Tradition · Expertise · Innovation
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Cu 150.0 Tradition · Expertise · Innovation 1866–2016 · The History of the Copper Group Imprint Publisher: Aurubis AG Hovestrasse 50 20539 Hamburg Phone +49 40 7883-0 [email protected] www.aurubis.com Historical research and text basis: Nadine Beck, Timo Berlinghoff, Robert Kieselbach, Dr. Thomas Forstner (chapter 6) Neumann & Kamp Historische Projekte www.historische-projekte.de Legally accountable according to German press law: Ulf Bauer, Michaela Hessling, Aurubis AG Project management: Silke Splithöfer, Aurubis AG EN 16/03 ©August Dreesbach Verlag, Munich, 2016 All rights reserved. www.augustdreesbachverlag.de Concept: Marie Hüber, Aurubis AG/Typeset: August Dreesbach Verlag, Munich Print: omb2 Print GmbH, Munich Paper: Printed on FSC-certified paper. By using FSC paper, we are actively supporting the preservation of our forests, promoting plant and wildlife protection and are taking a stand against human exploitation of forest resources. Typeset using KievitPro. Printed in Germany. ISBN 978-3-944334-71-4 The German National Library lists this publication in the German National Bibliography; detailed bibliographical data can be accessed online at http://dnb.dnb.de. All images are from the Aurubis AG Company Archives unless stated otherwise in the photo credits. Both the historical and the current materials (texts and images) are only intended for use in this publication. Any modification, publication or utilization by third parties, including that of excerpts, is subject to written approval by Aurubis AG. To facilitiate readability of this book, we have dispensed with gender-specific differentia tion. Any relevant terms apply to both genders and imply equal treatment. Table of contents Foreword 7 150 years of the future – and often one step ahead! 8 The history of copper processing 10 1. We are experienced 12 2. We are aware of the past 28 3. We are international 46 4. We are loyal 68 5. We are innovative 90 6. We are sustainable 108 7. We are future-oriented 128 Key personalities 138 Notes 142 Index of sources and publications 158 Photo credits 163 Glossary 164 Dear readers, A Hamburg company celebrates its 150th anniversary. One hundred and fifty years of copper, red gold from Hamburg for Germany, Europe and the world. What began in 1866 as Norddeutsche Affinerie und Aktiengesellschaft is now Aurubis AG and is known all over the world as a leading integrated copper group. It is not without good reason that copper is called “aurum rubrum”, Latin for “red gold”. There is hardly another material that is equally versatile in its applications; it is almost eternal. Aurubis AG is Europe’s largest copper group and the world’s largest copper recycler. Industries such as the electrical, electronics and chemical industries, suppliers to the renewable energies sector, and the construction and automotive industries all need copper and therefore they need Aurubis, a showcase for our city’s industry. Whether sustainable pollution control or promotion of culture, whether technological innovation or support for children and young people, Aurubis has been a versatile partner for both Hamburg and the surrounding region on multiple occasions. Today, the Group’s commitment in all matters far exceeds the city’s boundaries and stretches across the world. Its roots, however, will remain here with us, in Hamburg. The company will continue its impressive success story. Both our city and Aurubis will stay side by side. We extend our congratulations to both Hamburg and the company on our joint anniversaries and wish you, dear readers, a pleasurable journey through 150 eventful years of copper history. Mayor of the Free and Hanseatic City of Hamburg Olaf Scholz Foreword 7 150 years of the future – “We are experienced and aware of the past. We are and often one step ahead! international, loyal and innovative. We are sustainable and future-oriented.” That is Aurubis. 150 years of Aurubis AG. Who would have dared to hope that a small Hamburg silversmith business would grow You can read the first three chapters first to follow the to become an international player in the copper industry course of time over 150 years. We are experienced is – acting globally, with about 6,300 employees all over the statement at the beginning. the world? Today, it is not possible to imagine Hamburg, Europe or the wide world of copper without Aurubis. Rightly so, since copper is one of the oldest metals in And, least of all, our living environment because copper the world used by man and is synonymous with the accompanies us all, every day and everywhere. In our company. A history which has been rich in ups and homes, our PCs and tablets, our cars, our workplaces or downs, in stunning progress but also in setbacks and in elegant design – copper is around us almost every- even phases of standstill. We have grown from this and where and plays a fundamental role, sometimes invisible have learned from the past to shape the future. We are yet always connecting. aware of the past. The company faces up to its history, including those times during which Germany committed To mark 150 years of Aurubis AG on April 28, 2016, this crimes and Aurubis was part of the country’s industrial exciting history has been written down from its begin- organization. We are international tells of the postwar nings to this day and looking ahead. Our employees, period and the outstanding development during the investors, customers, cooperation partners and anyone subsequent decades leading up to the successful stock else interested can follow our successes and challenges market launch and the consequent internationalization. here and can retrace our efforts and solutions. They can Without these two aspects – that much can honestly be do so even beyond the 150 years because our begin- said – the Group would probably no longer exist. Not nings date back further than our official incorporation in only were sails set during that time but a new course, April 1866, even to times before the French Revolution too – one which the company follows to this day: of 1789. reliability in national, regional and global decisions concerning corporate strategy. A corporate manage- Both the Group and its history will be given a face for ment which takes the workforce on board and creates you, the readers. Take a look at history and stories, at value for both stakeholders and customers of Aurubis the company reflected in society, but also behind the AG, which is the basis for the ability to shape the future. scenes. This anniversary publication is not only a journey with us through more than 150 years, it also provides an The statement we make in the second part of the book insight into skilled crafts and workshops, the necessity in chapters four to six is: We are loyal, innovative and of continuous innovation, into adjustments and changes sustainable. Our focus is on people; they are what of strategies and directions – sometimes determined by enable progress. They are the valuable core of Aurubis Aurubis but occasionally initiated from outside. – the people who work with us and for us. Training, continuing education, health and safety at work are of The book you are holding in your hands offers two parts paramount importance to Aurubis. However, we are with great visual power: a chronological one and a characterized not only by technological leadership and thematic one. We have provided seven chapters with the courage to continuously think ahead and implement attributes which have accompanied the Group during technological innovation but also by our processes and the course of its historic developments and which products, which are often cutting-edge and have in charac terize it to this day. many cases been introduced in pioneering work. Both these aspects, the people and their produc tive activities, 8 Aurubis · Cu 150.0 are consistent with our responsibility toward the posters from the 1960s and advertising material from enviroment and the climate as well as our commitment the 1990s – far more than we were able to to include in to sustainable economic activity in the best ecological, this book. The vast amount of material collected shows humanitarian and economic sense. These activities result the extent to which so many people feel special ties to in the company’s public perception. It is in these three Aurubis, sometimes over several generations and sections in particular that the book doesn’t simply tell beyond their active working lives, and that they have the inside story but includes the environment of our been happy to contribute to this great anniversary corporate activities. That is where obligations arise – 150 years of Aurubis. which Aurubis takes on, such as in our sponsoring projects which foster good relationships with our Our biggest thanks, however, go to our active as well as neighbors; when we enter into a dialogue with the our former employees. They have made 150 years of political level or with Europe; when we make commit- Aurubis possible. They are Aurubis. ments to protect the environment; or when we intro- duce instruments for assessing the integrity of business In this spirit, we look forward to 150 years of the future partners. and hope that all our readers will find this book interest- ing to read and an enjoyable journey of discovery with At the end there is an outlook: We are future-oriented. copper and Aurubis! 150 years of history have now been read, and the last chapter is characterized by our claim that we will Sincerely, continue to shape the future. Copper and its unique properties, a clear understanding of global megatrends Aurubis AG which impact our industry as well as the Group’s focused strategic alignment all help us demonstrate that Aurubis will often be one step ahead in the future, too.