Silka is a specialty chemical company that supplies and manufactures sealing, reinforcing, damping, protecting and bonding products for the building sector and motor vehicle industry. Their headquarters are based in Baar, Switzerland.
Silka is a specialty chemical company that supplies and manufactures sealing, reinforcing, damping, protecting and bonding products for the building sector and motor vehicle industry. Their headquarters are based in Baar, Switzerland.
1910 – Sika is founded by one Kaspar Winkler, whose first inventions were a waterproofing agent for mortars called Sika-1 which is still sold today and an agent to clean and protect granite.
1912 – A subsidiary is founded in the south of Germany which had its own small scale manufacturing facility and a Director for Foreign Operations is hired to enable further subsidiaries to be founded in England, France and Italy.
1918 – Successful trials using Sika are undertaken by the Swiss Federal Railways to waterproof the tunnels of the Gotthard section, necessary for the introduction of electric trains. This would lead to 67 more tunnels being waterproofed with Sika; a landmark point in their history.
1935 – Winkler’s son-in-law pushes for growth in to North and South America, Europe and Asia before the start of the Second World War.
1971 – Romuald Burkard takes over leadership of the group of companies. Sika is listed on the Swiss Stock Exchange.
1990 – A tough decade for Sika who came close to selling their sealing membrane business to Sarnafil. They avoided this by withdrawing from less profitable non-core businesses and abandoning manufacturing of road building products.
2000 – Sika sums up its core competencies as: bonding, sealing, reinforcing, damping and protecting.
2009 – 58.7 km of overground track in tunnels are clad with 53000 prefabricated tubbing elements to enable the inauguration of the first line of the Dubai Metro.
2010 – Various subsidiaries around the world celebrate the 100th year anniversary of the company. Sika also starts Sika Experiances, promoting internships and enabling young professionals and students an insight into the industry.
2012– CEO of the Dätwyler Gruppe, Paul Hälg is elected president of the Board of Directors of Sika. Ernst Bärtschi retires in January and Jan Jenisch takes over the position of CEO.
2013 – Sika acquires Everbuild UK and acquired JMTexsa, S.A. de C.V. of Mexico and Texsa India Ltd
2014 – Sika opens 6 new subsidiaries in Sri Lanka, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Albania, Mozambique, Ivory Coast, and Nigeria,and opens 8 new factories worldwide.
2015 – Sika acquires Mozambique-based Douro-Moza, BMI Products of Northern California Inc., Axson technologies, Construction Technologies Australia Pty Ltd (CTA) and Addiment Italia and establishes national subsidiaries in Ethiopia and Tanzania.