British Oxygen Company Limited

Brin’s Oxygen Company was formed in 1886 to exploit the patent rights for a process developed by Arthur and Leon Brin, two French brothers, after they had taken out a patent for the process of separating oxygen, known as the Brin process.

A little later a German engineer, Carl Von Linde developed a new cryogenic separation process for which he won the patent rights, the Brin brothers negotiated an agreement with Linde to use the new process which entailed giving Linde a stake and a position on the board of the company. He held this position until 1914.

In 1906 the Brind brothers changed the name of the company to the British Oxygen Company or BOC as it is better known. The company grew on the development of the oxyacetylene welding process brought out in 1903. In 1969 the name was shortened to BOC the company continued to prosper and in 1978 it acquired Airco Industrial Gases and the enlarged company changed its name to BOC group.

In 2006 the Linde Group made a proposal to acquire the BOC Group and after a second proposal BOC agreed and it became a part of the Linde Group.