It all started with the T18–a robust four-speed tranny, it was just the sort of thing needed to deal with the varied loads found in heavy-duty one-half, three-quarter, and full-ton trucks. It was the auspicious beginning for a little company known as TREMEC.

A timeline of TREMEC’s major milestones and achievements.

The company is celebrating its golden anniversary this year, and with it one that would grow to cover not just the industrial vehicle market, but the entire gamut: supercars, hot rods, muscle cars, SUVs, and more. “Fifty years ago, a group of enthusiastic entrepreneurs fulfilled a need to manufacture gearboxes for the automotive industry,” said CEO Robert Neal.

“TREMEC was designed to be a global, full-service, and vertically integrated supplier to the market,” he continued. “With forging, heat treatment, machining, and final assembly under one roof, we established a robust foundation for our transmission business.”

Success after success saw TREMEC achieve such milestones as Q1 certification from Ford in 1986, making them a preferred supplier for the automaker’s drivetrains in everything from the Mustang to the F-150. Twelve years later, the company acquired Borg-Warner and with it the sole rights to build the venerable T-56, a staple in several Ford and GM models.

The T-56 6-speed manual transmission, a staple in the industry.

Today, TREMEC continues to make its mark through state-of-the-art manufacturing processes in automation and robotics. “TREMEC has invested heavily in manufacturing, advanced engineering, and mechatronic systems to support our strategy,” said Juan Marco Gutiérrez Wanless, CEO of Grupo KUO, parent company of TREMEC.

“We excel in the design and production of transmission systems found in high-performance vehicles,” continued Wanless, “including the control software for dual clutch transmissions that our Belgium operation engineered for exotic European supercars.”

With an eye towards the future and a mind towards the automotive industry, there’s no doubt that TREMEC will continue to satisfy and surprise enthusiasts for years to come. Find more information on the company and its developments by checking out their website, and be sure to Like TREMEC on Facebook for all the latest and greatest in transmission innovation.