Danfoss Compressors
| Danfoss Compressors
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|---|---|
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| legal form | Company with limited liability |
| founding | 1956 |
| resolution | 2010 |
| Reason for dissolution | Sale of the company, continuation under a new name |
| Seat | Flensburg , Germany |
| Status: 2015 | |
The Danfoss Compressors GmbH (temporarily Danfoss Household Compressors GmbH) was an independent plant and distribution center of the Danfoss -Konzerns. Between 1956 and 2010 it manufactured hermetic compressors as a subsidiary .
In 2010 the Danfoss Group parted with its compressor program and handed it over to the Munich industrial holding company Aurelius . Since then, Danfoss Compressors has operated with a new brand identity under the name Secop .
During this period, the company's product portfolio comprised three areas of application: Compressors for refrigerators and freezers in the household, for small commercial cooling systems and for cooling solutions in the mobile sector.
The beginnings
It all began in 1933 in a youth room in the attic of their parents' house: Mads Clausen founded the Dansk Køleautomatik- og Apparat-Fabrik (Danish cooling automation and apparatus factory ) in Elsmark ( Havnbjerg Sogn ) on the Danish island of Alsen . Production started with valves for refrigeration systems, which until then had to be imported from the USA at great cost. Clausen obtained valve parts from Brdr. (Brothers) Müller. He didn't have a lot of equity or start-up capital. His initially modest equipment included an air pump and a zinc tub with which he tested the valves.
In 1935 Clausen expanded for the first time to create space for machines and employees. He built a 60 m² wooden hut in his parents' vegetable garden. It was called a chicken house, which is why the myth continues to this day that Danfoss emerged from a chicken coop. Further modifications and extensions followed. Step by step, the Danish refrigeration engineer laid the foundation for what would later become Danfoss A / S, which was also based in Elsmark (in what was then Nordborg , now: Sonderburg municipality ). The first modern factory building measured 50,000 m² of floor space, which later doubled again.
After initial difficulties in the production processes, the company began to flourish. A number of valves were introduced between 1935 and 1938 - automatic spring valves, ball float valves , thermostats , pressure-controlled diaphragm and suction valves , room temperature controllers, constant pressure valves and dry filters. All valves are labeled “Danfoss”, a combination of the words Danmark (Denmark) and fosser (flows / bubbles).
With the valves, especially the thermostatic valve, Clausen developed the most famous product of the later Danfoss Group. However, the success of the thermostatic valve in particular was a long time coming until the 1970s. Only when it was necessary to react to the energy crisis and the installation of these valves became mandatory did the sales figures rise sharply.
In 1946 the company was renamed Danfoss and an office was opened in Copenhagen . The company had 261 employees.
Start of compressor production
After the end of the Second World War , the end of Danfoss' core business became apparent. Demand for the flagship, the expansion valve for large cooling systems, fell. American companies had developed “new, so-called hermetic compressors in compact design” for use in household refrigerators . In Denmark, too, companies were already working to start producing hermetic compressors. The days of large community refrigeration systems, e.g. B. in apartment blocks, seemed to be counted. Mads Clausen decided to enter the compressor market.
That is why Mads Clausen made a trip to the USA and Canada in the fall of 1950 . Every evening he recorded reports of his visits to various companies. This resulted in 36 detailed documentations on the production of hermetic compressors. Clausen described technical details of the machines, tools and constructions that he had seen. He also reported on forms of organization, salary systems and ways of increasing production.
On his trip Mads Clausen also visited the Tecumseh compressor factory . His hope of reaching an agreement with this company on licensed production was fulfilled on January 1, 1952.
The license agreement authorized Danfoss to manufacture Tecumseh's “ Pancake ” compressor under the Danfoss name and sell it worldwide. Exceptions were the USA, Canada, Great Britain and Ireland . It was not an exclusive contract, which meant that Tecumseh could make similar agreements with other companies. But the contract gave Danfoss a head start that Mads Clausen took advantage of: as early as 1952, 5,000 compressors were manufactured and sold, which accounted for 10% of the company's turnover. Over the years, Danfoss Compressors has generated between 25 and 35% of total group sales with the compressors. The division thus formed one of the cornerstones of the Danfoss product portfolio.
history
In 1956, Danfoss relocated compressor production to Flensburg . The Danfoss Compressors GmbH (temporarily Danfoss Household Compressors GmbH ) was founded. This created an independent factory and sales location for hermetic compressors, where production started in 1958. The first PW compressors, developed entirely by Danfoss, left the factory and began to replace the “pancake” types. At the beginning of the year 1,000 compressors were being produced per week, by the end of the year the number had risen to 1,750.
From January 1959, 8,000 units were produced in two-shift operation. Most of the customers were the refrigerator manufacturers Bauknecht , Siemens and Bosch . The refrigerator was becoming more and more common in German households.
1960 saw the beginning of the use of synthetic materials and oils. Synthetic materials have clearly defined properties, while natural products are always subject to certain fluctuations. This means a higher resistance, both in the high and in the low temperature range.
Danfoss became a public company in 1961 . Mads Clausen took over the chairmanship of the board until his death on August 27, 1966. His wife Bitten succeeded him and Andreas Jepsen held the post of managing director.
In 1968 the Flensburg site had 1,372 employees.
By 1970 the number of employees in Flensburg had risen to 2,000. A total of 7,000 people worked for Danfoss. This year the SC compressor and the PTC starter were also introduced for commercial small refrigeration systems. The demand for compressors increased so strongly that the foundation stone for Plant II was laid in addition to the existing Plant I in the mid-1960s. It was completed in 1970.
In 1972 the turnover of the Danfoss group rose to one billion Danish kroner . With the FR compressor, Danfoss also introduced a standard compressor this year, which uses the refrigerant R134a . It was designed for compact commercial cooling solutions such as B. Beverage or flow coolers, vending machines, refrigerated shelves and ice machines, heat pumps and dehumidifiers . R134a is a powerful greenhouse gas that has also been used by the vehicle industry in air conditioning systems for cars. However, since December 31, 2011, an EU directive has prohibited the use of R134a in air conditioning systems in newly registered vehicle types.
Production of the TL compressor began in 1974. Within 18 months, more than a million of these compressors had been sold. Today more than 100 million TL devices work in refrigerators worldwide (as of 2008).
In 1977 the introduction of DC compressors marked the beginning of the production of mobile refrigerators and freezers. This year, the 50 millionth compressor also rolled off the production line.
In 1985 the total turnover of the group reached five billion Danish kroner (245 million DM or 125 million euros).
In 1988 production and sales were centered in Flensburg. Danfoss Compressors took over the production of condensing units for the Danfoss Offenbach plant. In 1993 this plant was closed. The group's annual turnover amounted to 6.3 billion crowns.
In 1989 the 100 millionth compressor was delivered.
In the new compressors for R600a , isobutane was used as a refrigerant from 1993 . R600a replaced R134a previously used in household appliances. In contrast to R134a, R600a is not harmful to the climate, it is cheaper and it can be mixed with mineral oil. Disadvantage: it is a flammable gas. That year Danfoss also built a compressor production facility in Crnomelj, Slovenia (Danfoss Compressors doo).
In 1995 Danfoss Compressors SA de CV ( Mexico ) started compressor production.
In 1997 150 million compressors were produced. The turnover of the Danfoss group reached 13.1 billion Danish kroner (1.75 billion euros).
In 1999, compressors for R290 were introduced. The refrigerant R290 was used in refrigerators and heat pumps. It shows a low global warming potential, but like R600a it is extremely flammable. The annual turnover amounted to 1,978 million euros, the number of employees was 18,860.
In 2001 200 million compressors were produced. Danfoss introduced the electronically controlled starter ePTC.
In 2002 the production facility Danfoss Compressors spol. sro founded in Zlaté Moravce ( Slovakia ).
In 2003, compressors for solar applications and CO 2 compressors for small-scale commercial applications, in which carbon dioxide was used as a refrigerant, were introduced.
In 2006 the compressor production in Mexico was stopped.
In 2008 Danfoss Household Compressor looked back on 50 years of compressor production in Flensburg. The TOOL4COOL® software for flexible control of cooling systems was introduced. In that year, the production facility in Wuqing ( People's Republic of China ) was also established.
The takeover by Aurelius AG became legally binding on November 29, 2010.
Concrete developments before the takeover
“The small, black compressors for refrigerators always had a special position in the group. The large numbers are typical for them: high development costs, high quantities and sales figures. A lot of money flows into the till and a lot out of it. ”The money that flowed out of the till led to measures even before the takeover of Danfoss Compressors by the industrial holding company Aurelius. In 2005, the Danfoss Board of Management reacted to the “production of household compressors, which have been making losses over the years” by announcing that 700 jobs will be cut in the coming years. That meant halving the workforce.
On May 27, 2009 Danfoss also announced that it would close production in Flensburg in the course of the following year and relocate production abroad. Another 450 layoffs were pronounced in spring 2010 "to counteract the financial crisis". Danfoss CEO Kim Fausing said the Household Compressors division was suffering millions in weekly losses. Regionally committed politicians appealed to reconsider the relocation of production and thus set an example for the joint German-Danish economic region. However, none of the conversations that followed changed the decisions made.
Note: The numbers mentioned in the context of the layoffs relate to announced job cuts. The terminations actually made cannot be clearly understood. The number of employees is also the result of re-hires, terminations by employees, retirement, etc.
present
In 2010 Danfoss sold the Danfoss Compressors division to the Munich-based industrial holding company Aurelius. The acquisition by Aurelius included the complete business activity in Germany, China, Slovenia and Slovakia with a total of around 3,000 employees. In the course of the takeover, Danfoss Compressors was renamed Secop .
Aurelius and Danfoss did not disclose the value of the transaction . According to media estimates, the deal for Danfoss was relatively small: Danfoss was one of the largest industrial companies in Denmark with (at the time of the transaction) annual sales of more than 3.4 billion euros and around 26,000 employees worldwide. For Aurelius, however, the takeover was seen as a major growth step (2009 sales: 760 million euros). Nis Storgaard, Chief Development Officer of Danfoss, stated in July 2010 that the reason for the separation was that it had decided to concentrate on other areas of the climate and energy sector.
Today, product and technology development, sales and customer service are located at the company's headquarters in Flensburg .
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d e f g Our history - In 60 years from Danfoss Compressors to Secop. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ DGAP-News: AURELIUS takes over Danfoss Household Compressors. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Aurelius: AURELIUS takes over Danfoss Household Compressors. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c d e f Fragments of Danfoss' history. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Peter Weissenborn: Mads Clausen - a life for Danfoss - biography, in: magazine "Die Kälte- & Klimatechnik" 10/2005, October 2005. Accessed on February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ a b c d e f g h Danfoss company history. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Fragments of Danfoss' history, p. 69. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ "Engineering tomorrow": Danfoss is repositioning itself in 2015. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Thermostats have long been a must. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ^ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 10. Retrieved December 13, 2019 .
- ↑ a b Life paths of Greek employees at Danfoss in Flensburg. Article by Helge Hellberg, Kiel. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on February 18, 2015 ; accessed on February 16, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, p. 96. Accessed December 13, 2019 .
- ↑ “Milestones in Danfoss' history” at Vimu.info - the virtual museum on the history of the German-Danish border region. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ^ Danfoss Danmark: Germany Timeline 1960. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 40. Accessed December 13, 2019 .
- ^ Danfoss Danmark: Germany Timeline 1970. Retrieved on February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, p. 71. Accessed December 13, 2019 .
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 110. Accessed December 13, 2019 .
- ↑ Directive 2006/40 / EC of May 17, 2006 (PDF)
- ^ Danfoss timeline from 1933 to 2008. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 110. Accessed December 13, 2019 .
- ^ Hydrocarbons21: Secop, compressor manufacturer, partners with hydrocarbons21.com. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ^ "All types of compressors" by Syed Muhammad Arslan Abid. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 97. Retrieved December 13, 2019 .
- ^ The Danfoss Compressor Business, page 83. Retrieved December 13, 2019 .
- ↑ AURELIUS: Acquisition of Danfoss Household Compressors completed. Retrieved February 16, 2015 .
- ↑ Global Danfoss 4/2010, p. 25. (No longer available online.) Archived from the original on February 24, 2015 ; accessed on February 16, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ Hamburger Abendblatt: Danfoss plans to close the plant in Flensburg. May 27, 2009, accessed February 16, 2015 .
- ^ Danfoss closure - Appeals to the group management and the Federal Minister of Economics. (No longer available online.) June 4, 2009, archived from the original on February 18, 2015 ; accessed on February 16, 2015 . Info: The archive link was inserted automatically and has not yet been checked. Please check the original and archive link according to the instructions and then remove this notice.
- ↑ a b Press release from the Danfoss Group: AURELIUS takes over Danfoss Household Compressors. Archived from the original on December 20, 2013 ; accessed on February 16, 2015 .
- ^ Reuters: Danfoss sells compressors unit to Aurelius. July 12, 2010, accessed February 16, 2015 .
