Volvo Penta

Volvo Penta was founded in 1907 in conjunction with the production of the first marine engine, B1. The Penta company soon became an established internal combustion engine manufacturer, which in 1927 delivered the engine for Volvo's first passenger car.

Volvo acquired Penta in 1935 and Volvo Penta has been part of the Volvo Group since then. It now provides internal combustion engines (ICEs) and complete power systems to the marine industry, power-generating equipment, and similar industrial applications. The business also manufacturers sterndrive and inboard drive systems such as the Volvo Penta IPS. The engine program comprises petroleum fuel (diesel and gasoline) engines with power outputs of between 7.5 and 1,500 kilowatts (10 and 2,039 PS; 10 and 2,012 bhp).

In 1868, engineer John G Grönvall founded a mechanical workshop and foundry in Skövde, Sweden. The business of John G Grönvall & Co was to supply everyday items. The company became limited in 1875, known as Sköfde Gjuteri och Mekaniska Verkstad or simply Gjuteriet. Products ranged from pots and vents to stoves and brewery equipment. Soon Gjuteriet also started manufacturing agricultural equipment and equipment for sawmills.

The company expanded heavily in the early 1900s, and started producing steam engines and water turbines for hydraulic power plants. In 1907, a very fruitful co-operation with the Stockholm-based engineering company Fritz Egnell began, with a one-cylinder 3 hp compression ignition engine. The engine was simply named B1 - but a five men committee was set to find a name that would catch on. The committee failed, but as they were five, they settled for Penta.

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