INDUSTRY ANALYSIS OF PEN INDUSTRY

A STUDY ON INDUSTRIAL ANALYSISOF

PEN INDUSTRYSubmitted by

EARU.K(H.T.No.09QT1E0038)

M.B.A

Dissertation submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the award of degree in

MASTER OF BUSINESS ADMINISTRATIONJNTU

Under the guidance ofMrs. RUBEENA

AURORA TECHNOLOGICAL & RESEARCH INISTITUTEPARVATHAPUR, UPPAL, HYDERABAD-39

JULY-2008

Declaration

I here by declare that the project work entitled “INDUSTRY ANYLSIS OF

PEN” is an original and genuine work done by me.

I also state that it is not submitted elsewhere in part of full apart from my

self submitting it from the context of an academic endeavor and partial

fulfillment for the award of MBA degree of JNTU as part of the academic

curriculum.

Place:

Date: (EARU)

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

It brings me immense pleasure to put forth this project titled

“Industrial Analysis of PEN” It is great pleasure and an

opportunity for me to express my deep sense of gratitude to

all those who have made it possible me accomplish my

project successfully.

I would like to express to profound gratitude to my guidance

and faculty Mrs. RUBEENA

Mr. RAJESWARA REDDY, Head of the department and

other lecturers of our college for their criticism and

guidance.

.

EARU

Introduction

Pen and ink drawing is an age-old art form. It is an affordable form of art as well as very satisfying. The basics of pen and dink drawing are easy to learn. You do have to have patients when completing a work of art in

 this medium, but with a little instruction and introduction, pen and ink should easily be a new form of art you can at to your repertoire.

There are three main aspects to pen and drawing: hatching, cross hatching, and stippling. Almost every pen and ink drawing you see will use a combination of these drawing techniques to create their image. Hatching,

cross hatching, and stippling are the three most important techniques in pen and dink drawing.

Hatching

Hatching is a simple short line of pen on paper. Hatching is usually completed all in one direction. Dense or closely positioned hatching

creates shadows. Widely spaced hatching creates highlighted areas.

Cross Hatching

Cross-hatching is simply when two lines cross to form and X or a T. A cross hatch does not have to be a perfectly formed T or X. You are not

trying to write a letter; you are creating a piece of artwork.

Stippling

Stippling consist of dots of ink made by the pen. Small dots of ink that come together to create an image or even shading. Dots or stippling that

are further apart create lighter highlighted areas. Densely placed dots that are close together create shadows.

Mechanical Pens Versus Traditional Dipping Pens

Mechanical pens are almost always used today in pen and ink drawing. They hold a well of ink inside of the pen, just like a regular writing or

ballpoint pens. You can buy ink in a variety of colors to fit these pens. Most are e refillable and reusable.

The key to choosing a mechanical pen for pen and ink drawing is to decide what size tip you want. EF stands for extra fine and will produce the

thinnest most precise line. You can work all the way up to wider tips for more dramatic and thicker line.

Mechanical pens provide a more uniform look when creating a pen and ink drawing. Ink flow is consistent and you will rarely have a blob of ink on

your artwork.

Dipping or quill pens are historically the way pen and ink drawing started. I find that I have to clean these quill tips a lot to get a clean crisp line. They also have a tendency to form blot of ink on your paper. They

 do create more bold lines though, which can be very nice.

What Kind of Paper to Use with Pen and Ink Drawing

You can use almost any paper to create a pen and ink drawing on. Thicker paper in my opinion is the best. Watercolor paper is a fabulous choice for pen and ink drawings. This is also a good option incase you decide you

want to add some watercolor paint to your pen and ink drawing after it has dried.

What Kind of Ink to Buy

I recommend buying waterproof ink no matter what kind of pen or paper you will be using. Even if you do not plan to add watercolor to your pen

and ink drawing you should use waterproof ink. I like waterproof ink because it does not fade. There have been many times water accident

splashed on my pen and ink artwork and I was so thankful my work wasn’t ruined because I used waterproof ink.

Colored ink is widely available as well as white ink. They can also be bought in waterproof varieties. I have found that white ink tends to look

opaque; so don’t plan on completely a fabulous piece of art on colored or

black paper with white ink.

Pen Facts 

Pens of one type or another have been used for thousands of years. Today, pens rank among the most widely used writing instruments. More than 2 billion pens are manufactured in the United States annually. There are five main kinds of pens. They are (1) ballpoint pens, (2) fountain pens, (3) soft-tip pens, (4) rolling-ball pens, and (5) specialty pens. Ballpoint pens have a tiny ball made of brass, steel, or tungsten carbide as their writing tip. A compartment called the ink reservoir holds the ink, and a narrow tube links the reservoir to the ball. The ball, which is fitted into a socket, turns as it rolls across the paper, carrying ink from inside the pen onto the paper. Many ballpoint pens have a plastic cap that helps prevent ink from drying out on the ball. On others, a push-button mechanism draws the pen point into the body of the pen.Most ballpoint pens depend on gravity to pull the ink to the ball. For this reason, ballpoint pens generally do not write well when held sideways. However, some ballpoints are designed so that slight pressure is always applied behind the ink column. This design enables the ink to move constantly forward and the pen to write even when its point is higher than its back end. Ballpoint pens use a thick, sticky ink because a thinner ink would leak out around the ball. But the use of such ink makes ballpoint pens write less smoothly than most other pens. Fountain pens have a somewhat triangular writing point, called a nib, which is made of gold or stainless steel. A system of narrow tubes known as the feed carries the ink from the pen’s reservoir to the nib.Fountain pens use a highly fluid ink. They rely on a property called capillarity to draw the ink into and through the feed. Capillarity causes the inner surface of the tubes to attract molecules of ink. These ink molecules, in turn, attract other ink molecules, and the feed fills with ink from the pen’s reservoir.  The feed in a fountain pen also includes a number of air passages that lead to the reservoir. These passages allow air to fill the top of the reservoir as ink is drawn from the bottom. Thus the air pressure inside the pet remains equal to the air pressure outside the pen, and the ink flows easily. If the air pressure inside the ink reservoir is lower than the atmospheric pressure outside, the ink will not reach the point and the pen will fail to write. However, if the air pressure over the ink column becomes greater than the air pressure outside the pen, ink will flood out from the front of the pen. To avoid such flooding, fountain pens are designed with a collector. The collector, which is located near the nib, consists of a series of fins and spaces that provide enough additional room to accommodate forward moving ink. 

Soft-tip pens, also called porous-pointed pens, have a relatively soft writing tip. Some soft-tip pens, called felt-tip pens, have a felt-like writing tip. The tip of others is made of absorbent plastic. Soft-tip pens use fluid, brilliantly colored inks. The reservoir in a soft-tip pen consists of a special synthetic material made up of many fibers. This type of reservoir, called a capillary reservoir, holds ink in much the same way that a sponge holds water. During writing, the absorbent tip of a soft-tip pen continually draws ink from the reservoir onto the paper.   Roller ball pens combine certain features of ball point, fountain, and soft-tip pens. Like ballpoint pens, roller ball pens have a tiny ball that turns in a socket at their tip. But unlike ballpoints, roller ball pens use highly fluid inks, which allow them to write as smoothly as soft-tip and fountain pens.Roller ball  pens may have either a capillary reservoir similar to that used in soft-tip pens or a reservoir like that of ballpoints. A wick made of an absorbent material draws ink from the reservoir and carries it to the ball. The wick can carry only a limited amount of ink at any onetime. In this way, the wick regulates the flow of ink and prevents it from leaking out.   Specialty pens are designed for specific purposes. for example, artists and mechanical drafters use a pen called a technical pen. This pen comes with a set of interchangeable pen points of varying widths. Another special pen, called a lettering pen, is used to create an elegant style of handwriting called calligraphy. 

 

 Pen History

  As early as 4,000 B.C., ancient peoples used crude pens consisting of hollow straws or reeds that supported a short column of liquid. During the 500’s B.C., people began to make pens from the wing feathers of such birds as geese and swans. The shaft of the feathers was hardened, and the writing tip was shaped and slit to make writing easy. These feather pens were known as quill pens, and they were widely used until the development of steel-nib pens in the 1800’s.   By the late 1800’s, inventors had perfected an early version of the fountain pen. This pen represented a major improvement over previous pens, because it featured an ink reservoir and a capillary feed. Earlier pens held only a small amount of ink at a time and had to be repeatedly dipped in ink.    The First Fountain Pen In 1883, L. E. Waterman, an insurance salesman, purchased a writing contraption with its own ink reservoir. But when it leaked, ruining a sale, he got an idea for a better one and decided to make it himself. In those days a salesman often wore a vest chain with a small metal container holding a vial of ink in one pocket and a collapsible penholder in the other. Waterman examined several so-called pocket pens and saw that none of them had a mechanism for the sure control of ink flow. He determined to invent one. Applying the principle of capillary attraction, he designed a feed with a groove for air intake and three narrow slits in the bottom of the groove. As air bubbles interred, they pressed against the ink in the barrel and the ink descended through the slits in a uniform flow to the pen point. This device was so novel the Patent Office granted a patent in 1884, only a few months after the filing. Waterman claimed that his new mechanism would "prevent the excessive discharge of the ink when the pen is in use." It was the first practical fountain pen and its three-fissure feed became the standard principle for all other makes produced thereafter. Waterman started assembling his pens on a kitchen table in the rear of a cigar store. In September of 1885 he started to advertise. After that Waterman’s Ideal rode the road to fortune. The first pens were long tubes with a cap fitted on a projection at the top of the barrel. The cone cap, sliding over the end, did not come until 1899. Color was first used in 1898 with the hexagon holder. A self-filling piston replaced the reloading eye dropper in 1903. In a 1908 model the barrel was made with a movable sleeve which exposed a metal bar; by finger pressure the bar squeezed a soft rubber sac. Up to this time there had been no sacs in fountain pens. The Waterman Company (L. E. Waterman died in 1901) introduced a slot big enough to admit the edge of a coin to compress the sac in 1913. Later the same

year the lever appeared, set in a metal housing attached to the barrel; the lever emptied or filled the sac completely in one stroke. Changes since that time have been mainly in styling. The first Ball Point Pen The first patent for a ball point pen was No. 392,046, granted October 30, 1888, to John J. Loud of Weymouth, Mass. Loud used the pen to mark leather fabrics. Another ball point pen device was patented by Van Vechten Riesburg in 1916. Both patents lapsed without improvement renewal. Ballpoint pens received little notice until World War 11(1939-1945). Many pilots began using ballpoint pens during this conflict, because such pens did not leak at high altitudes. After the war, ballpoint pens became increasingly popular. Soft-tip pens and rolling-ball pens both were introduced during the 1960’s.

The first ball point pen to replace the then common "fountain pen" was introduced by Milton Reynolds in 1945. It used a tiny ball bearing which rolled heavy gelatin ink onto the paper. The Reynolds Pen was a crude writing instrument, but it sold like "hot cakes" when first introduced at a price of $10, using the slogan "It writes under water." Competition finally forced prices down to less than 10 cents for ball point pens by 1960. By then the Reynolds pen had disappeared from the market place.Before others invaded Reynold's ball point pen market, one of his flamboyant escapades to attract attention was to purchase a B26 Douglas transport airplane. He loaded it with Reynolds Pens and hired Pilot Bill Odom to fly him around the world in 1947, handing out Reynolds pens to people wherever he went. The publicity from this escapade was tremendous. Milton Reynolds was born in Albert Lea, Minn. in 1892 and died in Mexico City in 1976 at age 84.     

PARKER

ParkerFor over a century, Parker Pens have been recognized for their dependable quality, precision writing, and prestigious style. The company's numerous lines of pens and copious list of innovations earned Parker Pens its reputation. However, the road to triumph took years of determination. George S Parker, the founder, had previously been a sales agent for the John Holland Gold Pen Company. He received his first fountain pen related patent in 1889.[1] In 1894 Parker received a patent on his "Lucky Curve" feed,[1] which was claimed to draw excess ink back into the pen body when the pen was not in use. The Lucky Curve feed was used in various forms until 1928.

From the 1920s to the 1960s, before the development of the ballpoint pen, Parker was either number one or number two in worldwide writing instrument sales.[citation needed] In 1931 Parker created Quink "quick drying ink" which eliminated the need for blotting and led to the development of the most widely used model of fountain pen in history (over $400 million worth of sales in its 30 year history) the Parker 51.[citation needed] Manufacturing facilities were set up over the years in Canada, United Kingdom, Denmark, France, Mexico, USA, Pakistan, India and Argentina. Parker pens were frequently selected (often as favorite pens of the signers) to sign important documents such as the World War II armistices, and commemorative editions were sometimes offered.[citation needed]

The company bought retailer and catalog company Norm Thompson in 1973, and then sold it off in 1981.[2] In 1976 Parker acquired Manpower just as the temporary staffing market was surging. In time Manpower provided more revenue than the pen business. A 1982 spinoff, Sintered Specialties, Inc., became SSI Technologies, a manufacturer of automotive sensors.

A management buyout in 1987 moved the company headquarters to Newhaven, East Sussex, England which was the original location of the Valentine Pen Company previously acquired by Parker. In 1993 Parker was acquired by the Gillette Company, which already owned the PaperMate brand, one of the best-selling disposable ballpoints. Gillette sold the writing instruments division in 2000 to Newell Rubbermaid, whose own Stationery Division, Sanford, became the largest in the world owning such brand names as Rotring, Sharpie, Reynolds as well as Parker, PaperMate, Waterman and Liquid Paper.

In July of 2009 the 180 workers at Parker Newhaven, UK, got notice that the factory was to be shut down and the production moved to France. [3]

On August 18, 2009 Newell Rubbermaid Inc. announced that Janesville Wisconsin will close the remaining operations tied to Parker Pen and eliminate 153 jobs. "This decision is a response to structural issues accelerated by market trends and is in no way a

reflection on the highly valued work performed by our Janesville employees over the years," the company said. Newell Rubbermaid said it will offer transitional employment services as well as severance benefits.

Parker Pen Company history

    Since man first scrawled in the dirt with his finger, people have searched for better ways to record the written word. Today, that quest is perhaps best exemplified by one of the writing instrument industry's leaders: Parker Pen.

    In America, the pen-making industry officially began in 1809. But, it wasn't until the 1880s that the fountain pen as we know it got its start. Among the early industry leaders was George Safford Parker, a school teacher from Janesville, WI who became frustrated with the unreliability of the writing instruments then available to his students.

    To augment his meager teaching salary, Parker had a sideline as an agent for John Holland fountain pens. The pens were unreliable, delivering too much ink at times and at other times, no ink at all. In any case, Parker felt obligated to repair the pens he sold to his students. So, he purchased a few small tools, and began to learn the inner workings of fountain pens. As the students learned they could depend on their teacher to keep their pens in working order, the number of pens he sold increased, as did Parker's frustration over the time required for repairs. Finally, he decided he could make a better pen himself. And he did.

    Parker patented his first fountain pen design on December 10, 1889. Two years later he entered a partnership with insurance man W.E Palmer and in February of 1892 they incorporated the Parker Pen Company.

    In 1891, Parker patented an improved under-overfeed. It was the third patent Parker acquired in a time span of only 18 months. In 1893 he patented yet another feed; this one would be the forerunner to the Lucky Curve.

    The Lucky Curve, patented on December 4 1894, was to become the foundation for The Parker Pen Company's first real success. Like many of Parker's innovations to come, this one was designed to solve a problem. The problem was that pens carried in a pocket retained ink in the feed tube. As the ink was warmed by body temperature it expanded forcing ink to the pen point. When the pen cap was removed, the excess ink inevitably soiled fingers. Parker's Lucky Curve employed capillary attraction which completely drained the ink from the feed tube.     Additional product innovations in these early years included the development of the Jointless Pen and the slip-fit outer cap. Parker redesigned the Lucky Curve as an underfeed pen in 1898.

    By 1899. Parker was successfully selling pens to the public and the armed forces. In fact, it was a Parker Pen Jointless Lucky Curve that was used to sign the Treaty of Peace ending the 1898 Spanish-American War on February 10, 1899.

    By the turn of the century pens were already more than utilitarian objects, they were becoming status symbols. Since only the educated could read and write, owning a fountain pen became a visible sign that the owner was educated. The new underfeed design allowed the gold point of the nib to show, and people wanted their pens to be noticed. Sales of the Lucky Curve, aided by advertising, grew steadily.

    Between 1900 and 1915 Parker created a number of beautiful pens with gold, silver, gold-filled and mother-of-pearl overlays that are today highly collectible. One of the legends among pen collectors is the Parker Snake Pen. A black hard rubber, eyedropper filled pen with a sterling silver or gold- filled, green-eyed snake wound around the barrel and cap.

    Parker also made a number of improvements to the fountain pen during these years, including: - Developing the spear-headfeed - Improving the Lucky Curve feed - Patenting the first Safety Cap - And patenting the level lock clip

    While George Parker was always working to improve his fountain pens, he also was expanding the business. In 1903, Parkers first overseas distributorship was established in Scandinavia, with the enlistment of a Copenhagen shopkeeper to carry his pens. Three years later, Parker introduced the Emblem Pen, a forerunner to the products of the company's Corporate Markets Division that incorporated the emblems of secret societies, such as the Knights of Columbus.

    World War I brought a high demand from soldiers abroad for a means to write home during lulls in the trench warfare. In 1917, the U.S. War Department awarded Parker a contract for his unique Trench Pen. It featured black pigment pellets that converted water to ink in the pen barrel, giving the Doughboys a portable ink maker in the field. It was during the war that many American soldiers and Europeans first encountered the Parker pens they would come to prize.

    In 1918, for the first time, the Parker Pen company's annual sales passed the $1 million mark. And in 1919, the company began construction on a five-story building in Janesville to house the manufacturing and administrative functions of the growing business. Despite its tremendous growth, Parker Pen was still essentially a family business. George Parker's elder son, Russell, had joined the company in 1914 and his son, Kenneth, came on board in 1919, after spending a year at the advertising agency of Lord & Thomas. Years later, they would be joined by the founder's grandsons, George and Dan.

    The years between 1921 and 1940 are considered the Golden Era in fountain pen development and manufacturing, though a number of pen companies were lost during the Depression and all were to some extent weakened. By the start of World War II, Parker had emerged as one of the U.S. leaders, mainly due to its innovation and ability to adapt

to the times.

    Parker's innovation was evident in 1921 when the company made its daring introduction of the Parker Duofold. This over-sized. vivid red-orange fountain pen with its great gold point made a bold break from its primarily black contemporaries. But probably most shocking was its selling price, which at $7 was nearly twice the accepted cost of a pen.

    Chicago was selected as the testing ground and the Chicago Tribune was chosen for advertising. A force of 10 salesmen presented the new products to the retailers. They were armed with: - Product samples, - Reproductions of the Duofold color poster which they pasted all over town, - Testimonial letters, - And a letter from the Tribune stating that Parker had signed a three-month non-cancelable advertising contract.

    In one week, gross sales of the pens exceeded the gross cost of the three-month advertising campaign. Within five months a national advertising campaign was initiated.

    The Parker Duofold was an immediate success. Sir Arthur Conan Doyle used his to record the exploits of Sherlock Holmes. During the time he wrote the famous detective's last adventures, he also found time to write Lord Moles worth, a member of the Parker board of directors, proclaiming that in the Duofold "I have at last met my affinity in pens." Today, these early Duofolds are still favorites of vintage pen collectors.

    Within four years, sales had quadrupled and, by 1926, the Duofold had made Parker the leader in the high-priced pen field. Within five years, this little Wisconsin company had vaulted to a place of international renown.

    During the early 1920's, George Parker embarked on extensive tours of Europe, Australia, India and the Orient, establishing a network of overseas distributors for his products. In 1923, Parker established its first manufacturing facility outside the U.S. in Toronto, Canada and in 1924, Parker established a subsidiary in England.

    Even as the company expanded, Parker continued its focus on improving its products.

    The Duofold was continuously modified with the addition of such things as new sizes and finishes. In 1926, Parker introduced the first Duofolds made of a plastic, called Permanite, rather than hard rubber. This change allowed Parker to increase its guarantee from 25 years to "forever," and to introduce the Duofold in new colors, including: Jade Green, Mandarin Yellow and Lapis Blue.

    The use of unbreakable plastic also opened the door to some legendary promotions, including dropping the pens from airplanes and over the side of the Grand Canyon to prove their durability.

    In 1928, George Parker's partner, William Palmer, sold 75% of his company shares to an investment banking house, in preparation for his retirement. The investment company arranged for those shares to be traded on the Chicago Stock Exchange and, for the first time, Parker Pen shares were offered to the public. During the Depression Parker continued to introduce new products, to improve existing products, and to invest in research and development. One of the most important products to come out of the Depression years was Quink, the first pen cleaning ink. The product has been so successful that its formula has never been changed.

    Out of the research and development of the late 1920s came Parker's next highly successful pen - the Parker Vacumatic - introduced in 1933. The Vacumatic had three distinct features:

    1) A revolutionary filling system that employed vacuum pressure rather than a rubber sac and pressure bar. The new filling method eliminated the rotting rubber sacs and meant that the pen could hold more ink. In fact, the ink capacity of the Vacumatic was 102% greater than that of the Duofold;

    2) The body of the pen was made from a unique laminated plastic with alternating layers of black and silver pearl, resulting in a striking series of stripes running around the pen;

    3) And, it was the first appearance of the smart Arrow-style clip, designed by New York artist Joseph Platt. It has since become Parker's most identifiable trade mark.

    The public was quite taken with this new pen, and it remained Parker's best seller until 1940.

    Following George Parker's credo, the company continued to make this a better pen, with modifications in features and styles over the years. In 1939, a small blue diamond was added to the top of the Arrow Clip, signifying that the pen was guaranteed for life. Today, Parker still stands behind the quality of its writing instruments by offering a lifetime guarantee.

    Parker's next pen design would change the style and look of all fountain pens to come. Until the arrival of the Parker 5I , fountain pens were promoted as holding more ink than the competition's pen. To accomplish this, pen barrels were made larger and different filling systems were created to increase a pen's ink capacity. This feature had sold pens for 60 years.

    However, the Parker 51, introduced in 1941, had a slim design and a hooded nib. It was made of alkali-resistant Lucite and used quick drying ink. Called the 51 because it was the result of research conducted in Parker's 51st year, this fountain pen was so different from conventional pens that Parker promoted it as being "like a pen from a different planet."

    The Parker 51 became such a success that Parker could not make enough of them to keep up with the demand. Parker at one point even took out advertising apologizing for the shortage. In countries outside of the U.S., the Parker 51 was literally worth its weight in gold.

    Although the fountain pen industry struggled during the Depression, with the start of World War II, it thrived once again and business mushroomed during the 1940s. At the end of the war, it was with Parker pens that the agreement surrendering the German and Italian forces in Northwest Italy were signed. The Armistice ending World War II on the European Front was signed with Parker 51 pens belonging to General Dwight D. Eisenhower. Though he knew he couldn't attend the signing, Eisenhower insisted his pens be sent for the event. And it was with his own 20-year-old Duofold that General Douglas Macarthur signed the document ending World War II in the Pacific.

    In 1948 a lower priced version of the 51 -- the Parker 21 -- was introduced and it quickly garnered 60 percent of the over $5 market.

    The Parker 51 retained its popularity and, in 1950, it received the Fashion Academy Award for exceptional styling, precision and craftsmanship. Recognized as a forerunner in the industry, Parker continued to grow. In 1953, a 226,000 square-foot plant, called Arrow Park, was opened in Janesville with state-of-the-art automated equipment and manufacturing systems. That same year Parker opened manufacturing facilities in France and Mexico. As the writing industry matured, there came new developments and challenges in France and Mexico. However, the quality of early ball pens was poor and Parker did not jump on the bandwagon. In fact, the ball pen didn't become a factor in the market until improvements in materials, methods and inks were engineered into the product in the mid 1950s.

    On its 75th Anniversary, Parker introduced its solid sterling silver Parker 75 luxury fountain pen with a 14 karat gold nib. Its cross hatch design would become a flagship design for the company. Today, nearly 30 years later, it still receives accolades for its design and engineering. In November 1965 Parker announced the 75 Spanish Treasure Fleet Special Edition. It was fashioned from silver recovered from the Spanish treasure ships that sank off of the coast of Florida in 1715. Only 4,821 were produced.

    1967 saw the introduction of the slim-contoured Classic line of writing instruments, and in 1968 Parker introduced a mechanical pencil with the capacity to write of up 50,000 words. The following year, a special edition Classic pen was fashioned from the Atlas booster rocket which made John Glenn the first American astronaut to orbit the earth on February 20, 1962. The fragment of metal used in these pens survived re-entry and landed in Africa. The booster metal was used for the push button on the "Space Pens," created in recognition of the ten-year anniversary of the U.S. space program. The commemorative pens, which were not for sale, were distributed to international leaders and celebrities.

1973 brought an end to the Vietnam War, and Former Secretary of State William P. Rogers signed the Vietnam Peace Agreement in Paris on January 27 with a Parker 75 Keepsake Pen.

Company ProfileParker Pen Co.

International Private companyParker House, Estate Rd., Newhaven,  BN9 0AU, United Kingdom()44 01273 513 233, 44 01273 514 773 fax, http://www.parkerpen.com

Primary SIC: Pens And Mechanical Pencils, Primary NAICS: Pen and Mechanical Pencil ManufacturingDescription: Manufacturing: Manufacture, design and wholesale trade in writing instruments

    Parker launched its first roller ball pen in 1975. The System ark combined the

convenience of a ball pen with the smooth ink flow of a fountain pen. This new roller

ball pen featured a fountain pen ink system and a textured tungsten carbide ball. By

using this award-winning capillary ink system, Parker once again set the standard for

the industry. It was unlike other roller ball pens that relied on troublesome wick ink

governor systems. Typically, roller ball pens using wick systems have ink lines that

fade with use.

    Parker continued to offer new and improved ideas. Among the writing instruments

introduced in the late 1970s were: The Parker I80, a dual line nib fountain pen; the

Parker 25 line from England; the Parker 45; the Parker 50 line; the Ms. Parker and the

Swinger neck pen (now known as Slinger). The Arrow gift line was introduced in

1981 and the Vector Roller Ball made its first appearance in the U.K. in 1982. The

Parker Premier collection was launched worldwide in 1983.

    On February 1, 1986, the Writing Instrument Group of the Parker Pen Company

was acquired in a leveraged buy-out by Parker U.K. managers and investors. Parker

became a privately held company and the company's headquarters were moved to

Newhaven, England. Still, the company remained committed to the founder's

philosophy and to the tradition of innovation and quality. The use of Parker pens for

historic occasions also continued. In 1987, President Ronald Reagan and Soviet

General Secretary Mikhail Gorbachev signed the historic Intermediate signed the

historic Intermediate Nuclear Forces Treaty with custom-made Sterling Silver Parker

75s.

    The famous Duofold of the 20's was reintroduced in 1987 as the Duofold

Centennial Fountain Pen and Ball Pen, in anticipation of Parker's 100th anniversary. It

was an immediate success, providing traditional classic pen styling with state-of-the-

art writing technology. In the summer of 1990 the expanded Duofold Collection was

introduced and included the Centennial Fountain Pen, a slimmer International

Fountain Pen, a Roller Ball Pen, and a Ball Pen and Pencil styled after the original

1920s Pencil. They were available in a Marbled Blue, Marbled Maroon or Black. A

Special Edition Orange Duofold Centennial Fountain Pen and Mechanical Pencil were

also introduced in the burnt-orange finish of the 1920s. The success of the Duofold

Collection was immediate and exceeded all expectations.

    Other products introduced during the late 1980s have included the Parker 88 Place

Vendome, the Parker 95 and Vector fashion pens. In 1990, the traditional use of

Parker pens for historic signings continued when President George Bush and Soviet

leader Mikhail Gorbachev used specially made Parker 75 Sterling Silver Roller Ball

Pens for the U.S. Soviet agreement banning chemical weapons. Parker 75 Roller Ball

Pens also were used at the Moscow Summit on July 31, 1991 for the historic signing

of the Strategic Arms Reduction Treaty (START) by Bush and Gorbachev. The

signing marked the first time both nations agreed to reduce stockpiles of long-range

missiles.

    In 1991, Parker set out to revitalize the $10 to $100 gift market when it launched a

new ball pen and mechanical pencil line, called the Parker Insignia, in the U.S. This

new line of precision-crafted high performance writing instruments was based on an

ergonomic design and made exclusively at the Janesville p]ant. The Insignia

Collection was successfully introduced to the Asian and European markets in 1992.

That same year, Parker also was appointed by the World Memorial Fund for Disaster

Relief to manufacture missile emblem pens. Proceeds from their sale supported the

Memorial Fund's worldwide disaster relief efforts. The Memorial Pens featured

emblems fashioned from the metal of scrapped American Pershing and Soviet SS20

missiles. Parker World Memorial Pens includes a Parker Duofold Black International

Fountain Pen and Ball Pen, and three Parker Insignia Ball Pen and Pencil finishes.

The Parker Duofold World Memorial Pens are a Limited Edition and no more than

10,000 will be produced and sold in North America. Personalized Parker Duofold

Black International World Memorial Ball Pens were presented to U.S. Presidents

Richard Nixon, Gerald Ford, Jimmy Carter, Ronald Reagan and George Bush at the

opening of the Ronald Reagan Library in 1991 for their efforts to ensure peace.

    In 1991, Parker also enhanced several of its popular product lines. As the demand

for beautifully crafted writing instruments increased, Parker responded by adding a

23kt Gold Plated, a Sterling Silver and a Marbled Green to its luxurious flagship

Duofold line and a striking new Parker Custom 75 with 23kt gold plated caps and a

choice of four glossy lacquer barrels.

    Continuing a long-standing affiliation with historic signings, custom-made Duofold

Orange Roller Ball Pens were used by President George Bush and Russian President

Boris Yeltsin on June 17, 1992, to sign a historic arms reduction accord in

Washington D.C. Both pledged to destroy two-thirds of their country's strategic

nuclear arsenals within a decade. After the signing, the presidents continued the

tradition of exchanging pens. Stayed through more than a century by its ability to

successfully deliver new ideas, technologies and products, Parker is truly a world

leader. Today, Parker pens and accessories technologies and products are sold in over

120 countries and are certainly the pens that write in any language.

Products profile

Parker Pen Products

Parker Pen Ink Cartridges & Refills Products

Description: Parker Pen:- Ink Cartridges & Refills Products- Parker Roller Ball Refills: Black Medium, Black Fine, Blue Medium, Blue Fine Parker Ball Pen Refills: Black Medium, Black Fine, Blue Medium, Blue Fine, Red Medium Parker Quink Ink Cartridges: Black, Washable Blue

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Parker Pen Vector Products

Description: Parker Pen:- Vector Products - Parker Red, Parker Matte Black, Parker Metallix Black, Parker Metallix Red, Parker Millennium Roller Ball Pen, Parker Vector Gold Roller Ball Pen Parker Black: Fountain Pen, Roller Ball, Pen Pack (Fountain pen, Roller Ball and a Ball pen) Parker Stainless Steel: Fountain Pen, Roller Ball, Pen Pack (Fountain pen, Roller Ball and a Ball pen) Parker Blue: Fountain Pen, Roller Ball, Pen Pack (Fountain pen, Roller Ball and a Ball pen) and

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» Parker products are Shipped Worldwide. » Parker products Prices include shipping charges. » Parker products are Shipped usually within 2 days. » Transit time is 12 to 15 days.

Parker Pen Jotter Products

Description: Parker Pen:- Jotter Products- Parker Jotter Stainless Steel Gold Plated Clip Ball Pen, Parker Jotter Gold Ball Pen, Parker

Jotter Steel Roller Ball Pen and More...

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

At «Parker Pen Company» there is a royal permission to exclusive deliveries of handles and ink for the British royal court yard. Members of royal families and heads practically all countries of the world as quality Parker is approved by time use handles Parker, uniqueness and perfection of design do not call doubts. At «Parker Pen Company» there is a royal permission to exclusive deliveries of handles and ink for the British royal court yard. Members of royal families and heads practically all countries of the world as quality Parker is approved by time use handles Parker, uniqueness and perfection of design do not call doubts.

George Parker's ancestors - spouses William and Mary - in 1636году have left Dover (a county Kent, England) and have poisoned in New Light - they have settled in New England. More than two hundred years later George Parker's parents in the best traditions of trailblazers in a van have gone from New England on the Average West. buy blog reviews

MARKETING

KEY DATES 

1888: George Safford Parker established the Parker Pen Company in Janesville, Wisconsin after failing to find a pen that wrote well and didn’t leak.

 

1889: George Safford Parker patented his first fountain pen.

 

1891: W.F. palmer invested in the Parker Pen Company. His initial investment of $1,000 launched business for the company. 

 

1894: The Lucky Curve feed system, a system that allowed ink to flow back into the reservoir, was introduced, giving the company its first technological break through and making it a big contender in the fountain pen industry.

 

1898: The slip on outer pen cap was patented.

 

1899: Parker designed the greatest achievement of the pen age, the first jointless pen.

 

1900: Gold Filigree Lucky Curve Pens were introduced, as well as a patent on the outer cap’s taper, allowing it to fit more firmly.

 

1903: Parker sought to establish overseas markets by embarking on a world tour.

 

1905: The company met consumer needs for large stylish fountain pens by introducing the Black Giant, and, in the same year, the “Spear-Head” ink feed was developed.

 

1906:  Parker released the Emblem Pen, which contained an engraved mark of a secret society.

 

1907: The Snake Pen, in sterling silver and gold, was launched.

 

1911: The Lucky Curve feed system was improved and patented.

 

1912: A new form of the safety cap was introduced.

 

During World War I, Parker signed a contract with the US War Department for the Trench Pen,

a pen holding black pellets that when added to water transformed into ink. The contract assured

financial success for the company during the war.

 

1914: George Safford Parker’s son, Russell, joined the company in order to concentrate on production and administration.

 

1916: The Jack-Knife safety pen made its debut.

 

1918: The company’s annual sales surpassed $1 million.

 

1919: George Safford Parker’s son, Kenneth, joined the company, and a new building for corporate headquarters was constructed.

 

1920’s: The mechanical pencil was invented. Also, Parker worked to establish distributorships in Europe, Australia, India, and the Orient.

 

1921: The Parker Company launched their most famous pen, the Duofold fountain pen. 

The pen gave Parker the reputation of the company with the most dependable pens.

At $7.00, the pen was not only the most fashionable of its time, it was also the most expensive.

 

 

 

1923: The Duofold pencil followed the Duofold pen’s release. Also, a manufacturing subsidiary was opened in Canada.

 

1924: The Parker Company opened a distribution company in London to handle Canada’s production. The site distributed Parker Pens throughout Europe.

 

1926-1927: The Duofold pen line extended to include colors in Jade Green, Mandarin Yellow, Lapis Blue, and Pearl and Black. The new pens were available in a new form of durable plastic called Permanite.

 

1931: The breakthrough of Quink ink joined the list of innovations for the company.

 

 

1933: Parker Pen engineering created the Vacumatic, consisting of a mechanism that held over twice as much ink as the Duofold. In the same year, artist Joseph Platt designed the Parker arrow clip.

 

 

 

1937: The company lost its founder, George Safford Parker, however, Parker Pens continued to flourish.

 

1941: A cigar-shaped design and hooded nib defined the Parker 51, earning the company prestigious design awards. Popularity and demand for the pen surpassed production.    

            

1948: The Parker 21, a less expensive version of the Parker 51, was introduced in 1948.

 

1949: The parker company continued to explore overseas markets by establishing a subsidiary in South Africa, followed by facilities in France and Mexico.

 

1954: Parker Pens maintained their success with the Parker Jotter, the first quality ballpoint pen with a large cartridge. The pen, with its rotating point to prevent wear, wrote more than five times longer than standard ballpoint pens.    

                 

 

1956: Parker established the Parker 61, a fountain pen designed to “self-draw” ink from the bottle for six hours of continuous writing.

 

1957: The tungsten carbide textured ball, T-ball, was designed, using a stainless steel sphere that allowed the pen to grip the surface of the paper, preventing blobbed writing. The T-ball became a part of the Jotter, forming the T-Ball Jotter.

 

1958: Subsidiary opened in Australia.

 

1959: Subsidiary opened in Argentina.

 

1960: Subsidiaries opened in Brazil and West Germany. Also, the Parker 45, Parker’s first ink cartridge pen, was introduced.

 

1962: Parker was awarded the Royal Warrant from the Royal British Household, as their sole supplier of pen and inks. In addition, subsidiaries were opened in Peru and Columbia.

 

1964: In celebration of their 75th anniversary, Parker released the Parker 75, a special edition fountain pen in sterling silver and with a 14k gold nib.

 

1966: Parker’s first attempt with roller balls occurred with the Touche.

 

1967: Parker revealed the Classic line of slim-contour writing instruments.

 

1968: The Automatic Mechanical Pencil, also known as the Cartridge Pencil, with the ability to print up to 50,000 words, was launched.

 

1970: The Big Red was released, a lower end pen modeling the Parker Duofold look.

 

1975: The Systemark characterized the first roller ball pen for Parker. It consisted of a fountain pen ink system and a T-ball.

 

1976 - 1978: Parker introduced five new lines of pens, Parker 180, Parker 25, Parker 50, Ms. Parker, and Swinger.

 

1981: The Arrow collection marked the new decade with its fashionable pocket clip.

 

1982: The Parker Vector roller ball made its appearance, followed by the Vector fountain pen, ball pen, and pencil.

 

 

1983: Parker created their premier collection of luxury writing instruments. The handcrafted pens, with their cherished metals, took up to six weeks to produce.

 

1986: The Writing Instruments Division was bought out by the UK management team, moving corporate headquarters to Newhaven, England. Although the world was in recession, Parker managed to increase turnover by nearly 50%, in the five years following the buyout.

 

1988: In celebration of its 100th birthday, the Parker Duofold was re-launched as the

highly successful Duofold Centennial. Also that year, Parker released the Parker 88,

inspired by French fashion yet still depicting the classic Parker style.

 

1989: Duofold owners were offered elite privileges and complimentary services after Parker established the Platinum Club in the US and Australia.

 

1990: Parker introduced the Parker International, a slimmer and shorter version of the Duofold Centennial, which was followed by the Duofold roller ball.  The ball pen and pencil consisted of a brass tassie design and utilized solid blocks of hand-cast acrylic trimmed in 23K gold plate.  It proved impervious to wear due to its diamond polished lustre.

            

                

1991: The birth of the precision-engineered Insignia collection was put on the market to suite the needs of the professional user.

 

1992: Pearl and Black were added to the Duofold collection. In addition, Parker added a new selection of colors and a special black trim to their 88 collection.

 

1993: Technologically-advanced Sonnet pens and Penman accessories appeared on the market. That same year, the Gillette Company attained Parker.

 

1994: The 88 line was re-launched as Rialto. It still included all of the popular features of the previous 88, however, its style was refined and functional changes improved performance.

 

1995: Parker announced a new Vector range with metallic, translucent, and dichroic finishes.

 

 

 

1996: Parker introduced the Frontier line. Duofold’s style was modified and released in the three new finishes of gemstones, replacing the previous marble finishes. Also, Rialto gained three new finishes and Insignia, four.

  

 

1999: Parker prepared for a 2000 reinvention with a new logo, new products, new refills, new packaging, and a new image.

     

2000: The Sanford Company took over Parker pens after their acquisition of the Gillette Company’s stationary products group.

     

 

2001: The company continued to expand their products with the introduction of the Inflection line and the expansion of Ellipse range to include the roller ball and the pencil. Also, Parker released the Duofold Mosaic Special Edition as a limited product offer. And, the company launched the stainless steel reflex as well as two new refills: Gel and Needlepoint.

 

2002: The Parker 51 made its comeback as a special edition pen with a cap in resemblance to the façade of New York City’s Empire State building.  Also that year, Parker created a 23K gold-plated Duofold with an engraving of an extract from the Proclamation of Accession.

Today, Parker Pens are used all around the world and sold in over 120 countries. From Truman to Bush, Parker's signature design and streamlined craftsmanship have even made the pens the choice for the nation's leaders.