Power
in
motion
It all began with an idea – and with the courage to make that idea a reality. When Paul Lechler founded a trading company in 1879, he could hardly have imagined that he was laying the foundations of a success story that continues to this day. That moment was the first step in ElringKlinger’s long journey. At a time of great upheaval, Paul Lechler was a pioneer who believed not only in technology but also in responsibility and goodness. How do his values continue to influence the company today? What inspiration does his entrepreneurial vision provide for the future of ElringKlinger?
Paul Lechler was a young entrepreneur, social reformer, and philanthropist with ideas way ahead of his time. True to his own motto “Let us never tire of doing good,” he was actively involved in numerous social projects and stood up for those in need throughout his life.
Biography Paul Lechler
1879 – Foundation
Paul Lechler establishes a trading company for technical products, seals, and gaskets in Stuttgart.
This marks the beginning of an enterprise characterized by its capacity to innovate and adapt.
1885 – Klinger workshop in Vienna
Richard Klinger opens a design workshop.
1900 – First seals and gaskets for the automotive industry
At the turn of the century, trading under the name Lechler OHG, the company
supplies its first seals and gaskets to the automotive industry.
1924 – First series production of cylinder head gaskets
Lechler begins large-scale production of the first cylinder head gaskets for the Opel Laubfrosch.
1964/65 – Relocation to Dettingen/Erms
Production and development are moved to a new site in Dettingen that remains the company’s headquarters to this day.
Ab 1971 – International Expansion
The company's targeted internationalization begins with its first foreign acquisitions and production sites.
1994 – Merger
ElringKlinger GmbH is formed in a deal that combines Elring GmbH’s gasket-making expertise with the industrialization
know-how of Richard Klinger GmbH’s automotive division.
Harnessing the pioneer spirit to drive a sustainable future
ElringKlinger embraced new drive technologies right from its early days. It has been designing key components of
sustainable mobility systems for over 20 years, taking them from development and industrialization through to series
production. Throughout this time, it has remained flexible, focusing on the individual needs of its customers and
expanding its global reach. ElringKlinger is making an important contribution to electromobility with innovative
solutions such as high-performance cell contacting systems and battery modules. Its lightweighting concepts are helping
to boost the range and reduce the overall impact on the environment. As part of the EKPO joint venture, it has also made
a strong impression in the fuel cell technology sector, where its compact, high-performance stacks and bipolar plates
are driving further advances towards carbon-neutral mobility and power generation – whether on the road, on rail, on
water, or in stationary applications. What began with a clear sense of vision back then, continues to this very day:
ElringKlinger's efforts to create pioneering technologies for sustainable mobility. Thus, Paul Lechler's innovatory
spirit endures.
Boldly going
When it comes to shaping the future, ElringKlinger stays ahead of the game by continuously developing its core areas of
expertise. Its SHAPE30 strategy – complete with a series of transformation milestones that it aims to achieve by the end
of the decade – is designed to put the company and the wider group in a competitive and robust position. One goal of
this strategy is for ElringKlinger to hone its profile while at the same time preparing for growth in emerging fields,
for example by acquiring major contracts for high-tech battery solutions. To help drive its expansion into global
battery markets, the Group is investing in three centers of excellence covering Europe (Neuffen), the Americas (Easley),
and Asia (Changchun). Looking ahead, the company’s roadmap identifies five key factors that are crucial to
ElringKlinger’s future success: product transformation; sustainability; performance and process excellence; digital
transformation; and corporate culture. In short, ElringKlinger has set itself a clear course and is firmly in the
business of shaping change in the automotive industry.
Innovation powered by strong roots
ElringKlinger manufactured its first cylinder head gaskets over 100 years ago. Today, the Group’s activities include
series production of high-performance seals and gaskets for electromobility applications as well as many other products.
Time and again, drawing on its in-house capacity for materials development and its expertise in the field of composites,
ElringKlinger has successfully adapted its core skillsets, such as the manufacture of traditional cylinder head gaskets,
to meet the need for new product solutions. In this way, the company's roots, including that early and sustained focus
on research and development, continue to generate new growth. The Group teams up with renowned institutions on R&D
projects and puts its expertise to use in the development of innovative and both environmentally and economically
sustainable components for the automotive and other sectors. In doing so, ElringKlinger is sending a clear signal of its
commitment to technological progress and to active collaboration in the design of future drive technologies.
United by a commitment to social responsibility
Courage, capabilities as an innovator, and social responsibility – the qualities that distinguished company founder Paul
Lechler continue to shape ElringKlinger to this day. The company’s transformation and its commitment to a sustainable
future reflect its deep-rooted business values. Last year, to mark the 100th anniversary of Paul Lechler’s death,
employees around the world organized a series of “Social Days” involving a nursing home, a kindergarten, a visit to a
workshop for people with disabilities, donating blood at a local clinic near Neuffen, and fundraising on behalf of the
Lechler Foundation, a shelter for underage girls in Timișoara, and children with cancer in Settimo Torinese. Other
activities included campaigns to support a charity for stray dogs, conservation work in Suzhou, and tree-planting in
Piracicaba and Reus. Combining tradition and active social engagement, the Paul Lechler Social Days brought smiles to
many faces around the world, helped those in need, and had a positive impact on the local communities in which
ElringKlinger operates.
On the move since 1879
ElringKlinger was founded in an age marked by economic upheaval, social change, and major transformations in the way
people got around. Today, once again, the world faces many new challenges. Amid such profound shifts, the Group is
committed to sustainable mobility, digital solutions, and a market-led corporate culture that positively embraces
change. Inspired by company founder Paul Lechler and driven by values such as focus, capacity to innovate, and team
spirit, ElringKlinger has retained all its dynamism. In line with its SHAPE30 strategy and a set of clear milestones to
be achieved by 2030, the Group is busy forging a routemap to the future – a path that sees research, development, and
global cooperation as the foundation stones of a broad product portfolio for combustion engines, hybrid drives,
batteries, and fuel cells. In this way, ElringKlinger aims to maintain its position as a reliable partner in the
development of innovative technologies for a sustainable future. Ultimately – whether back in 1879, today, or tomorrow –
ElringKlinger too is driven by the power of movement.
