CB Mills

What CB Mills does

CB Mills, legally Chicago Boiler Company, is a US custom industrial process-equipment manufacturer founded in 1891 and headquartered in a 70,000 sq. ft. facility in Gurnee, Illinois. The company designs and fabricates custom steel tanks (ASME pressure vessels, mixing, storage, UL-142, API, STI/SPFA, reactor and double-wall configurations), media grinding mills (Red Head vertical mills and RH-Series horizontal mills), solvent recovery stills (Micro, M-5, and PLC-controlled RHS Series), automated washing systems (DW-100 drum, TW-100/TW-300 tote and tank), and mixing/dispersing equipment, including Fillworth-branded machines (Batchstar, Batchranger, Batchmaster, Batchchanger, Fillmastic). Technology differentiators include the original 'Red Head' vertical mill (manufactured under a 1955 DuPont license) and an integrated 'Complete the Cycle' closed-loop architecture linking tanks, mills, washers, and solvent recovery in a single-vendor solution.

CB Mills operates a sales-led, custom-quote business model with no publicly disclosed pricing and a one-year warranty. The company reaches customers through enterprise field sales supported by sales engineers, website RFQ inquiry handling, and industry tradeshows; all equipment is manufactured in the USA and shipped direct from Gurnee with onsite commissioning and training. It serves six primary verticals: Chemical, Paint & Coating, Food & Pharmaceuticals, CBD, Energy, and Adhesives, with custom-engineered specifications (materials, certifications, capacity) tailored per project. CB Mills is privately held, family-owned for five generations by the Krumholz family, and not externally funded or PE-backed, with no disclosed revenue or headcount growth data and a current headcount band of 11-50 employees.

Name

CB Mills

Legal name

Chicago Boiler Company

Website

https://cbmills.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1891

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

CB Mills (Chicago Boiler Company) designs and manufactures custom industrial process equipment including ASME steel tanks, Red Head media grinding mills, solvent recovery systems, and automated washers for chemical, paint, food/pharma, energy, CBD, and adhesive manufacturers across the United States.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Industrial Process Equipment

NAICS

Boiler, Tank, and Shipping Container Manufacturing (3324), Metalworking Machinery Manufacturing (33351), Machine Shops (332710), Other General Purpose Machinery Manufacturing (3339)

SIC

Fabricated Plate Work (Boiler Shops) (3443), Sheet Metal Work (3444), Special Industry Machinery (No Metalworking Machinery) (3550)

akta.pro primary industry

Chemical Processing Equipment (Reactors, Mixers, Agitators) (IMAHAEAA)

Keywords

• Industrial process equipment
• Custom steel tanks
• Media grinding mills
• Solvent recovery systems
• Mixing systems

Headquarters

HQ city

Gurnee

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Custom Steel Tank Sales: Design and fabrication of custom steel tanks including ASME pressure vessels, mixing tanks, storage tanks, UL-142 tanks, API tanks, reactor vessels, and double-wall tanks. Revenue generated from one-time custom fabrication projects based on customer specifications. Materials include stainless steel, carbon steel, nickel alloys, and specialty alloys.
2. Grinding Mill Sales: Sale of vertical and horizontal media grinding mills under the Red Head brand. Products range from lab-scale (0.3L) to production-scale (296L) units. Includes push-button and advanced PLC control options with UL-listed panels for hazardous locations.
3. Solvent Recovery System Sales: Sale of solvent recovery systems including Micro Series, M-5 Systems, and RHS Series. Systems range from low-volume batch processing to high-volume continuous PLC-controlled distillation units.
4. Tank/Drum/Tote Washer Sales: Sale of automated washing systems (DW-100, TW-100, TW-300) for cleaning drums, totes, and tanks. Features high-pressure spray cleaning with explosion-proof designs and recirculating wash solutions.
5. Custom Steel Fabrication Services: Metal fabrication services including waterjet cutting, CNC machining, plate rolling, and welding. Fabrication for various industries including ASME code and non-code process vessels, reactors, hoppers, stacks, and ductwork.
6. Laboratory Testing and Process Development: Laboratory testing and trials for media grinding, solvent recovery, and tank washing applications. Process development services to optimize customer processes. Includes scale-up calculations and procedure development.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

CB Mills (Chicago Boiler Company) designs and manufactures custom industrial process equipment including custom steel tanks (ASME pressure vessels, API/UL-142 storage tanks, reactor vessels, mixing tanks), Red Head vertical and horizontal media grinding mills, solvent recovery stills, automated drum/tote/tank washers, and Fillworth mixing machines. The company sells custom-fabricated equipment and related professional services (laboratory testing, process development, custom steel fabrication, waterjet cutting, CNC machining) to industrial manufacturers in the chemical, paint and coating, food and pharmaceutical, energy, CBD, and adhesive industries.

Product overview

CB Mills (Chicago Boiler Company) is a manufacturer of industrial process equipment offering a comprehensive portfolio of custom steel tanks, grinding mills, solvent recovery systems, washing systems, and mixing systems. The product line includes Red Head branded vertical media grinding mills (original manufacturer since 1955) and RH-Series horizontal mills, custom ASME pressure vessels and storage tanks in various materials (stainless steel, carbon steel, nickel alloys), solvent recovery systems ranging from low-volume micro stills to high-volume RHS series with PLC control, automated washing systems for drums, totes, and tanks, and Fillworth-sourced mixing equipment including Batchstar, Batchranger, Batchmaster, Batchchanger, and Fillmastic machines. The company also offers biomass processing systems including solvent recovery and drying systems. CB Mills serves industries including paint and coatings, chemical processing, food and pharmaceuticals, energy, CBD, and adhesives. All products are manufactured in the United States with a 1-year warranty.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Red Head: The 'Red Head' brand encompasses the company's line of vertical and horizontal media grinding mills, including the original vertical mill and the RH-Series horizontal mills, serving the dispersion and grinding industry for over 63 years.

Products and services

• ASME Pressure Vessels ASME-certified pressure vessels designed and manufactured to meet the strict requirements of the ASME Pressure Vessel Code, featuring safety and compliance standards with capabilities including MTR documentation, NDE options (VT, PT, MT, RT, Hydrostatic Testing), and high pressure/full vacuum capability.
• Mixing Tanks Custom mixing tanks available in diameters from 6 inches to 144 inches, offered in open top or closed top configurations, pressurized or vacuum vessels, with jacketed designs for heating and cooling using conventional, half-pipe, dimple jacket, or internal helical coil options.
• Custom Design Tanks Specialty custom-designed tanks for demanding applications including chemical and hazardous waste storage, oil field operations, fire suppression systems, asphalt sealer tanks, and perfume containers, built to customer exact requirements.
• Storage Tanks Versatile storage tanks for agricultural, industrial, municipal, and public service applications including ASME Code Vessels, API-650 and API-620 tanks, UL-142 certified tanks, air receivers, acid and chemical tanks, and fire suppression tanks meeting NFPA 22 standards.
• UL-142 Tanks UL-142 Aboveground Steel Storage Tanks meeting Underwriters Laboratories standards for safe, reliable containment of petroleum products and chemicals, available in single-wall or double-wall designs.
• API Tanks Aboveground steel storage tanks built to American Petroleum Institute standards including API 650 (0-2.5 PSIG), API 620 (2.5-14.9 PSIG), and API 12F specifications for petroleum industry applications.
• Reactor Vessels Custom reactor vessels for chemical processing applications from pilot-scale to large-scale production, available as simple closed containers or fully jacketed ASME-certified designs with half-pipe, dimple, or conventional jackets.
• Double Wall Tanks Double-wall aboveground steel storage tanks providing safe, reliable storage for flammable and combustible liquids with built-in secondary containment, available in UL-142, ASME, and STI/SPFA compliant configurations.
• Red Head Vertical Media Grinding Mills The original vertical media grinding mills featuring the Red Head brand, designed for wet milling of high-viscosity materials like paints, inks, coatings, dyes, and agricultural chemicals, available in chamber sizes from 3 to 60 gallons with flow rates from 8 to 600 GPH.
• Red Head Laboratory Vertical Grinding Mills Compact, economical laboratory vertical grinding mills designed for research, formulation, and small-lot production batches, operable on standard utility drill press with 1/2 HP drive, featuring stainless steel contact parts and models including L-1, L-2, L-3, L-3-J, and L-5-P.
• RH-Series Horizontal Lab Mills Horizontal lab media mills with scalable capacity from 0.3 to 1.4 liters, featuring stainless steel, hardened steel, or ceramic construction, handling grinding media from 0.3mm to 2.0mm with control options ranging from pushbutton to PLC systems with data logging and remote access.
• Red Head RH-Series Horizontal Mills Production-scale horizontal media mills available in chamber sizes from 0.3 to 296 liters, suitable for glass and ceramic grinding media as small as 0.3mm, featuring gap or screen separators, PLC controls with UL-listed panels, and water-jacketed vessels for temperature control.
• Micro Series Solvent Recovery Systems Low to medium-volume solvent recovery systems with distillation temperature range from 100 to 550 degrees F, featuring vacuum pump capability for high-boiling-point solvents and consistent purity recovery without third-party blending.
• Model M5 Five-Gallon Solvent Recovery System Compact solvent recovery system processing up to 5 gallons per eight-hour cycle, heating waste solvents in standard 5-gallon metal vessels with refrigerated heat exchanger condensation, suitable for dental, commercial paint, automotive, and industrial coating operations.
• RHS Series Solvent Recovery Systems High-volume PLC-controlled solvent recovery stills with thermal oil circulation, operating temperatures from 100 to 550 degrees F, typical recovery cost of 2 cents per gallon, and return on investment within one year or less, available in models from 15-35 to 150-420+ GPH capacity.
• DW-100 Drum Washer Fully automated drum washer for 30 to 55-gallon drums featuring rotating high-pressure spray nozzle delivering up to 140+ PSI and 20 GPM, cleaning drums in two minutes or less with explosion-proof design and PLC-controlled wash cycles.
• TW-100 Tote Washer Compact tote washer with wash pressures up to 350+ PSI and 20 GPM, cleaning totes in 3 to 5 minutes with explosion-proof construction, brush-free design, recirculating wash solutions, and PLC-controlled automatic cycles.
• TW-300 Series Tank & Tote Washer High-volume tank and tote washer with spray performance up to 350 PSI (450 PSI optional) and 35 GPM, cleaning tote tanks and open-top portable tanks from 23 to 80 inches in diameter with geared wash nozzle for complete vessel coverage and cycle times of 3 to 5 minutes.
• Batchstar Model FSRD Self-Raising Disc disperser utilizing internal radial fluid force for powder metering and wetting into liquids without external hydraulic systems, suitable for batch sizes from 205 to 10,000 liters with heated/cooled and fully automated options.
• Batchranger Model FHDD and FDD Rotor stator disperser using Fillworth fluid wedge shear principle combining enclosed shear grid/stator and high-pressure impeller, reducing product mill passes up to 75% with proven power reduction compared to conventional HSD dispersers.
• Batchmaster Model VGM Vertical glandless mixing machine utilizing fluid wedge mixing principle with zero leakage dry well feature, achieving up to 50% input power reduction versus conventional mixer dispersers, suitable for adhesives, sealants, inks, and ceramic tile adhesive applications.
• Batchchanger Batch flexibility system allowing one machine to process multiple batch vessels, available in HSD (low viscosity), FMD (medium viscosity), and EMD (high viscosity planetary mixing) models, handling 54 to 2,650 gallons.
• Fillmastic Model High viscosity mixing machine processing products up to 2 million Centipoise with triple action mixing system including high shear granulating masticator, helical anchor stirrer, and integrated discharge extruder, designed for mastics, sealants, pastes, and heavy adhesives.
• Food and Pharmacy Hygienic Mixers Hygienic mixing machines for food, pharmaceutical, and beverage industries configured for full CIP integration, constructed in 316L stainless steel with full validation and certification (IQ-OQ-PQ) available.
• Powder and Pigment Blenders Solids mixing equipment including intensifier mixer/dispersers for fluidized fine particles, plough mixers for diffusive solids mixing, and ribbon blenders for convective blending, handling 54 to 1,320 gallons with UL-listed control systems.
• Biomass Drying System Class 1 Div 1 explosion-proof closed system for drying spent fibers and recovering remaining solvent to less than 0.04%, achieving 37% to 52% solvent recovery by weight and 95% decarboxylation conversion within first hour.
• Laboratory Testing and Process Development Services Laboratory testing and trials for media grinding, solvent recovery, and tank washing applications, plus process development services to optimize customer processes, including scale-up calculations and procedure development.
• Custom Steel Fabrication Services Metal fabrication services including waterjet cutting, CNC machining, plate rolling, and welding for various industries including ASME code and non-code process vessels, reactors, hoppers, stacks, and ductwork.

Quantifiable outcome

• Solvent recovery cost of approximately 2 cents per gallon with typical ROI of less than 1 year
• +5 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles6 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature5 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Fillworth UK LtdcoreChannel Partner/ Reseller/ DistributorCB Mills is proud to now represent Fillworth UK Ltd in North America. Fillworth's equipment expands on CB Mills' knowledge of coatings, paints, and chemicals, and exposes them to customers in the adhesive, caulk, and mastic markets. Fillworth provides a complementary line of mixing machines including Batchranger, Batchmaster, Batchchanger, Fillmastic, and Food/Pharmacy hygienic mixing systems.

Scale indicators6 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• Paul Mueller Company: Custom stainless steel process equipment manufacturer producing tanks, vessels, and processing systems for dairy, food, beverage, pharmaceutical, and industrial customers — directly comparable to CB Mills' custom tank fabrication business across the same regulated end-markets.
• WAB (Willy A. Bachofen): Swiss originator of the DYNO-MILL horizontal grinding mill that CB Mills manufactures and distributes under license in North America. Same horizontal media mill product category and overlapping customer base in paints, inks, and coatings.
• NETZSCH Grinding & Dispersing: Global manufacturer of media grinding mills, dispersers, and homogenizers used in paints, inks, coatings, and chemical processing — directly competing with CB Mills' Red Head and RH-Series mills across overlapping customer verticals.
• INDCO: Manufacturer of industrial mixers, dispersers, and mixing equipment sold to paint, chemical, adhesive, and coatings manufacturers. Competes with CB Mills' mixing equipment and high-speed disperser product lines.
• Modern Process Equipment: Designer and manufacturer of grinding, milling, and particle size reduction equipment for food, chemical, and mineral processing industries. Directly competes with CB Mills' grinding mill portfolio in overlapping industrial processing applications.
• Charles Ross & Son Company: Manufacturer of industrial mixers, blenders, dispersers, and process equipment for the same paints/coatings, chemical, adhesive, food, and pharmaceutical end-markets that CB Mills serves. Directly competes with CB Mills' Red Head and Fillworth-sourced mixing and grinding product lines.
• Apache Stainless Equipment Corporation: Custom fabricator of stainless steel process equipment, mixing tanks, and pressure vessels for the pharmaceutical, food/beverage, chemical, and cosmetics industries. Directly comparable to CB Mills' custom tank fabrication and ASME pressure vessel offerings.
• Hosokawa Micron Powder Systems: Designs and builds media mills, mixers, and dry/wet processing equipment for chemical, pharmaceutical, and food industries. Overlaps directly with CB Mills' Red Head vertical and horizontal grinding mill portfolio and serves many of the same customers.

Broad incumbents

• GMM Pfaudler: Large global supplier of glass-lined reactors, pressure vessels, and process equipment for chemical and pharmaceutical industries. Overlaps with CB Mills' reactor vessel and chemical processing equipment portfolio but at much larger scale and broader scope.
• CST Industries: Major manufacturer of bolted and welded storage tanks, silos, and containment solutions for industrial, municipal, and energy customers. Broadly competes with CB Mills' API, UL-142, and custom storage tank product lines as a larger established player.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks7 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/ChicagoBoilerCo
• Xx.com/chicagoboilerco

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

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 CB Mills