Marshall coils, also known as encased coils or encased springs (most commonly known in North America as pocketed springs), are component parts of a mattress in which each coil is separately wrapped in a textile material.

History

Marshall coils were invented in 1899 by Canadian-born James Marshall, a

machinist A machinist is a tradesperson or trained professional who not only operates machine tools, but also has the knowledge of tooling and materials required to create set ups on machine tools such as milling machines, grinders, lathes, and drilling ...

and

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

who was born near Haldimand, Ontario, Canada. He received a Canadian patent in 1900, and United States and United Kingdom patents in 1902. Marshall established the original Marshall Mattress company in Toronto, Canada, which continued to operate for over 119 years. He also licensed patent rights for the United Kingdom to his former employees; that company operated under the name of Marshall Sanitary Mattress Company until the early 1930s, when they changed their name to

VI-Spring Vispring, formerly known as Vi-Spring, is a bed company founded in 1901 in Eagle Street, Holborn, London. Manufacturing mattresses and beds made of natural materials. Part of Vispring's notability comes from being the first English bed makers to ...

. In January 2019, the Flex Group acquired the (Canadian) Marshall Mattress Company from then-owners, the Warner family, to continue manufacturing handcrafted mattresses.

Concept

Marshall conceived of a mattress whereby internal independent springs would provide both support and comfort within the mattress itself. Marshall produced pre-compressed cylindrical coil springs, each sewn inside an individual cotton fabric pocket, which provided uplifting support on its own. When fitted together, the coils became an independent suspension system that contoured to each person's form and weight, providing unsurpassed support and comfort. When

upholstered Upholstery is the work of providing furniture, especially seats, with padding, springs, webbing, and fabric or leather covers. The word also refers to the materials used to upholster something. ''Upholstery'' comes from the Middle English word ...

, a finished Marshall mattress aims to reduce physical pressure under the sleeper, and claims to relieve it as well. Marshall's pocket spring-filled mattress system became the original worldwide standard for spring-filled mattress construction.

References

{{Mattresses Mattresses Canadian inventions