Asko Cylinda AB is a part of the Antonio Merloni Group, one of Europe's largest white goods appliance manufacturers. ASKO Appliances a division of Asko Cylinda is the leading manufacturer of household appliances in the Nordic countries, with factories in Lahti, Finland, and Vara, Sweden.
ASKO Appliances markets its products under the ASKO, Upo, Cylinda and Elto brands. In addition to the Nordic market, it holds a strong position in the high-end laundry and dishwasher markets in the U.S., Baltic region, and Australia.
| 1950 | ASKO, the company started out as Junga Verkstäder; and underwent many ownership and name changes, some of which were Asea, ABB Cylinda and. Asko has a long history of manufacturing quality laundry equipment, starting with the production of the companies first washing machine by Swedish farmer Karl-Erik Andersson. Andersson made the washing machine on the family farm for his mother. |
| 1965 | Asko expands its product line-up by offering fully automatic front-loading washing machines and compact dishwashers. |
| 1967 | To help grow the company which won't be called Asko until 1988 looks internationally and begins exporting their products to foreign countries. |
| 1970 | Product innovation continues with the addition of the floor standing dishwasher. |
| 1975 | Product development focuses on quality, using steel rather than plastic wherever possible, this practice is evident in the tumble dryer introduced this year and continues in the ASKO brand products in 2008. |
| 1978 | Asea acquires Junga Verkstäder and changes the name to Asea Cylinda. |
| 1988 | Asko becomes part of the company name when Asea Cylinda acquires ABB Cylinda and changes the name to Asko Cylinda. |
| 2000 | The Asko Appliances Division and its businesses were sold to Italy's Antonio Merloni on 31 May 2000. The total value of the deal including net interest-bearing liabilities was about EUR 75 million. |
| Today | ASKO is an international corporation with a full line of high-performance washers, dryers and dishwashers. ASKO appliances are some of the most eco-friendly using a fraction of the amounts of water, electricity and detergent as compared to ordinary machines. |