What NorLab does

NorLab, the Specialty Gas Division of Norco, Inc., is a privately held U.S. specialty gas producer and distributor founded in the late 1970s and operationally based in Boise, Idaho. The company manufactures and distributes calibration gas mixtures and pure specialty gases packaged in refillable and non-refillable cylinders (sizes 11L to 221L), with purity levels certified up to 99.9999% (six 9s) and multi-component hydrocarbon blending capability. Its catalog spans more than 20 gas types including Air Zero, Ammonia, Benzene, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Hydrogen Sulfide, Isobutylene, Methane, Nitric Oxide, Nitrogen Dioxide, Oxygen, Sulfur Dioxide, Toluene, and various bump-gas blends for 4-gas monitor testing, supported by compatible gas-control equipment (regulators, gauges, devalving tools, tubing, cases, and RKI-brand confined-space instruments GX2009 and GX2012).

NorLab serves customers performing environmental monitoring, industrial hygiene, medical and life-safety instrument calibration, and confined-space gas detection. The business model is built on one-time unit sales of gases, cylinders, and accessories priced per cylinder with no subscription, seat, or usage-based pricing. Distribution is omnichannel: a direct-to-customer e-commerce storefront (norlabstore.com) complemented by a national network of stocking distributors who can fulfill orders locally for expedited delivery, plus direct inside-sales engagement for custom and special-application gas mixtures quoted on a per-job basis.

Revenue mechanics are hardware-driven and fragmented: typical unit prices range from approximately $40 (CO2 cases) to over $1,300 (GX2009 instrument kit), with calibration gases priced roughly $90-$370 per cylinder depending on gas, concentration, balance, and size. The customer base is broad and skewed to SMB and individual buyers — no enterprise contracts, named logos, or concentration data are disclosed. The company ships within the United States and to Canada and Mexico, with hazardous goods (FedEx Overnight for Canada and Alaska) and an empty-cylinder return program routed through UPS back to Boise. No funding events, headcount figures, or financial disclosures are available in the source material.

Name

NorLab

Legal name

NorLab, the Specialty Gas Division of Norco, Inc.

Website

https://norlab-gas.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

1979

Operating status

Operating

Short description

NorLab, the Specialty Gas Division of Norco, Inc., produces and distributes calibration gas mixtures and pure specialty gases (up to 99.9999% purity) in refillable and non-refillable cylinders, serving environmental monitoring, industrial hygiene, medical/life-safety, and gas detection customers across the U.S., Canada, and Mexico via online store and stocking distributors.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Specialty Gas Manufacturing

NAICS

Industrial Gas Manufacturing (32512), Industrial Gas Manufacturing (325120)

SIC

Industrial Organic Chemicals (2860)

akta.pro primary industry

Specialty & Calibration Gas Mixtures (IMAEACAE)

akta.pro secondary industries

Gas Handling Equipment & Storage (Cylinders/Tanks/Valves) (IMAEACAL), Electronics & Semiconductor High-Purity Gases (IMAEACAG), Process Gases & Gas Delivery Consumables (Specialty/Bulk/UHP) (HDAHAGAL), Metering Equipment Testing, Calibration & Certification (EUAJAKAA), Compressed, Liquefied & Refrigerated Gas Transport (Class 2) (TLACANAB)

Keywords

• Calibration gas mixtures
• Specialty gas production
• High-purity specialty gases
• Gas detection equipment
• Industrial gas cylinders

Headquarters

HQ city

Boise

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Gas and cylinder product sales: One-time unit sales of calibration gas mixtures, pure specialty gases, and multi-component hydrocarbon mixtures sold per cylinder in standardized sizes (17L–221L) through the company-owned online store.
2. Accessory and instrument sales: One-time sales of compatible gas control accessories including regulators, dispensing valves, gauges, tubing (FEP-2, Tygon), cylinder stands, devalving tools, and RKI confined-space instruments (GX2009, GX2012).
3. Custom blend sales: Custom-built special application gas mixtures sold per quote based on customer-specified composition, with inside-sales engagement to define the product.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels1 record

Core offering

NorLab manufactures and distributes certified calibration gas mixtures and high-purity specialty gases (up to 99.9999% purity), packaged in refillable and non-refillable cylinders in sizes from 17L to 221L. The product line spans single-component calibration gases (NH3, CO, CO2, H2, H2S, NO, NO2, SO2, methane, propane, and others), multi-component hydrocarbon and 4-gas bump-test blends, and compatible gas-control equipment including pressure regulators, cylinder devalving tools, gauges, stands, transport bags, tubing, and RKI-brand 4-gas confined-space monitors, sold as one-time unit purchases through an online store and stocking distributor network.

Product overview

NorLab is the Specialty Gas Division of Norco, Inc., and operates as a single-product-line specialty gas manufacturer and distributor rather than a multi-module software platform. Its offering is a unified catalog of calibration gas products, cylinders, regulators, and accessories sold through an e-commerce storefront. The product portfolio comprises pure specialty gases (e.g., Nitrogen at 99.9999% purity, Air Zero), single-component calibration gases (Ammonia, Benzene, Carbon Dioxide, Carbon Monoxide, Ethylene, Hydrogen, Hydrogen Cyanide, Hydrogen Sulfide, Isobutylene, Methane, N-Butane, Nitric Oxide, Nitrogen Dioxide, Oxygen, Pentane, Propane, Sulfur Dioxide, Toluene), multi-component bump gas blends for 4-gas monitor testing, refillable and non-refillable cylinders in sizes from 11 to 221 liters, pressure regulators for 17/34 LT and 34/58/103/116 LT cylinder families, and accessories including 4-gas monitors (RKI GX2009, GX2012), cases, cylinder devalving tools, gauges, cylinder stands, transport bags, and tubing. Together, these product families form a complete calibration gas ecosystem: the gases are paired with compatible cylinders, regulators, and accessories to support industrial hygiene, environmental, medical, and special-application monitoring instrument calibration.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Single-component calibration gas mixtures Certified single-component calibration gas mixtures for instrument calibration, covering Ammonia (NH3), Benzene, Carbon Dioxide (CO2), Carbon Monoxide (CO), Ethylene, Hydrogen (H2), Hydrogen Cyanide (HCN), Hydrogen Sulfide (H2S), Isobutylene, Methane (CH4), N-Butane, Nitric Oxide (NO), Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2), Oxygen (O2), Pentane, Propane, Sulfur Dioxide (SO2), and Toluene, supplied in nitrogen or air balance at documented ppm or LEL concentrations for environmental, industrial hygiene, and emissions monitoring instrument calibration.
• High-purity specialty gases Pure specialty gases certified to 99.9999% (six 9s) purity, including Air Zero and Nitrogen (N2) at 100%, packaged in multiple cylinder sizes (17L to 221L) for purging, blanketing, and as balance gases in calibration mixtures for analytical and process applications.
• Multi-component bump gas blends Multi-component bump test gas mixtures for functional (bump) testing of 4-gas monitors, available in variants containing H2S/CO/Methane/O2, H2S/CO/Pentane/O2, and H2S/CO/Propane/O2, used by industrial safety teams to validate sensor response before confined-space entry or each shift.
• Refillable and non-refillable gas cylinders Specialty gas cylinders in 11L, 17L, 34L, 58L, 103L, 116L, and 221L sizes offered in both refillable and non-refillable configurations with CGA600 and CGA C-10 valve compatibility for broad regulator interoperability. Non-refillable cylinders are fully recyclable through the Boise, Idaho return program.
• Pressure regulators for calibration cylinders Pressure regulators specified to operate with NorLab cylinders, available in two families: 17/34 LT Steel Regulators at 0.25 to 1.5 LPM flow rates (models 400, 411, 413, 414, 417, 418) and 34/58/103/116 LT Regulators at 0.2 to 6.0 LPM flow rates (models 511-518), enabling controlled dispensing of calibration gas into analyzers and monitors.
• RKI 4-gas confined-space monitors RKI Instruments confined-space 4-gas monitors that detect O2, CO, LEL, and H2S, sold as part of NorLab's compatible equipment line. Includes the GX2009 Confined Space Instrument Kit (with pump, calibration cup, and chargers, $1,325.00) and the GX2012 standard 4-gas instrument with lithium-ion battery ($1,245.00), used with NorLab bump gases and regulators.
• Gas control accessories Compatible accessories for use with NorLab cylinders and regulators, including carrying cases (models 500A, 500B, 500C, 500D, 505 for 2-4 cylinders of varying sizes), cylinder devalving tools (CGA600 SKU NLB600DV; CGA C-10 SKU NLBC10DV), cylinder stands (SKU STAND), 1000 PSI pressure gauges (SKU Gauge and GaugeSS), dual-cylinder transport bags (SKU CTB-100), and FEP-2/FEP-4 plus Tygon tubing for calibration gas delivery.
• Custom special-application gas blends Custom-built multi-component and special-application gas mixtures produced per quote based on customer-specified composition and cylinder size for non-standard analytical, research, or process applications not covered by catalog SKUs, sold via an inside-sales motion.

Quantifiable outcome

• Calibration gas purity up to 99.9999% (six 9s) for pure specialty gases
• +3 more outcomes

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

Feature4 records

Scale indicators4 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Linde (formerly Praxair): Linde, through Praxair, operates a large specialty/calibration gas business serving environmental monitoring, industrial hygiene, and life-safety customers. It offers comparable multi-component blends and pure gases but at vastly larger scale and global reach than NorLab.
• Air Liquide: Air Liquide is a global industrial gas major whose specialty gas division (including the legacy Scott Specialty Gases brand) supplies calibration gas mixtures and high-purity gases overlapping directly with NorLab's catalog. It competes across the same end markets but as part of a much broader industrial gas portfolio.
• BOC Gases (Linde): BOC, now part of Linde, supplies specialty and calibration gases across environmental, medical, and industrial markets. It overlaps with NorLab's catalog but competes from a much larger industrial gas platform with global distribution.
• Air Products and Chemicals: Air Products supplies specialty and high-purity gases for analytical, environmental, and process applications. It overlaps with NorLab in pure specialty gases and calibration blends, but as part of a diversified industrial gas and hydrogen portfolio rather than a calibration-focused niche.

Emerging players

• RKI Instruments: RKI Instruments is a gas-detection manufacturer whose 4-gas monitors (including the GX2009 and GX2012 sold through NorLab) complement calibration gas usage. It is not a direct gas competitor but a partner whose instruments drive recurring calibration gas demand for NorLab.

Direct peers

• Gasco (Calibration Specialty Gas): Gasco is a specialty calibration gas manufacturer focused on multi-component environmental and industrial hygiene gas mixtures, closely mirroring NorLab's product positioning and customer base. It is a like-sized direct competitor in the North American calibration gas niche.
• Calgaz (Air Liquide brand): Calgaz, an Air Liquide brand, supplies calibration and specialty gas mixtures in non-refillable cylinders globally, directly overlapping NorLab's calibration gas catalog and refillable/non-refillable cylinder packaging model.
• MATHESON (Nippon Gases): MATHESON is a leading specialty and calibration gas supplier in North America, offering a comparable catalog of multi-component gas mixtures, pure gases, and gas-handling equipment for environmental, industrial hygiene, and process customers. It is the closest direct competitor to NorLab's calibration gas business.

Others

• Norco, Inc. Norco, Inc. is NorLab's privately held parent company and a broader industrial gas and welding supply distributor. It is not a peer in the calibration gas niche but a related industrial gas supplier whose wider distribution scale directly underpins NorLab's go-to-market.
• Honeywell Analytics (BW Technologies): Honeywell Analytics, including the BW Technologies portable gas detector line, sells 4-gas monitors that compete with the RKI units NorLab distributes and similarly consume calibration/bump-test gas. It is an adjacent ecosystem player rather than a gas supplier.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

Compliance1 record

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 NorLab