Zenith Cutter Celebrates 100 Years of Industrial Knife Manufacturing
WATERTOWN, WI, January 20, 2023 — – Zenith Cutter, a Division of Fisher Barton, the leading manufacturer of industrial knives celebrates its 100-year anniversary. Founded by Richard Blazer, Zenith Cutter was established in Loves Park, Illinois, in 1923, as a manufacturer and distributor of cutters for the woodworking industry. In 1953, Zenith Cutter began expanding its product lines and entered the corrugated industry. In 1958, Cedric Blazer, son of Richard, assumed leadership of the company.
Zenith Cutter continued to look for new ways to expand its reach globally, acquiring Vietnam manufacturer Great Knives LTD in 1997 and later opening a new 135,000 square foot manufacturing facility in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam.
The acquisition of Zenith Cutter in 2011, by Fisher Barton, the world largest manufacturer of lawn mower blades, infused Zenith Cutter with additional metallurgy expertise, advanced engineering, research, and development capabilities from Fisher Barton’s state-of-the-art technology center in Watertown, Wisconsin.
Throughout the years, Zenith Cutter expanded into new markets and continued to grow its market share by manufacturing blades for the recycling industry. In addition to knives, they began producing plastic recycling granulators, blocks and screens. Zenith Cutter brands are known for their high quality and dependability, Shredzilla® and Wolverine™ are industry standards in recycling tires and corrugate.
Today, Zenith Cutter is the leading industrial knife partner for original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) across the globe in the corrugated, converting, plastic, tire and wire recycling, industrial wood chipping, roofing, and textile industries. As we look back fondly over the last 100 years, we look forward to continuing to lead the industrial knife market with further innovative products for the next 100 years.
About Fisher Barton — Fisher Barton is a metallurgical innovation partner for high wear and cutting components. Our expertise stems from our world-class talent who understand the behavior of material and the application of proprietary heat treating and thermal spray solutions that reimagine a component’s lifespan beyond the core manufacturing capabilities of stamping, bending, forming, cutting, welding, machining, and casting. Eight locations in Wisconsin, Illinois, and Vietnam innovate blades and turf care components, bronze motion control products, industrial knives and various other wear components. Fisher Barton is more than a source for high-quality parts; Fisher Barton is your partner for the highest quality solutions found —anywhere. For more information, visit www.fisherbarton.com.
