The Dana Incorporated is an American worldwide supplier of drivetrain, sealing, and thermal-management technologies. Founded in 1904 and based in Maumee, Ohio, the company employs more than 23,000 people in 25 countries on six continents. In 2015, Dana generated sales of nearly $6.1 billion. The company is included in the Fortune 500.
1904
Clarence W. Spicer, engineer, inventor, and founder of the company, began manufacturing universal joints in Plainfield, New Jersey.The first C.W. Spicer "u-joints" are shipped to Corbin Motor Company in Connecticut.1905
Spicer Universal Joint Manufacturing Company incorporated.1906
Customer roster grows to include Buick., Olds Motor Works, Mack, Kelly-Springfield., and American Motors.1909
Company changed name to Spicer Manufacturing Company.1910
Spicer Manufacturing Company relocated to South Plainfield, New Jersey.1914
Charles Dana joined the company.1916
Charles Dana becomes president and treasurer.1919
With an eye on growth beyond universal joints, Charles Dana completes acquisitions of frame, transmission, and axle manufacturers. One of these companies, Salisbury Axle, in 1995 becomes the Spicer Axle Division of Dana.1922
Spicer is listed on the New York Stock Exchange.1923
Profits rise considerably due to increased production of automobiles priced under $1,000 and truck demand by the U.S. government.1925
Spicer expands internationally taking a holding in licensee in England, Hardy, renamed Hardy Spicer.1928
Spicer relocates its headquarters and most operations to Toledo, Ohio, closer to the center of the U.S. automotive industry.1931
The Great Depression and lower vehicle production volumes hit Spicer's sales and earnings. The company returns to profitability in 1933.1938
Clarence Spicer's last of 40 patents is issued Dec. 20, less than a year before he dies.Sales of cars, trucks, and buses hit their lowest point in the Depression era, but Spicer remains profitable.1940
As the U.S. begins war mobilization, the company retools for production of military vehicles and other war materials throughout WWII.1946
Dana became president and treasurer, the company was renamed the Dana Corporation in recognition of Charles Dana's 32 years of leadership. Spicer becomes the brand name for the company's driveline products.50th anniversary, Dana employs 3,500 people.1954
Dana expands international operations to South America.1956
New York Times declares Dana's Powr-Lok® differential to be "among the more significant engineering improvements" in automotive history.1957
Company introduces the first cruise control on 1958 Chrysler models.Company expands business to the heavy truck and off-highway and markets.1961
Global operations are now located in Argentina, Mexico, Japan, Sweden, South Africa, and Spain.1962
"Spicer Search" contest seeks the company's oldest transmission still in operation. A 1919 Model 50 Brown-Lipe transmission, still in service on a truck, takes the grand prize.1966
Dana acquires the Victor Gasket Manufacturing Company which was founded in 1909.Charles Dana retires as Chairman and CEO after 53 years of continuous service.1967
Dana conducts experiments of driveline concepts for electrical vehicles, decades before the production of hybrid and electric cars.1971
Dana exports products to 123 countries.1974
Dana breaks the $1 billion sales barrier.1978
Charles Dana is inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.Dana exceeds $2 billion in annual sales.1979
Dana celebrates its 75th anniversary.1980
Dana rapidly grows in the fields of electronic, mechanical, and fluid power.1982
Spicer Driveshaft Division develops the industry's first all-aluminum driveshaft which debuts on the 1983 Chevrolet Corvette.1985
Dana exceeds $3 billion in annual sales.1987
Dana exceeds $4 billion in annual sales.1993
Dana acquires the Reinz Company, founded in 1920 and forms the new Victor Reinz brand for its gaskets, sealing products, and heat shields.1995
Clarence Spicer is inducted into the Automotive Hall of Fame.Dana acquires axle group of GKN Driveline UK (Birfield / Hardy Spicer) in exchange for part of joint ventures in Argentina, Brazil and Colombia.Dana has 3,500 employees in Asia; business with Japanese manufacturers alone grows to $240 million.1996
Dana acquires Plumley Rubber Company in Paris, Tennessee, to bolster its sealing products portfolio.1997
Dana makes its largest acquisition in company history, buying Clark-Hurth Components from Ingersoll-Rand to create the Off-Highway Components Group.1998
Dana acquires Long Manufacturing (established in 1903), adding extensive thermal-management capabilities.2000
Spicer Driveshaft Division wins the Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.2001
Dana receives the Ford Motor Company Citizenship Award in recognition of its minority-development efforts, community support, and environmental initiatives.2002
Ford honors Dana with a World Excellence Award as one of the company's top suppliers for 2002.Volvo honors Dana with the Award of Excellence.GM honors Dana as a 2002 Supplier of the Year for its fuel cell technology.2003
Dana celebrates its 100th anniversary.A 180,000-square-foot engineering center opens in Toledo, Ohio.2004
Dana celebrates its 100th anniversary.2006
Dana filed for bankruptcy.2007
Dana canceled 150 million shares of stock during bankruptcy.2009
Dana sells its structural products business which includes 10 manufacturing plants to Metalsa, approximately 2,800 workers were shifted to Metalsa.2010
Dana extends its leadership position in the commercial vehicle driveline market with a 50-percent stake in Dongfeng Dana Axle Co., Ltd.Completes strategic agreement with SIFCO S.A., making Dana the leading supplier of complete drivelines in South America.2011
Dana introduces Spicer® Pro-40™ tandem drive axles with reduced weight and improved power density for heavy trucks.Dana partners with Bosch Rexroth AG to develop a hydromechanical variable transmission to reduce fuel consumption in off-highway vehicles.Honored with Frost & Sullivan Best Practice Award for Technology Innovation for the proprietary process behind Spicer Diamond™ Series driveshafts.2012
Dana and Ford are honored with the Automotive News PACE Innovative Partnership Award for bringing the marketplace a thermal technology that improves fuel efficiency by up to 4 percent.2013
The Dana China Technical Center, a 129,000 square-foot facility in Wuxi, Jiangsu Provence, China, opens.2014
Opening of the Dana India Technical Center, a 90,000 square-foot facility in Pune, India2015
Dana and Audi are awarded a 2015 Automotive news Pace Innovation Partnership Award for developing Victor Reinz partially coated multi-layer steel valve body separator plates.Dana opens its 16th technology center in Cedar Park, Texas and the Dana Spicer Thailand gear manufacturing facility.Key products include axles, drive shafts, universal joints and sealing and thermal-management products.
Dana 30Dana 35Dana 44Dana 50Dana 53Dana 60Dana 70Dana 80Dana S 110Twin Traction BeamOn September 15, 2005, Dana restated its second-quarter 2005 financial statements, primarily to correct inappropriate recognition of price increases in its Commercial Vehicle business during the second quarter. On October 10, 2005, Dana Corporation restated its 2004, first-quarter 2005, and second-quarter 2005 financial statements to correct issues involving customer pricing and transactions with suppliers in Dana's Commercial Vehicle business.
Light VehicleCommercial VehicleOff highwayIndustrialAftermarket
