The early years
Founded in 1873 as Atlas Engineering, manufacturing railway locomotives and rolling stock, we came to  the UK in 1919. By then, the name had changed to Atlas Diesel and nationwide branches were quickly set up to sell the Atlas Polar diesel engines. However, the manufacture of pneumatic power tools was already established in the headquarters in Stockholm.  
 
Portable compressor factory
In 1939 new premises were built in Wembley for building portable compressors. In 1945 the manufacture of paving breakers began, with major extensions to the Wembley factory. 

Birth of the Atlas Copco name
In 1956, the parent company bought Arpic Engineering (a Belgian compressor manufacturer), which also had a factory in Glasgow. In the same year the name changed to Atlas Copco (derived from “Compagnie Pneumatique Commerciale”). The diesel engine side of the business was sold and emphasis was on the manufacture and sale of compressed air products and the development of the already highly-successful pneumatic mining and rock drilling equipment.

Move to Hemel Hempstead
By the late 1950's the London and Glasgow production sites had been combined and moved to one sales and manufacturing site in the New Town of Hemel Hempstead, Hertfordshire. In 1972 Atlas Copco transferred its sales operations to a new premises in Swallowdale Lane, Hemel Hempstead. The following year the first monthly turnover exceeding £1 million was recorded. New buildings were opened on this site in the late 1980's and the UK Head Office is still located there.

Setting up of the three Business Areas
The UK Sales Company divisionalised in 1988 into the three units which still operate today: Atlas Copco Compressors Ltd, Atlas Copco Tools Ltd and Atlas Copco Construction & Mining Ltd, to focus more closely on their customer segments. 

Recent developments 
Over the last 20 years these three divisional Customer Centres have seen growth in all areas of their businesses, both by acquisition and by development into new products and markets.

Compressed air has seen energy saving products such as Variable Speed Drive compressors and air audits as well as new equipment to produce the finest quality of pure, dry and oil-free air. The achievement of ISO Class "0" for oil-free air, in 2006, was a major "first" for Atlas Copco.

For over 20 years there has been an Engineering Centre specialising in the manufacture of custom-designed skid-packages. First developed for use in the North Sea these are now in demand by oil and gas installations world-wide as well as other specialist applications.

In Industrial Tools there has been considerable development in the specialist supply of assembly systems for use in such industries as motor vehicles and aerospace where automated production has become increasingly important.

The Construction and Mining business has seen particular growth in hydraulics as well as traditional pneumatics, with the increasing demand for multi-purpose hammers.

In October 2010, Atlas Copco Ltd was formed, a legal entity encompassing the operational units Atlas Copco Compressors, Atlas Copco Construction & Mining and Atlas Copco Tools.

Acquisitions
In recent years the company has acquired a number of blue-chip organisations with operations in the UK. Included in these are: Dynapac, Chicago Pneumatic, Beacon-Medaes and Desoutter as well as specialist regional Air Houses such as Compressor Engineering, Pneumatic Services and Best Pneumatics.

The combined businesses now see Atlas Copco as the country's leader in all of its core product areas of compressed air, industrial tools and construction and mining.