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CATERING SYSTEMS
Chronicle
History 1960 - 1925

1960 Heinrich Blanc dies on 8th April. He managed the company during 35 years of good times and bad times. The company is taken over by his son Heinz Blanc, an engineer, and continues as an independent company. The era of the decentralised sales structure dawns: West Berlin is given its own sales office. On 2nd August, modern data processing arrives at BLANCO.
1959 A new record: production of stainless steel sinks reaches the magic number of 100,000 pieces per year. And the number of employees is steadily increasing: at the end of the 1950s, over 500 people are earning their livelihood at BLANCO.
1958 Stainless steel is also a fashionable material for architecture: the company commences production of façade elements for modern building design, e. g. the cladding of the Thyssen offices in Düsseldorf.
1957 Improvements to the traffic systems in West Germany open up a new market to BLANCO: for the first time, the company manufactures panelling for railway carriages in Oberderdingen. Heinrich Blanc is made an honorary citizen of his home town Oberderdingen.
1956 Fire and rebuilding in Sulzfeld. The catering and canteen division is systematically expanded: a new product segment is established in the stainless steel programme with the manufacture of containers for food distribution. The factories in Oberderdingen are expanded with new production lines for the surface finishing of sinks. An important investment for quality assurance as well.
1954 A milestone: BLANCO achieves an annual production of 4,000 stainless steel sinks. The development in other product areas is also making good progress.
1953 BLANCO expands further: the Sulzfeld factory is extended.
1951 The real defining moment in the history of the company comes when it commences production of Nirosta (stainless steel) sinks and sink unit covers. Other equipment for canteens and propane gas bottles are produced.
1950 BLANCO recognises the many possibilities of stainless steel. The complete future product development is directed towards this remarkable and, at this time, still very expensive material. Starts to produce equipment for canteens.
1949 The total number of employees rises to over 300.
1948 Everything points to expansion: the first branch is built in Sulzfeld. The manufacture of quality products is one aspect of BLANCO’s post-war successes. The other is modern marketing: BLANCO takes part in the first post-war trade fair for exports in Hanover.
1947 There is still a lot of catching up to do in Germany. The company opens up a new market for itself and starts producing equipment for butchers. The first two industrial apprentices are employed at BLANCO.
1945 Heinrich Blanc is interned by the Allies, who appoint a civil administrator for the company. But with iron determination production starts again in October. BLANCO enters the post-war era as a producer of equipment for the dairy industry, especially Anticorodal milk churns.
1942 Midway through the war, BLANCO builds the first large press hall. This new machinery, one of the first water hydraulic 4-column screw presses with 1400 t press pressure, is used to manufacture large inner kettles made of sheet steel with a capacity of up to 600 litres for oven manufacturers and catering for the troops. In common with almost all metalworking companies, BLANCO also produces armaments such as torpedo heads.
1938 The company expands again and moves into its first separate administration building, a modest, one-storey office block.
1937 BLANCO switches its complete production to pure aluminium. New products such as boilers and ladles are incorporated into the product range.
1934 The number of employees tops the hundred mark.
1931 Heinrich Blanc and Karl Fischer join together to found E.G.O. Elektrogerätebau Blanc & Fischer, Oberderdingen.
1930 The crisis years hardly affect BLANCO.
1928 Heinrich Blanc expands his company’s range of products with the manufacture of copper warming bottles. The first commercial trainee, Willy Steinmetz, starts his training; he remains at the company as Director of Finance until he retires.
1927 Heinrich Blanc and his company move into their first solidly built factory building.
1925 On January 20th, Heinrich Blanc founds Blanc & Co. and begins serial production of tin-plated copper water troughs for coal-fired ovens in two make-shift wooden huts in Oberderdingen.