This means that the family business is being continued in the third generation. Mireille is the daughter of Managing Director Karl-Heinz Huppertz and granddaughter of company founder Johan Huppertz. In 1959, the trained wagon and farrier took over a company located in Medell. In this rural region, his customer base consisted mostly of farmers.
As early as 1968, the premises were expanded by the construction of a hall. With the upswing in the dairy industry, the range of services was also expanded: from then on, milking trucks of various designs were offered and serviced.
In 1983, Karl-Heinz Huppertz began a two-year apprenticeship as a blacksmith and building fitter in his father's business. The field of activity developed further when the company became a contract manufacturer for industry.
In 1989 there was a change of generations. Johann Huppertz retired and handed over the management to his son Karl-Heinz. The Schlosserei Huppertz PGmbH was founded. In the same year a new hall was built and the existing one was rebuilt. The company developed more and more into an industrial supplier. With this change the first employees were hired.
After 10 years the location became too small to meet the increasing demand. Finally, the managing director decided to move to a nearby industrial area. "Looking back, it was one of the best decisions we ever made," says Karl-Heinz Huppertz today. So in August 2000 the new halls with office wing, in St.Vith, Steinerberg 5, were built. Schlosserei Huppertz PGmbH became a public limited company with family shareholders, Huppertz AG Stahl- und Apparatebau. In April 2001 the move was completed.
Since then, the company has been steadily expanding. Soon, further investments are in the pipeline. "The market is there and our constructions are in demand, especially abroad. 70 percent of our work is exported. However, we have reached our capacity limit and would like to grow further so that we can create development and design potential. Coupled with this would be the creation of several jobs," announces Karl-Heinz Huppertz, who is aware of the difficulties on the labor market: "Of course, we are struggling with similar problems as the other players in the steel construction industry. That's why we train our workers ourselves. This year we are again looking for apprentices. We employ 36 people today. Our trump card might be the working environment and the proximity to the workers' place of residence. We always try to fulfill our social commitment. Families depend on our company. The quality of life of the staff must not be neglected at all. In the future, we would like to pay even more attention to this aspect in order to offer our workers the ideal working environment ."
With the expansion and rejuvenation of the management, Huppertz AG Stahl- und Apparatebau wants to offer the perspective of a secure future. Freddy Classen has been with the company for 23 years and did his apprenticeship there. So he knows the working environment very well and brings a lot of experience from the technical side. "I am very honored that Karl-Heinz has thought of me. I'm going to put my all into this job and I'm convinced I'll be able to help the company develop further." Mireille Huppertz is only at the beginning of her professional career. "I am still young at 24, but I have already been able to gain some experience in the sector and abroad." Karl-Heinz Huppertz describes the combination of the two personalities as "ideal": "Responsibility is thus spread over several shoulders. We are absolutely convinced of the future viability of this model."
Published 01.01.2018