What started off in 1946, is today a business with 4.600 employees. The passion for innovation remains.
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The Balzers Story
The success story of Balzers coatings
In 1946, Professor Max Auwärter had an idea how to make the then largely unknown vacuum thin-film technology usable on an industrial scale.
For the founding of "Gerätebauanstalt Balzers" he could count on the support of Prince Franz Josef II and the Swiss Industrialist Emil Georg Bührle. What he lacked however, were the systems and equipment needed to put his idea into practice. Without hesitating, he started developing and producing them himself. Today the former “Gerätebauanstalt Balzers" is called Oerlikon Balzers, employs around 4,600 people, and is a part of the Surface Solutions division of the Oerlikon Group. The company's headquarters are still located in the small town of Balzers in the Principality of Liechtenstein.
Entrepreneurship and science
The story of the visionary Professor Auwärter is somewhat symbolic of the company. Finding solutions to questions that the industry has not (yet) answered – this is in Balzers’ blood and part of Balzers’ DNA, as is the courage to put these ideas into practice. Oerlikon Balzers has been innovating and writing history since 1946.
Entrepreneurial spirit and a thirst for research are what define Oerlikon Balzers; the combination of these two qualities has lead to exemplary success. More than 100 employees, most of them in Liechtenstein, are engaged solely in research and development activities. They do not live in an ivory tower however, but instead work at the cutting edge of their scientific disciplines, publish regularly and are sought-after experts at international specialist congresses. This guarantees an open mind, as well as engagement with the industry.
Protective coatings help protect the environment
Professor Auwärter manufactured sun protection and anti-reflective coatings for eye glass lenses and camera lenses, as well as thin films for electronic applications. Development of PVD coatings (PVD = Physical Vapour Deposition) commenced in 1974. The breakthrough came in 1978 with the BALINIT brand of coatings, which remains an important mainstay of Oerlikon Balzers to this day, alongside further ground-breaking developments.
Balzers' solutions are always about combining reduced wear with increased efficiency – whether for Formula 1 engines, aircraft turbines, piston rings for the automotive industry, precision instruments, or for tools used by the plastics or metalworking industries. At the end of the day, increased efficiency and reduced wear mean lowering the use of harmful substances and conserving resources. While sustainability, tradition and innovation may only be buzzwords for many people, Oerlikon Balzers employees are proud that their company and their daily work are based on these values.
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