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Our story started about 100 years ago during a period of marked progress, accomplishment, and innovation in American history. From the hustle and bustle of Manhattan where our Ullman brand originated and the inland forest of Maine where our Saunders brand originated, to the wind-swept plains of Indiana where our Midwest brand originated and the idyllic sun-drenched hills of California where our NUPLA brand originated; our roots are a uniquely American story of free-enterprise, grit and innovation.

The founders of the Saunders Midwest brands shared a passion for innovation and the drive to continuously improve their inventions. They each built their businesses from the streets to the board room, focused on the unique challenges their customers faced day-to-day. NUPLA’s innovative continuous tension parallel chemical pultrusion line created tools 10x stronger than wood and 3x stronger than ordinary fiberglass. Ullman’s x-ray technology was used in the Manhattan Project. Saunders’s aluminum metal bending and assembly revolutionized the clipboard container business. And the founders of Midwest custom-built equipment available nowhere in the world to create the finest, highest-tolerance wood strips and sheets in the world.

Today, Saunders Midwest is a diversified manufacturer of tools, office and craft products. We continuously improve our products and our business through innovation and Kaizen so our customers reap the rewards of our efforts through great products.

Headquartered in downtown Chicago, and with manufacturing and distribution facilities throughout the USA; our employees go to work every day to build tools that help better our customers’ lives.