Custom Urethane Elastomers - CUE's Urethane History

C.U.E.'s Urethane History

1957

C.U.E., Inc. traces its history to 1957, the pioneering days of cast urethane elastomers. Armstrong Cork Company, of Pittsburgh, PA started working with this new material as a possible replacement for cork for sealing applications.

The 1960's

The Polyurethane Division prospered as the Armstrong sales force discovered applications for their new material. Some of the early polyurethane products Armstrong produced were fabric-backed and metal-backed sheet goods for lining applications, rods, tubes, textile cots, and a highly-engineered item called an anvil cover for the corrugated box cutting industry.

1967

A recent high school graduate named Joseph Scaletta was hired as a laborer in Armstrong's finishing department. Joe was a dedicated and hard-working young man that was determined to succeed. Joe would prove to be an integral part of the history of the company.

The 1970's

Fluorocarbon Company, based in Anaheim, California , purchased the business in 1972. With a fresh start and a new owner, the employees at the Polyurethane division of Fluorocarbon were excited and optimistic about the future. Revenue quadrupled during this decade. In the meantime Joe Scaletta had gone from a supervisor's position on the production floor to Plant Manager in 1979. He had completed his Business Degree from the University of Pittsburgh and eventually was promoted to General Manager of the Urethane Division.

The 1980's

As the Fluorocarbon Company grew in other business areas, the Leetsdale, PA urethane operation did not fit the existing product offering and was put up for sale.

Joe Scaletta lead the way with an investment group of six other fellow employees. It was Joe's conviction of what the business could become that encouraged others to join his investment group. Joe knew that with the proper allocation of resources and a concentration on sales and marketing, the business could flourish. By April 7th, 1986, Joe and his team owned the company.

The company was named C.U.E., Incorporated (acronym for Custom Urethane Elastomers). With the new ownership group in control, the focus was now to grow the business. Almost immediately, resources were put back into the business and sales began to rise.

By 1989, the company moved into a brand-new, state-of-the-art, 40,000 square feet manufacturing facility in Cranberry Township , PA.

1990's

As sales grew, more resources were available for investment. State-of-the-art casting equipment replaced aging machines. The company’s consistently-high quality products drove farther growth.

In 1991, C.U.E., Inc. purchased the urethane products division of Corfine in Muncie, Indiana to expand its offerings to the corrugated packaging industry.

By the mid-nineties, C.U.E. doubled its building size to 85,000 square feet to accommodate more growth.

C.U.E.’s employee base doubled in the 90s. An engineering Department emerged. Many highly-educated employees were hired during this time, including a Ph.D. Polymer Chemist and several mechanical and industrial engineers.

The 2000's

The new decade started out fast with a purchase of the Polyurethane Division of Linatex Corporation in Mt. Hope, West Virginia. Renamed C.U.E. of West Virginia, LLC, the acquisition enabled C.U.E. to expand its product offering to the mining industry and expanded its manufacturing capabilities, capacity, and product offering.

The former minority-share investors were bought out and C.U.E., Inc. became 100% Scaletta-family owned, which it remains today.

In 2001 C.U.E. became ISO-9001 certified, an important step towards reaching the goal of being the best urethane molding company in the world. C.U.E. remains ISO certified today.

In 2005, Joe Scaletta, Jr. was named President of C.U.E., Inc. becoming its second President since C.U.E.'s inception.

The company’s focus on product development became stronger in the mid-2000s and much investment was done in this area. Fortune 500 companies were choosing C.U.E. as a product development partner for their elastomer requirements. Many new products and processes were invented and C.U.E. won a prestigious R & D 100 Award in 2005.

Today C.U.E. employs 100 people in two locations and ships urethane products to 50 different countries throughout the world. Product development work and highest quality urethane molding remain its areas of expertise.