The success story of the Geldbach family begins with Wilhelm Geldbach, the grandfather of the current Dr. Geldbach. In 1903, he established his own pressing and stamping factory, producing sheet metal collars and flanges for the mining industry, which at the time were forged directly onto pipes.

"His two sons, Dr. Wilhelm Geldbach and Dr. Alfred Geldbach, took over the company, bringing significant input through their engineering skills and numerous patented innovations," recounts Mrs. El Difrawi-Geldbach. "When my husband joined the company in 1963, it had 218 employees and was still primarily serving the mining industry."

Out of a sense of duty, the doctor of law and qualified tax consultant chose to dedicate his career to the family business. His father had passed away in 1952, and his uncle began to withdraw from the business after the founder, Wilhelm Geldbach, also died in 1964. In response to the coal crisis of 1968, Dr. Geldbach made considerable efforts to intensify sales and expand international cooperation. Production shifted to flanges and fittings, a move that brought the company numerous international approvals from major players in the chemical and petrochemical industries.

In the early 1970s, Dr. Geldbach founded Geldbach Gruppe GmbH & Co. KG, with the aim of achieving independence from a single industrial sector. In 1999, Geldbach Gruppe and Wilhelm Geldbach (Gelsenkirchen) separated to operate as independent entities. For Dr. Geldbach, this decision opened the possibility to expand production on a global scale, while maintaining the strictness and internationally recognized German quality standards.

"In the meantime, our patents have become a technological standard in the market," adds Ms. El Difrawi-Geldbach. "Although the requirements are constantly increasing, major innovations are still possible only at the level of materials. We produce flanges and fittings to the exceptional German quality, appreciated everywhere in the world. All our production units operate according to the model of German factories, holding all the necessary certifications."

The Geldbach Group is a 100% family-owned holding company. Four of its 33 subsidiaries worldwide are production facilities (two in Germany and two in China), all benefiting from the extensive experience and know-how accumulated over decades by the parent companies in Germany.