Erwin Junker (*April 15, 1930, Nordrach, Black Forest, Germany) is a German manufacturer. He is the owner and founder of the Junker Group. [1]
Erwin Junker (*April 15, 1930, Nordrach, Black Forest, Germany) is a German manufacturer. He is the owner and founder of the Junker Group. [1]
Erwin Junker was born in 1930 in the Black Forest town of Nordrach, near Offenburg, Germany, to saw mill owners Zäzilia and Ludwig Junker as the oldest of five children. After attending the elementary school in the Kolonie district, he worked for his parents’ company for three years. However, instead of taking over his parents’ business, as was the tradition, Erwin Junker opted for a career in mechanical engineering. In 1947, he started an apprenticeship with the Haas Company. After a year he switched to the Company Prototyp in Zell am Harmersbach, where he was working from 1948 to 1962. Starting out as an apprentice, he worked his way up to becoming an assistant mechanical engineer before continuing his education to receive his master craftsman degree. Subsequently, he moved to the mechanical engineering department, where he was in charge or training apprentices for 10 years. It was here, where he also invented a fully automated machine for grinding the tips of machine screw taps. He was promoted to the department head and soon also put in charge of a newly created grinding machine department. Following some disagreements with management, he resigned and founded his own company. [2]
In 1962, after receiving his master craftsman’s diploma at the age of 28, and backed by a 15,000 DM guarantee from his father and 8,000 DM of his own savings, Erwin Junker founded the company “Erwin Junker Maschinen- und Apparatebau” in Nordrach. [2] [3] He threw all his energy into his business, which was based in a former grain mill, sometimes working up to twenty hours a day and spending up to 250 days a year on business trips. On these trips, Erwin Junker formed many connections which helped him to expand his business abroad. He also maintained trade relations with China and the Soviet Union as one of the first businesses to do so. In the following years, the company premises around the mill continued to grow and the business expanded internationally. In 1992, Erwin Junker decided to take over three Czech grinding machine manufacturers. In 1995, LTA Lufttechnik GmbH, a manufacturer of filtration systems, became part of the Junker Group. And finally, Brazilian grinding machine manufacturer ZEMA Zselics Ltda. also joined the company group in 2015. In August 2016, the entrepreneur founded the Erwin Junker Manufacturer Foundation. In doing so, Erwin Junker has paved the way for maintaining the current structure of the JUNKER Group, ensuring that it does not end up fragmented and in third-party hands and will instead be able to continue to operate successfully on the global market. As of 2018, the JUNKER Group has over 1500 employees at 14 sites. [2]
Even as a child, Erwin Junker had an exceptional talent for invention. Growing up in Nordrach, where, for example, replacement parts for his gramophone were not readily available, he simply built the parts himself. As of 2018, the Junker Group has filed over 80 patents, including groundbreaking technology for the grinding industry. Erwin Junker also holds the rights to his Quickpoint technology, invented in 1984, which aligns the abrasive wheel to the tool axis. With this new point grinding, it was possible to handle all possible contours in one setup in just a single clamping operation. The computer-controlled grinding wheel moves along the programmed contour with pinpoint accuracy and machines almost any material from plastic to carbide. [4]
Erwin Junker has a strong connection to his home community. At the age of 24, he started running the local Horex motorcycle club, and at 29, became the head of the volunteer fire brigade. He also was involved in organizing the preservation and renovation of the local church. In 1962, Erwin Junker was elected into the town council and received more votes than any other candidate in Nordrach before him. For the following decade, he was the acting mayor. He was also elected to the supervisory board for the Volksbank in Zell and was a member of the advisory board for a trade association. Furthermore, in 1968, Erwin Junker was named an honorary commander of the voluntary fire brigade in Nordrach, in recognition of his exceptional contributions. In 1987, he was awarded the Federal Cross of Merit. Ultimately, he sent this back, as a response to his disappointment in the German state. In 1990, he was named an honorary citizen of Nordrach in recognition of his efforts. [2]
In 2018, Erwin Junker purchased the late-romantic Windeck castle in Bühl, Baden, thereby preserving this historic monument. [5] He also owns the Finkenzeller Hof in Nordrach. [6]
The Junker Group and Erwin Junker own several company helicopters and aircraft so that they can, for example, quickly take customers and spare parts from A to B and be rapidly available at the Czech and German sites.
Erwin Junker married Marlies Junker (née Marlies Nennker, *1942) in 1997. He has a daughter, Ingeborg Junker (*1959), and a son, Manfred Junker (*1960 † 2023), both from his first marriage. [2]
MAN SE was a manufacturing and engineering company based in Munich, Germany. Its primary output was commercial vehicles and diesel engines through its MAN Truck & Bus and MAN Latin America divisions, and participation in the manufacturer Sinotruk.
Bücker-Flugzeugbau GmbH was a German aircraft manufacturer founded in 1932. It was most notable for Its highly regarded sports planes which went on to be used as trainers by the Luftwaffe during World War II.
KUKA is a German manufacturer of industrial robots and systems for factory automation. The Chinese company Midea Group owns more than 95% of the company.
Vossloh AG is a rail technology company based in Werdohl in the state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. The SDAX-listed group has achieved sales of around €930 million in 2016 and, as of 2017, had more than 4,000 employees.
Zell am Harmersbach is a small town and a historic “Reichsstadt” in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It lies in the Ortenaukreis, between the Black Forest and the Rhine.
The RENK Group is a German company and ranked among the top ten companies in the German defense industry in terms of sales in 2010. Its main production sites are located in Augsburg, Rheine, Hanover, and Winterthur (Switzerland) and - following the acquisition of the British company Horstman Holdings Ltd. in 2019 - in Bath, England, and Sterling Heights, USA.
Johann Karl Friedrich August Borsig was a German businessman who founded the Borsig-Werke factory.
Demag Cranes AG is a German heavy equipment manufacturer part of the Konecranes group.
Mannesmann was a German industrial conglomerate. It was originally established as a manufacturer of steel pipes in 1890 under the name "Deutsch-Österreichische Mannesmannröhren-Werke AG". In the twentieth century, Mannesmann's product range grew and the company expanded into numerous sectors; starting from various steel products and trading to mechanical and electrical engineering, automotive and telecommunications. From 1955, the conglomerate's management holding with headquarters in Düsseldorf was named Mannesmann AG.
The William Prym GmbH is the oldest family business in Germany. The holding company is located in Stolberg (Rhineland).
The Sächsische Maschinenfabrik in Chemnitz was one of the most important engineering companies in Saxony in the second half of the 19th century and the first two decades of the 20th century. Including its various predecessor businesses, the firm existed from 1837 until its liquidation in 1930, and individual branches of the company taken over by others continued to operate until 1990. The company is closely linked with the name of its founder and long-time manager, Richard Hartmann, whose name formed part of the new company title in 1898: the Sächsische Maschinenfabrik vormals Richard Hartmann.
Körber AG is a strategic management holding company based in Hamburg. In 2020, the group had approximately 10,000 employees at more than 100 locations worldwide and generated sales of €1.76 billion.
The Viessmann Group is a German manufacturer of heating and refrigeration systems headquartered in Allendorf (Eder), Germany. With 22 production companies in 12 countries, distribution companies and representative offices in 74 countries and 120 sales offices throughout the world, Viessmann is international in its orientation. More than 54 percent of turnover is generated abroad. Since January 2022, the company is led by Martin Vießmann, Maximilian Viessmann (Group-CEO) and Ulrich Hüllmann (CFO). In April 2023, Viessmann announced that it would sell its heat pump division to its US competitor Carrier Global for €12 billion.
Schöma is a company based in Diepholz, Germany, specialising in the construction of small diesel locomotives.
Reis Robotics is a German industrial robot manufacturer and systems integrator. In addition to robots and peripheral modules, Reis Robotics produces spotting and trimming presses and trimming tools.
Sennebogen Maschinenfabrik GmbH is a German machine building company with more than 2,200 employees worldwide (2023) and a sales revenue of over 600 million Euro.
NEUMAN & ESSER GROUP (NEA) was founded as a family establishment in Aachen, Germany in 1830. The abbreviation, NEA, stands for "NEUMAN & ESSER in Aachen". NEA is a manufacturer of reciprocating compressors and grinding systems for several industries, including oil and gas, chemical and petrochemical, food industry and renewable energy.
WaldrichSiegen Werkzeugmaschinen GmbH is a German manufacturer of heavy duty machine tools in the product lines milling, turning, boring, grinding and texturing. The internationally operating company has production and service sites in the USA, in China and India. The Headquarter of the company is situated in Burbach, Germany.
The JUNKER Group is a company group consisting of the brands JUNKER, LTA, and ZEMA. It manufactures machines for CBN and corundum grinding, and filtration systems for industrial air purification.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| People | |
