We have always sought out the new, the special, and the unusual. Although Perma’s core products lines often lead to us being defined as a traditional SanJan chemical manufacturer, our most successful and interesting products often lie outside of those markets.
The quality and performance of Perma’s products is also outside the norm. Where many bigger manufacturers focus on making the lowest cost product (that perform just well enough to avoid complaints), Perma has always sought another direction.
As a small manufacturer, we have always recognized that trying to compete by making a cheaper, most likely, poorer performing product was a bad strategy. Instead, we sought out superior, unusual chemistries to create multi-function, multi-benefit products with the goal of outperforming our larger competitors at a reasonable price. That philosophy has sustained Perma for 68 years.
Perma, back then “Industrial Floor Finishes” was started in 1950 by my Maternal Grandfather, Samuel Lunt, who had been a development chemist for The Butcher Company. The original building, which is still part of our manufacturing facility was built on the 25-acre property that contained both my grandparent’s and our homes, and a 375 tree apple orchard, which we also farmed.
At that time “Industrial Floor Finishes” primary product (which we still make to this day) was Carnauba Paste Wax for rubber and asphalt tile, wood, stone and concrete floors. We manufactured hundreds of thousands of pounds of this premium finish every year, along side other products for wood and concrete floors.
In 1970, my grandfather passed away suddenly and my father, then Sales Manager, became the President of the company. In 1973 he purchased New England Chemical Laboratories, expanding the company’s product line to include a range of cleaning products and finishes for every aspect of commercial facilities maintenance. At that time, the name of the combined companies was changed to Perma Incorporated.
The owner of New England Chemical Laboratories, Thomas Pitrolffy, was a talented development chemist with a knack for identifying unique raw materials and combining them into high performance products with applications in both traditional and emerging markets. We have kept the spirit of development alive with the additions to our product lines and the ability to innovate and address entirely new applications.
I took my first job at IFF at 9 years old, placing the covers on the paste wax cans and pushing them through the capping machine in exchange for a trip with my grandfather to the local ice cream stand “Bedford Farms.” Like many families with a small business and a farm, I spent untold hours after school, on weekends and during summer vacations, working with my grandfather and father. Their willingness to work hard and treat their customers with honesty and integrity shaped my work ethic and sustained our family business for 68 years.
In 1974, I began driving one of Perma’s two trucks making product deliveries. After two years, of delivering 500 pound drums to remote custodial storage closets, I decided that attending college might be a better idea than I had thought after graduating high school. In 1976, I enrolled at Northeastern University and upon graduating in 1981 with degree in Criminal Justice, I was hired by the United States Marshals Service as a Deputy for the Southern District of California. After a short, but very interesting 3 years, in 1984, my father, in contemplation of retirement, asked if I would be interested in returning home to assume leadership of the family business. Upon arriving home, I annoyed everyone until they agreed to purchase Perma’s first computer and manufacturing software, implemented a new production and inventory management system, point of order processing, in house label printing and silkscreening.
For the 35+ years since then, I have had the rewarding challenge of navigated Perma’s transitions through remarkable changes in chemistry, technology, and business, in the multi-market environment we manufacture products for.
Our core team members, here at Perma. We welcome you to email, or call using the extensions below.
Our main number is (978) 667-5161.
Our main email address is info@perma.com.
President
Sales, Technical and Application Support, Corporate Policy, Finance
Extension: 103
Email: pstevens@perma.com
Office Manager
Order Entry, Accounts Receivable and Payable
Extension: 101
Email: rdrye@perma.com
Operations & Production Manager
Management, Production Scheduling
Extension: 105
Email: wcabral@perma.com
Technical Director
Product Development, Technical Assistance, Quality Control
Extension: 106
Email: dsadlo@perma.com
Web Design & Maintenance
Pilgrim Consulting & Design
Extension:
Phone: 207-944-3495
Email: michael@pilgrimcd.com
