Welte 100 – A journey through time
The Welte Group, founded in 1921, will celebrate its 100th anniversary in 2021.
Welte 100 – a journey through time and the development
of our family business, to which we invite you.
Augustin Welte’s years as a companion
At the end of the 19th century, it was already a tradition to travel. Augustin Welte also broadened his knowledge as a journeyman blacksmith in Cologne, Ludwigsburg and Ulm.
The first workshop
The foundation stone for the Welte Group was laid in April 1921. Brothers Alex and Augustin Welte founded a forge and body shop in Ulm’s Deutschhausgasse.
Augustin Welte’s sledgehammer
Despite rising unemployment, Augustin and Therese Welte managed to keep the still young company stable. The first forging hammer was developed and manufactured by Augustin
Welte
Augustin Welte with his sons
Welte family home and grocery store
Up until 1929, the “Golden 20s” were a landmark event. Low unemployment (0.75
million), joie de vivre and confidence were all part of this era.
Augustin Welte in his workshop
Up until 1929, the blacksmith’s shop was on a positive trend. The “Golden 20s” were coming to an end. The years following the stock market crash of 1929-1933 were marked by high unemployment and inflation.
Bombing raid
In 1945, Neu-Ulm was bombed by Allied air force units. The war hit everyone hard. Augustin and Therese Welte and their sons Egon and August found themselves faced with the ruins of their previous work.
Reconstruction
On May 8, 1945, the war was declared over. The time for reconstruction had begun. Egon Welte contributed his skills to the rebuilding of the family business.
Residential and office building with workshop
The residential and office building at Ahornstaße 1 in Neu-Ulm, where Welte still has its headquarters today, was built in 1948.
The Welte family with employees
The economic development that went down in the history books as the “German economic miracle” also contributed to Welte’s success. By the end of the 1950s, the number of employees had risen to around 25.
Sales brochure
To keep pace with changing market conditions, Welte has constantly expanded its product range. Here’s a brochure on roller bearing axles.
First series production of load-bearing wheels
At the time, Welte was already positioning itself as a full-line supplier to automakers, and so began mass-producing load-bearing wheels for single-axle trailers in the 1960s.
Turned parts production department
In the turned parts production department, brake drums for the axle program were mass-produced.
Company expansion
Diversification and a steadily expanding range of services led to an expansion of the company in 1965 – here’s a drawing by Egon Welte senior of the company’s premises in Ahornstraße, Neu-Ulm.
Egon Welte senior with his first guest worker
In 1964, the first Italian employee was hired. At the time, the recruitment of guest workers was at the heart of labor market policy.
Egon Welte junior repairing a cardan shaft
Even during his studies, Egon Welte was fully involved in the company’s activities.
Alfred Welte assembling hydraulic hoses
Alfred Welte was also involved in the family business right from the start of his engineering studies
.
New construction of residential and commercial building
As a result of the oil crisis, economic growth stagnated in 1974 and unemployment reached around 4.6% in 1975. Inflation also rose, reaching almost 7% in 1973. Despite the unstable times, the Maple Street building was modernized in 1975. Quite a feat, considering that competitive pressure was steadily increasing due to the economic crisis and market saturation.
Turned parts production department
To meet the growing demand for axles, investments were made in a new hall in 1974.
Josefine Welte working in sales
In the mid-70s, the direct business expanded to include over-the-counter sales for regional customers.
Opening up the French market
The Welte brothers were encouraged to enter the French market by information from the Chamber of Commerce and Industry. The first customers were acquired in the Paris region. This was the basis for the acquisition of Delmotte in 1992.
Delmotte employee
Delmotte employee manufacturing a cardan shaft.
The beginnings of Welte Rohrbiegetechnik
The foundation stone for Welte Rohrbiegetechnik was laid in Ahornstraße in 1989.
Pipe technology production hall
In the late 1980s, the Welte Group experienced dynamic growth and now has over 100 employees.
Relocation tube bending technology
In 2000, the current Rohrbiegetechnik premises on Lessingstraße in Neu-Ulm were rebuilt.
Egon Welte senior with his wife Josefine
Although their two sons Alfred and Egon Welte had already taken over the management of the company, Josefine and Egon Welte senior were still involved in the business.
New high-bay warehouse
To cope with the constant increase in new products, a high-bay warehouse was built at the main Neu-Ulm site in 2008.
Interior view of a high-bay warehouse
More than 20,000 spare parts for cardan shafts and over 5,000 different cardan shafts can now be stored.
Welte branch in Weyersheim
The branch network in Europe was continually expanded. In 2003, Cardan Service SAS in Weyersheim / France was acquired.
Welte Group trainees
Training is also a tradition at Welte. Every year, a new phase of life begins for our young people.
Employees responsible for tube bending technology
Tube bending technology employees during a business meeting.
Welte in 2021
Welte currently employs around 400 people in Europe at 14 sites in 5 countries.
On the occasion of its 100th anniversary, the Welte Group also finds itself in a social and macroeconomic situation permanently determined by the worldwide pandemic. Major challenges lie ahead for the next generations. The fact that the Welte Group today – after 100 years – has 400 employees is attributed by the Welte brothers in particular to the fact that the family has always endeavored to learn from history, cultivating experience as knowledge and passing it on from generation to generation.
