Graco, global manufacturer of airless pumps

# Graco

Whether you’re a professional airless painter or not, the name Graco is probably familiar to you, and with good reason: it is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of airless pumps and accessories. And not only is it a major player in the airless sector, but Graco is also a leader in its market.

Here we only present the Graco airless range in detail and not the other areas of the company. Here is our contribution to introduce you to Graco, the American manufacturer of airless pumps.

Who is Graco?

Graco is an American manufacturer of fluid handling systems and products based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Since its inception in 1926, the company has been building and distributing innovative, quality products for spraying, lubrication, process applications and power equipment to contractors through a worldwide network of dealers.

For this sector, Graco has a wide range of machines including airless paint sprayers, HVLP, air-assisted pumps, road markers and high-pressure cleaning sprayers.

The American giant has been listed on the stock exchange for 50 years and employs more than 3,000 people worldwide through its offices and factories located around the world.

In Europe, the company’s headquarters are located in Maasmechelen, Belgium, and offers the following activities:

• Customer Service
• Technical assistance
• Sales
• Marketing
• Training
• Assembly
• Distribution

History of Graco

Russell Gray, a Minneapolis parking attendant, founded Gray Company, Inc. with his brother Leil Gray to produce and sell an air grease gun invented by Russell. Manual grease guns were becoming inoperable in very cold weather. In their first year of operation, sales reached $35,000.

After World War II, they began to expand their business outside of lubricant handling. The Gray brothers then developed a paint pump and drum-fed industrial fluid pumps.

By the mid-1950’s, they had $5 million in sales and 400 employees and were serving fluid handling needs in a wide range of American industries.

The company continued to expand with the introduction of the airless spray gun in 1957. The rest you already know. Through continuous innovation and strategic acquisitions of competitors, Graco has become the world leader in materials spraying today.

Thanks to its various brands, the American firm is present in the consumer painters (see our article on Magnum airless pumps) and building painters sectors.

Key data of Graco

Here are some figures from Graco’s history:

• The Gray Company was founded in 1926 by Russell and Leil Gray.
• Annual sales reach $1 million in 1941.
• First airless pump introduced in 1958.
• Company name changed to “Graco Inc.” in 1969 when it went public. Annual sales at that time were $33 million.
• Sales increased from $322.6 million in 1993 to $450.5 million in 1999.
• Strategic acquisitions of competitors in the 2000s, including Airlessco (more infos below).
• Revenues in excess of $1 billion for the first time in 2012.

Graco and Airlessco

Graco has a portfolio of brands to support its key growth strategies. These include investing in new and innovative products, targeting new markets and applications, making strategic acquisitions and expanding geographically. This is why the US firm acquired Airlessco in 2008.

Launched in 1975, Airlessco products have always been reliable products for painters and decorators. Airlessco’s formula for success is simple:

• Design equipment that can reliably pump more litres with less maintenance.
• Build pumps with the longest life span.
• Have the lowest maintenance costs in the industry.

Currently, the Airlessco line consists of 11 airless paint sprayers, 3 airless coating sprayers, 3 airless road markers and a full range of related accessories.

Why choose a Graco airless pump?

Without wishing to be biased towards any particular brand, it is a fact that Graco places great emphasis on innovation, quality and the promotion of its machines throughout the world. On the other hand, a positive point for the manufacturer is that Graco spare parts are available for both professional airless sprayers and consumer pumps.

Buying an airless pump is necessarily an investment and being able to keep it for as long as possible should be taken into account when making the purchase decision.

In addition, Graco has a strong presence on the Internet and focuses on “educating” painters by showing the advantages of airless technology compared to traditional technology, as well as the correct use of the machines, their maintenance and the most common repairs.

Graco and Airless Discounter

For many years we have been reselling Graco pumps and accessories for the professional sector at Airless Discounter. On our website you will find the:

• Graco guns
• Graco pumps
• Graco nozzles
• Graco spare parts
• and all other accessories and maintenance products from the American manufacturer

The manufacturer’s guarantee is 2 years on new pumps (excluding wearing parts) and you will occasionally find beautiful used airless pumps on our site (with a 1 year Airless Discounter guarantee).

This article is now coming to an end. Please do not hesitate to send us your comments and share this article if you find it informative.

That said, feel free to choose your brand of airless pump, be it Wagner, FARBMAX, Titan, Tritech and many others! It mainly depends on your applications and your budget. In case of doubt, ask our experts for advice to help you make your choice 🙂