Duck

Duct tape is invented during World War II. American soldiers use the strong, versatile adhesive for everything from repairing broken windows to making temporary bandages. After the war, the tape is put to use holding ventilation ducts together and gains the name duct or duck tape and becomes to traditional silver color.

Duck, a brand of ShurTech Brands, traces its roots to 1950, when the Melvin A. Anderson Company was founded. Anderson, a tiny industrial tape distributor, set out to supply duct and electrical tapes to area factories. Jack Kahl acquires Melvin A. Anderson on a leverage buy out and changes the name to Manco, Inc. Serendipitously, 60 years later, Shurtape Technologies, Anderson’s key supplier, would become the new parent company. However, the unique business relationship between Shurtape and the Melvin A. Anderson company, one that blossomed and helped define the industry, would have never come to fruition had it not been for the key growth engine and eventual owner, Jack Kahl.