Slant/Fin is celebrating 70 years of heating homes and businesses across the U.S. and Canada.

“Mel Dubin started Slant/Fin 70 years ago with an idea and a dream," said Adam Dubin, chairman of Slant/Fin Corp. "He wasn’t the first to make a baseboard, but he knew he could make a better baseboard. I like the think that he simply outworked, out-thought, and ultimately, outran the competition. Quality and customer service mattered above all to my father. And those values are still in our company to this day."

From its beginnings in the back room of a Coney Island bakery in 1949, Slant/Fin has grown to become the largest baseboard heating manufacturer in the U.S. and one of the nation’s top boiler manufacturers, the company noted.

Slant/Fin took its name from founder Mel Dubin’s original design — a slanted, locked fin — that he came up with in response to the era’s inefficient fin-tube radiation designs. The original work area was so small, Dubin said, that they needed to “manufacture 10-foot heating elements one half at a time, then we’d open the back door so we could turn it around to finish it.”

That innovative design — and those which came after it — made an impact in the heating industry. Through the years, the company has grown to a multi-national corporation, installing heating equipment in millions of homes and businesses in North America and around the world. Although its manufacturing facility focuses on baseboards and boilers, its core philosophy is customer service. With not only an outstanding product, but also world-class support and service, the company supplies some of the nation’s most iconic buildings, including One World Trade Center in New York.

Stacey Droogan, Slant/Fin vice president of sales and marketing services, said innovation is only half of the company's success equation.

“As a family-owned business, we’ve built our culture around customer service, trust-building, and relationships,” she said. “At Slant/Fin, customer service isn’t a department, it’s everyone’s job, it’s at the heart of what we do.”

That philosophy extends into tech services, manufacturing and shipping departments, as well, she noted. 

The company provides troubleshooting by phone, full sales support with a team of independent and factory representatives as well as frequent training for both customers and their support team.

With a solid history behind it, the company, its leadership and every member of the Slant/Fin family looks forward to many more milestones in its next 70 years.