More than 70 years

BOC has been producing industrial gases in Ireland for over 70 years. Over that time it developed into a major global business. In September 2006, it joined with another major industrial gases business, Linde, to form The Linde Group.

The two 'parent' businesses of the new organisation have similar but complementary histories.

In 1879, Linde was established in Wiesbaden in Germany.

In 1880, Arthur and Leon Brin take out the first patent on a process for separating oxygen and later, in 1886, founded Brin's Oxygen Company. In 1906, this became the British Oxygen Company. It was in 1969 that this was shortened - due to the international nature of the business - to just 'BOC'.

Meanwhile, Carl von Linde obtained a patent for air liquefaction in 1895, five years later winning a Grand Prix at the Paris World Fair for an air liquefier.

Both companies became major international providers of industrial gases and services over the course of the 20th century.

In 2002, BOC and Linde announced a strategic partnership in air separation and synthetic gas plants. This close working relationship led to the formation of a single entity, The Linde Group, in 2006.

In Ireland the company's origin dates back to 1935 when the Dublin based engineering group, Hammond Lane teamed up with the BOC Group. Over the years BOC increased its share in the Irish company until 1979 when Irish Industrial Gases (IIG) became a fully owned subsidiary of BOC.