The Pella Corporation is a privately held window and doormanufacturing company headquartered in Pella, Iowa, and with manufacturing and sales operations in a number of locations in the United States. The company was founded in 1925 when Peter Kuyper and his wife Lucille invested $5,000 to buy the Rolscreen Company, a small business that had created the Rolscreen insect window screen that rolls out of sight when not in use. In 1926 they moved the company to Pella, Iowa, where the Kuyper family had a lumber business. The company developed into one of the largest window manufacturers in the United States. The company changed its name to Pella Corporation in 1992. Pella Corporation has around 7,000 employees nationwide and 16 manufacturing sites throughout the United States and select regions of Canada.
Sales profile
In 1992, Pella entered the national retail market with windows and patio doors, adding select lumberyard distribution in 1994. In 2001, Pella introduced Pella Design Centers to mainstream market customers, as a “store-within-a-store inside Lowe's stores and staffed by Lowe's employees. In 2000, Fortune Magazine recognized Pella as one of the 100 Best Companies To Work For and Pella was awarded for six consecutive years. In 2018, Pella was awarded Forbes America's Best Large Employers of the Year. Pella earned the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Energy‚ Energy Star Sustained Excellence Award in 2009 and 2010. Pella Corporation earned an , presented by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Energy for manufacturing energy-efficient windows and educating consumers about them. The award emphases on educating consumers about energy efficiency and how it can improve their homes. Pella has been an Energy Star partner since 1999. Pella is a member of the United States Green Building Council, the American Architectural Manufacturers Association and the Window and Door Manufacturers Association. A collection of historical Rolscreen Company/Pella Corporation records is available for research use at the .
Charitable activities
The Kuyper Rolscreen Charitable Trust was established in 1952 by Pete and Lucille Kuyper. It was reorganized in 1968 as the Pella Rolscreen Foundation. The foundation's primary focus was supporting education, community betterment and giving; matching Gifts was added in 1984. As a community partner, the Foundation provides grants, invest in youth and education, and undertakes service projects to help progressively shape the communities in which Pella Corporation team members live and work. Since 2003, Pella Corporation has partnered with JDRF, an organization fighting Type 1 Diabetes. The organization's two goals are to find a cure and support children and adults who are fighting this disease. JDRF used to be known as the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Since children and adults are both diagnosed, they changed their name to JDRF a few years ago. ----
