Tempur-Pedic
Encyclopedia
Tempur-Pedic International, Inc. is a manufacturer and distributor of mattress
es and pillow
s made from viscoelastic memory foam
. The company's headquarters is located in Lexington, Kentucky
.
In 1971, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA
), in an effort to relieve astronauts of the G-force
experienced during lift-off, developed a viscoelastic
pressure-relieving material that would be placed in space shuttles. After completion, this formula was made public by NASA. Although useful astronautically, the material originally proved unstable for commercial use.
However, after several years of research and development by NASA, they succeeded in developing a proprietary formulation and proprietary process to manufacture a stable, durable and commercially viable product. The idea was soon acquired by Fagerdala World Foams
, a Swedish
technical foam firm. Fagerdala spent years perfecting their formula and once complete, named their consumer version of the foam ‘TEMPUR’. The breakthroughs led the way for Fagerdala to develop a commercially useful product, introducing the first ‘Tempur-Pedic Swedish Mattress’ in 1991.
Early in the 1990s, Vice President of Fagerdala Mikael Magnusson and owner Dag Landvik met Kentucky businessman Robert B. Trussell, Jr. through a mutual interest in the horse racing industry. They subsequently granted him the North American distribution rights. Trussell and a partner founded Tempur-Pedic, Inc. in 1992 to bring the brand to the United States
.
Nine distributors of Fagerdala, including Tempur-Pedic, Inc., merged in 1999 to form Tempur World holding company. In 2002, the private-equity firms TA Associates
of Boston
and Friedman Fleischer & Lowe
of San Francisco bought the holding company. They retained Trussell as the company’s CEO. The same year, the firms reformed Tempur World holding company into Tempur-Pedic International Inc. The company went public on December 18, 2003, trading as TPX, according to Business First reports.
Numerous bedding, specialty stores and high-end home stores carry many of Tempur-Pedic products. Morris describes Tempur-Pedic’s marketing as engaging customers’ emotions, inspiring them to buy a better quality mattress. Tempur-Pedic also won a 2009 ERA award for direct marketing.
Tempur-Pedic is still a strong selling mattress brand, even with recession spending declines, due to the quality standards and perceptions of value.
Tempur-Pedic has sponsored studies related to sleep and sleep habits. Most recently, this included a survey showing the average hours of sleep for American adults.
NASA acknowledged Tempur-Pedic on May 6, 1998 for utilizing space technology in their products. Trussell, founder and CEO of Tempur-Pedic, was invited to NASA’s headquarters in Washington, DC to attend a press conference in Tempur-Pedic’s honor. There, NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin recognized Tempur-Pedic for successfully using NASA technology to create economic opportunity and promote a better quality of life for mankind – in both the consumer and medical sector. After receiving NASA’s Plaque of Recognition, Tempur-Pedic presented the Administration with the one-millionth pillow. This pillow and other similar pillows are on display at NASA headquarters, Johnson Space Center, Kennedy Space Center
, and The Smithsonian Institution.
Soon after the NASA Press Conference, Tempur-Pedic was licensed by the Space Foundation
to use the official “Certified Technology” seals on their products and advertisements. NASA’s “Certified Space Technology” initiative is committed to broadening awareness, understanding, and support for the important role that space exploration plays in the everyday lives of Americans.
Mattresses made of TEMPUR material have earned the Good Housekeeping Seal, were awarded a Consumer’s Digest “best buy” as well as an Ease-of-Use Commendation from the Arthritis Foundation.
On March 24, 2009, the United States Patent and Trademark Office
issued a patent titled "Laminated Visco-Elastic Support" to Tempur-Pedic. The patent grants Tempur-Pedic exclusive rights to make, use and sell products incorporating the inventions claimed in the patent.
Overall, Tempur-Pedic mattresses are three times less likely than a traditional spring mattress to suffer from sagging or other durability issues.
s (VOCs), several of which are commonly recognized as harmful by the California Health and Welfare Agency, the International Agency on Research of Cancer, and the EPA. Though many VOCs are odorless, VOCs are responsible for the "new mattress smell" that users may perceive with beds containing memory foams.
In 2005, Furniture Today reported that Tempur-pedic's Duffield, VA plant was in compliance with ISO 9001:2000.
In January, 2010, Tempur-Pedic announced their alliance with Ronald McDonald House Charities
. Tempur-Pedic began outfitting four U.S. Ronald McDonald Houses with beds in 2009. In 2010, an additional 30 to 40 Houses will receive Tempur-Pedic beds; this means that more than 32,000 families will be able to use them. The plan is for all participating U.S. Houses to have Tempur-Pedic beds by the end of 2013.
in May, 2009, in a section about "Truth in Advertising".
Along with the wine test, years of advertising has seemingly propelled Tempur-Pedic into the cultural zeitgeist. They have appeared in other pop culture media such as:
Mattress
A mattress is a manufactured product to sleep or lie on, consisting of resilient materials and covered with an outer fabric or ticking. In the developed world it is typically part of a bed set and is placed upon a foundation....
es and pillow
Pillow
A pillow is a large cushion support for the head, usually used while sleeping in a bed, or for the body as used on a couch or chair. There are also throw pillows , which are pillows that are purely decorative and not designed for support or comfort...
s made from viscoelastic memory foam
Memory foam
Memory foam is polyurethane with additional chemicals increasing its viscosity and density. It is often referred to as "visco-elastic" polyurethane foam, or low-resilience polyurethane foam . Higher-density memory foam softens in reaction to body heat, allowing it to mold to a warm body in a few...
. The company's headquarters is located in Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington, Kentucky
Lexington is the second-largest city in Kentucky and the 63rd largest in the US. Known as the "Thoroughbred City" and the "Horse Capital of the World", it is located in the heart of Kentucky's Bluegrass region...
.
History
On their company website Tempur-Pedic gives a brief history of their product:
In the early 1970s, NASA developed a pressure-absorbing material to help cushion and support astronauts during lift-off. The material was temperature-sensitive and it evenly distributed body weight. NASA released this material to the public in the 1980s” (“Tempur-Pedic History” 1).
In 1971, National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
), in an effort to relieve astronauts of the G-force
G-force
The g-force associated with an object is its acceleration relative to free-fall. This acceleration experienced by an object is due to the vector sum of non-gravitational forces acting on an object free to move. The accelerations that are not produced by gravity are termed proper accelerations, and...
experienced during lift-off, developed a viscoelastic
Viscoelasticity
Viscoelasticity is the property of materials that exhibit both viscous and elastic characteristics when undergoing deformation. Viscous materials, like honey, resist shear flow and strain linearly with time when a stress is applied. Elastic materials strain instantaneously when stretched and just...
pressure-relieving material that would be placed in space shuttles. After completion, this formula was made public by NASA. Although useful astronautically, the material originally proved unstable for commercial use.
However, after several years of research and development by NASA, they succeeded in developing a proprietary formulation and proprietary process to manufacture a stable, durable and commercially viable product. The idea was soon acquired by Fagerdala World Foams
Fagerdala World Foams
Fagerdala World Foams is a Swedish company that specializes in the development, manufacturing and converting of technical polymer foams, thermoforming parts and resilient materials.- History :...
, a Swedish
Sweden
Sweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
technical foam firm. Fagerdala spent years perfecting their formula and once complete, named their consumer version of the foam ‘TEMPUR’. The breakthroughs led the way for Fagerdala to develop a commercially useful product, introducing the first ‘Tempur-Pedic Swedish Mattress’ in 1991.
Early in the 1990s, Vice President of Fagerdala Mikael Magnusson and owner Dag Landvik met Kentucky businessman Robert B. Trussell, Jr. through a mutual interest in the horse racing industry. They subsequently granted him the North American distribution rights. Trussell and a partner founded Tempur-Pedic, Inc. in 1992 to bring the brand to the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Nine distributors of Fagerdala, including Tempur-Pedic, Inc., merged in 1999 to form Tempur World holding company. In 2002, the private-equity firms TA Associates
TA Associates
TA Associates, founded in 1968, is one of the oldest private equity firms in the United States. The firm employs a hybrid strategy making growth capital investments in developing companies and acquiring mature companies through leveraged buyout and recapitalization transactions...
of Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
and Friedman Fleischer & Lowe
Friedman Fleischer & Lowe
Friedman Fleischer & Lowe is a private equity firm, founded in 1998 by Tully Friedman, Spencer Fleischer, David Lowe, and Christopher Masto. The firm makes investments primarily through leveraged buyouts and growth capital investments....
of San Francisco bought the holding company. They retained Trussell as the company’s CEO. The same year, the firms reformed Tempur World holding company into Tempur-Pedic International Inc. The company went public on December 18, 2003, trading as TPX, according to Business First reports.
Numerous bedding, specialty stores and high-end home stores carry many of Tempur-Pedic products. Morris describes Tempur-Pedic’s marketing as engaging customers’ emotions, inspiring them to buy a better quality mattress. Tempur-Pedic also won a 2009 ERA award for direct marketing.
Tempur-Pedic is still a strong selling mattress brand, even with recession spending declines, due to the quality standards and perceptions of value.
Tempur-Pedic has sponsored studies related to sleep and sleep habits. Most recently, this included a survey showing the average hours of sleep for American adults.
TEMPUR material
TEMPUR material was originally based on NASA’s research to develop a material that would cushion aircraft seats and improve survivability in the event of an accident.NASA acknowledged Tempur-Pedic on May 6, 1998 for utilizing space technology in their products. Trussell, founder and CEO of Tempur-Pedic, was invited to NASA’s headquarters in Washington, DC to attend a press conference in Tempur-Pedic’s honor. There, NASA Administrator Daniel S. Goldin recognized Tempur-Pedic for successfully using NASA technology to create economic opportunity and promote a better quality of life for mankind – in both the consumer and medical sector. After receiving NASA’s Plaque of Recognition, Tempur-Pedic presented the Administration with the one-millionth pillow. This pillow and other similar pillows are on display at NASA headquarters, Johnson Space Center, Kennedy Space Center
Kennedy Space Center
The John F. Kennedy Space Center is the NASA installation that has been the launch site for every United States human space flight since 1968. Although such flights are currently on hiatus, KSC continues to manage and operate unmanned rocket launch facilities for America's civilian space program...
, and The Smithsonian Institution.
Soon after the NASA Press Conference, Tempur-Pedic was licensed by the Space Foundation
Space Foundation
The Space Foundation is a nonprofit organization that supports the global space industry through information and education programs. It is a resource for the entire space community - industry, national security organizations, civil space agencies, private space companies and the military around the...
to use the official “Certified Technology” seals on their products and advertisements. NASA’s “Certified Space Technology” initiative is committed to broadening awareness, understanding, and support for the important role that space exploration plays in the everyday lives of Americans.
Mattresses made of TEMPUR material have earned the Good Housekeeping Seal, were awarded a Consumer’s Digest “best buy” as well as an Ease-of-Use Commendation from the Arthritis Foundation.
On March 24, 2009, the United States Patent and Trademark Office
United States Patent and Trademark Office
The United States Patent and Trademark Office is an agency in the United States Department of Commerce that issues patents to inventors and businesses for their inventions, and trademark registration for product and intellectual property identification.The USPTO is based in Alexandria, Virginia,...
issued a patent titled "Laminated Visco-Elastic Support" to Tempur-Pedic. The patent grants Tempur-Pedic exclusive rights to make, use and sell products incorporating the inventions claimed in the patent.
Overall, Tempur-Pedic mattresses are three times less likely than a traditional spring mattress to suffer from sagging or other durability issues.
Potential health hazards
Potential health risks are associated with exposure to other memory foams, Tempur Trademarked foam has however gone through large scales of testing and no health risks have been found. A notable fact is that hospitals and other health departments use Tempur. When new, most memory foams give off a distinct chemical odor, which many people find unpleasant and some say is akin to the smell of paint. This odor decreases with airing, but some remain sensitive. Emissions from memory foam mattresses may cause more respiratory irritation than other mattresses; however, mildew and house dust mites may not occur as frequently, so asthma attacks may be less frequent and severe. Some memory foams emit as much as 61 volatile organic compoundVolatile organic compound
Volatile organic compounds are organic chemicals that have a high vapor pressure at ordinary, room-temperature conditions. Their high vapor pressure results from a low boiling point, which causes large numbers of molecules to evaporate or sublimate from the liquid or solid form of the compound and...
s (VOCs), several of which are commonly recognized as harmful by the California Health and Welfare Agency, the International Agency on Research of Cancer, and the EPA. Though many VOCs are odorless, VOCs are responsible for the "new mattress smell" that users may perceive with beds containing memory foams.
In 2005, Furniture Today reported that Tempur-pedic's Duffield, VA plant was in compliance with ISO 9001:2000.
Charities
In October 2009, Tempur-Pedic began selling a teddy bear made of TEMPUR material in support of the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network (PANCAN).In January, 2010, Tempur-Pedic announced their alliance with Ronald McDonald House Charities
Ronald McDonald House Charities
Ronald McDonald House Charities is an independent 501c3 organization whose mission is to create, find and support programs that directly improve the health and well being of children across the world...
. Tempur-Pedic began outfitting four U.S. Ronald McDonald Houses with beds in 2009. In 2010, an additional 30 to 40 Houses will receive Tempur-Pedic beds; this means that more than 32,000 families will be able to use them. The plan is for all participating U.S. Houses to have Tempur-Pedic beds by the end of 2013.
Tempur-Pedic in popular culture
Tempur-Pedic's marketing techniques have included television marketing campaigns, featuring the well-known wine glass test as seen on Good Morning AmericaGood Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
in May, 2009, in a section about "Truth in Advertising".
Along with the wine test, years of advertising has seemingly propelled Tempur-Pedic into the cultural zeitgeist. They have appeared in other pop culture media such as:
- Rock Band Snow PatrolSnow PatrolSnow Patrol are an alternative rock band from Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Formed at the University of Dundee in 1994 as an indie rock band, the band is now based in Glasgow...
's 2008 release, A Hundred Million Suns, was described in the November issue of SPIN magazineSpin (magazine)Spin is a music magazine founded in 1985 by publisher Bob Guccione Jr.-History:In its early years, the magazine was noted for its broad music coverage with an emphasis on college-oriented rock music and on the ongoing emergence of hip-hop. The magazine was eclectic and bold, if sometimes haphazard...
as being "the arena-rock equivalent of a Tempur-Pedic pillow". - Actor Jim CarreyJim CarreyJames Eugene "Jim" Carrey is a Canadian-American actor and comedian. He has received two Golden Globe Awards and has also been nominated on four occasions. Carrey began comedy in 1979, performing at Yuk Yuk's in Toronto, Ontario...
replicated the Tempur-Pedic wine glass test in Yes ManYes Man (film)Yes Man is a 2008 comedy film directed by Peyton Reed, written by Nicholas Stoller, Jarrad Paul and Andrew Mogel and starring Jim Carrey, Zooey Deschanel, Bradley Cooper, John Michael Higgins, Rhys Darby, Maile Flanagan, Danny Masterson, and Terence Stamp...
. - Tempur-Pedic pillows humorously were mentioned on the Showtime TV show WeedsWeeds (TV series)Weeds is an American television comedy created by Jenji Kohan and produced by Tilted Productions in association with Lionsgate Television. The central character is Nancy Botwin , a widowed mother of two boys who begins selling marijuana to support her family after her husband dies suddenly of a...
(episode "The Three Cooler") as being perfect for smothering people, due to their tendency to conform to the face. - TV host Oprah WinfreyOprah WinfreyOprah Winfrey is an American media proprietor, talk show host, actress, producer and philanthropist. Winfrey is best known for her self-titled, multi-award-winning talk show, which has become the highest-rated program of its kind in history and was nationally syndicated from 1986 to 2011...
in October 2007 showcased a Tempur-Pedic mattress on an episode with sleep expert Dr. Michael Breus, author of Good Night: The Sleep Doctor's Four-Week Program to Better Sleep and Better Health. [10]