What Carolina Brush does

Carolina Brush is a custom industrial brush manufacturer founded in 1919 by James D. Smith and headquartered and operated from a single manufacturing facility in Gastonia, North Carolina. The company designs, engineers, and produces made-to-order industrial brushes across 13 product categories — channel strip, coil, cup, disc, block, cylinder, sectional rotary, staple-set disc, shaped handle, stenter, twisted in-wire, fully custom, and OEM replacement brushes — for integration into OEM equipment, automated production lines, and maintenance operations. The underlying technology centers on material expertise across synthetic, natural, wire, and abrasive filaments (including nylon Types 6, 6.6, and 6.12, abrasive nylon impregnated with silicone carbide, and conductive filaments for ESD/static control) plus the ability to reverse-engineer OEM brushes from samples and often improve durability through updated material selection. Special capabilities include FDA/USDA-compliant builds for food and pharmaceutical lines, MIL-SPEC-grade brushes for military and defense applications, and ESD/anti-static brushes for electronics and packaging environments; a brush was selected for use on NASA's Curiosity Rover mission to Mars.

Carolina Brush serves a diversified set of industrial verticals including automotive, textile manufacturing, food and beverage production, pharmaceutical manufacturing, aerospace, military and defense, material handling and packaging, and OEM equipment manufacturers. The go-to-market is sales-led and consultative: engineers work directly with customers through phone, email, and an online quote request to define specifications, recommend solutions, and support both low-volume one-off builds and high-volume OEM production runs. Pricing is fully quote-based (no published list pricing), with a Net 30 billing cadence, volume discounts available on recurring or large orders, and a 90-day limited warranty; F.O.B. terms originate from Gastonia, NC with worldwide shipping. There are no disclosed revenue figures, no public listing, no external funding rounds, and no APIs, integrations, or digital product offerings — the business is a traditional B2B custom manufacturer. Ownership traces through the founding Smith family (James D. Smith to James S. Smith in 1933) and remains private, with the only documented M&A activity being the 1958 acquisition of Gastonia Brush Company that relocated operations to the current headquarters site.

Name

Carolina Brush

Legal name

Carolina Brush Company

Website

https://carolinabrush.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1919

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Carolina Brush is a privately held custom industrial brush manufacturer founded in 1919 and based in Gastonia, North Carolina, serving OEMs and manufacturers in automotive, textile, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, aerospace, military and defense, and material handling verticals with 13 made-to-order brush product categories.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Brushes

NAICS

Broom, Brush, and Mop Manufacturing (339994)

SIC

Cutlery, Handtools & General Hardware (3420)

akta.pro primary industry

Brooms, Brushes & Dustpans (CRAJAIAA)

akta.pro secondary industries

Home Care Tools & Consumables (Sponges, Wipes, Brushes, Gloves, Mop Refills) (CRADAKAM), Cleaning Tool Handles, Refills & Replacement Heads (CRAJAIAH)

Keywords

• Custom industrial brushes
• OEM replacement brushes
• Staple-set brushes
• Twisted in-wire brushes
• Strip brushes

Headquarters

HQ city

Gastonia

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Personnel, Supply Chain, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure

Revenue model

1. Custom Industrial Brush Manufacturing: Design and manufacture of custom industrial brushes for OEM integration, replacement parts, and specialized applications. Revenue generated through one-time purchases, production runs, and recurring orders from manufacturers and OEMs.
2. OEM Component Supply: Ongoing supply of custom brush components to equipment manufacturers for integration into new machinery designs. Supports both prototype quantities and high-volume production runs.
3. Replacement Brush Services: Supply of reverse-engineered replacement brushes for discontinued or expensive OEM parts, generating recurring revenue from maintenance and operational customers.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Carolina Brush designs and manufactures custom industrial brushes for OEM integration, production equipment, and industrial applications across automotive, textile, food and beverage, pharmaceutical, aerospace, military and defense, and material handling sectors. The company offers 13 standard brush product categories plus engineered-to-order custom brushes and reverse-engineered OEM replacement brushes, all produced in-house at its Gastonia, NC facility from synthetic, natural, wire, and abrasive filaments. Production scales from one-off prototypes to high-volume OEM runs with materials that meet FDA/USDA, MIL-SPEC, and ESD/anti-static requirements.

Product overview

Carolina Brush is a custom industrial brush manufacturer offering 13 distinct brush product categories designed for integration into OEM machinery, automated systems, and manufacturing equipment. The portfolio includes Channel Strip Brushes (for sealing and wiping), Coil Brushes (continuous-wound for curved surfaces), Cup Brushes (compact finishing), Disc Brushes (surface contact), Block Brushes (versatile cleaning), Cylinder Brushes (rotary surface contact), Sectional Rotary Brushes (modular replacements), Staple-Set Disc Brushes (anchored tufts), Shaped Handle Brushes (hand tools), Stenter Brushes (textile finishing), Twisted In-Wire Brushes (internal cleaning), and Custom Brushes (engineered-to-order). The company also provides OEM Replacement Brushes through reverse-engineering. All products are manufactured at their Gastonia, NC facility and are customizable by brush type, dimensions, filament material (synthetic, natural, wire, abrasive), base material, density, and mounting configuration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Channel Strip Brushes Versatile sealing and wiping brushes manufactured by anchoring filaments into a continuous metal channel, available with aluminum or stainless steel holders for conveyor, enclosure, and automation applications.
• Coil Brushes
• Cup Brushes
• Disc Brushes
• Block Brushes
• Staple-Set Cylinder Brushes
• Sectional Rotary Brushes
• Staple-Set Disc Brushes
• Shaped Handle Brushes
• Stenter Brushes
• Twisted In-Wire Brushes
• Custom Brushes
• OEM Replacement Brushes

Quantifiable outcome

• Brushes have been used on NASA missions to Mars, demonstrating extreme reliability and performance standards
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers3 records

Segments10 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature6 records

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• The Mill-Rose Company: US-based custom industrial brush manufacturer with a long heritage, offering twisted-in-wire, strip, and engineered brushes for OEM and industrial customers. Closely comparable in product mix, custom engineering model, and target verticals.
• Gordon Brush Mfg. Company: Custom industrial brush maker serving aerospace, medical, defense, and manufacturing with specialty filaments and engineered brush solutions. Comparable in custom design, regulated-industry certifications, and aerospace/defense exposure.
• Spiral Brushes: Industrial brush manufacturer specializing in strip, twisted-in-wire, and cylinder brushes for OEM and conveyor applications. Highly comparable in product categories and core industrial customer base.
• Tanis Incorporated: US manufacturer of industrial brushes including strip, cylinder, and custom configurations for OEMs across food, pharma, and general manufacturing. Comparable custom-engineering approach and regulated-industry focus.
• Superior Brush Company: US custom industrial brush manufacturer producing strip, cylinder, and specialty brushes for OEM and industrial applications. Comparable in custom manufacturing model and customer verticals.

Broad incumbents

• Weiler Abrasives: Large, established manufacturer of industrial brushes and abrasive products serving metalworking, fabrication, and general industrial markets. Comparable product categories but at significantly larger scale and broader portfolio.
• Osborn (A unit of Jason Incorporated): Global manufacturer of industrial brushes, surface finishing tools, and related products. Overlaps with Carolina Brush in industrial brush categories but serves a much broader, global customer base.
• Anderson Products: Industrial brush and abrasive product manufacturer with broad distribution and a focus on metalworking and surface finishing. Comparable brush categories but broader, more catalog-driven offering.

Regional players

• Lessmann GmbH: German-based industrial brush manufacturer with a wide range of technical and custom brushes for OEM and industrial customers. Comparable product portfolio but primarily serves European markets.

Emerging players

• Koti Industrial Brushes: Industrial brush producer with a growing portfolio of strip, disc, and cylinder brushes targeted at OEMs and conveyor applications. Comparable product range at a smaller, more emerging scale.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat2 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights5 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/carolina-brush-co

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Carolina Brush