Maschinenbau Kitz GmbH Celebrates 50 Years!
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mk North America is a member of the mk Technology Group; it's founding company, Maschinenbau Kitz GHmbH, is celebrating its 50th Anniversary. We have this commemorative post from them to share.
50 Years of Passion for Technology
The year 1966 witnessed it all: The Beatles coming together for the last time, the “Wembley goal” during the World Cup Final, and the premiere of Star Trek. And in Troisdorf (Germany), Hans-Josef Kitz was laying the foundation of his own mechanical engineering company. “’Passion for technology’ had been his motive,” recalls his son Stephan Kitz, managing director of that company today: mk Technology Group. He went on to further describe his father as an “extremely creative and talented designer.” Products made in Germany are unsurpassed in their reputation for their high technical quality; Hans Kitz also shared this passion.
As a young entrepreneur Hans Kitz started this first production facility over half a century ago in a garage, 15 square meters in size that was attached to his parent’s house. One of the first designs by Hans Kitz included a celery washing machine for a farmer from the neighborhood. In the early years, as a contractor, he built machines and components for local companies. During this time, more and more of his own products were developed. And then in 1972 he developed his first standard conveyor. Even to this day, conveyor technology is a central pillar of mk’s business.
The wealth of ideas and power the company has is evident in global position 50 years after its founding. The mk Technology Group, which originated from Maschinenbau Kitz GHmbH, is currently in the European and American markets. It is among the leading providers of mechanical modules and components for factory automation – a business sector with good prospects for the future due to the globalized effort to modernize production facilities and improve processes. Many of the products that mk offers play a key role in this sector and modernization.
mk’s customers include mechanical engineering companies as well as automobile manufacturers and their suppliers. In addition to these core businesses mk also works with research and knowledge-driven high-tech companies in the areas of: pharmaceuticals and medical technologies, semiconductor production and the plastics industry. mk’s customers also include companies in the food and beverage industry as well as major producers for household appliances.
mk Technology Group has its headquarters in Troisdorf-Bergheim Germany, where 235 people are employed. Design and production facilities are also located in eastern Germany, North America, Spain and Netherland. Globally the company employs around 400 people. In 2015 mk Technology Group had sales of over 40 million euros, of which 31 million was from the headquarters in Troisdorf-Bergheim.
Stephan Kitz attributes the success of the company to the human quality of entrepreneurship. He emphasizes, “What has always been important to me and my parents is the commitment within our family business, a company that is operating globally, but has roots in the region.” He further stresses that, “Most of the managers of mk Technology Group, today, have been developed in our company.” The senior staff at mk Technology Group set a high bar for themselves, beyond the day to day operations and management of the company. They also strive to motivate, provide technical expertise along with entrepreneurial thinking and as Stephan Kitz says provide “team spirit and loyalty”.
Such individual characteristics are the basic human values that enrich engineering, and have thus helped the company gain a good position globally. mk offers competitive market prices primarily as a result of their problem-solving expertise, gathered over several decades as an automation supplier. In addition to their superior quality in the design and manufacturing of components and systems, mk has the desire and ability to fulfill every customer’s needs accurately and on-time.