When one thinks of rolling ladders, the mind envisions some stuffy library in a fancy mansion. And, while it can be that, the country’s oldest brand of rolling ladders now makes these rolling — and in some cases non-rolling — ladders for use in every room in the home. 

Available with a multitude of options, these ladders can be configured to the unique design tastes and needs of the user. Today’s rolling ladders can be glamorous, yet utilitarian, and can make it easier to get a book from the top shelf of a bookcase, chic clothes from a high-end closet, or food stuffs from a kitchen cabinet.  

A rich legacy 
In 1905, the Putnam Rolling Ladder Co. was established, and today, while under new ownership, the brand continues to serve customers from around the world, through a variety of distribution channels, and at different price points.

In 2021 Custom Service Hardware (CSH) of Jackson, Wisconsin, acquired Putnam and added its rolling ladder options to the company’s portfolio of ladders.

CSH distributes a vast array of products including rolling ladders, rolling barn door hardware, and hidden bookcase doors, as well as more than 30,000 products sold to builders, contractors, and homeowners worldwide. The company has a 100,000-square-foot warehouse space and 65 employees. 

“In 2025, Putnam Rolling Ladders will celebrate our 120 anniversary,” said Rebecca Krueger, vice president of sales and marketing at CSH. “We are proud to be the next generation of owners to champion this brand that has such a legacy. It is important to us to maintain the heritage and values that they brought while adding quality manufacturing processes and design tools for new ladder customers.”

“We are the new custodians of the brand,” added Carlos Paulino, vice president of operations at CSH.

A ladder just for you 
While the traditional Putnam wood rolling ladders are the original products, which are known as the Classic No. 1, and the ones most people envision when they picture a sliding ladder, the company offers several product lines, each of which can be tailored to the customer’s design aesthetic. 

In addition to the Classic  No. 1, which features the original 1905 Putnam design, the Alta line mixes materials to create a rolling ladder system “that pushes the boundaries with a linear, clean silhouette.” Other lines include the Quiet Glide, with its smooth, noiseless operation, The Meadow Lane top hook ladder at an affordable price point, and Log, the stationery ladder with a rustic look.

Within each line, CSH offers a range of customization options such as wood type, finished or unfinished, and hardware, which is available in a variety of finishes.

The rolling ladders are assembled with superior metal hardware in finishes that offer elegance and sophistication. Choose from black, polished nickel or chrome, oil-rubbed bronze, both polished and antiqued brass, and satin brass, as well as satin nickel. As the company says, “The rolling library ladder hardware you get with us upholds our standards of excellence, so you get a durable craftsman-quality product from top to bottom.

On the Putnam website, a configurator tool allows the customer to select from a variety of design options including wood species, hardware, finish, size specs, and roller type. A running tally is kept as choices are made.

Round the bend
One hot product design is a ladder that runs along a curved track, said Chris Clarke, sales manager at CSH. One of the company’s recent projects featured a curved system as the star of the show (see top picture, above). “Our ability to bend one piece so eloquently and beautifully sets our ladders apart as the only company in the marketplace providing this beautiful execution,” said Krueger. “We have had a lot of customers come to us just for our unique process resulting in such a smooth movement.” 

To achieve that smooth movement requires a precise bend. And, if the customer chooses a curved track system, that track will be manufactured in the company’s time-honored tradition. By hand, and, in fact, on the exact machine that has been used for a century, said Paulino. 

“We used to use a piece of equipment that required we do five passes to achieve the desired specification,” said Paulino. “With the old machine, we are to do it in one pass with tremendous precision.”

Cavernous warehouse
To keep up with orders, both for the ladder products and the voluminous number of hardware items it distributes, the company operates a 100,000-square-foot warehouse that is closely monitored to ensure the temperature and humidity are kept consistent despite the cold Wisconsin winter weather, said Paulino.

The warehouse is divided into two, between hardware and ladders. On the ladder side, components are warehoused, minimal production is undertaken, and assembly and shipping operations are conducted. Each section of the warehouse has massive inventories.

Also on the ladder side, in addition to the bending operation, the company cuts-to-size metal tubes using a machine the workers fondly call the “Tony,” which was named after a worker who has since retired. (For more on the Tony, see sidebar at the end of the story.)

The company utilizes several vendors to supply components. For example, a local woodworker, Phil Abel, owner of Decennium Cabinetry, produces wooden components such as steps and rails out of his 1,900-square-foot shop, which includes half a garage in which he houses a CNC router.

Like his customer, Abel keeps a lot of inventory so he can meet CSH’s needs in a short time frame. He keeps a multi-week supply of machined components in case of a rush order or in case something were to happen to him that would keep him from working. The components are shelved and notated by type, species, and other critical data.

“I make parts for the Putnam ladder line so I do all the species that they offer, the two different widths, and the variable heights,” he said. “Whatever they ask for, I will do my best to accommodate.”

While CSH outsources some components, that does not mean they relinquish quality control, said Paulino. “Parts are inspected to make sure they meet specifications, and the wood is defect-free,” he explained.

About once a week, Abel delivers a load of components to CSH, but before they make the short trek from his shop he also makes sure they meet spec. “When I deliver them, I know where they are [quality-wise] and where I want them to be because I know they check all that stuff.”

SIDEBAR: How do they make the ladders?

In a small Wisconsin workshop, a component supplier makes individual parts that go into a Putnam ladder. See how many “steps” it takes to make a step. Also, making rails and tracks, and why do they call a machine the “Tony”?

Steps to make a step

At Decennium Cabinetry, the 1,900-square-foot wood shop that supplies ladder components for Putnam Rolling Ladder Co., shelf after shelf after shelf are chock full of ladder parts, and blanks in myriad species, in inventory. Included among the individual components are steps, stacks of them. The steps, it turns out, are the components that take the most time to produce. Why is that? 

"There's just so many steps to make a step," said Phil Abel, owner of Decennium Cabinetry, who utilizes CNC router, among other equipment to produce these key parts.

"You start with a 4-1/2 inch blank," he says. "Then you have to cut it to size, you have to clip the corners, you have to drill the holes." Then there are the edges and the faces.  

"There's like nine steps to make a step. And, there's just no way to make them go faster."

What, exactly, is the Tony?

At Putnam Ladder Company there is a hard worker. Tony, or, more accurately, the Tony.

The Tony is a machine custom made for the company by a local shop. It is named after a beloved, now retired, worker. 

"Tony was our team member who hand-buffed all the rails for years using a 3M scouring pad," said Carlos Paulino, Putnam's VP of Operations. "When he expressed his desire to retire at the end of 2023, we commissioned this machine to take over his responsibilities. Tony was very consistent in his work; however, his buffing technique was done lengthwise along the rails. While this process did provide good adhesion properties, it wasn't optimal for plating."

When the company designed "Tony," they considered this and made the machine buff in a circular motion, which is much better for plating," said Paulino. "Additionally, our current process allows one person to load the machine and then step away to bring in more rails or perform other tasks, as the machine requires minimal adjustments during operation since it is automated.

"We certainly miss Tony's personality," he said, but "the Tony" is very practical, and multiple employees can operate it efficiently.