ðə kˈʌmpəni wʌz fˈaʊndᵻd baɪ fɹˈænts bˈɜːkhɑːɹt æz ɐ smˈɔːl mᵻkˈænɪkəl wˈɜːkʃɑːp ɪn bˈɑːzəl ɪn wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd fˈoːɹɾi fˈoːɹ, wˌɪtʃ hiː ɛkspˈændᵻd tʊ ɐ fˈæktɚɹi mˌeɪkɪŋ ˈɛɹ ænd vˈækjuːm pˈʌmps.
The company was founded by Franz Burckhardt as a small mechanical workshop in Basel in 1844, which he expanded to a factory making air and vacuum pumps.