ABOUT US
History
Manchester Tank was established in 1945 in Los Angeles, California as Manchester Welding and Fabrication Company. In 1946 Julius Diamond and Edward Reifschneider purchased the company, manufacturing 5 gallon propane and butane storage tanks. In the first year of operation, Manchester Tank employed seven people and produced approximately 200 tanks per week.
Edward Reifschneider became the sole owner of Manchester Tank, acquiring Mr Diamond's interest. When Edward died the following year, his wife, Mollie, continued the operation.
With Manchester Tank being incorporated in 1953 and Mrs. Reifscheider acting as President, the company continued to prosper, expanding its sales nation-wide, incorporating forklift cylinders, motor fuel tanks and air receivers into their product range. Along the way Manchester Tank built and acquired several new manufacturing plants across the United States, including our plant in Elkhart, Indiana.
The oil crisis of the late 1970's and early 1980's saw Manchester Tank build a manufacturing facility in Tillsonburg, Canada after a heavy promotion for alternative fuels from the Canadian government. By the end of the decade, two more plants were now producing Manchester products, one in Hannibal, Missouri and the other in Petersburg, Virginia.
In January 1990, Manchester Tank acquired Buckeye Boiler Company, a producer of industrial air receivers and pressure vessels, thus becoming the dominant leader in the OEM air tank business. In February, a stock merger with their biggest competitor, General Processing Corporation (GPC), a manufacturer supplying a full line of propane cylinders and water heaters saw Manchester Tank gain valuable customers and acquired the GPC manufacturing plant in Crossville, Tennessee. 1992 saw the closure of the Lynwood, California plant and the Head Office move to Brentwood, Tennessee.
In November 1995 a company in Echuca, Australia was acquired. The company had been formed in the 1950s to assemble air compressors, later entering into the LPG cylinder business. With this new acquisition, Manchester Tank became the leading manufacturer of LP gas cylinders in Australia.
In October 1999, McWane, Inc., a family business based in Birmingham, Alabama with iron foundries across the United States and Canada acquired Manchester Tank. Under McWane's leadership, Manchester Tank is positioned to remain the industry's leading manufacturer for low-pressure vessels. It continues to supply a quality product efficiently and cost effectively, provide service levels that exceed our customers expectations, invest in our operations, and improve processes as we pursue new opportunities.
In 2000 Manchester Tank made two significant acquisitions including our plants in Bedford, Indiana and Quincy, Illinois. In November 2003, Manchester Tank moved its corporate offices to a neighbouring city, Franklin, Tennessee.
Manchester tank entered the aboveground and underground ASME domestic horizontal propane tank market.
In 2020, Manchester Tank built a new production facility in Campbellsville, KY with dedicated ASME domestic horizontal propane tanks and industrial air receivers manufacturing. Acquired tank refurbishment and recertification company Ditech Testing in June 2024.
On January 1st 2025, McWane, Inc sold the Manchester Tank & Equipment Pty, Ltd business and manufacturing facility to Ken Woods. Ken had been working at Manchester Tank, Australia for 30 years in various roles. The latest role being General Manger of the Australian operations since 2009.
While looking forward to a promising future, Manchester Tank & Equipment Pty, Ltd Australia takes great pride in its past accomplishments. We appreciate our loyal customers and look forward to developing new relationships as we continue building and diversifying the business for the future.