The year 2020 marks the 100th anniversary since James Abercrombie and Harry Cameron, founded Cameron Iron Works, which eventually became Cameron International.

The US National Inventors Hall of Fame (NIHF) announced that Abercrombie and Cameron were among the 22 inductees at the 48th annual awards celebration that took place in May 2020. They joined posthumously more than 600 creators of world-changing inventions. The mission of the NIHF is to recognize inventors and invention, promote creativity and advance the spirit of innovation and entrepreneurship.

Two years after its founding, Abercrombie and Cameron had designed a representation of the world’s first blowout preventer (BOP). At the time, Cameron-manufactured BOPs revolutionized safety standards for drilling operations and well control and were quickly adopted for use in the oilfield. Cameron Iron Works went on to become a leading global provider of wellhead and surface equipment as well as flow control products, systems, and services for the upstream and midstream industries.

When Cameron International completed its merger with Schlumberger in 2016, the complementary technology portfolios created the industry’s only integrated drilling and production systems provider, offering pore-to-pipeline solutions that optimize hydrocarbon recovery.

Learn more about our history of technological innovations here. Learn more about the history of Cameron here.