Schaeffler Group

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The Schaeffler Group is a privately-owned major manufacturer of rolling element bearings for automotive, aerospace and industrial uses.^[1] In August 2008 the firm agreed to a staggered €12 billion acquisition of larger rival Continental AG, whereby Schaeffler will defer taking a majority stake until at least 2012.^[2] It owns the brands INA, FAG, LuK.

[edit] History

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. Please improve this article if you can. (March 2009)

1883: Friedrich Fischer designs the ball grinder. This machine allows steel balls to be ground to an absolutely round state for the first time – and in large volumes. Thanks to this innovation, he lays the foundation for the entire rolling bearing industry. Thus, the worldwide success story of the ball bearing begins in Schweinfurt.

1905: On July 29, the FAG brand is registered with the patent office in Berlin. The registered trademark FAG, stands for Fischers Aktien-Gesellschaft.

1946: Brothers Wilhelm and Georg Schaeffler, both holders of Ph.D. degrees, found INA in Herzogenaurach.

1949: The needle roller cage, developed by Georg Schaeffler, makes the needle roller bearing a reliable component for industrial applications.

1965: LuK Lamellen und Kupplungsbau GmbH is founded in Bühl (with INA as one of the investors).

1999: INA takes over LuK GmbH

2002: Acquisition of FAG Kugelfischer Georg Schäfer AG, Schweinfurt.

2003: INA, FAG and LuK form the Schaeffler Group.

2008: Schaeffler Group buys the much larger Continental AG (Germany).

2009: It was recently alleged that the Schaeffler group, during the Second World War has used human hair from Auschwitz victims in textiles.( Haaretz)

[edit] References