AMERICAN AIR FILTER INTERNATIONAL

INNOVATION

STARTS AT AAF

If you wanted to change the world, where would
you begin?

We’ve been answering that question countless ways since our company was born.
At AAF, clean-air breakthroughs begin with research and development in our $5 million Clean AIR Center. Or start with our people looking at familiar problems in different ways. Whether it’s a practical solution to a simple problem — or an idea that put us on the moon — AAF has always been where world-changing ideas for clean indoor air begin.

MAKING CLEAN AIR MORE INTELLIGENT

We imagined better access to clean indoor air – and then we created it. Now, imagine how these innovations can improve your world.

MEGAcel II

Designed to improve cleanroom uptime, this HEPA filter uses the industry’s first and only eFRM media compatible with PAO for HVAC validation.

Wearable Monitors

Small as a thumb, our wearable IAQ monitor provides powerful feedback by continually measuring particulates in indoor air.

TCO Diagnostic

Removing guesswork, our analysis software compares costs and performance of up to four options to help identify the most effective filtration for your facility and needs.

100+ YEARS OF ADVANCEMENTS IN INDOOR AIR.

Our company started with a simple mesh filter built by hand in 1921. In the more than 100 years since, we’ve built a reputation on our innovative firsts in filtration.

1921

Our humble beginnings

In 1921, engineer and entrepreneur Bill Reed developed a filter to remove dust from the air of his automotive paint shop. His company, Reed Air Filter, laid the foundation on which AAF was built.

This same decade, Reed Air Filter merged with seven other air filter manufacturers. American Air Filter Company (AAF) was formed.

1935

First high-efficiency box filter

In 1935, AAF introduced the first high-efficiency, box-type filter. This decade began an era of innovation marked by several breakthrough products from AAF in the areas of air filtration and dust control.

Both the industrial and residential markets benefited from these innovative breakthroughs by increasing the quality of the indoor air. This led to the opening of two new AAF plants over the next decade to meet growing demand.

1946

U.S. Atomic Energy Commission service

In the year after World War II, the U.S. Atomic Energy Commission was established by the American government. One of its initiatives was the development of innovative HEPA filters.

The Commission contracted New York cabinetmaker A.R. Allan, Jr. to make wooden frames to hold the filters. By 1950, his company, Flanders Filters, was making the filters as well. Flanders Filters became known for many of the world’s major innovations in HEPA filtration. AAF and Flanders merged in 2016.

1953

First automatic, self-renewable media filter

In the 1950s, AAF invented the Roll-O-Mat®, the first automatic, self-renewable media filter. This system is still widely used to this day. Other AAF innovations of the 1950s include the first reverse-jet, dry-fabric dust collector.

AAF became an international company, adding locations in Canada and Europe.

1961

Apollo 11 Lunar Module

The DriPak®️ bag filter began as an AAF innovation for protecting both air quality and comfort in commercial and industrial applications. Today, it is one of the most common types of filtration in use. This innovative design can also be used as a pre-filter for HEPA filters.

 

1969

Apollo 11 Lunar Module
 

When NASA launched the Apollo 11 mission, AAF filters helped ensure the spacecraft didn’t accidentally deposit Earth-based contaminants on the moon. This remains one of our crowning achievements.

Our filters are still in space. Today, AAF supplies HEPA filters to the International Space Station.

1978

First ULPA filter

Flanders introduced the first ULPA (Ultra-Low Particulate Air) filter. These innovative filters remove a higher percentage of small particles than standard HEPA filters, 99.999% or more of particles sized 0.12 microns.

Other AAF developments of the decade include the V-Bank HEPA filter, introduced in 1978.

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LEADERS OF CLEAN AIR

Many organizations around the world have established trusted standards, guidelines and recommendations for Indoor Air Quality and Indoor Environmental Quality. American Air Filter follows the guidance of these respected entities to provide assurance to our customers.
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