Raven Industries, Inc. is an American company that manufactures

precision agriculture Precision agriculture (PA) is a farming management strategy based on observing, measuring and responding to temporal and spatial variability to improve agricultural production sustainability. It is used in both crop and livestock production. ...

products,

high-altitude balloon High-altitude balloons are crewed or uncrewed balloons, usually filled with helium or hydrogen, that are released into the stratosphere, generally attaining between above sea level. In 2002, a balloon named BU60-1 reached a record altitude of . ...

plastic film Plastic film is a thin continuous polymeric material. Thicker plastic material is often called a "sheet". These thin plastic membranes are used to separate areas or volumes, to hold items, to act as barriers, or as printable surfaces. Plas ...

and sheeting, and

radar Radar is a detection system that uses radio waves to determine the distance ('' ranging''), angle, and radial velocity of objects relative to the site. It can be used to detect aircraft, ships, spacecraft, guided missiles, motor vehicles, we ...

systems. The company was founded in 1956. They are

headquartered Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the top ...

Sioux Falls, South Dakota Sioux Falls () is the most populous city in the U.S. state of South Dakota and the 130th-most populous city in the United States. It is the county seat of Minnehaha County and also extends into Lincoln County to the south, which continues up ...

. Stock in the company was traded on Nasdaq until 2021 when it was acquired by

CNH Industrial CNH Industrial N.V. is an Italian-American multinational corporation with global headquarters in Basildon, United Kingdom, but controlled and mostly owned by the multinational investment company Exor, which in turn is controlled by the Agnelli ...

History

Established in 1956 to make high-altitude balloons, Raven was launched by a group of

General Mills General Mills, Inc., is an American multinational manufacturer and marketer of branded processed consumer foods sold through retail stores. Founded on the banks of the Mississippi River at Saint Anthony Falls in Minneapolis, the company orig ...

employees, including General Mills High Altitude Research division employee

Ed Yost Paul Edward Yost (June 30, 1919 – May 27, 2007) was the American inventor of the modern hot air balloon and is referred to as the "Father of the Modern Day Hot-Air Balloon." He worked for a high-altitude research division of General Mill ...

. Yost claimed to pick Sioux Falls for its favorable wind conditions. After its establishment, the company's product offerings expanded to include items such as commercial and recreational

hot air balloon A hot air balloon is a lighter-than-air aircraft consisting of a bag, called an envelope, which contains heated air. Suspended beneath is a gondola or wicker basket (in some long-distance or high-altitude balloons, a capsule), which carries ...

s, electronics manufacturing, large plastic storage containers for use in agriculture, pickup toppers, and winter outerwear. Raven, along with Piccard Balloons and Semco were among the first manufacturers of hot air balloons that kicked off the resurgence of ballooning in the mid-1960s. In fact, Ed Yost began this series of events when he built and flew a -diameter balloon a distance of three miles on 22 October 1960. Raven subsequently built and sold some of the first modern hot air balloons, beginning in the mid-1960s. The U.S. military and other government agencies were among its clients, and besides the U.S.

Department of Defense Department of Defence or Department of Defense may refer to: Current departments of defence * Department of Defence (Australia) * Department of National Defence (Canada) * Department of Defence (Ireland) * Department of National Defense (Philipp ...

, Raven Industries had other big name customers such as

Google Google LLC () is an American Multinational corporation, multinational technology company focusing on Search Engine, search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, software, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, ar ...

. After the 2021 acquisition by CNH Industrial, the company was restructured to focus on its precision agriculture products. The Engineered Films division was acquired by a private equity firm, Industrial Opportunity Partners. The stratospheric balloon and radar division, Aerostar, was acquired by TCOM Holdings.

Products and business areas

As of 2022, the company has shifted focus to autonomous precision technology. * Autonomy * Connectivity & Logistics * Guidance * Application and Boom Controls * Displays

References

External links

Official Raven Industries page
{{Authority control Companies based in Sioux Falls, South Dakota Manufacturing companies established in 1956 Manufacturing companies based in South Dakota Plastics companies of the United States Companies formerly listed on the Nasdaq Agriculture companies of the United States Aerospace companies 1956 establishments in South Dakota

History

Products and business areas

References

Further reading

External links