Milestones
The Beginnings
1961
On 14 September 1961, Friedrich Plath founded the company Fischer & Plath – with 3 employees. At the beginning, Fischer & Plath was a niche provider of hand-made special gaskets, e.g. for vintage cars. Within the next 20 years, the company established itself in the market. As a result, new buildings were required. These were established in the industrial area of Berne.
RESTRUCTURING AND OPTIMISATION
1983
In 1983, Ralf Mertens took over the management of Fischer & Plath. The company was restructured and optimised. Automatic punching production and mass productions became the focus. A tool manufacturing facility and an annealing facility were set up so that the company could construct and produce the inlays for the punching in-house. This was a crucial factor in ensuring top quality mass production. The product range was comprehensively expanded.
WORKING TOWARDS MARKET LEADER
1989
At the end of the 80s, Fischer & Plath had become an attractive partner for the automobile industry and, since then, the company can be found in the supplier lists of large automobile manufacturers. Cooperation with Waskönig-Krämer in 2001 allowed the company to expand the product range to include soft material seals.
PRODUCTION SITE IN BERNE
1991
The first hall in factory 2 was leased in April 1991 and part of the production was moved there. In the following years, additional hall spaces were leased and then, in 1999, the entire premises were purchased, including the halls.
NEW MANAGEMENT BUILDING AND LOGISTICS CENTRE
2019
In November 2019, we purchased our new management building and logistics centre, spanning an area of over 4,100 m2. The site expansion played a key role in strengthening our company structure, improving workplace conditions, generating internal and external growth stimuli and thus also boosting our competitive position.
NEW FUNCTIONAL BUILDING / MANAGEMENT BUILDING II
2022
The completion of the new functional building is planned for June 2022. The project includes redesigning the working areas for the departments: purchasing, quality assurance, IT, project development, work preparation and production management. The new building, with a usable area of around 1,170 m2, is an investment in and strengthening of a future-proof industrial site with estimated overall costs of 3.0 million euros.
STATE OF THE ART
Today
On an area of approx. 70,000 m2, Fischer & Plath produces over 1.4 billion parts and generates around 25 million euros in sales. The profit and customer base are growing at a consistent rate.