Eugen Reintjes

Eugen Reintjes (born February 29, 1884 in Emmerich ; † April 13, 1966 in Hameln ) was a Dutch manufacturer and promoter of sport and health care.

Life

His father Theodor Reintjes, who came from the Netherlands, founded a mechanical engineering company in Emmerich in 1879, to which his own foundry was attached in 1898. Due to the location he got a connection to shipbuilding. In the period that followed, the mechanical engineering company became a specialist company for ship propellers, shaft systems and ship thrust bearings.

After Eugen Reintjes had completed an engineering examination at the technical university in Hagen, he took over his father's business in 1912. At the time when ship propulsion entered a new phase of development with the replacement of steam engine propulsion by diesel engines, the young entrepreneur and engineer had succeeded in developing and building gearboxes for ship propulsion according to his own plans and designs. In 1929 the first marine gearbox for a launch was delivered to Hamburg. Reintjes was looking for new ways in the marine propulsion sector. Variable pitch propeller systems were also built in his factory.

During the Second World War, his company became an arms company employing 630 people in its bullet turning shop. Reintjes was no longer allowed to enter his factory during the war, as it manufactured equipment essential for the war effort and as a foreigner he was suspected of spying. After the end of the war, the Dutch blamed Reintjes for developing hydraulically shifting reversing gears as favoring the enemy, which is why he was sentenced to one and a quarter years in prison in Holland. This circumstance may have played a significant role in the decision in favor of Germany as a permanent business location. All factory buildings in Emmerich were destroyed in an air raid on October 7, 1944. The construction documents also fell victim to the bombs. In 1947 the Allies ordered the dismantling of the manufacturing facilities. All modern and usable machines were dismantled and transported away as reparations from the former armaments factory. All that remained was old and uneconomical plants.

With the support of the authorities, the company was able to set up new production halls in a former wool factory in Wagenfeld . Reintjes and his 50 employees worked here until May 1950. Missing documents and poor tools from the post-war period made the work considerably more difficult. Since the factory facilities in Wagenfeld no longer met the requirements, Reintjes looked for more suitable buildings. On May 15, 1950, Reintjes relocated its entire machine park to Hameln. In Werftstrasse, ship gear production was initially resumed with 60 employees, some of whom still came from Emmerich and Wagenfeld. The better production possibilities in Hameln made it possible that in 1952 newly created plans and patents for controllable pitch propeller systems could be evaluated. In the same year, production of the controllable pitch propeller systems was resumed. With the involvement of the occupation authorities, he succeeded in acquiring the former repair halls for aircraft engines of the Kaminski works in Hameln . Across from the halls in Werftstrasse there were also spacious wooden barracks that served as apartments for part of the workforce in times of housing shortage.

The company was able to expand through the expansion of a worldwide dealer and service network for marine gear units. In June 1971 Reintjes GmbH moved to its current location on Eugen-Reintjes-Straße in Hameln.

Collectors and donors

Together with his wife Elisabeth, Eugen Reintjes was an art lover and sponsor as well as a donor. He collected paintings mainly by Dutch masters and valuable porcelain figures. His "Villa Reintjes", which he moved into in 1925, became a private museum over time. During the Second World War he had his art treasures relocated so that they survived the bombing of October 7, 1944, in which the house and factory in Emmerich were completely destroyed. The works are now stored in the Wallraf-Richartz-Museum in Cologne, to which he left his collection.

In 1962 Reintjes brought his share capital into the non-profit Eugen Reintjes Foundation for the promotion of health and social services in the city of Hameln. With these funds, the foundation has been running a kindergarten in Großehofstrasse since 1975.

In 1964 the Reintjes couple established the "Eugen and Elisabeth Reintjes Foundation" in Emmerich. Half of the foundation's assets from securities and real estate fell to the city of Emmerich and half to the St. Willibrordus Hospital in Emmerich-Rees. The city of Emmerich used its half to maintain the sports and recreation facilities. Today the city of Emmerich operates the indoor swimming pool and the "Eugen Reintjes Stadium" with funds from the foundation.

Honors

On March 1, 1962, Eugen Reintjes was given honorary citizenship of the city of Emmerich.

Reintje's generosity also led to honorable naming. In addition to the “Eugen Reintjes Kindergarten” and “Eugen and Elisabeth Reintjes Stadium”, there is also an Eugen Reintjes Strasse (company headquarters) and an Eugen Reintjes school in Hameln. In Emmerich there is an Elisabeth-Reintjes-Straße and in Emmerich Rees there is a glider called "Eugen Reintjes". In 's-Heerenberg , Eugen Reintjes ' retirement home, there is a Reintjesweg.

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Inge Arends: How often have I wished that the way to school was a little shorter . In: Dietmar Sauermann (Ed.): My way to school. Memories 1925-1975. Waxmann, Münster 2007, ISBN 978-3-8309-1847-9 , p. 88
2. ↑ Reintjes GmbH: Festschrift for the 125th company anniversary (2004)

Web links

• Our namesake on the Eugen Reintjes School website
• Reintjes GmbH Hameln website