75 years of Wera: A grand tradition of innovative screwdriving tools

An established, reliable & respected tool manufacturer turns 75

Successful and internationally renowned group in the hand tool segment / Development and production of ergonomic and durable screwdriving tools for the trade and industry  / Systematic and progressively organised innovation process as a recipe for success / Global property right strategy with international market monitoring

Wuppertal. Innovation from a great tradition is the hallmark of the screwdriving tool manufacturer Wera Werk Hermann Werner GmbH & Co. KG (Wuppertal). The company that was founded in 1936 will be celebrating its 75th anniversary in August 2011.

Wera has developed during the course of its corporate history to a successful and internationally renowned group in the hand tool segment. Instead of focusing on diversification, Wera has specialised resolutely over generations on the development and production of ergonomic and durable screwdriving tools for professionals – from screwdrivers, ratchets and bits to L-keys and torque tools.

When the company was founded in 1936 under the name of Hermann Werner KG, trading with tools was the focus of activities. The company name Wera originated in 1951 from the names of the owner families Werner und Amtenbrink. In the following decades it developed very successfully into a manufacturer. Today, Wera numbers among the leading suppliers of high quality screwdriving tools to the trade and industry. The company currently employs some 700 staff in Germany, the USA, Canada, England, Spain and the Czech Republic. Wera screwdriving tools are available worldwide thanks to a comprehensive marketing approach.

Nevertheless, Wera is still – and this is a point that is very much emphasized there – a family enterprise and decisions are always taken with a long-term view in mind. The basis for the company’s success is its relentless pursuit of innovations. Two groundbreaking products - among others - stand as examples for this sustainable innovative power:

• The “Kraftform” screwdriving handle was launched in 1968 in a joint development with the Fraunhofer Institut. Since then it has been acknowledged both nationally and internationally. The shape of the handle fits perfectly into the human hand. The multi-component feature ensures an optimum combination of working speed and power transfer. The soft zones ensure a high degree of grip, meaning that hand injuries such as calluses or blisters are avoided. The integrated non-roll feature makes work even more convenient.
• Additionally, Wera was one of the first German companies to produce bits for power tools. The manufacturer introduced the idea of diamond-coated bits to the market in 1992. Bits with a diamond coating have since ensured a secure fitting of the bit in the screw.

The innovative target is always to be able to offer users concrete, new problem solutions that have not previously been available on the market in such a form. A very successful, current example is the “Wera Zyklop” – a product that combines five different ratchets and a screwdriver in a single, extremely robust tool.

Wera attaches great importance to a systematic, progressively organised innovation process. Supported by the most modern technology and software, the individual development phases are always structured and success oriented. The process ranges from ideas management - that includes current creativity techniques – to the construction of prototypes and even extends to cover the application-oriented training of all staff and partners in sales. To offer customers the best possible benefit, users are involved at a very early stage in the development of any new products in the form of professionally implemented group sessions.

In addition, the “Werarium” in Wuppertal has been available to the trade and end users as a training and competence centre since 2006, something that is quite unique in this field of business. Some 700 square metres of space here allow Wera to provide information interactively on its performance and products.

Naturally, Wera permanently considers any current developments in the users’ day-to-day work. The increasing use of impact drivers in recent years was one of the aspects that had been observed. Therefore, it was only a matter of course for Wera to develop its “Impaktor” range. It is a system consisting of holders and bits that effectively counteracts the heavy impacts and the wear of the tool resulting from this.

To enable Wera to be successful worldwide in the future, too, the Wuppertal-based group pursues a global property right strategy. Thanks to international market monitoring, any infringement of property rights can be immediately addressed. Imitations are then removed from the market directly; stocks as well as any production resources are destroyed instantly.

Further information:
Wera Werk Hermann Werner GmbH & Co. KG
Korzerter Straße 21-25, D-42349 Wuppertal
Tel.: +49 (0)2 02 / 40 45 311, Fax: 40 36 34
Email: info@wera.de, Internet: www.wera.de