Gibson Associates History

Gibson Associates, Inc. was founded by R.H. Gibson in 1952. Prior to establishing the company, Mr. Gibson had been employed by laboratory furniture manufacturer Hamilton Industries as a production engineer in their Two Rivers, Wisconsin facility. Seizing upon a unique opportunity to represent Hamilton Industries products in the six-state New England region, Gibson resigned from Hamilton and moved his family to the east coast in order to create Gibson Associates. The company's headquarters was originally located in Weston, Massachusetts, where it remained for approximately 30 years.

R.H. Gibson's personal reputation as a highly respected, full-service entrepreneur flourished throughout New England. As a result, Gibson Associates experienced steady sales growth during the early years in all major market segments requiring laboratory and office furniture products. The main furniture lines Gibson Associates initially represented and distributed were Hamilton Industries and Herman Miller. Realizing the need to expand operations by the early 1980's, Gibson moved the company from Weston, to its current site located on Boston Post Road in Sudbury, MA. Moreover through this time, Gibson Associates had grown from a handful of workers, to a staff of over 12 full-time employees, with specific department development in sales, estimating, engineering, and installation. Gibson Associates' client base also continued to expand, with familiar names such as Harvard University, MIT, Yale University, Bristol-Myers, Polaroid and Raytheon relying upon the company's supply and installation expertise for their laboratory and office environments.

In 1990, a 'changing of the guard' took place at Gibson Associates as four long-time employees made the decision to embrace retirement. Company operations were turned over to a second generation of Gibsons that had been moving through the company ranks during the previous decades. In addition, manufacturing partner Herman Miller decided to transform their business strategy by offering office products directly to clients instead of through a local distributorship. Hamilton Industries now occupied center stage attention at Gibson Associates and with this turn of events, new owners Ted and Bob Gibson, along with Field Mgr. Dave Gibson, became determined to refocus and re-tool company efforts. Massive biotech and pharmaceutical activity led to increased laboratory construction demand within New England during the subsequent years. Gibson Associates rapidly became the leading supplier and installer of laboratory furniture and fume hood products in the region, particularly in most major metropolitan areas and universities. Gibson Associates' growth and infrastructure continued to gain momentum, with staff additions exceeding 20 employees and sales volume over $7 million.

By 1994, publicly traded Fisher Scientific of Bedford, NH, a multi-billion dollar corporation committed to scientific research products sales, purchased Hamilton Industries. The result was a newly renamed Fisher Hamilton L.L.C. division manufacturing lab furniture and airflow products under the Fisher Scientific corporate umbrella. Gibson Associates, now with over 40 years of laboratory furniture supply and installation expertise in New England, forged ahead with this change, while at the same time claiming new honors by capturing Fisher Hamilton's esteemed North American "Dealer of the Year" award in 1997 as the top national sales volume leader, and the 1999 R&D Magazine's "Renovated Lab of the Year" award. Gibson Associates sales volume now surpassed $12-15 million annually on a consistent basis through the end of the decade.

Gibson Associates, while continuing its number one position as the leading laboratory furniture supplier in the New England region, expanded its operations once again after 2000 by adding corporate facilities in Marlboro, MA and Groton, CT. Remaining under the leadership of Ted, Bob, and Dave Gibson, the company pressed forward and realized new sales volume heights in excess of $22-25 million annually, with a quantity of individual projects ranging in value up to $8 to 12 million alone. By 2005, Gibson Associates staffing exceeded 50 full-time employees, possessing both the knowledge and experience necessary to handle the largest and most detailed laboratory projects ever constructed in the history of the region. As a result of this expertise in laboratory furniture supply and installation, Gibson Associates was recently bestowed the honor of the prestigious 2005 R&D Magazine "Lab of the Year' award for the Novartis Institutes for BioMedical Research/NECCO Building laboratories located in Cambridge, MA.

And even though retired since 1995, founder R.H. Gibson still maintains contact with Gibson Associates on a regular basis, readily lending his advice and support whenever needed.