Zeuke
| Zeuke & Wegwerth KG; from 1972: VEB Berliner TT-Bahnen |
|
|---|---|
| legal form | GmbH |
| founding | 1946 |
| Seat | Berlin (1946 to 1992) |
| Branch | Toy industry |
The Zeuke & Wegwerth KG was a model train manufacturer , the 1946-1993 in (East) Berlin mainly railway models of the TT scale created. In 1972 the company became the VEB Berliner TT-Bahnen (BTTB) and survived the turning point by a few years. After the bankruptcy in 1993, the company became part of the TT Bahnen Pilz GmbH & Co. KG in Berlin .
history
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Zeuke & Wegwerth KG
The Berlin company Zeuke & Wegwerth has been producing electromechanical toys (e.g. ships) and model railway articles since the end of 1946 , the latter initially only in nominal size 0 , then in H0 .
In 1956 the company took a state stake. The previous managing directors Werner Zeuke and Helmut Wegwerth thus became general partners and heads of this limited partnership (KG), in which the state acted as financier.
After the success of the West German company Rokal , the company began producing model railroad vehicles in nominal size TT in 1957 . So were at the Leipzig Spring Fair , among others, a 1957 steam locomotive of the series 23 and a diesel locomotive of the BR V200 along with tracks and signals presented, which arrived at Christmas 1958 in the trade. The models were so well received that the company first throttled the production of items in size 0 as well as non-model railroad items from 1960 and finally stopped it completely in the 1960s. Due to the increased demand for TT, the company's headquarters were relocated from Grünauer Strasse in Berlin-Köpenick to larger buildings in Storkower Strasse in Prenzlauer Berg / Lichtenberg in 1965 , where it remained until the mid-1990s.
The company's own specialist magazine Modellbahn-Praxis was published for the first time in 1966, and in the same year the cooperation with the mail-order company Quelle began , which until 1990 offered the TT models in its catalog - especially DB variants specially made for this purpose .
Berlin TT-Bahnen (BTTB)
In 1972 Zeuke & Wegwerth KG was forcibly nationalized and renamed VEB Berliner TT-Bahnen (BTTB). However, the TT logo was retained and the addition Zeuke continued to be used , especially in exports .
The company produced primarily for the local market with almost exclusively corresponding models. For the GDR's foreign exchange procurement, however, exports were also carried out, in particular to the Federal Republic of Germany via the Richard Schreiber company in Fürth , but also to Belgium and Great Britain . In order to achieve corresponding sales figures in these markets, occasional DB models such as the above-mentioned BR V 200 as well as variants of the NoHAB AA16 for Belgium and Scandinavia were produced. At the end of the 1980s, the company in Western Europe increasingly sold models below the production price due to the GDR's lack of foreign exchange, which led to debt.
Reprivatisation
In June 1990 the company was re- privatized and renamed Berliner TT-Bahnen Zeuke GmbH . Werner Zeuke, supported by Henning Schauer, could be won as managing director. Within a short period of time, many models were revised and, in particular, new paintwork variants and several new product projects were created. The first economic problems arose in 1991 due to the loss of purchasing power in the new federal states and massive sales of stocks at rock bottom prices. In 1991 Werner Zeuke left the company. Carlo Parisel became the new managing director. Large media campaigns followed, partly in cooperation with the trust or with other manufacturers. In 1992 there was an attempt to expand into the US TT market .
On July 1, 1992 the company took over the accessories manufacturer VERO from Olbernhau ; Innovation projects were continued. The BTTB supported with special models and other sponsoring measures the Olympic bid in 2000 in Berlin.
Bankruptcy in Berlin and company name in a Sebnitz company
Unexpectedly, on July 30, 1993, the works council of BTTB Zeuke GmbH declared bankruptcy due to the non-payment of three monthly salaries and high liabilities . As part of the insolvency proceedings, the owner of Mattra GmbH, Hans-Jürgen Tillig from Sebnitz , took over the company in September 1993. The companies Pilz and Mattra from Sebnitz and BTTB Zeuke from Berlin were merged under the new company name Berliner TT Bahnen Pilz GmbH & Co. KG . In 1993 the name was changed to Tillig Bahnen und Gleise GmbH & Co. KG and the company headquarters were relocated to Sebnitz. Parts of production and sales remained in Berlin for a few years, but the company name was finally history.
Web links
Individual evidence
- ^ Model railway catalog from Berliner TT-Bahnen on modellbahn-rostock.de ; Retrieved September 24, 2010
- ↑ Two model railway catalogs of the Berlin TT-Bahnen: 1971–1980 and 1981–1990 ; Retrieved September 24, 2010
- ↑ Homepage from the USA with reports on the models of the Berlin TT railways and photos