Go inside Crayola's warehouse where millions of crayons are produced daily | Made In PA
EASTON, Pa. (WPVI) -- Crayola rolled off the production line over a century ago, right in Easton, Pennsylvania.
They started as a chemical company in the 1800s. That changed at the turn of the century, thanks to founders Edwin Binney.
"Their idea was to get into the education business to help children to learn better. Their first products were slate pencils and slate chalkboards, and then chalk," said Crayola CEO Peter Ruggiero.
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Which is why they're located in Easton. Ruggiero says that area has a significant amount of slate and calcium carbonate.
The factory turns out 12 million crayons a day, which amounts to about 3 billion a year.
Ruggiero says after World War II, demand shot up and so did production.
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"We had to innovate our manufacturing process. And still today, 25 percent of our crayons are manufactured on that 1946 technology -- the cut and stack labeler," he says.
The process is intricate, which includes mixing, pouring to labeling, and packing.
Roughly 1,200 employees in Easton make that happen.
Crayola is one of the largest employers in the Lehigh Valley.
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"Many companies in our space have decided to manufacture overseas. In 2007, when everyone else was moving to other parts of the world, we made a decision to double down on our US manufacturing capability."
And over 100 years, Crayola has stood the test of time, making childhoods brighter, and even adulting a little bit calmer.
"We say we help parents and educators raise creativity in their child's life. We're proud of that and we do that. What we're learning is that adults are reliving childhood experiences. They are doing it for relaxation," said Ruggiero.
