History of the Meissner company
On October 1st, 1922, Theodor Meissner and Georg Müller founded the “Modell- und Maschinenfabrik Meissner u. Co. GmbH” in Wolzhausen for the production of models for sewing machine parts and ovens. The existing capacities were soon no longer sufficient, so the steadily growing company acquired the sawmill and the station restaurant in Wallau in 1925 and moved to the new location the following year.
100 years of Meissner in video
- From 1931 to 1945
- From 1945 to 1996
- From 1997 to 2017
- From 2017 until today
In 1931, an order from the Russian commercial agency in Berlin for the production of model equipment for tractor engines enabled Meissner to become a supplier to the automotive industry, in which it is still active today. In 1934, co-founder Georg Müller left the company and set up his own model-making company. He was replaced by Fritz Krämer, who also left in 1942 to found his own company "Krämer und Grebe" in Wallau. In 1935, the GmbH was converted into a general partnership (oHG) and the product range was expanded to include the manufacture of models for the aircraft industry. Following the takeover of the "Lettermannwerk Ludwigshütte" in 1937, which produced butchery machines, Meissner set up its own butchery machine factory in 1942. After the factory premises were hit twice by aerial bombs during the Second World War and severely damaged, the company temporarily relocated production to neighboring plants.
After the end of the war, Meissner experienced difficult times due to the collapse of the vehicle and aircraft industries. Until a production permit for the manufacture of modeling equipment and butchery machines was granted in 1947, the company kept its head above water by manufacturing household mincing machines, aluminum bowls, circular saws and slurry pumps. As the economy recovered, the automotive industry was once again acquired as a customer. In the period between 1956 and 1987, the company was repeatedly rebuilt and new buildings were erected for the individual divisions. 1991 saw the spin-off of "Meissner GmbH und Co. KG Nahrungsmittelmaschinen", which was sold again in 1994. Meissner filed for bankruptcy on September 30, 1994. This was followed a year later by the closure of the special machine construction division.
From 1997, the company continued as a public limited company. The majority of the shares are still owned by the employees. To this day, the main business comprises the manufacture of tools for the foundry industry, blow mold construction and the construction of vehicle linings. In order to be able to operate better internationally, a joint venture with the company "KPMC" has existed in China since 2012. In 2015, the company established its own service department, which is available 24/7 for the repair and maintenance of customer tools. Since 2023, the service department has been integrated back into actual production.
With its entry into 3D printing in 2018 and the establishment of a department for automation and plant engineering in 2020, Meissner AG offers customized solutions for a wide range of applications. These innovative technologies and the return to the food industry through the entry into vertical farming are paving the way for a sustainable future that Meissner AG is actively shaping - for at least the next 100 years.
