Heritage

Charles Murcott - the founder of Lumex

The original Cybex was founded as a division of Lumex, Inc. a therapeutic health and hospital products company that acquired the patent for the first Cybex product, an isokinetic testing device, in 1970. Lumex developed into a major designer and manufacturer of performance measurement and rehabilitation systems, with the Cybex brand becoming known nationally and internationally. Sports teams, such as the Dallas Cowboys, and individual athletes, including boxer Muhammad Ali and baseball pitcher Tom Seaver, used Cybex equipment in their athletic training programs.

In 1981, Lumex relocated the Cybex division operations to Ronkonkoma, New York as the company prepared to expand the Cybex product line into the medical and fitness markets. The Cybex division of Lumex continued to produce rehabilitation equipment in Ronkonkoma and in 1983 Lumex acquired Eagle Performance Systems (a fitness equipment manufacturer based in Owatonna, Minnesota) and established itself as a supplier of variable resistance strength systems to health clubs. Along with the Eagle acquisition came a 100,000 sq ft manufacturing facility in Owatonna.

The plant in Ronkonkoma, New York, was built in 1980 and the square footage doubled the following year.

The Cybex facility in Owatonna, Minnesota, manufactured fitness and strength systems.

In 1988, a stationary bicycle, rower, upper-body ergometer and Cybex Strength Systems – a line of free weight exercise machines were launched. The year 1994 saw the introduction of the Plate Loaded series of weight training equipment which allowed for both the controlled resistance of the state-of-the-art training equipment and the feel of a free weight workout. The Cybex brand’s international presence expanded and developed in the late 1980’s with sales agents in more than 40 countries. In 1995, Lumex sold its medical supply business and changed its name to Cybex (AMEX:CYB).

In May 1997, Cybex merged with Trotter, Inc., a company founded in 1973 by engineer, Edward Trotter. Trotter Treadmills were first produced in the early 1970’s in the basement of Ed Trotter, engineer turned entrepreneur and the founder of Trotter. A pioneer in producing treadmills that were motorized, the earliest designs monitored speed with an analog speedometer. There was no elevation.

Bending hand rails

Much of the early manufacturing process was a tribute to creativity. A muffler bender (pipe bending machine) was used to bend hand rails. Trotter made its own dies because muffler pipes were larger than hand rails. The rails were hung on racks during each phase of the bending process. Trotter quality testing in the mid 1980s, was done by "Big Foot." The machine, complete with sneakers, ran 24 hours/day, 7 days/week to test the durability Trotter Treadmills were known for.

Big Foot - 1983

Trotter moved from Holliston to Hopedale in 1983, the same year Trotter was purchased by UM Holdings Ltd (then United Medical Corporation) from Ed Trotter. The new manufacturing facility was in the old Draper Mill plant – 2,000,000 sq ft of vacant space. As Trotter grew and more space was needed, a new chalk line was drawn on the floor and the landlord was notified that Trotter would pay rent on the additional square footage.

In 1992, Trotter manufacturing moved to its current headquarters in Medway. Then- Massachusetts Governor, William Weld attended the grand opening of the new facility. Although primarily a manufacturer of treadmills, Trotter entered strength training with the acquisition of Pyramid (a small strength company near Pittsburgh) shortly before it merged with Cybex. The merger of Trotter with Cybex combined best-in-class treadmills with the acknowledged leader in strength equipment. Trotter was owned by UM Holdings, Ltd. at the time of the merger and, in the merger transaction, UM obtained 51% interest in the publicly traded company. Because the new company was not large enough to support two brands, UM elected to retain the Cybex name since the Cybex brand had better industry awareness.

Governor William Weld tried out the Trotter 545 Supertrainer treadmill.

In late 1997, Cybex decided to focus even more strategically on equipment for the fitness industry. The Cybex isokinetic business was sold and in 1998, Cybex acquired Tectrix, a California-based manufacturer of primarily bikes and steppers. Production of bikes and other Tectrix cardiovascular products was ultimately moved to Medway.

Now a manufacturer of strength, treadmills, bikes and steppers, in 2002 Cybex introduced the revolutionary Arc Trainer – a unique offering in the elliptical category. That same year, the Eagle line premiered and re-affirmed Cybex leadership in strength training. The company now offered three complete lines of selectorized equipment in addition to the plate loaded and free weight lines of equipment. A pioneer in developing equipment for persons with physical limitations, Cybex introduced the first of its several generations of Total Access fitness equipment in 2004. Although used by all exercisers, Total Access was the first to comply with IFI (Inclusive Fitness Initiative) in the UK.

Next-generation powder coating is the reason Cybex leads the industry in color customization with reliable lead times.

The Arc Trainer and all strength training equipment are built in the state-of-the-art Cybex plant in Owatonna, near Minneapolis, Minnesota. This facility, brought on-line in 2007, is 340,000 square feet (eight football fields under one roof) and sits on 36 acres. The company’s commitment to manufacturing excellence is evident in the durability and reliability that characterizes Cybex products.

In 2011 Cybex introduced the 770T, the latest in a complete line of premium treadmills. Cardio equipment, including both the upright and recumbent exercise bikes, is manufactured in the Medway plant near Boston, Massachusetts, adjacent to the Company’s Corporate Headquarters. Medway is also home to the Cybex Research Institute which encompasses the research and education functions that the company believes are critical to the scientific foundation for design of Cybex exercise equipment.

Since the merger of Trotter and Cybex in 1992, the company had been publicly traded – initially on the AMEX (CYB) and, in 2006, it moved to the NASDAQ (CYBI). But being public came with a cost – a cost that escalated dramatically with the legislation Congress enacted following the 2008 financial crisis. For a variety of reasons, including the cost of regulatory compliance, the Board believed that Cybex would be better off as a private company.

In 2016, Cybex joined the Life Fitness family of brands. Life Fitness, a division of Brunswick Corporation, employs 3,000 workers worldwide and distributes products in more than 130 countries.

Cybex continues to introduce innovative new products that reflect the company's heritage of exercise science and currently offers over 175 individual fitness machines.