Age, Biography and Wiki

Demetrius Comino was born on 4 December, 1902 in Sydney, Australia, is an Engineer, inventor, entrepreneur and philanthropist. Discover Demetrius Comino's Biography, Age, Height, Physical Stats, Dating/Affairs, Family and career updates. Learn How rich is he in this year and how he spends money? Also learn how he earned most of networth at the age of 85 years old?

Popular As N/A
Occupation N/A
Age 85 years old
Zodiac Sign Sagittarius
Born 4 December, 1902
Birthday 4 December
Birthplace Sydney, Australia
Date of death 27 September, 1988
Died Place Athens, Greece
Nationality Australia

We recommend you to check the complete list of Famous People born on 4 December. He is a member of famous Engineer with the age 85 years old group.

Demetrius Comino Height, Weight & Measurements

At 85 years old, Demetrius Comino height not available right now. We will update Demetrius Comino's Height, weight, Body Measurements, Eye Color, Hair Color, Shoe & Dress size soon as possible.

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Dating & Relationship status

He is currently single. He is not dating anyone. We don't have much information about He's past relationship and any previous engaged. According to our Database, He has no children.

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Demetrius Comino Net Worth

His net worth has been growing significantly in 2023-2024. So, how much is Demetrius Comino worth at the age of 85 years old? Demetrius Comino’s income source is mostly from being a successful Engineer. He is from Australia. We have estimated Demetrius Comino's net worth, money, salary, income, and assets.

Net Worth in 2024 $1 Million - $5 Million
Salary in 2024 Under Review
Net Worth in 2023 Pending
Salary in 2023 Under Review
House Not Available
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Source of Income Engineer

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Timeline

1884

Demetrius (always known as 'Dimitri') Comino (Greek: Δημήτριος Κομηνός) was born in Sydney, the eldest son of a Greek oyster merchant who had migrated from the island of Kythira in 1884.

1902

Demetrius Comino OBE (4 September 1902 – 27 September 1988) was an Australian engineer, inventor, entrepreneur and philanthropist during the 20th century.

He invented the slotted angle steel construction system, Dexion, which became widely used internationally for commercial shelving, storage racking, exhibition stands, accommodation, and for domestic purposes.

1921

He demonstrated his creativity aged 12 when he invented a toy submarine, and after attending Sydney Grammar School, travelled to London in 1921 to study electrical engineering at University College London.

1924

After graduating with a first class honours degree in 1924, Comino served a three-year apprenticeship with British Thomson-Houston in Rugby before leaving to establish a printing business, Krisson Printing Ltd, near Oxford Circus in central London ("Krisson" being Greek for 'better').

The printing business grew quickly, but Comino never felt happy in printing and wanted further business challenges.

1937

In 1937, he established Dexion Ltd (from the Greek for 'right') to market products he had developed and patented to improve the efficiency of the printing process.

These included: a Gauge to check the squareness and register of a printer's forme; trolleys; chutes; a duplicate book; interlocking frames to hold print in place inside the chase; and a compositor's chart.

As a printer, he was also concerned about the lack of versatility of the wooden shelving often for storing paper and other consumables.

He began to work on steel shelving which could readily be assembled, dismantled and then reassembled.

1939

By 1939 he had developed an angled section made of steel with slots cut down one side and a long groove cut down the other.

Birmingham-based Accles & Pollock manufactured an initial batch which was delivered in late August, a week before the declaration of the Second World War on 3 September 1939, and Comino sold most of this angled section to local stores of Lillywhites, John Lewis and Selfridges.

During the war, partly because of paper rationing, the Krisson printing business shrank, but Comino's engineering background and problem-solving mentality helped him shift into new areas of machining.

Having turned down a managerial position in an aircraft factory offered by the Ministry of Aircraft Production, he installed equipment to make aircraft parts, with the Ministry of Labour allocating lathes, drills, milling machines and other machine tools.

Meanwhile, Comino continued to experiment with the angled steel lengths made before the war.

Eventually, he worked out that by fitting one angled section into another and bolting them together through carefully positioned holes he could produce a very rigid joint, and, in addition to adjustable shelving, he began to develop ideas of what other structures could be created using the product.

1946

Several prototypes were made, and in 1946, with £7000 savings and £7000 borrowed from Krisson's bankers, he invested in a second-hand Henry & Wright standard die press, and began manufacture, adapting the press so that the steel strip could be continuously fed into it and painted.

1947

In May 1947, he established a factory in Chingford in north-east London, staffed by nine factory workers and one sales person, but sales were initially disappointing, partly due to post-war cash payment requirements.

1949

However, sales and production increased to 50,000 feet per week in 1949, generating a business turnover of £500,000 that year.

1950

During 1950, the Dexion strips began to be used for exhibitions, and production reached 125,000 feet per week, and a new Dexion factory was opened in Enfield.

Dexion quickly faced competition.

The prior existence of Meccano prevented a generic patent so Dexion patents were restricted to slot and hole configurations, and other UK and European companies began offering different hole patterns and metal strip thicknesses.

1953

After the war, Krisson resumed as a printing business, but Comino left day-to-day management in the hands of senior staff so that he could devote himself to the Dexion slotted angle concept (though he did write a history of the printing business, published as The Krisson Story in 1953).

After the August 1953 earthquake rocked the Ionian Islands in Greece, Dexion donated 20,000 feet of its product for new housing (a prototype house was designed within three weeks).

"Operation Ulysses" attracted worldwide attention, including an article in Time magazine and British Pathe newsreels.

1956

But by 1956 Dexion's turnover exceeded £2m, and of the company's 700 employees, 200 were based outside its three UK plants – in factories in Australia, Belgium and Canada, with licensees in other countries (France, Chile, Spain, Argentina and the US).

The main scoreboard and television platform at the 1956 Winter Olympics' ski stadium at Cortina d'Ampezzo was constructed from Dexion, and Ghana's independence celebrations in 1957 involved grandstands for 10,000 people, six miles of crush barriers and 500 bunting poles – all made of Dexion.

He devised a simple 'Problem-solving Procedure' (PSP) in 1956; he then defined the essential ingredients for problem solving and achievement – PACRA (Purpose-Alternatives-Criteria-Resources-Action); he then promoted what became the GRASP process (Getting Results And Solving Problems – also known as Getting Results and Seizing Potential).

1963

Dexion made a similar gesture following the 1963 Skopje earthquake, providing Dexion building frame materials to enable 49 Royal Engineers to build 1560 dwellings, enough for two complete villages, one of which was nicknamed Dexiongrad.

Comino was appointed OBE in 1963 for services to industry.

Throughout his working life, Comino had looked to develop generic approaches to practical problem-solving.

1968

In 1968, the company went public, buoyed by results showing a 40% increase in world sales to £14m and a new record profit of £1.133m.

1970

However, the early 1970s UK recession proved challenging, and following two poor trading years, Dexion came to the attention of Chicago-based steel company Interlake Inc, and a £9.4m sale eventually took place in July 1974, valuing Dexion at £4m less than its 1968 flotation price.

1971

In 1971 he founded the Comino Foundation, an educational charity.

These ideas led him to establish the Comino Foundation educational charity in 1971, a step which was financially supported by the proceeds of some dividend income following the 1968 public flotation of Dexion.

The Foundation's objectives included promotion of GRASP and also attempted to change attitudes to manufacturing in the UK.

1978

Comino, by this point Dexion's chairman, retired, though he retained a place on the company's board until 1978.

1995

Under its new management, Dexion flourished for 20 years with sales reaching £200m by 1995.

Interlake then sold Dexion, with ownership eventually passing to the Norway-based Constructor Group AS.

2003

UK manufacture ceased in 2003, but Dexion warehouse solutions are still marketed, generating a 2010 turnover of €100m from operations in 30 European countries.