RUGEL Maschinenfabrik GmbH and co. KG

From locksmith's shop to Maschinenfabrik

When the locksmith Josef Rugel from Weingarten and the Dreher journeyman Alfred Lutz from Rottweil decided in May 1919 establishing a common workshop, Germany had just lost the First World War. The Kaiser had abdicated, the shaky Weimar democracy fought against internal and external enemies and the Rhineland were French troops in order to recover the huge reparations Treaty of Versailles by force if necessary. And the Mega inflation of 1923 and the "Black Friday" on the New York Stock Exchange were already imminent.

With scarce capital, which was just enough for the establishment of a simple workshop, started the two founders on Aigenweg in Ravensburg in a building with an industrial past. Successively it had served the Spohn's brickyard and Stemmer's shoe factory. With craft skills and technical sense developed Rugel and Lutz a bandsaw type that was widely circulated throughout southern Germany and Switzerland. The subsequent development of a new milling machine continued the initial successes and made operational enhancements required.

Soon supplemented own constructions for circular saws, planers and profile planing the production program: The transformation of the locksmith's workshop to Maschinenfabrik was in full swing. The high value, the wood processing in the wooded Oberschwaben the twenties and thirties took, offered good opportunities for the expanding operation of the two founders. With daring and a sense of proportion Josef Rugel and Alfred Lutz drove their companies through the many crises until the outbreak of World War II.

The war years were a severe test for the fledgling company. As in the broadest sense of weapon operation was subject to the Maschinenfabrik type cleanup regulations of the Nazi regime and could only produce band saws. To make matters worse, that neither Joseph nor Rugel Alfred Lutz NSDAP belonged and were observed by the authorities for this reason distrustful. When after the war on the orders of the French occupation administration even the entire facility was seized and dismantled, could actually speak for Rugel & Lutz of one hour to zero.