The SNR story begins in Oerlikon, Switzerland, where Jacques Schmidt made the first rings and balls of the future tempered steel bearings. He named his company SRO (S for Schmidt; R for Roost, his wife’s surname; and O for Oerlikon) and, in 1894, registered his SRO ball bearing patent SNR Bearings and made SRO the only ball bearing supplier in France.

SRO opened a factory in Annecy, France to supply the French military aeronautic industry during WWI. In the 1920’s, SRO built three new facilities to meet increasing demand for ball and roller bearings, thrust bearings, and bearing blocks. Automation of production boosted productivity KOYO 501 Bearing throughout the 1930’s, and, by the eve of WWII, SRO had nearly 1,300 employees and produced 1.5 million bearings annually.