Carl von Linde belongs to that band of engineers in the 19th century, which successfully blended scientific inventions and entrepreneurship. In 1877, Munich university Professor Carl Linde obtained a patent for his refrigerating machine - a patent for something that was not merely an invention, but the result of serious research in the basic laws of physic. Linde went on to found Linde Company; it made a modest beginning as a firm specialised in refrigeration technology: starting from the conceptualization till the successful sales of the assembled products. The most striking feature of the company's history is its broad international alignment and cooperation with many different partners at the same time. Although Carl von Linde aimed at achieving technological market leadership, in the year 1901 Linde started a gas separation company through excellence in cryogenic technology. Linde aggrandized its status from that of a gas separation and refrigeration company to a multi national company. The company was nurtured by Linde, his sons and his grand children. Thus, until 1960, Linde remained largely a "family company". The company reacted less radically to the changes in the market than the other players. The company focused on continued customer orientation, contracting and exchanging technology and knowledge. After the sale of the refrigeration division in 2004, Gas, engineering and material handling are the main business areas for the company.

On occasion of the 125th anniversary of Linde nexus published a scientific history book for a wide variety of readers. The book was authored by Dr. Hans-Liudger Dienel and is titled
"Linde. History of a Technology Corporation 1879 - 2004", Houndsmills and New York 2004 (also in german: Munich 2004). Information about the company history of Linde can be found in this website under "Publications".