathroom items more hygienic.
• 1929: Twyford made a silent movie to show how they made their products. It was used to help sell their items.

Modernizing and Expanding

• 1945: The Etruria Works factory was rebuilt. New tunnel kilns were put in.
• 1953: The Cliffe Vale Fireclay factory was rebuilt after being damaged in World War II.
• 1956: Construction started on a new factory in Alsager, Cheshire. It was built to make vitreous china, a type of ceramic. The first part was finished in 1958.
• 1960: Twyford started making vitreous china in India.
• 1962: Twyford opened a factory in South Africa.
• 1970: Twyford started making vitreous china in Australia.
• 1971: A company called Reed International bought Twyford.
• 1973: Reed International also bought Curran Steels. This added steel and acrylic baths to Twyford's products.
• 1976: The Alsager factory for vitreous china was expanded.
• 1992: MB Caradon invested a lot of money in the Alsager site. They built a new distribution center and a new head office. This made Alsager the largest place in Europe for making and distributing vitreous china. The site now covers 70 acres.
• 1999: Twyford celebrated its 150th birthday!

Recent Changes

• 2001, January: HSBC sold Twyford Bathrooms to the Sanitec Corporation from Finland. Sanitec was the biggest maker of ceramic bathroom items in Europe. Twyford Bathrooms continued with its well-known brands.
• 2001: Twyford launched the "View suite," the first British-made, valve-operated toilet for the UK market.
• 2005: Twyford's brand logo was updated.
• 2007: Twyford launched the "Rimless Pan" toilet.
• 2007: Twyford's "Galerie Flushwise" toilet was launched. It used less water (4 liters and 2.6 liters per flush) and won an award for being water-efficient.
• 2010: Sanitec, Twyford's parent company, announced that the Alsager factory would close. All manufacturing would move outside the UK.
• 2011: Production stopped after 162 years. The factory in Alsager closed. However, the offices there remained open.
• 2012: Plans to build a supermarket on the old factory site were not approved. In October 2012, Twyford's old Bath Street Works in Hanley was finally torn down. In December 2012, a big fire damaged Twyford's "Etruria Works" in Garner Street.