Sulzer (manufacturer)
The Sulzer AG is a globally active Swiss industrial group based in Winterthur.
Corporate Structure
Sulzer consists of four core operating divisions:
- Sulzer Pumps. - Pumps
- Sulzer Metco. - Coating systems and linings
- Sulzer Chemtech. - Separation columns and static mixers
- Sulzer Turbo Services. - Repairs and services for thermal turbomachinery, generators and motors
As staff functions Sulzer Management and Sulzer Innotec apply. Sulzer Real Estate, which managed a portfolio of over one billion francs, was sold in 2010.
The Sulzer Group employed a total of approximately 17,000 in January 2012 people and generated 2011 sales of 3.58 billion Swiss francs.
History
Creation and growth
The company " Gebrüder Sulzer foundry in Winterthur» was founded in 1834 by Johann Jacob Sulzer, the " 1834 building " had built at the Zurich Street in the Winterthur. His sons Johann Jakob and Salomon produced cast iron, built fire engines, pumps and equipment for the textile industry; later they also began with the installation of heating systems. In 1836, the workforce grew to about forty journeymen, laborers and apprentices. 1839 was followed by an extension to a foundry, in the original building a mechanical workshop has been established and the first steam engine was built in Winterthur. 1845 the company's own " health club support for factory workers " was founded. It later became the Sulzer health insurance, which was renamed in 1997 and provitamin today operates as an independent health insurance. 1859 was a first " Societäts contract " between the Sulzer Brothers, there were new products, first steam engines, later also introduced ships, new organization and production methods. By 1860, followed by a first foreign sales office in Turin in 1867 to participate in the World Exhibition in Paris. The workforce had grown to more than 1,000 workers, so extensions were necessary.
1870, the first company-owned vocational school in Switzerland was founded with training workshops. 1872 created 24 workers' houses in Veltheim by the " Society for the Creation cheaper houses », more houses and homes followed in other parts of Winterthur. 1873 was followed by participation at the World Exhibition in Vienna. From 1880 was primarily due to growth in steam engines to about 2,000 employees. 1881 a branch operation in Ludwigshafen was founded. 1890, the first " workers 'commission ' of Switzerland was founded.
1898 was a first Sulzer diesel engine in collaboration with Rudolf Diesel. By 1900 the company had over 3,000 employees and sales offices in Milan, Paris, Cairo, London, Moscow and Bucharest. 1914 emergence of three public companies instead of the original family company, which was a superior as a precursor of today's Holdings with sales office in Kobe (Japan). 1919 first regularly published newspaper of the workforce in Switzerland as a customer magazine was " Technische Rundschau Sulzer » published. In the following years the company grew with the advancement of technology. Many production facilities spread southeast of the old town of Winterthur, and later also in other districts. In 1920 with the work of caring Sulzer Brothers the establishment of a first social insurance for the employees of the company Sulzer. The work of caring is the oldest forerunner of today's Sulzer pension fund.
Crisis of the 1930s
During the 1930's due to the global economic crisis, production fell by two-thirds, and there was a massive reduction in personnel. In 1937, a strike, a strike was imminent second country doing well at Sulzer narrowly avoided and the " peace agreement " signed. In the 1940s, the subsidiaries were sold in Ludwigshafen and dissolved the parent company and looking for new markets abroad.
Growth and flowering in the postwar years
In the 1950s there was a growing production by foreign workers, especially from southern Europe. It came to the expansion of the plant Oberwinterthur and also the creation of new business units for energy, plant and equipment and textile machines, accompanied by better working conditions, expansion of social services, women's work for " lighter factory work " as well as for subsidized housing in surrounding communities.
The new headquarters, a landmark Winterthur and at that time the tallest building in Switzerland - during the second heyday after the Second World War in the early 1960s, the Sulzer -Hochhaus arose.
In 1961 the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM ) was incorporated into Winterthur, and the large diesel engine, the worldwide flagship product of Sulzer. In 1966, a stake in Maschinenfabrik Escher Wyss AG in Zurich with 53 per cent, which Sulzer reached an all time high with over 30,000 employees. A reorganization followed in 1968; Sulzer was a " group structure " with a four-man line with " collegiality ". In 1969 it came to the complete takeover of Escher Wyss AG, from which the Sulzer -Escher Wyss AG was formed.
Crisis of the 1970s and 1980s
In the 1970s, a new orientation to the technology group and the development of material technologies were announced by the oil crisis. During the 1980s, a reorganization with " presidential " and slowly a stale decentralization took place. On the global decline in the capital goods in the 1970s Sulzer responded after losses in the second half of the 1980s. 1982 Maschinenfabrik Ruti was acquired, domestic production and the power loom were expanded.
Losses and reorganizations
1984 Sulzer recorded losses, and there were massive restructuring. 1988 rose Tito Tettamanti as a shareholder in the company. There was a further reorganization with the task of unprofitable product lines and a reorientation. Medical technology was expanded by the purchase of American Inter Medics group for a billion francs. The Winterthur Maschinenfabrik was disbanded in 1990 and its existing departments were vertically integrated with simultaneous tightening of the product areas in the company. This led to the evacuation of the founding site in Winterthur and the start of planning for a new use. Sulzer employed for the first time more employees abroad than in Switzerland. There followed in 1989 the establishment of the New Sulzer Diesel ( NSD) and 1991 of the sale of the diesel engine division at Fincantieri ( 42%), Bremer Vulkan (42%) and management (6% ) while maintaining 10% of the share capital (from 1997 Wärtsilä NSD, from 2000 Wärtsilä Switzerland ). 1992 non-Swiss shareholders were first registered. The Foundry top Winterthur was closed in 1993.
1996 was a technology center of Sulzer Orthopedics AG in the Industrial Park Upper Winterthur. The environment of Sulzer Chemtech was sold to Austrian Energy & Environment (AE & E). After an initial public offering of the independent Elma Electronic AG the finance company was founded "Fund for the creation and maintenance of jobs " for outsourced (discontinued ) Company areas.
Shrinkage and Clearance
In 1997, an IPO of Sulzer Medica, and Sulzer Thermtec ( equipment and valves for power plants ) was sold to the British IMI.
In 1998, Sulzer Medica American Spine-Tech ( spinal orthopedics). That same year, the engineering of the Swiss Locomotive and Machine Works (SLM ) at ABB Daimler - Benz Transportation ( Switzerland ) was sold AG, while the rest of companies continued to exist, the division cog railways to Stadler Rail as Sulzer Winpro until mid-2000. At Sulzer Ruti looms new ( multi-phase weaving ) were meanwhile introduced. 1999, led to a renewed reorganization. Sulzer Industries and Sulzer Medica in their own right. Sulzer Pumps formed a joint venture with the Chinese city of Dalian Pumps, it should be dismantled in the industrial part until 2001, 1,900 jobs worldwide. Sulzer Hydro ( hydro) was sold to the Austrian VA Tech Hydro and Sulzer Medica shifted to Sulzer Biologics in Austin, Texas.
2000 took over the Finnish Ahlstrom Pumps Sulzer Pumps, and several divisions were to be divested and sold as first Sulzer Turbo to the MAN Group. Middle of the steam locomotive and Maschinenfabrik DLM was made independent from Sulzer Winpro out the remnants of the former SLM were 2001 through a management buyout to Winpro AG, while the metrology business was sold to the Prose AG.
In 2001 there were problems with contaminated hip implants Sulzer Medica and class actions by a spin-off of Sulzer Medica, Sulzer Infra to Groupe Fabricom as part of the Suez group. The company was sold and henceforth under the name axima AG in Switzerland ( axima GmbH in Germany ), Sulzer Textil by the Italian Promatech continued. 2002, the Board has been completely filled to the President. Sulzer Burckhardt was sold to the management, and Sulzer Medica agreed with the U.S. plaintiffs for a comparison. The Sulzer AG paid for this 75 million dollars, making its share price fell dramatically.
Fresh start with four divisions
The period since 2003 is referred to as a new beginning, as the Group since then consists of the current four divisions. Since the completion of structural reorganization of the group is smaller, but more profitable and high growth. 2003 was a " cultural program " decided which should contribute to increasing the performance of the company. Supported by the good state of the world economy, the program could have some success in the following years. The core divisions, in particular the pump business grew profitably and increased our operating and net profit by more than 50 percent.
2006 was the venture Sulzer Hexis, which had for years engaged in the development of a high temperature fuel cell SOFC type, abandoned for lack of economic prospects. Remnants of the company remained in a management buyout.
2007 increased the Vienna investors Ronny Pecik and Georg Stumpf, together with the Russian oligarch Viktor Vekselberg at Sulzer. On 26 April 2007, Everest reported Beteiligungs GmbH ( Vienna ) that they hold a stake of more than 31 percent of Sulzer as of April 20, 2007. Specifically, this participation consisted of a stake of almost 18 percent and a share option of around 14 percent. Beneficial owner of Everest were at the time, Viktor Vekselberg, the Vienna-based RPR private foundation by Ronny Pecik and based in Vienna Millennium Foundation of Georg Stumpf. None of these investors had ever before filed a disclosure report at Sulzer. This surprising entry drew the longest study of the Swiss Financial Market Supervisory Authority ( FINMA ) to be an indication for breach of disclosure requirements resulted at the end. The investors had a gap in the Swiss capital market regulations taken advantage of and be under improper use of formally denominated cash-settled options to give the potential control over those associated with stocks and options with actual delivery mediated by voting. FINMA also noted that the Zurich Cantonal Bank ( ZKB), the German Bank AG Zurich Branch ( DBZ ) and NZB Neue Zürcher Bank ( NCB ) had violated partially serious in connection with the issuance or trading of these options have their regulatory obligations.
At the same time the advent of rumors about an at the time unknown investor, coupled with concerns about a hostile takeover, Sulzer was in 2007 announced its intention to take over the English company Bodycote. The board of directors of the listed company, however, refused a takeover bid.
In 2010, the British Dowding & Mills, a leading provider of maintenance and repair services for generators and motors, acquired for CHF 180 million. Thus, the Sulzer Turbo Services has been strengthened and expanded its field of activity. This step also served to strengthen the service business, away from the cyclical New business.
In spring 2011, Sulzer announced that the pump division Cardo Flow Solutions, the Swedish Assa Abloy to take over for CHF 858 million, water and strengthen Sulzer Pumps in the promising wastewater market. Under the deal, which was approved in July by the competition authorities, Sulzer grew around the brands and ABS Scan Pumps with 1,800 new employees.
In July 2013, Sulzer announced that they wanted to despite sales growth and increased order compared to the first half of last year to sell the Fourth Division " Sulzer Metco ". A sale is expected to make additional funds for acquisitions and investments in organic growth in the remaining three key markets available.