Tradition & Innovation for 150 years
This is who we are. This is Scheidt & Bachmann.
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"2022 is a very special year for Scheidt & Bachmann, because we celebrate our 150th anniversary. During these 150 years of existence, our family-owned company has not only survived difficult historical events, such as two world wars and currency reforms, but has also successfully mastered the rapid change from mechanics to electrics and electronics to software, service and cloud solutions. With our will to find new solutions, our willingness to stick together in difficult times, and our ability to adapt to changing conditions, we are now facing 150 years of a shared success story of our company community with values that will carry us into the future. Today, Scheidt & Bachmann is an international group of companies with outstanding products that we develop, manufacture and distribute worldwide. We are pleased to celebrate this special milestone this year and look to the future with confidence."
Yours Dr. Norbert Miller
(Managing Partner)
Company founded with eight employees
Businessman Wilhelm Friedrich Scheidt and engineer Carl Bachmann found Scheidt & Bachmann in Mönchengladbach. The company headquarters are located at Mühlenstraße 54 (today Erzbergerstraße). The first factory equipment consists of a small steam engine and some machine tools, which are purchased second-hand. The products of the young company are textile machines, transmissions and smaller steam engines.
Foundation of Signalling Systems
Carl Bachmann takes up a suggestion made by his brother, the railroad foreman Julius Bachmann, and a friend, the railroad engineer Heinrich Dorpmüller. The two experts had noticed that in the course of the expanding means of transport, the railroad, and the accompanying installation of signal boxes and points, a need for safety devices had arisen. Scheidt & Bachmann immediately started to design suitable systems. Thus the first business division was born: Signalling Systems.
Our first patent
The first Scheidt & Bachmann patent for a "drive device for road barriers".
First foreign business
The contact with the Spanish railroad administration by the Barcelona-based engineer José Corderch quickly leads to orders, so that already in spring 1911, six stations near Barcelona are equipped with Scheidt & Bachmann interlockings.
Move to the present company site
On August 14, 1912, ground is finally broken on the new site. As early as May 3, 1913, a newly built foundry goes into operation with the first tapping of the cupola furnace. However, it is still almost a year before the actual move. In July 1914, machines, tools and large quantities of materials are transported to the new plant site in stages. The move was finally completed on July 31, 1914 – a real feat of strength, since all delivery obligations still had to be met on time, of course. The new site has an area of 53,000 m2, 20,000 of which are built on.
The consequences of the world economic crisis
The world economic crisis does not leave Scheidt & Bachmann unscathed. The German Reichsbahn is forced to block construction projects for signal boxes. This, in conjunction with the applicable maximum 6-month protection against dismissal, has the consequence that Scheidt & Bachmann is faced with a payment obligation for salaries and wages of 150,000 RM in May 1931 with an order intake of 10,000 RM. Nevertheless, the company manages to survive this crisis by staff reductions, wage cuts and the fortunately recovering order volume. Especially after 1931, the "Vereinigte Eisenbahn-Signalwerke (VES)" and AEG try to integrate Scheidt & Bachmann into their large companies. However, Carl Bachmann doubts that this step is for the good of the company and remains master in his own house.
Foundation of Fuel Retail Solutions
At the end of the 1920s, the market for fuel dispensers and devices for storing and metering fuel collapsed considerably. However, this actually weak market situation also offers a low entry barrier for market entry. Thus Scheidt & Bachmann takes advantage of the insolvency of the fuel dispenser manufacturer "Werner Handelsgesellschaft" and takes over not only about 30 employees but also its sales market. Thus, the second business division was born: Fuel Retail Solutions.
Traces of the 2nd World War
From once 1,000 employees, just 50 are left to begin reconstruction. The foundry can only make casts once a week. The available raw materials are not sufficient for more. Also, working hours are often shifted to the night hours, as electricity is rationed. At the end of the war, the surviving employees were scattered to the four winds and most of them were taken prisoner. Nevertheless, many return to their old jobs as soon as the opportunity arises to help with the almost hopeless reconstruction effort – even though other companies can pay higher wages at this time.
Entry into electronics
With the advent of electronics, electricity is no longer just a power source. Semiconductor technology makes it possible to realize intelligent functions through circuits that could previously only be accomplished with mechanical components. As a result, assemblies are not only becoming smaller and faster, but can also perform increasingly complex tasks. In the field of signalling technology, it is a combination of signal relays and semiconductor technology that has enabled the development of the first electronically controlled barrier systems. The area of systems for gas stations faces particular challenges, as electronic circuits are a source of danger in the environment of flammable fuels. In one of the first developments of the coin-operated fuel dispenser, the problem is solved by designing the electromechanically operating dispenser as a stand-alone device, without integration into the fuel dispenser.
Conversion into a GmbH
On July 1, 1963, Scheidt & Bachmann AG is converted into a GmbH (limited liability company) and thus acquires its current corporate form.
Parking Solutions founded
As individual traffic increases dramatically in the 1960s, the marketing of parking spaces becomes a lucrative business. Scheidt & Bachmann already has components from the fields of signalling technology and petrol station systems that can be used for automated parking space management, such as light signal controls, banner controls, induction loops, barrier drives, plus automatic machines from the Tank division. Complementary function modules, especially for the parking industry, are being developed. The third business unit, Parking Solutions, is thus born.
Entry into microprocessor technology
Scheidt & Bachmann receives the first programmable 4-bit microprocessors at a unit price of more than 3,000 DM. For the first time, functions are written byte by byte on EPROM memory chips with special controllers. This enables microprocessor circuits to perform almost any function. This is the beginning of a completely new, intelligent generation of devices and the starting signal for software development at Scheidt & Bachmann. While in the areas of tank and parking lot systems, the first microprocessor-controlled products can quickly be successfully introduced to the markets, there are some start-up difficulties in the area of signalling technology; these are due to the mistrust of the new technology. However, the concerns turn out to be unfounded; the microprocessor-controlled signalling systems meet all safety requirements and are finally approved.
Foundation of Fare Collection Systems
In 1977, the German Federal Railways decides to rationalize the ticket sales with the project "Modernized Ticket Sales" by using the latest technology. Scheidt & Bachmann has been searching for some time for markets where synergies with the other business units can be used. The Deutsche Bundesbahn project offers an ideal starting situation, as the existing parking machines have many similarities with the required ticket vending machines. However, in order to effectively prevent money laundering, the customer requires coin processing. This is developed without further ado, which incidentally earns Scheidt & Bachmann the first European patent ever. More important, however, is the contract awarded by Deutsche Bahn. Thus, the fourth business division is born: Fare Collection Systems.
Establishment of first subsidiaries abroad
In March 1990, the first railroad signal days after the opening of the border are held in Dresden. During dinner Heinz Laumen, Major General Konrad Manthey a. D. and Gert Miller get to know Prof. Ing. Ladislav Skyva. Subsequently, a correspondence between the Zilina University of Applied Sciences and Prof. Skyva takes place for the purpose of a cooperation, which had been suggested by Scheidt & Bachmann. In June, Mr. Manthey visits the University of Applied Sciences in Zilina as a representative of Scheidt & Bachmann. The first return visit of Prof. Skyva takes place in February 1991 in Mönchengladbach. This lays the foundation for the foundation of the Slovakian company Dopravné systémy Scheidt & Bachmann s.r.o. in 1995, which was later renamed to Scheidt & Bachmann Slovensko s.r.o. In the same year, Scheidt & Bachmann USA Inc. in Burlington, Massachusetts, also starts its operations. Thus the first two international locations of the company are born.
Millennium changeover successfully mastered
There is great concern worldwide about a system crash. And what happens at Scheidt & Bachmann installations? Nothing! The millennium change runs absolutely smoothly thanks to the impeccable preparation of all involved. Although the customers were informed in advance about all eventualities and all employees are on alert on New Year's Eve, in the end nobody has to leave the festivities at home to fix major errors in the company.
Cloud solutions as the next technological leap
With the ever-increasing spread of fast data lines for the Internet and regional networks, cloud-based systems are becoming feasible. These systems offer maximum performance with a much simpler system architecture, as it is now possible to process all system-relevant data in a central node. Flexibly scalable and thus particularly economical systems are the result. Managed services are also evolving significantly through cloud technology in the direction of standardized system platforms that can be deployed across customers and still offer each customer tailored functionalities.
This is who we are today
Many generations of hardworking hands and imaginative minds have made it possible for Scheidt & Bachmann to be where it is today. Scheidt & Bachmann can look back with pride on the great achievements of these generations who paved the way. Likewise, Scheidt & Bachmann can look forward to the future with excitement, because today's employees are the ones who accomplish great things together and pave the way. That is why the 150th anniversary is an impressive milestone that everyone has achieved together, across countries and generations, and it is a more than good reason to celebrate together.
A look into the future
Scheidt & Bachmann is lifting its product functions into the cloud: ID-based ticketing, entervo.connect and BOS3.0 are just the beginning. The topic of IoT (Internet of things) is also moving more and more into focus. Scheidt & Bachmann is building self-configuring IoT devices – a revolution in the production sector. Climate change is also playing an increasingly important role in any entrepreneurial activity. Scheidt & Bachmann products provide effective solutions: easier usability of public transport through Be-in/Be-out-System or modern interlocking technology via ETCS (European Train Control) are just a few examples of what will be possible in the future.
We see ourselves as a corporate community that is characterized by common values in all national and international companies and that lives them together.
Scheidt & Bachmann Parking Solutions GmbH is a leading provider of integrated, modular system solutions for parking management of any size.
With its solutions, the digital transformation in the parking industry is actively shaped and supported in various forms. Together with partners, parking is seen as an essential part of the mobility chain and cross-sector, urban mobility concepts are linked.
Digitise your Rail - that is the motto under which Scheidt & Bachmann Signalling Systems GmbH operates and into which all the expert knowledge of our employees flows.
We ensure that the railways in Germany and many other countries run punctually, safely and reliably. With our technology, we secure level crossings, control trains and operate entire railway networks. We realise projects as a package - from planning to commissioning.
Scheidt & Bachmann Fare Collection Systems GmbH does pioneering work for the future of public transport.
We support transport companies and inspire passengers all over the world with our innovative and user-friendly ticketing and payment systems. As a pioneer of forward-looking innovations, we are continuously working to develop smart technologies that facilitate access to transportation and give everyone the freedom to travel independently.
Under the motto "Fuel your future" the Scheidt & Bachmann Fuel Retail Solutions GmbH is shaping the transformation of petrol stations into mobility hubs so that individual mobility remains as pleasant as it is today.
We focus on enabling innovations and mobility-oriented customer journeys with the help of our cloud-based systems. With our complete solutions under the SIQMA product brand, petrol stations can meet the challenges of digitalisation and decarbonisation as future mobility hubs.
