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Freudenberg Group

April 12, 2024

The Freudenberg Group is a German family-owned diversified group of companies whose products include housewares and cleaning products, automobile parts, textiles, building materials, and telecommunications. Its headquarters are in Weinheim, Baden-Württemberg, and it has production facilities in Europe, Asia, Australia, South and North America. The parent company was founded in 1849 as a producer of leather goods.

Freudenberg SE
Freudenberg Group headquarters in Weinheim, aerial view (2010)
Company typeFamily-owned
Societas Europaea
IndustryConglomerate
Founded1849
FounderCarl Johann Freudenberg
HeadquartersWeinheim, Baden-Wuerttemberg, Germany
Area served
Worldwide
Key people
Mohsen Sohi (CEO)
ProductsHousehold and other products
Revenue €11.753 billion (2022)[1]
Number of employees
51,462 (2022)[1]
Websitewww.freudenberg.com

History edit

Origins to 1933 edit

The company was founded in 1849 by Carl Johann Freudenberg, the son of a wine merchant,[2] and his partner, Heinrich Christian Heintze. The two took over a tannery at Weinheim where Freudenberg had been employed, and introduced lacquered patent leather as a specialty.[3] For the next 80 years, the company produced leather products exclusively.[4][5] Freudenberg prepared his sons, Friedrich Carl and Hermann Ernst Freudenberg, to succeed him, and on Heintze's death in 1874, the Freudenberg family bought his share in the business from his heirs and renamed it to Carl Freudenberg.[6][7]

 
Removal of hair from skins in the Freudenberg tannery, c. 1899

With a second tannery in Schönau and the introduction of the faster and better chrome tanning process developed in the United States, by 1914 Freudenberg had become one of the four largest leather processing firms in Germany, importing skins from the Russian Empire, Poland, Argentina, France, and the United States and exporting finished leather to markets including the British Empire, Switzerland, France, Russia, Poland, and the United States.[8] Like the rest of the German leather industry, the company was hurt by World War I, especially by the stoppage of leather imports under the Allied embargo and then by a ban that was not lifted until 1924, and also by bureaucratic controls. Under the Weimar Republic, inflation and the devaluation of the German currency hindered international business; in order to pay for imported raw materials in hard currency, the company partnered with Swiss bankers to establish Externa S.A., a credit agency in Lausanne. The company also participated in a number of cooperative agreements to facilitate exports, and skirted regulations in Poland and Eastern Europe by representing German and Austrian leather as Swiss products of its Tannerie de Lausanne subsidiary. By 1929, the company was once more exporting 70% of its production, but the worldwide economic depression that began late that year, and the high taxes that many countries imposed on imports in response, further damaged the German leather industry. Freudenberg, also affected by patent leather falling out of fashion, cut hours to avoid layoffs.[9]

Nazi era edit

In 1933 the company acquired Conrad Tack & Cie, a shoe manufacturer and seller founded in 1883. This was one of the first Aryanisations of a Jewish-owned company in the Third Reich; in the face of boycotts Hermann Krojanker, the company head, requested that Freudenberg, the company's major supplier, take it over.[10] It was Freudenberg's first expansion into both manufacturing and consumer sales; the company subsequently "Aryanised" a dozen other companies, including other shoe manufacturers and sellers which were incorporated into Tack, and other leather processors including Sigmund Hirsch GmbH, which was also in Weinheim and specialised in horse leather, and Josef Reiman / Gerhardus, an amalgamation of two Vienna companies.[11] As the Reich expanded, Freudenberg sought to acquire companies in annexed and occupied countries. They were unsuccessful in acquiring Del-Ka, a leading Viennese shoe company, or any of the shoe companies in Czechoslovakia and Poland; Nazi administrators in the east sought to avoid further increasing the market share of leading German companies, and the Czech company Bata was permitted to retain all its shoe shops since it was a valued provider of military footwear.[12] In the west, Foreign Ministry policy was to promote German industrial expansion, and Freudenberg was able to acquire Chromex, a French manufacturer of vehicle seals that had been established with financial assistance from Freudenberg in 1934 and licensed Freudenberg technology; but Freudenberg abandoned attempts to "aryanize" a leather producer in the Netherlands on grounds of likely bureaucratic veto, were passed over in the "Aryanisation" of a Luxembourg tannery, and were also rebuffed in their attempts to acquire either regional outlets or the whole company of the French shoe company André [fr], which survived the war without being "Aryanised".[13]

Freudenberg had instituted an industrial research department in the 1920s, where the Austrian engineer Walther Simmer [de] developed an improved seal for motors that was patented in 1932 as the Simmerring. In the second half of the 1930s, the company changed from leather to synthetic rubber for the Simmerring.[14] World War II led to renewed stoppages of leather imports and to other shortages; in response the company accelerated its diversification away from leather and into components for machinery.[15] From 1938, Freudenberg produced synthetic leather shoe soles under the brand name nora (the subsidiary manufacturing nora products was spun off in 2007 and is now Nora systems [de]).[6] In 1937, the company instituted testing of artificial shoe soles by a group of test walkers, initially consisting mostly of former workers. They became a noted sight in and around Weinheim, and one man walked 40,000 kilometres (25,000 mi) over the course of three years.[16] In 1940, under government oversight, German manufacturers agreed on quality and testing standards for footwear and their individual systems of use testing were replaced with a shoe test track [de] at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp. Inmates were assigned to walk a course of more than 30 kilometres (19 mi), testing sample pairs submitted by the manufacturers.[17]

Since World War II edit

The development of artificial materials for both footwear and automotive uses led to fabrics and, when it was noted that the company's cleaning women were using discarded scraps of the experimental fabrics, to cleaning materials and equipment.[4][5]Vileda (from German: wie Leder, 'like leather') window-cleaning cloths were first marketed in 1948,[18] and housewares became a major focus for Freudenberg in the first postwar decades.

 
Vileda Professional, Markham, Ontario, Canada

In the mid-1990s the company reorganized with a "highly decentralized organizational structure", into 16 divisions or areas of business incorporating 430 independent units.[5][19][20] As of 2005, three-quarters of its business was as a supplier to other companies.[21] In 2004 Freudenberg had employees in 43 countries.[4][22][23] Recently it has focused attention on markets in China and Japan; for example, it provided the floor coverings for the Shanghai Metro stations.[4]

In 2002 the company closed its last leather tannery, marking the effective end of the leather industry in Germany.[5] However, today Vileda is a market leader in Europe.[24] All German cars contain parts made by another Freudenberg subsidiary, and German-made outdoor clothing contains fibers made by yet another.[5] Almost all major airports have flooring made by another Freudenberg subsidiary.[21] In 2004, Freudenberg Group made an initial entry into the global medical market with the creation of Freudenberg Medical EN. In 2022, the group was an 11.7 billion euro business with more than 51,000 employees.[1]

Chief executives edit

  • Carl Johann Freudenberg (1849–1898) and Heinrich Christian Heintze (1849–1874)
  • Friedrich Carl Freudenberg (1898–1928) and Hermann Ernst Freudenberg (1898–1923)
  • Richard Freudenberg (1923–1962)
  • Hermann Freudenberg (1962–1988)
  • Reinhart Freudenberg (1988–1997)
  • Peter Bettermann [de] (1997–2012; first non-family member to be Speaker of the Management Board)
  • Mohsen Sohi (2012–present)[6]

Ownership and philosophy edit

 
Carl Johann Freudenberg

Freudenberg remains a family-owned private company, structured as a Kommanditgesellschaft (limited partnership) jointly held by descendants of Carl Johann Freudenberg (some 300 in 2011).[5][4] Stock cannot be sold to non-family members and must be surrendered by in-laws upon divorce.[20] No stockholder holds more than 2% ownership.[21] An annual three-day General Meeting[5] elects the Board of Partners, which consists of 7 to 13 members of whom the majority must be Freudenberg family members.[25] The divisions are managed by a Management Board, who need not be family members.[25] Stockholders receive a semi-annual family newsletter and have access to an owners' intranet. A select few are on the Wine Commission, which oversees the private Freudenberg vineyards.[4] These vineyards are the largest in the Bergstraße region, producing 60,000 bottles of wine annually.[21]

Wolfram Freudenberg, a fifth-generation family member who formerly headed the Stuttgart Stock Exchange, was Chairman of the Board of Partners from 2005 to 2014, succeeding Reinhart Freudenberg, who stepped down for reasons of age.[15][26] In 2014 he was succeeded by Martin Wentzler, also a fifth-generation family member.[27] Since July 2012, Mohsen Sohi has been Speaker of the Management Board;[28] his predecessor, Peter Bettermann, formerly head of German BP, in 1997 became the first non-family member to run the company.[5][15][4][21]

In the late 1930s, the company developed operating principles that include broad diversification in both products and markets, spreading of risk, long-term thinking and the maintenance of an equity ratio of at least 40%, and avoidance of large acquisitions while favoring small ones.[5][18][29] The company would rather acquire "a handful of interesting smaller enterprises" every year than a large company that might endanger the company philosophy.[30] In each area of activity, the company operates only where it can be first or second in the market; for example, it sells motor seals worldwide but Vileda mops mostly in Europe.[30]

Divisions edit

 
Headquarters of Freudenberg Sealing Technologies

As of 2024, the company consists of the following business groups (the majority headquartered in Weinheim):

  • Freudenberg Chemical Specialities, headquartered in Munich (including the subsidiaries Capol, Chem-Trend, Klüber Lubrication, OKS, and SurTec)
  • Freudenberg e-Power Systems, headquartered in Munich
  • Freudenberg Filtration Technologies
  • Freudenberg Flow Technologies, headquartered in Wolfratshausen (including TotalSealCare, Techlok, Bluelock, FlexBall, AlignLock, WellProtek, and EagleBurgmann, a partnership with the Japanese company Eagle Industries [ja][6][31])
  • Freudenberg Home and Cleaning Solutions (including Vileda, Vileda Professional, Gimi, Oates, Wettex, the American brand O-Cedar, acquired in 2003[6][32][33] the UK brand Marigold, acquired in 2013,[34] and Gala brand products under a joint venture with the Indian company Gala Brush[35])
  • Freudenberg Medical, headquartered in Beverly, Massachusetts, US
  • Freudenberg Performance Materials
  • Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (including Simmerings and Corteco, a brand of spare parts)
  • Vibracoustic
  • Japan Vilene Company, headquartered in Tokyo[36][37]

Philanthropy edit

The Freudenberg Group owns the Schau- und Sichtungsgarten Hermannshof, a public botanical garden in Weinheim, which opened in 1983 and is jointly operated with the town.[21][38][39][40]

The Freudenberg Stiftung was founded in 1984 and is endowed with stock in the parent company. It has a broad mandate "to promote science, the humanities and education as well as strengthening peaceful coexistence in society and culture" and focuses particularly on assistance to and democratic education of young people, primarily in Germany.[41]

References edit

  1. ^ a b c "Annual Report 2022" (PDF). Freudenberg Group. (PDF) from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 3 April 2022.
  2. ^ Hucke, Johannes (2009). Bergstraße-Weinlesebuch. Regio Guide (in German). Vol. 6. Karlsruhe: Info Verlag. ISBN 978-3-88190-504-6. from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  3. ^ Scholtyseck, Joachim (2016). Freudenberg. Ein Familienunternehmen in Kaiserreich, Demokratie und Diktatur (in German). Munich: Beck. pp. 21–22. ISBN 978-3-406-68853-9.
  4. ^ a b c d e f g Scheele, Martin (22 January 2004). "Familie Freudenberg: Die Wischmopp-Millionäre". Manager Magazin (in German). from the original on 12 August 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  5. ^ a b c d e f g h i Lamparter, Dietmar H. (24 February 2011). . Die Zeit. Archived from the original on 29 August 2011.
  6. ^ a b c d e Michael Horchler; Julia Schneider (January 2024). "The Development of the Freudenberg Group (Since 1849)" (PDF). Freudenberg & Co.
  7. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 22–24.
  8. ^ Scholtyseck, p. 26.
  9. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 35–38, 46, 49–50, 60–63.
  10. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 113–31.
  11. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 143–74.
  12. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 245–51, 254–57.
  13. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 286, 290–91, 295–301, 301–10.
  14. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 322, 208–09.
  15. ^ a b c Sywottek, Christian (October 2008). "Das Matroschka-Prinzip". Brand Eins (interview with Wolfram Freudenberg) (in German). Archived from the original on 10 February 2013.
  16. ^ Scholtyseck, pp. 324–27.
  17. ^ Schotyseck, pp. 330–34.
  18. ^ a b Grant, Tina (2001). International Directory of Company Histories. St. James Press. ISBN 978-1-55862-446-7.
  19. ^ Company Structure 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine, Freudenberg Group.
  20. ^ a b Block, Jörn Hendrich (2009). Long-term Orientation of Family Firms: An Investigation of R&D Investments, Downsizing Practices, and Executive Pay (thesis, Technische Universität München). Wiesbaden: Betriebswirtschaftlicher Verlag Gabler. p. 3. ISBN 978-3-8349-1959-5. from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 9 January 2023.
  21. ^ a b c d e f Behrens, Bolke (24 January 2005). "Freudenberg-Gruppe bewahrt beharrlich den Familiencharakter: Ein ganz unauffälliges Weltunternehmen". Handelsblatt (in German). from the original on 11 June 2016. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  22. ^ 53 in 2008, according to Sywottek.
  23. ^ As of April 2013, 58 countries: Freudenberg Group 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine, retrieved 13 April 2013.
  24. ^ Dworschak, Manfred (1 October 2000). "'Materie am falschen Ort'". Der Spiegel (in German). ISSN 2195-1349. from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  25. ^ a b "Freudenberg Group: Organization & Portfolio". www.freudenberg.com. from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  26. ^ "Freudenberg: Neue Führung im Gesellschafterausschuss". Manager Magazin (in German). 27 June 2005. from the original on 31 March 2022. Retrieved 31 March 2022.
  27. ^ (press release). Freudenberg Group. 1 July 2014. Archived from the original on 11 August 2014.
  28. ^ (press release). Freudenberg Group. 29 June 2012. Archived from the original on 11 August 2014.
  29. ^ . Freudenberg Group. Archived from the original on 22 September 2013.
  30. ^ a b Neukirchen, Heide; Palass, Brigitta (22 March 2002). "Familienunternehmen: Freudenberg-Gruppe". Manager Magazin (in German). from the original on 13 December 2004. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
  31. ^ "History". Eagle Industry Co., Ltd. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  32. ^ "News Briefs: Freudenberg Acquires O-Cedar Brands". HFN. 8 December 2003. Retrieved 23 February 2024 – via Free Online Library.
  33. ^ . O-Cedar.com. Archived from the original on 5 May 2013. Retrieved 13 April 2013.
  34. ^ Bamford, Vince (23 December 2013). "Marigold gloves business sold to FHCS". The Grocer. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  35. ^ "Who We Are". Freudenberg Gala Household Products. Retrieved 2 March 2024.
  36. ^ The Freudenberg Business Groups, Freudenberg.com, retrieved 2 March 2024.
  37. ^ The company has also used the brand names Evolon, FIT (Freudenberg IT), HelixMark, Lutradur, Lutrasil, Merkel, MicronAir, Pellon, Simrit, Trelleborg-Vibracoustic, Vildona, Viledon, Vilene, and Vilmed; see "Brands" at the , archived from the original on 18 December 2012.
  38. ^ Dohna, Countess Ursula (1986). Private Gardens of Germany. Harmony Books. p. 122. ISBN 978-0-517-56512-4. from the original on 9 January 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  39. ^ Gardens Illustrated. 2002. p. 36. from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  40. ^ Garten und Landschaft (in German). 2002. p. 44. from the original on 3 April 2023. Retrieved 25 October 2022.
  41. ^ . Freudenberg group. Archived from the original on 7 April 2012.

Further reading edit

  • Carl Freudenberg. 150 Years of Freudenberg: How a Family Enterprise Developed from a Tannery into an Internationally Diversified Enterprise. [Mannheim]: Freudenberg, 1999. OCLC 313963779
  • Pia Gerber. Der lange Weg der sozialen Innovation—wie Stiftungen zum sozialen Wandel im Feld der Bildungs- und Sozialpolitik beitragen können: eine Fallstudie zur Innovationskraft der Freudenberg Stiftung / The Long March of Social Innovation—How Charitable Foundations can Contribute Towards Social Change in the Fields of Education and Social Policy: A Case Study on the Innovative Vigor of the Freudenberg Foundation. Opusculum 21. Berlin: Maecenata-Institut für Philanthropie und Zivilgesellschaft, November 2006. OCLC 643152814 Google preview (in German)

External links edit

  •   Media related to Freudenberg Group at Wikimedia Commons
  • Official site in English

April 12, 2024
freudenberg, group, german, family, owned, diversified, group, companies, whose, products, include, housewares, cleaning, products, automobile, parts, textiles, building, materials, telecommunications, headquarters, weinheim, baden, württemberg, production, fa. The Freudenberg Group is a German family owned diversified group of companies whose products include housewares and cleaning products automobile parts textiles building materials and telecommunications Its headquarters are in Weinheim Baden Wurttemberg and it has production facilities in Europe Asia Australia South and North America The parent company was founded in 1849 as a producer of leather goods Freudenberg SEFreudenberg Group headquarters in Weinheim aerial view 2010 Company typeFamily owned Societas EuropaeaIndustryConglomerateFounded1849FounderCarl Johann FreudenbergHeadquartersWeinheim Baden Wuerttemberg GermanyArea servedWorldwideKey peopleMohsen Sohi CEO ProductsHousehold and other productsRevenue 11 753 billion 2022 1 Number of employees51 462 2022 1 Websitewww wbr freudenberg wbr com Contents 1 History 1 1 Origins to 1933 1 2 Nazi era 1 3 Since World War II 1 4 Chief executives 2 Ownership and philosophy 3 Divisions 4 Philanthropy 5 References 6 Further reading 7 External linksHistory editOrigins to 1933 edit The company was founded in 1849 by Carl Johann Freudenberg the son of a wine merchant 2 and his partner Heinrich Christian Heintze The two took over a tannery at Weinheim where Freudenberg had been employed and introduced lacquered patent leather as a specialty 3 For the next 80 years the company produced leather products exclusively 4 5 Freudenberg prepared his sons Friedrich Carl and Hermann Ernst Freudenberg to succeed him and on Heintze s death in 1874 the Freudenberg family bought his share in the business from his heirs and renamed it to Carl Freudenberg 6 7 nbsp Removal of hair from skins in the Freudenberg tannery c 1899With a second tannery in Schonau and the introduction of the faster and better chrome tanning process developed in the United States by 1914 Freudenberg had become one of the four largest leather processing firms in Germany importing skins from the Russian Empire Poland Argentina France and the United States and exporting finished leather to markets including the British Empire Switzerland France Russia Poland and the United States 8 Like the rest of the German leather industry the company was hurt by World War I especially by the stoppage of leather imports under the Allied embargo and then by a ban that was not lifted until 1924 and also by bureaucratic controls Under the Weimar Republic inflation and the devaluation of the German currency hindered international business in order to pay for imported raw materials in hard currency the company partnered with Swiss bankers to establish Externa S A a credit agency in Lausanne The company also participated in a number of cooperative agreements to facilitate exports and skirted regulations in Poland and Eastern Europe by representing German and Austrian leather as Swiss products of its Tannerie de Lausanne subsidiary By 1929 the company was once more exporting 70 of its production but the worldwide economic depression that began late that year and the high taxes that many countries imposed on imports in response further damaged the German leather industry Freudenberg also affected by patent leather falling out of fashion cut hours to avoid layoffs 9 Nazi era edit In 1933 the company acquired Conrad Tack amp Cie a shoe manufacturer and seller founded in 1883 This was one of the first Aryanisations of a Jewish owned company in the Third Reich in the face of boycotts Hermann Krojanker the company head requested that Freudenberg the company s major supplier take it over 10 It was Freudenberg s first expansion into both manufacturing and consumer sales the company subsequently Aryanised a dozen other companies including other shoe manufacturers and sellers which were incorporated into Tack and other leather processors including Sigmund Hirsch GmbH which was also in Weinheim and specialised in horse leather and Josef Reiman Gerhardus an amalgamation of two Vienna companies 11 As the Reich expanded Freudenberg sought to acquire companies in annexed and occupied countries They were unsuccessful in acquiring Del Ka a leading Viennese shoe company or any of the shoe companies in Czechoslovakia and Poland Nazi administrators in the east sought to avoid further increasing the market share of leading German companies and the Czech company Bata was permitted to retain all its shoe shops since it was a valued provider of military footwear 12 In the west Foreign Ministry policy was to promote German industrial expansion and Freudenberg was able to acquire Chromex a French manufacturer of vehicle seals that had been established with financial assistance from Freudenberg in 1934 and licensed Freudenberg technology but Freudenberg abandoned attempts to aryanize a leather producer in the Netherlands on grounds of likely bureaucratic veto were passed over in the Aryanisation of a Luxembourg tannery and were also rebuffed in their attempts to acquire either regional outlets or the whole company of the French shoe company Andre fr which survived the war without being Aryanised 13 Freudenberg had instituted an industrial research department in the 1920s where the Austrian engineer Walther Simmer de developed an improved seal for motors that was patented in 1932 as the Simmerring In the second half of the 1930s the company changed from leather to synthetic rubber for the Simmerring 14 World War II led to renewed stoppages of leather imports and to other shortages in response the company accelerated its diversification away from leather and into components for machinery 15 From 1938 Freudenberg produced synthetic leather shoe soles under the brand name nora the subsidiary manufacturing nora products was spun off in 2007 and is now Nora systems de 6 In 1937 the company instituted testing of artificial shoe soles by a group of test walkers initially consisting mostly of former workers They became a noted sight in and around Weinheim and one man walked 40 000 kilometres 25 000 mi over the course of three years 16 In 1940 under government oversight German manufacturers agreed on quality and testing standards for footwear and their individual systems of use testing were replaced with a shoe test track de at the Sachsenhausen concentration camp Inmates were assigned to walk a course of more than 30 kilometres 19 mi testing sample pairs submitted by the manufacturers 17 Since World War II edit The development of artificial materials for both footwear and automotive uses led to fabrics and when it was noted that the company s cleaning women were using discarded scraps of the experimental fabrics to cleaning materials and equipment 4 5 Vileda from German wie Leder like leather window cleaning cloths were first marketed in 1948 18 and housewares became a major focus for Freudenberg in the first postwar decades nbsp Vileda Professional Markham Ontario CanadaIn the mid 1990s the company reorganized with a highly decentralized organizational structure into 16 divisions or areas of business incorporating 430 independent units 5 19 20 As of 2005 update three quarters of its business was as a supplier to other companies 21 In 2004 Freudenberg had employees in 43 countries 4 22 23 Recently it has focused attention on markets in China and Japan for example it provided the floor coverings for the Shanghai Metro stations 4 In 2002 the company closed its last leather tannery marking the effective end of the leather industry in Germany 5 However today Vileda is a market leader in Europe 24 All German cars contain parts made by another Freudenberg subsidiary and German made outdoor clothing contains fibers made by yet another 5 Almost all major airports have flooring made by another Freudenberg subsidiary 21 In 2004 Freudenberg Group made an initial entry into the global medical market with the creation of Freudenberg Medical EN In 2022 the group was an 11 7 billion euro business with more than 51 000 employees 1 Chief executives edit Carl Johann Freudenberg 1849 1898 and Heinrich Christian Heintze 1849 1874 Friedrich Carl Freudenberg 1898 1928 and Hermann Ernst Freudenberg 1898 1923 Richard Freudenberg 1923 1962 Hermann Freudenberg 1962 1988 Reinhart Freudenberg 1988 1997 Peter Bettermann de 1997 2012 first non family member to be Speaker of the Management Board Mohsen Sohi 2012 present 6 Ownership and philosophy edit nbsp Carl Johann FreudenbergFreudenberg remains a family owned private company structured as a Kommanditgesellschaft limited partnership jointly held by descendants of Carl Johann Freudenberg some 300 in 2011 5 4 Stock cannot be sold to non family members and must be surrendered by in laws upon divorce 20 No stockholder holds more than 2 ownership 21 An annual three day General Meeting 5 elects the Board of Partners which consists of 7 to 13 members of whom the majority must be Freudenberg family members 25 The divisions are managed by a Management Board who need not be family members 25 Stockholders receive a semi annual family newsletter and have access to an owners intranet A select few are on the Wine Commission which oversees the private Freudenberg vineyards 4 These vineyards are the largest in the Bergstrasse region producing 60 000 bottles of wine annually 21 Wolfram Freudenberg a fifth generation family member who formerly headed the Stuttgart Stock Exchange was Chairman of the Board of Partners from 2005 to 2014 succeeding Reinhart Freudenberg who stepped down for reasons of age 15 26 In 2014 he was succeeded by Martin Wentzler also a fifth generation family member 27 Since July 2012 Mohsen Sohi has been Speaker of the Management Board 28 his predecessor Peter Bettermann formerly head of German BP in 1997 became the first non family member to run the company 5 15 4 21 In the late 1930s the company developed operating principles that include broad diversification in both products and markets spreading of risk long term thinking and the maintenance of an equity ratio of at least 40 and avoidance of large acquisitions while favoring small ones 5 18 29 The company would rather acquire a handful of interesting smaller enterprises every year than a large company that might endanger the company philosophy 30 In each area of activity the company operates only where it can be first or second in the market for example it sells motor seals worldwide but Vileda mops mostly in Europe 30 Divisions edit nbsp Headquarters of Freudenberg Sealing TechnologiesAs of 2024 update the company consists of the following business groups the majority headquartered in Weinheim Freudenberg Chemical Specialities headquartered in Munich including the subsidiaries Capol Chem Trend Kluber Lubrication OKS and SurTec Freudenberg e Power Systems headquartered in Munich Freudenberg Filtration Technologies Freudenberg Flow Technologies headquartered in Wolfratshausen including TotalSealCare Techlok Bluelock FlexBall AlignLock WellProtek and EagleBurgmann a partnership with the Japanese company Eagle Industries ja 6 31 Freudenberg Home and Cleaning Solutions including Vileda Vileda Professional Gimi Oates Wettex the American brand O Cedar acquired in 2003 6 32 33 the UK brand Marigold acquired in 2013 34 and Gala brand products under a joint venture with the Indian company Gala Brush 35 Freudenberg Medical headquartered in Beverly Massachusetts US Freudenberg Performance Materials Freudenberg Sealing Technologies including Simmerings and Corteco a brand of spare parts Vibracoustic Japan Vilene Company headquartered in Tokyo 36 37 Philanthropy editThe Freudenberg Group owns the Schau und Sichtungsgarten Hermannshof a public botanical garden in Weinheim which opened in 1983 and is jointly operated with the town 21 38 39 40 The Freudenberg Stiftung was founded in 1984 and is endowed with stock in the parent company It has a broad mandate to promote science the humanities and education as well as strengthening peaceful coexistence in society and culture and focuses particularly on assistance to and democratic education of young people primarily in Germany 41 References edit a b c Annual Report 2022 PDF Freudenberg Group Archived PDF from the original on 3 April 2023 Retrieved 3 April 2022 Hucke Johannes 2009 Bergstrasse Weinlesebuch Regio Guide in German Vol 6 Karlsruhe Info Verlag ISBN 978 3 88190 504 6 Archived from the original on 3 April 2023 Retrieved 25 October 2022 Scholtyseck Joachim 2016 Freudenberg Ein Familienunternehmen in Kaiserreich Demokratie und Diktatur in German Munich Beck pp 21 22 ISBN 978 3 406 68853 9 a b c d e f g Scheele Martin 22 January 2004 Familie Freudenberg Die Wischmopp Millionare Manager Magazin in German Archived from the original on 12 August 2022 Retrieved 31 March 2022 a b c d e f g h i Lamparter Dietmar H 24 February 2011 Unternehmen Freudenberg Von der Kunst des Hautens Die Zeit Archived from the original on 29 August 2011 a b c d e Michael Horchler Julia Schneider January 2024 The Development of the Freudenberg Group Since 1849 PDF Freudenberg amp Co Scholtyseck pp 22 24 Scholtyseck p 26 Scholtyseck pp 35 38 46 49 50 60 63 Scholtyseck pp 113 31 Scholtyseck pp 143 74 Scholtyseck pp 245 51 254 57 Scholtyseck pp 286 290 91 295 301 301 10 Scholtyseck pp 322 208 09 a b c Sywottek Christian October 2008 Das Matroschka Prinzip Brand Eins interview with Wolfram Freudenberg in German Archived from the original on 10 February 2013 Scholtyseck pp 324 27 Schotyseck pp 330 34 a b Grant Tina 2001 International Directory of Company Histories St James Press ISBN 978 1 55862 446 7 Company Structure Archived 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine Freudenberg Group a b Block Jorn Hendrich 2009 Long term Orientation of Family Firms An Investigation of R amp D Investments Downsizing Practices and Executive Pay thesis Technische Universitat Munchen Wiesbaden Betriebswirtschaftlicher Verlag Gabler p 3 ISBN 978 3 8349 1959 5 Archived from the original on 9 January 2023 Retrieved 9 January 2023 a b c d e f Behrens Bolke 24 January 2005 Freudenberg Gruppe bewahrt beharrlich den Familiencharakter Ein ganz unauffalliges Weltunternehmen Handelsblatt in German Archived from the original on 11 June 2016 Retrieved 31 March 2022 53 in 2008 according to Sywottek As of April 2013 update 58 countries Freudenberg Group Archived 27 March 2013 at the Wayback Machine retrieved 13 April 2013 Dworschak Manfred 1 October 2000 Materie am falschen Ort Der Spiegel in German ISSN 2195 1349 Archived from the original on 31 March 2022 Retrieved 31 March 2022 a b Freudenberg Group Organization amp Portfolio www freudenberg com Archived from the original on 31 March 2022 Retrieved 31 March 2022 Freudenberg Neue Fuhrung im Gesellschafterausschuss Manager Magazin in German 27 June 2005 Archived from the original on 31 March 2022 Retrieved 31 March 2022 Change in Board of Partners Chair press release Freudenberg Group 1 July 2014 Archived from the original on 11 August 2014 Management Changes at Freudenberg press release Freudenberg Group 29 June 2012 Archived from the original on 11 August 2014 Corporate Values Guiding Principles Freudenberg Group Archived from the original on 22 September 2013 a b Neukirchen Heide Palass Brigitta 22 March 2002 Familienunternehmen Freudenberg Gruppe Manager Magazin in German Archived from the original on 13 December 2004 Retrieved 23 December 2011 History Eagle Industry Co Ltd Retrieved 2 March 2024 News Briefs Freudenberg Acquires O Cedar Brands HFN 8 December 2003 Retrieved 23 February 2024 via Free Online Library About O Cedar O Cedar com Archived from the original on 5 May 2013 Retrieved 13 April 2013 Bamford Vince 23 December 2013 Marigold gloves business sold to FHCS The Grocer Retrieved 2 March 2024 Who We Are Freudenberg Gala Household Products Retrieved 2 March 2024 The Freudenberg Business Groups Freudenberg com retrieved 2 March 2024 The company has also used the brand names Evolon FIT Freudenberg IT HelixMark Lutradur Lutrasil Merkel MicronAir Pellon Simrit Trelleborg Vibracoustic Vildona Viledon Vilene and Vilmed see Brands at the homepage archived from the original on 18 December 2012 Dohna Countess Ursula 1986 Private Gardens of Germany Harmony Books p 122 ISBN 978 0 517 56512 4 Archived from the original on 9 January 2023 Retrieved 25 October 2022 Gardens Illustrated 2002 p 36 Archived from the original on 3 April 2023 Retrieved 25 October 2022 Garten und Landschaft in German 2002 p 44 Archived from the original on 3 April 2023 Retrieved 25 October 2022 Freudenberg foundation Freudenberg group Archived from the original on 7 April 2012 Further reading editCarl Freudenberg 150 Years of Freudenberg How a Family Enterprise Developed from a Tannery into an Internationally Diversified Enterprise Mannheim Freudenberg 1999 OCLC 313963779 Pia Gerber Der lange Weg der sozialen Innovation wie Stiftungen zum sozialen Wandel im Feld der Bildungs und Sozialpolitik beitragen konnen eine Fallstudie zur Innovationskraft der Freudenberg Stiftung The Long March of Social Innovation How Charitable Foundations can Contribute Towards Social Change in the Fields of Education and Social Policy A Case Study on the Innovative Vigor of the Freudenberg Foundation Opusculum 21 Berlin Maecenata Institut fur Philanthropie und Zivilgesellschaft November 2006 OCLC 643152814 Google preview in German External links edit nbsp Media related to Freudenberg Group at Wikimedia Commons Official site in English Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title Freudenberg Group amp oldid 1217515276, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,

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