OM (Officine Meccaniche)

Year of foundation 1899-1975

From the Origins to the Post-War Period (1899-1920)

1847: OM's roots lie in the founding of Officine Meccaniche Grondona in Milan, specializing in the construction of carriages and railway equipment.

1899: The merger of Grondona, Comi & C. with Miani Silvestri & C. resulted in the creation of Società Anonima Officine Meccaniche, based in Milan. The company focused primarily on the production of railway rolling stock, such as locomotives, railcars, and wagons.

1917: A pivotal year. Società Anonima Officine Meccaniche acquired Brixia-Züst, an automotive company in Brescia. This acquisition marked the birth of OM as an automobile manufacturer and ushered in a new era of road vehicle production.

1918: OM produced its first automobile, the S305 model, a vehicle derived from an earlier Züst model.

The Golden Age of Racing Cars and the "Zoological" Series (1920-1960)

1920-1930: OM enjoys a period of great success in the world of motor racing. Its cars, particularly the famous Tipo 665 "Superba," stand out for their reliability and performance.

1925: Victory at the Tripoli Grand Prix and successes in other international races.

1926: The 665 "Superba" wins its class at the 24 Hours of Le Mans.

1927: A historic triumph: at the first edition of the legendary Mille Miglia, OM cars take the first three places, consolidating their sporting reputation.

1933: OM is acquired by the Fiat Group. Passenger car production ceases the following year to focus on commercial and industrial vehicles.

1930s: The company merges its factories in Brescia, Milan, and Suzzara, specializing in various sectors: trucks and buses, railway equipment, agricultural machinery, and forklifts.

Postwar: OM focuses on the production of trucks and buses, contributing to the reconstruction and Italian economic boom.

1950s: The famous "zoological series" of OM trucks begins, with models named after animals. The first and most famous is the OM Leoncino (1950), which becomes an icon of road transport. Other successful models follow, such as the Tigrotto, the Lupetto, the Cerbiatto, and the Daino.

Acquisition into Fiat and the birth of IVECO (1967-1975)

1967: The OM brand is definitively incorporated into the Fiat Industrial Vehicles Group. The zoological series vehicles are gradually replaced by the new OM range (for example, the OM 65).

1975: The Fiat Group decided to merge its industrial vehicle brands (Fiat Veicoli Industriali, OM, Lancia Veicoli Speciali, Unic, and Magirus) into a new holding company: IVECO (Industrial Vehicles Corporation). With this merger, the OM brand gradually disappeared from the truck and bus market.

Present Day

The OM brand, while no longer active in the heavy-duty vehicle sector, survived and evolved in the forklift sector.

1975: OM's forklift division was transformed into "FIAT Carrelli Elevatori".

1992: The German Linde Group acquired a stake in "FIAT Carrelli Elevatori".

2011: OM merged with the German STILL Group, creating OM STILL, a leading manufacturer of forklifts and warehouse equipment.

2019: The OM STILL brand is permanently replaced by the STILL brand.

A museum celebrating OM's century-long history was inaugurated in Lainate (Milan), featuring historical images, documents, and vintage vehicles, keeping alive the memory of one of the most important brands in the Italian mechanical engineering industry.