Facit was a
manufacturer of…

… mechanical
calculators…

Typewriters…

… And office
furniture…

Once upon a time,
the Facit wizard
smiled all over the
world.

Kids played with
them, and they were
seen everywhere
along with the
calculators.

Today, Facit
is history.

In 1971-72, the
electronic
calculator put an
end to 50 years of
success.

However, a lot of
people still have a
relationship to the
products.

Memories do not
fade away.

I have collected a few
stories from all
around the world...

The user ‘Broad-banned’:
“We used them in first year Physics in 1967 - before that
it was slide rules and log tables. They used to jam up
frequently so very frustrating to use. Division was a
matter of turning the handle forward till the bell rang,
then back one turn, then on to the next column.
Calculating variances took forever.”

The user ’Woodag’:
“In 1967 I had the dubious honour of being in the
last group at my uni to do a numerical analysis
course using Facit machines like that…

“Besides the bell which indicated the result had
gone negative when dividing, they were far from
silent. A whole room full of students working away
with them produced quite a racket.”

In a newsletter from the Chemistry department at the
University of Sydney, the following could be read
about a professor back in those days:

“Le Fèvre preferred
the Swedish Facit
calculator, a
mechanical
gadget which he
still used to
calculate student
exam averages in
the late 1960s.
(Division was
done by rotating
the handle until
the bell rang and
then racking back
a notch, as I
recall.)”

Larry Perkins:
“I bought a Model 2251 calculator exactly 30 years
ago today. I still use it frequently, as I prefer a
‘substantial’ calculator on my desk, as opposed to
the small, light, hard-to-handle electronic units,
which are fine for most other uses…

… And I admit that, having spent my career in
the development of large-scale but largely silent
computer systems, the FACIT emits certain comforting,
old-fashioned mechanical sounds, as it goes flawlessly
about the business of showing how devastating the
recent economy has been to my retirement funds…

In the event, let me say that this little Swedish
machine has never failed me, its ubiquity allows me
to still get supplies for it, and it has not yet outlived
its utility. It is a triumphant demonstration of good
engineering, great marketing, and an incredibly
clever \"no language\" user's manual design.”

Trevira on Flickr
about the wizards:
”These chaps are
my constant
companions - not
just for Christmas.
I've no idea what
they're about or
where they come
from, but I'm
guessing they're
1960s. Any
suggestions?“

“My dad died
shortly after he
left the
company, and
my sister and I
played with the
orange facit doll
all the time!“
// Cathy

It’s great to see how
those memories of
Facit remain.

And some of those stories
illustrate how fantastic
Facit was at marketing.

Mechanical calculators, Facit wizards
and memories spread out all around
the world – that’s what remains from
a company that Sweden was proud
of 40 years ago.

Thanks to:
Everyone who’ve shared their Facit stories
Åtvidabergs Bruks och Facit Museum, Sweden
http://brukskultur.atvidaberg.se/index2.html
Åssa Industri och Bil Museum, Sweden
http://www.assamuseet.se/

Christian Sandström is a
PhD student at Chalmers
University of Technology in
Gothenburg, Sweden. He
writes and speaks about
disruptive innovation and
technological change.
www.christiansandstrom.org
christian.sandstrom@chalmers.se