The Accu-Story: Celebrating 60+ Years of Inspiration & Innovation

• Accuride International started out in 1958 as a humble tool & die shop located in South Gate, California.
• By the late 1960s, a fresh brand of drawer slides for metal office furniture, sold under the name Accuride, became the business’s prime focus and an eventual new name.
• By the ‘90s, Accuride had expanded to encompass 1 million square feet over five manufacturing locations throughout the world.
• Since then, Accuride has launched new products like the lowest profile drawer slides on the market, unique keyboard tray systems, the StowAway slide, and the first all ball bearing, full-extension self-closing slide–the 3832SC.

With a total of one million square feet of manufacturing space spanning three continents, you might be surprised to learn that Accuride International started out as a humble tool & die shop located in South Gate, Calif.

The year 1958 marks the first step in Always Moving Forward when founder Fred Jordan and five other business partners officially launched A.A. Tool & Die Shop. At the time, Jordan had keenly pinpointed the rising need and demand for intricate movement solutions, especially within the industrial and electronic equipment markets. From the beginning, Jordan’s enterprise was best known for its premium telescopic slides, mainly targeted towards tape drives and copy machines.

With its growth and expansion of offerings, A.A. Tool & Die required more space, so the company moved shop to Santa Fe Springs, Calif. By the late 1960s, a fresh brand of drawer slides for metal office furniture, sold under the name Accuride, became the business’s prime focus and eventual new name.

As Accuride advanced into the home and office markets in the 1970s, the company’s engineers made new leaps in developing groundbreaking, innovative products, and design features. The advent of breathing tabs revolutionized the installation and quality of movement solutions for woodworkers. These flexible mounting tabs were the first to help absorb any extra side-space and reduce drawer racking, while also allowing for the fusion of metal and wood in crafting office furniture.

Also during this decade, the launch of the Model 1029, originally called the “Center Slide”, proved to be a game-changer as Accuride’s first ball bearing slide, eliminating side-space requirements and providing a concealed undermount. Because of its novelty, 1029 was mass marketed to kitchen cabinet manufacturers. By this time, Accuride had opened shop in the U.K., Germany, and Japan, now designing and manufacturing movement solutions globally.

A dawning new decade, the 1980s, brought the emergence of more breakthrough products from Accuride. Working well with the roller bearing standards at the time, the 3800 Series introduced full-extension travel, a better disconnect method, as well as a hold-in detent to the world of movement solutions.

Alongside these new innovations, Accuride engineers also developed and launched the unique Anti-Rak cable system technology that would serve as the foundation for the Flipper Door Slide, answering the modern need to support large, heavy doors for entertainment centers. The 1980s also saw the establishment of the Distributor Program, making Accuride products available via a network of local distributors.

By the ‘90s, Accuride had expanded to encompass 1 million square feet over five manufacturing locations throughout the world. Since then, the company has continued to innovate and meet new demands in an ever-changing market, rather than relying on the coattails of previous successes.

These last couple of decades have given rise to the lowest profile drawer slides on the market, unique keyboard tray systems, the StowAway slide, and the first all ball bearing, full-extension self-closing slide–the 3832SC.

In 2006, the company opened its sixth manufacturing location, serving China’s regional needs while establishing full global coverage. Even with a world-class team of engineers and worldwide reach, Accuride remains family-owned, and the business’ headquarters have stayed true to their roots in Santa Fe Springs, Calif.

Over the course of 60 years, Accuride International has stayed at the forefront of technology and user-experience in the world of movement solutions. A look at how far we’ve come only signals continued advancement–with no signs of stopping or slowing down.