100 years
of success
22 B ULK D ISTRIBUTOR
Components
May/June 2019
P
erolo celebrates its centenary this year. Since 1919, Perolo
has been supplying various industrial companies with
quality components.
Below is the timeline showing how Perolo grew from its origins as
an automotive parts manufacturer to a leading supplier of hi-tech
components to the global bulk liquid logistics sector.
1919
It all began in the months following the armistice of the First World
War, when Joseph Perolo bought premises for industrial use at 17,
rue de Solférino, in Boulogne-Billancourt, on the outskirts of Paris. In
April 1919, he created Établissements J Perolo, a general workshop
making mechanical parts for the automotive industry, employing 15
workers.
1923
In 1923, Établissements J Perolo became ‘Perolo SA’. The activity was
more oriented towards the manufacture of equipment necessary for
the oil industry, a sector then in full development in France. Gradually,
a core group of loyal customers was created, among which the most
important ones were: Standard Française des Petroles, Vacuum Oil
Company, cie Industrielle des Petroles, and Refi nerie du Midi.
1937
Growing activity required the expansion of the original buildings and
new workshops were set up. In 1937, J Perolo, which employed
about 30 people, built a second one-storey residential pavilion, the
fi rst having been entirely transformed into offi ces.
1938
In response to the threat of war, the plant was actively involved in
armaments by machining groups of engines for military aviation
(Salmson engines) and manufacturing petroleum equipment.
1939
In January 1939, Perolo SA became ‘Établissements J Perolo & Cie’.
Joseph Perolo contributed his general mechanics fund, while the rest
of the shares were subscribed in cash.
1942
Following the events of June 1940, production was limited by the
circumstances of the time... In March 1942, the proximity of Renault