3M

In 1902 J. Danley Budd, Henry S. Bryan, William A. McGonagle, John Dwan and Hermon W. Cable founded Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company in Two Harbors, Minnesota.⁠[1]

In 1905 the company moved to Duluth, Minnesota, to make sandpaper with abrasive minerals bought from another source; the weight of newly purchased raw materials caused the floor of its building to collapse. In 1907 William L. McKnight joined the company as an assistant bookkeeper.⁠[1]

In 1910 major investor Lucius Ordway established the company’s first plant in St. Paul, Minnesota.⁠[1]

In 1914 Three-M-ite Abrasive Cloth became 3M’s first exclusive product. In 1921 the company introduced Wetordry Waterproof Sandpaper, the first water-resistant coated abrasive.⁠[1]

In 1925 Richard Drew, a 3M lab assistant, noticed the difficulty painters had with two-tone paint jobs while testing abrasive samples at a body shop, and went on to invent masking tape, which started the Scotch brand tape product line. In 1930 Drew followed with Scotch Cellophane Tape for sealing cellophane packaging.⁠[1]

3M Company was incorporated under the laws of the State of Delaware in 1929.⁠[2]

In 1937 Richard P. Carlton set up a Central Research Laboratory. In 1938 the company introduced Scotchlite Reflective Sheeting.⁠[1]

In 1946 3M stock was listed on the New York Stock Exchange for the first time. In 1951 the company established its International Division, with new companies in several countries.⁠[1]

In 1962 the first office building at the 3M Center in Maplewood, Minnesota, was completed, establishing the company’s new global headquarters.⁠[1]

During the first moon landing in 1969, astronaut boots used 3M Fluorel Elastomer. In 1976 3M joined the Dow Jones Industrial Average. In 1978 the company adopted a rounded logo in “3M Red.”⁠[1]

In 1980 3M introduced Post-it Notes. In 1984 3M became the first wholly-owned, foreign-invested enterprise in China.⁠[1]

In 2002, as employees marked the company’s centennial, “3M Company” replaced Minnesota Mining and Manufacturing Company as its legal name.⁠[1]

3M’s annual sales passed $20 billion for the first time in 2004 and $30 billion in 2013. In 2014 the company was issued its 100,000th patent.⁠[1]

On December 20, 2022 3M announced that it would exit the manufacture of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), including fluoropolymers, fluorinated fluids and PFAS-based additive products, and work to discontinue the use of PFAS across its product portfolio by the end of 2025. The company cited “accelerating regulatory trends focused on reducing or eliminating the presence of PFAS in the environment” and changing stakeholder expectations.⁠[3]

At the time 3M’s manufactured PFAS had annual net sales of about $1.3 billion, and the company expected total pre-tax charges of about $1.3 billion to $2.3 billion for the exit.⁠[3]

On June 22, 2023 3M announced a settlement with US public water suppliers resolving current and future drinking water claims related to PFOA, PFOS and other PFAS in the aqueous film-forming foam (AFFF) multidistrict litigation in Charleston, South Carolina, with payments of up to $10.3 billion in present value over 13 years. The release stated: “This agreement is not an admission of liability.”⁠[4]

On March 29, 2024 the US District Court in Charleston, South Carolina, granted final approval of the settlement. 3M said the settlement had a nominal cap of $12.5 billion and that it had recorded an accrual of $10.3 billion, the pre-tax present value of expected payments over 13 years.⁠[5]

On August 29, 2023 3M announced a settlement of litigation over its Combat Arms Earplug products, resolving claims in the multidistrict litigation in Florida and the coordinated state court action in Minnesota, in which Aearo Technologies was also a defendant. 3M would contribute a total of $6.0 billion between 2023 and 2029, about $5.0 billion in cash and $1.0 billion in 3M common stock.⁠[6]

The release stated: “This agreement is not an admission of liability,” and said the products at issue “are safe and effective when used properly.”⁠[6]

On March 12, 2024 3M announced that William M. (Bill) BrownBrown UniversityBrown University is a private nonprofit research university in Providence, Rhode Island, and a member of the Ivy League. Chartered by Rhode Island's colonial legislature in 1764, it is known for its undergraduate Open Curriculum, which has no common required core. Christina H. Paxson, president since July 2012, announced on August 3, 2026, that the 2026–27 academic year would be her last in office. As of October 1, 2026, the search for Brown's 20th president remained underway.Open the full entry, former chair and CEO of L3Harris Technologies, would succeed Michael Roman as chief executive officer effective May 1, 2024, with Roman, CEO since July 2018, becoming executive chairman of the board on the same date. The board waived its mandatory retirement age of 65 for both men.⁠[7]

In the announcement Brown said: “I am excited for the opportunity to lead this iconic global company.”⁠[7]

On April 1, 2024 3M completed the spin-off of its health care business as Solventum, listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol SOLV. 3M shareholders received one Solventum share for every four 3M shares held at the close of business on the March 18, 2024 record date; 3M retained 19.9% of Solventum’s outstanding common stock, which it planned to monetize within five years of the spin-off.⁠[8]

On May 12, 2025 3M and New Jersey state parties, including the Department of Environmental Protection, signed a proposed judicial consent order, to be submitted to the US District Court for the District of New Jersey, resolving the state’s PFAS claims against 3M, including the Chambers Works and Parlin litigation and the AFFF litigation. Settlement payments total at least $400 million and at most $450 million, plus a “New Jersey Leadership Payment” of $50 million to $100 million paid in installments. In the order 3M stated that it was “continuing to deny any violation, wrongdoing, or liability.”⁠[9]

In 2025 the Scotch brand marked 100 years since the invention of Scotch Masking Tape.⁠[1]

In its annual report for fiscal 2025, 3M stated that it completed its exit of PFAS manufacturing at the end of 2025 and would continue winding down related assets and facilities.⁠[2]

On November 3, 2026 3M announced a broad resolution of PFAS-related personal injury claims in the AFFF multidistrict litigation in federal court in South Carolina, covering about 99% of current personal injury claims inside and outside the MDL, or roughly 115,000 to 120,000 eligible plaintiffs. 3M committed to pay $7.35 billion nominal over nine years ($5.8 billion present value), including a $680 million reserve fund, with $50 million paid in 2026 and nothing in 2027; some payments depend on plaintiff participation. 3M said the agreement is not an admission of liability and that it would record a $5.8 billion pre-tax charge in the fourth quarter of 2026.⁠[10]

Chairman and CEO William Brown said: “This settlement is a significant milestone for 3M and substantially reduces litigation uncertainty.”⁠[10]

The same day 3M’s board approved a new $6.0 billion share repurchase authorization, which together with $1.5 billion remaining under the 2025 authorization totals $7.5 billion, and declared a fourth-quarter 2026 dividend of $0.78 per share, payable on December 11, 2026. The company said it had paid dividends to shareholders without interruption for more than 100 years.⁠[11]

As of 2025 3M operated three business segments: Safety and Industrial, Transportation and Electronics, and Consumer. Its net sales were $24.948 billion in 2025 and $24.575 billion in 2024.⁠[2]

As of December 31, 2025 3M had about 60,500 full-time equivalent employees, about 22,500 in the United States and 38,000 internationally, and operated 48 manufacturing facilities in 26 US states and 60 manufacturing and converting facilities in 25 other countries.⁠[2]

3M: Official website: https://www.3m.com/ (opens in a new window).⁠[1]

X: Public account: https://x.com/3M (opens in a new window).⁠[12]

LinkedInLinkedInLinkedIn is a social networking platform for professionals. It was founded in 2002 by Reid Hoffman and others, launched in 2003, and listed on the New York Stock Exchange in 2011; after Microsoft acquired it for approximately $26.2 billion in 2016, it became a wholly owned Microsoft subsidiary. Its revenue comes from membership subscriptions, advertising, and recruitment solutions.Open the full entry: Public profile: https://www.linkedin.com/company/3m (opens in a new window).⁠[1]

YouTubeYouTubeYouTube is Google’s video-sharing and creator platform, founded in 2005 by Steve Chen, Chad Hurley, and Jawed Karim and acquired by Google in 2006. Built around video uploading, viewing, and creator earnings, the platform has developed Shorts, YouTube Music, Premium, YouTube TV, and products for children, and is headquartered in San Bruno, California, United States.Open the full entry: Public channel: https://www.youtube.com/c/3MCorporate (opens in a new window).⁠[1]