Albert Buss & Cie.

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Letterhead from Albert Buss & Cie. from 1895

Albert Buss & Cie. (Spelling often also Alb. Buss & Cie. ) Was a Swiss steel construction and mechanical engineering company based in Pratteln near Basel . It was involved in the design and construction of cable cars, railway lines and viaducts , other iron bridges, weirs and pressure pipes for hydropower plants as well as other industrial plants in Switzerland and beyond, or as a general contractor .

history

The company was founded in 1884 by the locksmith Albert Buss (1862–1912), who came from Badenweiler in Markgräflerland and was naturalized to Basel in 1889, on Clarastrasse in Kleinbasel . The operating location changed several times within the city limits of Basel. In 1893/94, Buss relocated most of the production to Pratteln in the canton of Basel-Landschaft , but the company headquarters, administration and design department remained in Basel. In 1901 the company changed its legal form to a stock corporation called Albert Buss & Cie. Society for iron structures, waterways and railways and a capital of 2.5 million Swiss francs. Albert Buss was now delegate of the board of directors . Buss AG rose to become Switzerland's leading hydraulic steel construction company and expanded abroad.

In 1897 the Albert Buss & Co. Wyhlen branch was founded on the Baden side of the Rhine in Wyhlen , which was converted into the independent company Eisenbau Wyhlen AG in 1911 . Eisenbau Wyhlen manufactured road and railway bridges, steel structures, weirs, foundries, and later also cranes and snow plows. In the 1970s Eisenbau Wyhlen got into an economic crisis and was supposed to be shut down, but in 1978 it was taken over by the Stuttgart Dürr Group , restructured and renamed Dürr Automation & Fördertechnik GmbH Wyhlen . This now also produced high-bay warehouses for the automotive industry. The location was later called Dürr Systems GmbH, Automation and Conveyor Technology product area , after which it belonged to the Paint and Assembly Systems division of Dürr Systems GmbH. In 2014, Dürr Systems sold the “Aircraft and Technology Systems” division, including the Wyhlen site, to Broetje-Automation GmbH, which stopped production at the end of 2019, with only the design office remaining there.

In 1905 a subsidiary was founded in Graz / Austria ( Albert Buss & Co., Graz ); However, this went into liquidation in 1918 . In 1907 an Italian subsidiary was founded in Milan , but it was sold in 1916. From 1919 to 1935 Buss operated a shipyard in Augst .

After the company's founder Albert Buss died in 1912, one of his sons, Walter Buss-Hofstetter (1890-1947), who studied mechanical engineering at the University of Karlsruhe and then gained experience abroad, joined the company in 1919 and soon became a member of Management on. Another branch of business for the construction of plants for the up-and-coming chemical and pharmaceutical industry in the Basel area was also established in 1919. In 1920, Buss founded its first international sales organization. With the appointment as delegate of the board of directors, Walter Buss-Hofstetter took over the company management in 1936.

During the Second World War, Buss AG produced floor panels for tanks for the Swiss Army . After the end of the war, Buss developed and produced kneading machines for the food industry as a further branch of the company; The first machine was delivered in 1948 and the first loop reactor was sold in 1950 . The branch grew rapidly and made the company known internationally.

Buss AG was a leader in hydraulic steel engineering until the 1950s and 1960s . It supplied the pressure pipelines and weir closures for more than 70 weirs. In the 1970s, Buss also designed and built water and tank systems, including the feed water tank and the steel catch basin for the Beznau nuclear power plant . In total, Buss AG built over 350 hydraulic steelworks.

Due to the oil crisis in the 1970s, energy-intensive large metal processing was no longer economical and was largely outsourced. Buss AG limited itself to mechanical engineering. In 1979 Georg Fischer AG in Schaffhausen acquired 50% of the shares in Buss AG, in 1990 all shares.

In 1998, Buss was sold again by Fischer and split into several parts, including

  • the Buss Chemical Process Systems AG (Buss CPS AG) to the Norwegian Kværner (now merged into Corporation Aker Solutions ) sold in 1999 and renamed Kvaerner Process Technology (Switzerland) AG . In 2001 the Russian energy group Yukos acquired the Swiss company and its London sister company and changed the names to Davy Process Technology (Switzerland) AG and Davy Process Technology Ltd. In 2006, Yukos was broken up, the Swiss branch was taken over by management and renamed Buss ChemTech AG , based in Pratteln near Basel.
  • the Buss Immobilien und Service AG : end of 2001 by the RC Generalunternehmung the family of the entrepreneur, investor and art collector Hermann Beyeler from Littau taken and fused with this, so was the owner of the RC 63000 sqm large Buss industrial parks in Pratteln. The Ceres project planned by Beyeler there includes a 26-storey, 80-meter-high skyscraper and a building with around 200 apartments.
  • The kneading machine manufacturer Buss Compounding Systems AG merged with other companies in 2001 to form the Stuttgart Coperion Group and traded as Coperion Buss AG ; After Georg Fischer AG sold its financial stake in Coperion Holding in 2006, Buss was spun off through a management buy-out and became independent again as Buss AG .

All of these companies are based in Pratteln on the Buss site . The technical center of the Hessian process engineering company Buss-SMS-Canzler GmbH , which was created from parts of the companies SMS, Buss, Luwa and Canzler, is also based there.

buildings

Former power station footbridge Rheinfelden (meanwhile completely dismantled and removed)
Middle bridge in Basel
Bietschtal viaduct of the Lötschberg south ramp
Circular viaduct of Brusio on the Bernina Railway
Gümmenen Viaduct of the Bern-Neuchâtel Railway
Weir of the Augst / Wyhlen hydropower plant

The Buss company was involved in the following structures, among others:

  • after 1897: Iron emergency bridge, after the fire of the wooden Rhine bridge in Rheinfelden (demolished in 1911 for the construction of today's concrete bridge)
  • 1898: Arch bridge over the Reichenbach of the Reichenbach Falls Railway
  • 1900–1904: Bannwil power station of the Wangen an der Aare power station (over 120 meters long Bock weir, 24 gate panels, turbine inlet gates, iron works of the turbine house, service walkways, three road bridges; total weight of deliveries around 700 tons)
  • 1901 (commissioned in 1902): Old Rheinfelden hydropower plant : via the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG, delivery of the weir with eight weir openings each 22 meters and three gates (weir demolished in 2007 in order to build the new hydropower plant ), the iron service bridge over the Rhine (demolished in November 2010 started), the power plant rake and the road bridge; Total weight of the deliveries around 350 tons
  • 1903–1905: Construction of the Middle Bridge over the Rhine in Basel, together with Philipp Holzmann & Cie. from Frankfurt am Main. The 192 meter long granite bridge on the north side of the Gotthard massif has seven openings, six of which span the Rhine and one the Rheinweg on the Kleinbasel side. A copy of the old bridge chapel was built on the central pillar.
  • 1904–1907: iron structures at the Campocologno power station (when it comes into operation, it will be the largest hydroelectric power station in Europe)
  • 1905: Five- aisle hall of the Basel SBB train station via tracks 1 to 10; Width 93, length 120 m (tracks 1/2), 230 m (tracks 3/4) or 200 m (tracks 5 to 10)
  • 1905–1908: Iron construction of the Wetterhorn elevator , one of the first aerial cableways in the world for passenger transport
  • 1905–1910: Bernina line of the Rhaetian Railway , today part of the UNESCO World Heritage (Buss AG was the general contractor and built the substructure, superstructure and building structure itself)
  • 1906: Construction of the first port crane system in the Rhine port of St. Johann in Basel (the demolition of the port began in July 2010; after the work has been completed at the end of 2011, an expansion of the Novartis campus will be built here)
  • 1906: Wiblingen an der Donau hydropower plant : via the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG, delivery of the weir with three openings, three gates, the landing gear, as well as a canal inlet gate and the service walkway; Total weight of the deliveries around 200 tons
  • 1906–1908: Hydropower station Deutschfeistritz (Styria / Austria), as general and construction contractor, together with the Swiss Railway Bank
  • 1907: Stone transport railway from Kandern to Malsburg-Marzell (narrow-gauge railway, already closed in 1919)
  • 1908: Solothurn-Münster Railway
  • 1908–1912: Iron structures at the Augst / Wyhlen hydropower plant (design and delivery): weir openings 1 and 2, weir gates , turbine inlet gates , power plant rake, service footbridge, civil engineering work on the machine house, lock gates, roof structures, caissons ; Total weight of the delivery around 3000 tons
  • 1908–1912 (opened in 1910): Railway line of the Bodensee-Toggenburg Railway from Romanshorn to St. Gallen St. Fiden
  • 1911–1913: Bietschtal viaduct ( Lötschberg south ramp )
  • 1912: Construction of the railway hall of the Lausanne train station , together with the companies Bosshard from Näfels and Schweizer from Albisrieden, Zurich
  • 1912: Ahausen hydropower plant near Bermatingen (Germany): weir in the Aach with seven gates, service footbridge (designed by Albert Buss AG, delivery via the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG)
  • 1913–1916: Olten – Gösgen hydropower plant in the Aare: design and delivery of the weir with five openings, five double gates, stop log closure, turbine inlet gates, rakes, canal inlet gates, roof structures; Total weight of the deliveries around 1250 tons
  • 1913–1916: Faal (Fala) hydropower plant on the Drau (then Yugoslavia, now Slovenia): Design and implementation planning of the entire weir system including civil engineering work, delivery of the weir with five openings, double gates, dam beam closure, also turbine inlet gates, rakes, caissons, Derrik crane (crane with stand tree and swivel tree), roof structure and other; Total weight of the deliveries around 2200 tons
  • 1914: Disentis electricity works
  • 1914–1917: Hydroelectric power station in the Rhine near Eglisau: planning of the weir with six openings and double gates; Delivery of the lower gates (around 720 tons), two stop log ends to the weir, rifle runway, ground sleepers, turbine inlet gates with coarse screens; Total weight of the deliveries from Buss around 1450 tons
  • 1920–1923: Chancy-Pougny hydropower plant in the Rhone : project planning and implementation planning of the entire weir system including civil engineering work (weir with four openings, double gates, upper and lower water stop beams; total weight around 1000 tons, delivery by Schneider & Cie.); Buss supplied: turbine inlet gates, fine screens, stop log closures for the turbine inlet, roof structures; Total weight of the deliveries from Buss around 500 tons
  • 1921–1922: Hydroelectric power station in the Guadalquivir near El Carpio (Province of Córdoba, Spain): project planning and delivery of the weir with six openings, gates, stop log closure, service bridge, and delivery of the rake and inlet gates; Total weight of the deliveries from Buss around 500 tons
  • 1922–1923: Hydroelectric power station in the Ain near the Vaucluse monastery (France): project planning and implementation planning of the weir with three openings and double gates (supplied by Schneider & Cie, Paris); Total weight of the iron structures around 250 tons
  • 1923–1924: Hydroelectric power station in Velino near Terni (Italy): project planning and implementation planning of the weir with one opening, gates, upper and lower water dam beams, service walkway; Total weight of the iron structures around 150 tons
  • 1927–1929: Hydroelectric power station in Oum er-Rbia near Sidi Saïd Maachou (Morocco): project planning and implementation planning of the weir with four openings, double gates , upper and lower water stop log closures (supplied by Schneider & Cie, Paris; total weight of the iron structures around 300 tons ); four shooters were supplied by Buss (total weight around 150 tons)
  • 1928–1929: Hydroelectric power plant in Niger near Les Aigrettes (then French West Africa , now Mali ): project planning of the weir system together with Schneider & Cie, Paris (delivery by them); Weir with four openings, double gates, service footbridge and dam beam closure for the upper water; Buss also supplied a regulating gate and 26 small gates for the associated irrigation system at the Baguineda distribution station, as well as four double gates for the sewer inlet at Sotuba; Total weight of the iron structures around 150 tons
  • 1927–1930: Hydroelectric power station in the Rio Alberche near Burguillo (Spain): project planning and implementation planning of the weir with three openings, gates, one of which has an automatic flap, service bridge; Delivery of a shooter, stoney roller carriage, winch for three shooters; Total weight of the iron structures around 150 tons
  • 1928–1929: Le Pinet hydroelectric power station in the Tarn (France): project planning and implementation planning of the weir with four openings, gates, dam beam closures (supplied by Schneider & Cie., Paris); Total weight of the iron structures around 100 tons
  • 1928–1931: Alcalá del Río hydropower plant in Guadalquivir (Spain): project planning and implementation planning as well as, in some cases, supplies for the weir with eight openings, gates, upper and lower water dam beams, service bridge; Total weight of the deliveries around 750 tons
  • 1929–1931: Pizançon hydropower plant in the Isère (France): project planning and implementation planning for the weir with six openings, double gates, upper and lower water stop logs (supplied by Schneider & Cie. , Paris)
  • 1929–1931: Encinarejo hydropower plant in the Río Jándula near Andújar (Spain): project planning and implementation plans for the weir with an opening and the service walkway , delivery of the gates and the gates' winch , three inlet gates, with winches and rakes for the turbines, three pressure pipes, bottom outlet with shooter, equipment of the apparatus chamber; Total weight of deliveries over 250 tons
  • 1929–1932: Hydroelectric power station in the Rhine near Kembs : Project planning of the weir with five openings with a clearance of 30 meters, double gates, landing gear winches, upper and lower water dam beams, upper and lower service bridge, two dam beam cranes, 1 gantry crane on the lower bridge, two trolleys for dam beams on the upper bridge, niche reinforcements; Delivery and assembly by the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG; Total weight of the deliveries around 4600 tons
  • 1930–1931: Hydroelectric power station in the Cadène near Brommat , southern France: planning of the weir with one opening, double gates, wind turbine; also delivery of the sewer inlet gates with winch by the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG; Total weight of the deliveries around 100 tons
  • 1930–1931: Hydroelectric power station in the Ain near Cize - Bolozon : Project planning and implementation planning of the entire dam system including civil engineering work; Weir with four openings, three of them with double gates (supplied by Schneider & Cie., Paris) and one with automatic sector gates, rifle winches, upper and lower water dam beams, upper and lower service bridge, four cranes; Total weight of the iron structures around 1100 tons; the German subsidiary Eisenbau Wyhlen AG supplied the winches and fittings for the weir gunners, fittings for the upper and lower water stop beams, the upper and lower service bridge, two overhead cranes, a gantry crane, a portal crane, six turbine inlet gates with three double winches, and rakes as well as the automatic one Sector shooter; Total weight of the deliveries around 600 tons
  • until the end of 1930: several automatic weirs based on patents and on behalf of Stauwerke AG, Zurich; Total weight of the deliveries around 800 tons
  • 1953–1955: St. Albanbrücke , Basel; together with the engineering office A. Aegerter & Dr. O. Bosshardt AG and the civil engineering company Ed. Züblin & Cie. AG (reinforced concrete; demolished in 1973 in favor of the ten-lane Black Forest bridge )
  • Dome of the Lucerne train station
  • Relocation of the Alsatian railway line in Basel
  • Section of the direct railway line Bern – Neuchâtel
  • Spiez-Erlenbach Railway
  • Solothurn-Münster Railway , 1907
  • Niesenbahn (funicular), 1907–1910
  • Orsières low pressure power station (15,000 hp)
  • New Belgrade Power Plant (thermal center)
  • Adaptation of the sewer system of the city of Basel to the backwater of the Rhine from the Kembs power plant

Competitive successes

Buss won awards in the following international competitions, among others:

  • 1st prize: Project to make the High Rhine navigable from Basel to Lake Constance (not implemented)
  • 1st prize: Competition to obtain general designs for the use of the hydropower available in the Schluchsee area
  • further 1st and 2nd prizes in bridge construction

Web links

literature

  • Staatsarchiv Basel-Stadt, signature "Handel und Gewerbe SS 8.18." File title: Albert Buss, created 1891–1935 (series)
  • Buss AG (ed.), Volker Neuburg (text), Herbert Leupin (draft and design): 50 years Buss AG, 1901–1951 / 50 années Buss SA / 50 years Buss, Ltd. Schwabe Verlag, Basel, 1951.
  • Annual reports 1901–1918 and 1919–1994 / 95: Central Office for Business Documentation at the University of Zurich (UZWD)

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Wyhlen community, files V, 2, fasc. 30–34; Walter Küchlin: Eisenbau Wyhlen AG In: The margraviate. Monthly magazine of the Hebelbund , vol. 15, no. 3, p. 11ff., Müllheim 1963.
  2. ↑ https://www.verlagshaus-jaumann.de/inhalt. Grenzach-wyhlen-broetje-steller-produktion-ein.509d7443-c68e-4560-909e- 873b73d50778.html
  3. ↑ * October 21, 1890 in Basel; † August 13, 1947 in Davos ; Obituary in the Basler National-Zeitung , August 14, 1947, identical in the Basler Nachrichten , August 15, 1947
  4. ↑ http://www.ceres-building.ch/index.php?id=4 Genealogie Dead Link | url = http: //www.ceres-building.ch/index.php? Id = 4 | date = 2018 -08 | archivebot = 2018-08-22 19:57:01 InternetArchiveBot}} (link not available)
  5. ↑ Origin of Buss ChemTech AG ( Memento from July 1, 2010 in the Internet Archive )
  6. ^ An architectural landmark for the greater area , Badische Zeitung , June 26, 2008
  7. ↑ Buss AG website
  8. ↑ Company profile ( memento from September 26, 2015 in the Internet Archive )
  9. ↑ Figure
  10. ↑ Middle Rhine Bridge, Basel: Project by the Alb company. Buss & Cie in Basel in connection with Mr. E. Faesch u. F. Werz in Basel. (Series: Advice on ... / Grand Council; 1190c), Basel 1899.
  11. ↑ Manfred Wehdorn, Ute Georgeacopol-Winischofer, Paul W. Roth: architectural monuments of technology and industry in Austria. Volume 2: Steiermark, Kärnten , Böhlau Verlag, Vienna 1998, pp. 13–15.
  12. ↑ Michael Kopfmann: The stone transport train from Kandern to Malsburg-Marzell. Grin-Verlag 2010, ISBN 978-3-640-55547-5
  13. ↑ Swiss Water Management Association and Association of Swiss Electricity Companies (ed.): Guide through the Swiss water and electricity industry , Volume 2, 1949, pp. 107–212.
  14. ↑ Adolf Herzog: The Bietschtal viaduct on the southern ramp of the Lötschbergbahn: built by A.-G. Alb. Buss & Cie. in Basel. Come on. Rascher & Cie .. Zurich u. Leipzig 1913 (special edition from: Schweizerische Bauzeitung ), vol. 61, no. 16 a. 17th