Draft:Otto Bihler Maschinenfabrik

Otto Bihler Maschinenfabrik GmbH & Co. KG is a German company located in Halblech, Bavaria. The family-owned company was founded in 1958 and specialises in stamping, welding and assembly technology.

History
Before establishing his company, aircraft mechanic Otto Bihler started off by developing the UFA spring coiling machine in the early 1950s, which he launched on the market in 1953. This was followed by the first automatic punching and bending machine, the RM 25, in 1956, which was presented at the Hanover Fair in 1957. The machine had a vertical surface with several forming units arranged in a circle, where components made of wire or strip material could be manufactured with just one machine.

Soon after, the principle of this machine prevailed as an industry standard and the term Bihler part has been used for wire components manufactured in this way, while the process is described as the Bihler system. After the fair, Bihler had to double his workforce to 18 employees and build the first factory in Halblech near Füssen. By the end of the 1950s, wire processor and stamping companies from northern Italy, France and Germany used the RM 25 in their production.

Based, among others, on the model RM 35, Bihler developed a modular system to include variable applications in their punching and bending machines in 1966. In the 1970s, Bihler began to expand and set up a second factory in the nearby Füssen, Bavaria. In 1980, the first subsidiary, Bihler of America, Inc., was established in North Branch, New Jersey, USA. In the 2000s, the company introduced and subsequently further developed the Bimeric BM forming system, a machine with a modular structure that allows different machines to be combined. The first cam-controlled Bimeric CNC forming system was presented at the Euroblech trade show in Hanover.

As a result of the COVID19 pandemic, the company put its employees on short-time working (Kurzarbeit) during the pandemic.

Corporate structure
Otto Bihler Maschinenfabrik employs about 850 people (as of 2021) in Germany. In 2020, the company's revenue amounted to EUR 124.05 million. Headquartered in Halblech, Germany, the company has established a global service and sales network with subsidiaries in the USA and China as well as commercial agencies in several other countries.

Source: Bundesanzeiger

Products
Otto Bihler Maschinenfabrik develops products in the field of punching-bending, assembly and welding technology, supplemented by CAD/CAM software for these areas. Bihler machines can be used to manufacture wire components such as contact springs. The cycle rates that can be achieved vary from machine to machine. Bihler products include:


 * Mechanical and servo-controlled automatic punching and bending machines, as well as production and assembly systems.
 * Process modules for welding, thread forming, screw joining, component handling, etc.
 * Control systems for machines and processes
 * Automation systems
 * Computer-aided design software.