This year, Roth Composite Machinery in Burgwald is looking back on its company history of 100 years. The subsidiary of Roth Industries, Dautphetal, paid tribute to this event during an anniversary celebration. Business partners, current and former employees with their families, members of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce as well as political representatives participated in the event on September 13, 2019.

Manfred Roth welcomed the guests and expressed his gratitude to the employees for their engagement on behalf of the Roth family. He declared: “Our traditional company in Burgwald is known as Schlesinger Maschinenbau GmbH. Since 1977 it belongs to the family-owned company Roth. The takeover was the first step into the sector of capital goods for us. Today, we can look back on a success story of 100 years. This is owed to our employees. On behalf of the management of Roth Industries and my family, I would like to thank the entire workforce for the tremendous commitment and loyalty.“

Since the merger with EHA Composite Machinery in 2016, the expert in the machine construction sector trades under the name Roth Composite Machinery. At the Burgwald location, the company is developing and manufacturing production machinery for the brush and broom industries as well as pleating machines for the filter production. The portfolio of Roth Composite Machinery also includes coating and Prepreg lines as well as machinery for the manufacture of light-weight components by using the filament winding process. In this field, the company is world market leader.

During the anniversary celebration, the managing directors of Roth Composite Machinery, Alfred Kajewski and Dr. Andreas Reimann, expressed their greetings and passed the key points of the company’s history in review. It goes back to the company start-up by Friedrich Schlesinger in the Saxon town of Schönheide in 1919. First, the manufacture was focused on manual punching machines and multi-spindle drilling machines. In 1930, Schlesinger has developed the first semi-automatic machine for realizing a simultaneous process of the working steps drilling and filling being necessary for fastening the bristle bundles. Ten years later, the company implemented the patented pattern band control for the fully automated manufacture of brushes. In 1951, Schlesinger moved to Burgwald, Industriehof. Owing to the invention of the first fully automated carrousel machine in 1960, the company gains the international breakthrough. During the third year after the taking over by Roth, a decisive innovation for the future of the company has been realized by the electronic position control. Furthermore, the company achieved larger market successes with new production lines for special applications, such as the first 4-tool carrousel transfer machine for household brushes as well as a machine for the manufacture of car cleaning brushes.

In recent years, the company has been expanding its expertise on the international level by means of especially powerful and energy-saving drive elements as well as by introducing a highly efficient production process. The new technology called „RoAn“ is characterized by highest flexibility and production speed. Thereby, Roth Composite Machinery asserts its membership to the world leaders in the industry for brush-making machines. In 2011, the company started the extension of the product program involving pleating lines. By using these machines, for example, paper and plastic composite webs for air and hydraulic filters are prefabricated. Within a short period of only five years, three types of knife pleating machines, a rotary pleating machine, production lines for the lateral adhesion of filters as well as mini-pleat systems have been developed and successfully introduced into the market. Today, the company belongs to the globally active and reputable manufacturers of special machinery in the industries for brushes, brooms and filters.

Since the merger to Roth Composite Machinery, the company relies on about 125 specialists, can thus optimally use synergies in the mechanical engineering of the Roth corporate group and thereby strengthen its market positions. About 45 employees are working at the location in Burgwald. The machines for brushes and brooms as well as the pleating equipment became substantial pillars of the company with promising growth prospects. Alfred Kajewski declared: “In the segment Pleating Machines, we see a great market potential which we intend to open up more intensively. We will further extend our engineering expertise towards hydraulics in the future. Currently, we are producing a demonstration machine for hydraulic applications in high-pressure ranges.“

Roth Composite Machinery employs about 20 apprentices and “StudiumPlus“ students (Bachelor and Master).

Manfred Roth handed a jubilee plaque to the Managing Directors Alfred Kajewski and Dr. Andreas Reimann as well as the chairman of the works committee, Uwe Cronau, on behalf of Roth Industries and his family. During the anniversary celebration, the company’s appreciation has been pointed out by greetings of Dr. Peter Sacher, representative of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce Kassel-Marburg as well as Werner Fugmann, member of the local council of Burgwald. A varied programme awaited around 250 guests, including company tours and machine demonstrations as well as games for both, old and young.

1919 Friedrich Schlesinger has found the company in Schönheide/Erzgebirge

1930 First semi-automatic brush-making machine

1940 First machine with pattern band control

1951 Relocation of the production and resettlement to Burgwald-Industriehof

1960 Development of a fully automated 1-tool carrousel machine

1977 Takeover of the company Friedrich Schlesinger by Roth Industries GmbH & Co. KG

1979 First use of electronic positioning controls

1994 First 4-tool carrousel transfer machine

2010 Development of a new filling tool for the brush-making machines: RoAn technology

2011 Establishment of a second machine division: Knife Pleating Machines

Deepening of the cooperation with EHA Composite Machinery GmbH for realizing synergy effects as regards procurement and development

2012 Development and prototype construction of a servo motor-driven knife pleating machine in cooperation with EHA Composite Machinery

2013 Strengthening of the development and design processes

2014 Development of a fully automated brush-making machine with integrated high-speed robot (Tripod)

Introduction of the ERP system SAP/R3 EEC

Expansion of the sales management system, regional sales enhencement as well as expansion of the sales representations

2015 Development of a pleating line with rotary embossing rollers for large-scale pleating production plants

2016 Merger with EHA Composite Machinery to Roth Composite Machinery GmbH

Realization of the one-cable technology for shorter installation times and more effective set-up times for customers

2017 Implementation of an e-editing system for the machine documentations and the drawing up of up-to-date instruction manuals 

Modernization and restructuring of the production and assembly procedures according to material flow principles

Development of the world’s most powerful brush-making machine realizing a stroke of 350 mm for the manufacture of roller, disk and strip brushes

2018 Advancement of the controlling software and simplification of the programming as well as operating interfaces for brush-making machines

2019 100th anniversary

Roth Composite Machinery is an expert in the field of special machinery construction – the company develops, designs and builds components, machines as well as complete production lines in the business areas

Roth Industries GmbH & Co. KG comprising various firms and around 1,300 employees all over the world is one of the most innovative companies in the areas 

Building Solutions - Divisions: Energy Systems, Sanitary Systems, Environmental Systems

Industrial Solutions – Divisions: Composite Technology, Plastic Technology, Hydraulic Technology

The head office of the medium-sized traditional company is located in Dautphetal, Hesse. While the company’s strategic direction, the controlling, auditing as well as the balance and financial planning is effected from there, the local employees are responsible for the development, production and marketing of the products.

28 production and sales companies of Roth Industries are acting all over the world - in core segments as world market leader.

Roth Industries bundles all activities of the companies belonging to the group in Germany and abroad. The company is owned by the Roth family to 100 %.