Your Partner in Progress
A global leader in envelope, printed products, packaging and automation solutions, the Tension Corporation is a privately held and operated company based in Kansas City, Missouri. Tension manufactures billions of envelopes annually and their envelope and printed products division serve a variety of industries, including third-party billing, financial, insurance and direct marketing. The packaging and automation division of Tension provides software, consumables, automation and service and support for fulfillment to the e-commerce and pharmaceutical industries.
In 2011, Tension rebranded itself from Tension Envelope Corporation to Tension Corporation, reflecting its expanding presence in packaging and automation as well as its increasing footprint in international operations. Today, Tension’s three divisions are Envelope & Print, Packaging & Automation, and International.
How Tension Got Its Name
In the 1880s, a New York envelope manufacturer invented the string and button envelope closure, which consists of two round disks riveted to the seal flap and body of the envelope. The envelope is closed by twisting a string attached to the flap button around the lower button, thus holding the contents under tension. The envelope was named the “Tension Tie.”
Postal regulations at the time did not permit third or fourth class mail to be sealed, making the Tension Tie Envelope an immensely popular product. In fact, the company became so well known for this envelope, it changed its name to the Tension Envelope Company.
In 1937, Berkowitz Envelope acquired the assets and patents of Tension Envelope. In 1944, the company’s plant and sales organizations were united under the well-known Tension name as Tension Envelope Corporation. Tension is now a name recognized by financial institutions, photofinishers, direct marketers, utilities, insurance companies, and dozens of other industries as an innovative manufacturer of high-quality envelopes and one of the leading direct-to-user envelope companies in the nation. Visit our History page for a more detailed timeline of Tension’s milestones.
Excellence in Envelopes
Tension has grown to become the second-largest domestic envelope manufacturer. Known for its innovative envelope solutions, services and environmentally responsible options, it holds more patents on products and processes than all of the other envelope manufacturers combined. Tension makes many of the envelopes you receive and handle daily, including direct mail envelopes, financial transaction envelopes, packaging envelopes and business communication products. Working with customers to deliver quality products, as well as to improve existing products and processes, is core to Tension’s culture.
Expansive Printed Product Offerings
In 2023, Tension launched a new division name, Tension Envelope & Print, to reflect the continued expansion and commitment to printed products and services. Other efforts to grow it’s offerings included the 2022 acquisition of a printing facility in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania, This expansion enabled Tension to vertically integrate several of its product lines. In addition to the billions of envelopes it manufactures each year, Tension prints and produces products such as continuous forms, folded inserts, buck slips, booklets, folded self-mailers, postcards, and more.
Packaging & Automation and International Divisions
Tension Packaging & Automation is a leader in comprehensive packaging and automation solutions. Tension’s expert team designs, engineers, and builds scalable systems for the pharmacy and eCommerce order fulfillment industries. As specialists in system integration, it provides expertise in manufacturing, installation, equipment, robotics, software, and support for both standard and custom automation.
Tension International operates in China and Taiwan. Tension Corporation began its overseas operations more than 20 years ago and continues to meet the needs of its regional customers today.
Looking Toward Tomorrow
Tension is enjoying its fourth generation of family leadership and maintains active roles in its associated industries. With its long and successful history, Tension is prepared to meet the challenges of today and the future. Tension recognizes the complexities of today’s business requirements, and understands the need to control costs, increase productivity and grow your organization. Your company needs bold strategies and strong business partners that make measurable contributions to your progress. Tension can be your partner in progress.
