History
In 1946 Edo Bregar-Don, the now legendary founder of DONIT, joined forces with a handful of his peers, and using a rather primitive method based on a pre-World War One process succeeded in manufacturing the first 38 tons of sealing sheets. At that time bundles of natural inorganic fibers were broken into thin fibrils on an old agricultural machine, rubber was melted in a bath-tub and sheets were produced from blend of fibrillated fibers, rubber, fillers and vulcanising agents using a simple heated press.
A year or so later DONIT built its first production unit at the present site in Medvode, concluded the first co-operative contract with the Tovarna Avtomobilov Maribor vehicle plant, and exported its first consignment of sealing products.
DONIT quickly expanded its activities and production. The continuous technological development of new products, plus the focus on in-house development and on foreign markets were the elements that proved to be essential to the company’s rapid growth.
In the early 1980’s DONIT experts designed the first sheet of new gasketing material, based on synthetic aramide fibers thereby joining the world’s leading producers of sealing materials. High quality, continuous technological upgrades and care for people and the environment are elements which have become constant features at DONIT.
Due to business and financial problems as a result of severly adverse business conditions in the second half of 1992 DONIT restructured its activities to create several independent subsidiaries. DONIT TESNIT was founded and started with independent business December 28th, 1992 as a limited liability company. In 1996, the company acquired the ISO 9001 certificate. In October 1997, after ownership restructuring DONIT TESNIT was transformed into a joint-stock company.
In 2001, due to the expansion of the production program the DONIT TESNIT company acquired the Trebnje-based TESNILA TIT company, which has been producing gaskets since 1975. The merger of both companies was completed in 2004, which provided an opportunity for new growth in the production of industrial gaskets.