The History of Cannon Hygiene
Cannon Hygiene was established in Morecambe, UK in 1955 by Stanley Ostle Kennon and his wife and pioneered washroom servicing. In those early years Cannon Hygiene Products Limited provided automatic toilet flushing systems to textile mills in Yorkshire, UK. In the course of carrying out this work Cannon Hygiene service staff were frequently asked to assist with the broken or full incinerators that were discretely mounted into the wall in the ladies toilet.
Spotting the opportunity Stanley Kennon and his wife pioneered the UK’s first sanitary exchange unit system for customers – the “Comdiscan” service. Comdiscan stood for “a COMplete DISposal of all waste by CANnon” and immediately proved popular with a range of different businesses.
Early in 1961, Stanley Kennon’s two sons, Ian and Peter joined Cannon Hygiene and the first salesman, Norman Haworth, was appointed in 1964 with an area stretching from Inverness to London. As news of the unique service spread depots were also established in Bradford and London.
OCS Group led by David Cracknell had been diversifying and saw Cannon Hygiene as an opportunity for mutual expansion. OCS acquired 28% of the business from the Kennon family in 1976, followed by the remainder in 1983.
Additional services were added, such as pest control in 1983 and the provision of a “Sharps” disposal system in 1986. The paper disposables business was incorporated in 1992.
Cannon Hygiene seeks to continuously innovate in order to provide a more hygienic service to its customers. After extensive research it developed a unique germicide for use in its feminine hygiene units, which was approved by the Environmental Protection Agency and guaranteed effective against bacteria, moulds and viruses, such as E. Coli, Staph. Aureus, Hepatitis B and C, as well as HIV. The germicide is the world leader destroying 99.999% of germs.
With success building at home, Cannon Hygiene looked to expand in other geographies. Norway was established in 1983, followed by Ireland, Portugal and Spain. Cannon Hygiene now operates in over 40 countries worldwide including Malaysia, India, Thailand, New Zealand, Australia, Canada and South Africa.
In 2018 Cannon Hygiene was acquired by Rentokil Initial.