Company anniversary – 60 years of pioneering sensors and positioning systems

SIKO administration building with electronics production at the Bad Krozingen site

The fact that the company is where it is today is due to its history, which is characterized by a willingness to think "out of the box" and initiate innovative projects at the right time.

It all began with the decision of company founder Günther Wandres to become self-employed, which he made in 1963 when he sold the drive technology company that he had previously managed. He took over a small product group from the previous company, handwheels with position indicators, which were mainly used for speed control on continuously variable transmissions. In addition, design orders were carried out and an industrial agency for geared motors was taken over, which established the name SIKO: Süddeutsches Industrie Kontor Dr. Ing.

Production grew and soon required more space, which was realized in 1964 with additional production rooms in Unteribental. In 1971, the company finally moved to a new production site in neighboring Buchenbach.

From the mid-1970s, the product portfolio continued to develop: following the success of mechanical position indicators, digital position indicators were launched on the market, which for the first time enabled readings accurate to a tenth of a millimeter. In addition, the company increasingly devoted itself to the development of electronic measuring systems for displacement and angle measurement, e.g. with the first gear potentiometers at the end of the 1970s or the first optoelectronic hollow shaft encoder in 1982. At the beginning of the 1990s, under the aegis of the new Managing Director Horst Wandres, the youngest son of the SIKO founder, linear measuring systems were added to the product portfolio. In addition to draw-wire displacement transducers, it was primarily linear measuring systems with a magnetic measuring principle that became the best-selling segment from then on. Horst Wandres received support in 1996 when his sister Ursula Wandres joined the company as HR manager and played a key role in shaping the family character of the company.

SIKO now has three business divisions and an additional German production and administration site in Bad Krozingen, making it fit for the future. In the "Mobile Automation" division, SIKO focuses on robust sensors that are suitable for the harsh operating conditions of mobile machines. "Changeover Solutions" are positioning systems for mechanical engineering, which are primarily in demand in the packaging, pharmaceutical and woodworking industries. "MagLine Motorfeedback" offers encoders for drive technology such as linear motors and torque motors as well as for use in robotics applications such as cobots.

Sven Wischnewski, who has been Managing Director of SIKO GmbH since 2014, is largely responsible for setting the course in recent years. The Wandres family is now active in the background as shareholders, but is no longer involved in the operational business. For Sven Wischnewski, it is important to emphasize that the company's growing success is based on the commitment of its employees, who have contributed to the company's development in a variety of ways over the years. The result is innovative products that take account of the ongoing digitalization of industrial production.