COGEBI'S ORIGINS
1929 : The company “COMPAGNIE GÉNÉRALE BELGE DES ISOLANTS” (General Insulation Company of Belgium) was founded, the name shortened to COGEBI. As the name suggests, the main objective of the company was the manufacture of components used in the insulation of electrical machines. Initially this took the form of moldings created by compressing thermosetting plastics.
Ten years later, COGEBI was the first company in Belgium to perform injection molding of cellulose acetate, which was the only thermoplastic at the time.
1950 : Manual production of electric insulation based on mica flakes.1951 : COGEBI develops insulating varnishes.
It markets resins for the paints industry and introduces a decorative
laminate “Panolux”.
1957 : On the basis of an American license, COGEBI perfects the industrial,
automated manufacture of mica paper. Cogemica® is born.
1963 : A laboratory is set up in order to formulate epoxy resins.
1970 - 80 : COGEBI concentrates all its activities on developing, manufacturing and marketing mica insulation, selling all its other interests to specialized manufacturers.
1983 : COGEBI gains a foothold in the North American market by establishing a subsidiary, COGEBI, Inc. in Dover, New Hampshire (USA).
1986 : As part of the restructuring of ACEC, COGEBI is sold to COMPAGNIE ROYALE ASTURIENNE DES MINES, of which it becomes a division.
1990 : COGEBI develops new markets outside the electrical sector.
1994 : The two main shareholders in COMPAGNIE ROYALE ASTURIENNE DES MINES, SOCIÉTÉ GÉNÉRALE DE BELGIQUE and UNION MINIÈRE, sell their shares to FOCEP, which in 1996 then merges with CONTINENTALE D’ENTREPRISES, part of the Swiss group HARWANNE.
1997 : COGEBI continues its internal and external growth.
1997 - 99 : FOCEP is integrated into CONTINENTALE D’ENTREPRISES which thereby acquires “NORD-EST”, into which it incorporates COMPAGNIE ROYALE ASTURIENNE DES MINES.
2002 : COGEBI establishes COGEBI China Ltd. in Hong Kong.
2003 : Acquisition of EIT a.s. in the Czech Republic and integration in the COGEBI Group.
2005 : COGEBI, a division of Compagnie Royale Asturienne des Mines SA, becomes a Société anonyme, a company under Belgian law controlled by Nord Est (France).
COGEBI establishes COGEBI Asia in Malaysia.
2006 : EIT a.s. becomes COGEBI a.s.2007 : The COGEBI GROUP has been acquired by a Russian - German ELINAR GROUP, specialized in the development, manufacturing and distribution of electrical and mica insulation materials, leader in its markets. COGEBI establishes COGEBI PRC (China) in Shanghai.
