More than 125 years of experience in manufacturing of high performance grinding wheels.

The cornerstone of the Krebs & Riedel grinding wheel factory in Bad Karlshafen was laid some 125 years ago. Today the family-owned company operates worldwide as a manufacturer of individually manufactured precision grinding wheels and impresses with innovation and solution-oriented application technology advice. Above all, customers from the automotive, aerospace, mechanical engineering, medical technology and wind power sectors rely upon the high-precision products manufactured by Krebs & Riedel. In addition to conventional grinding wheels, cutting wheels, cup grinding wheels and grinding segments with ceramic and synthetic resin bonds, Krebs & Riedel also manufactures CBN and diamond tools with ceramic bonds, as well as honing rings. The medium-sized family business with over 250 committed employees has an annual turnover of 31 million euros. Krebs & Riedel is one of the global innovation leaders in abrasives and has subsidiaries in China and India and a strong distribution network in more than 30 countries worldwide.

Right now important investments in sustainability management and the expansion of the Bad Karlshafen plant are ongoing.

Diverse portfolio, individual products and special solutions with special quality requirements.

The production program includes corundum and silicon carbide wheels with a ceramic bond and synthetic resin bond for most industrial grinding applications up to 900 mm outside diameter for round, flat, tool, centerless, gear and rough grinding applications. Cut-off wheels in synthetic resin bond with and without fiber reinforcement up to 800 mm outside diameter for chop cut, pendulum cutting and rotary cutting. Roughing and pendulum grinding with and without fibre reinforcement for the cleaning shop and the foundry industry; Grinding wheels for pendulum grinding machines, grinding wheels for bench grinders and grinding wheels for grinding manipulators. Diamond and CBN grinding media in vitrified bond with a working speed of up to 200 m/s for internal, flat, circular, tool grinding and special grinding processes.

Historical pictures from the past.

A family-owned company, strengthened by crises.

In the company’s history there have been many crises in which the management has withstood external influences. The company survived two world wars and the Great Depression of 1929. In 1965 Bad Karlshafen was hit by the Heinrich flood and afterwards various buildings were demolished, rebuilt and numerous employees were hired. In 2008, the bankruptcy of the Lehmann Brothers bank plunged the world into a severe economic crisis and many thousands of people lost their jobs. In 2020, COVID-19 will cause another global economic collapse but despite the pandemic, the company is well positioned for the future.

Milestones

1895: Production of vitrified grinding tools begins
1933: Introduction of resin bonded grinding tools
1950: New company HQ was built
1985: Start of production of CBN and DIA grinding tools
1995: Certification for conformance to DIN ISO 9001 standard
1997: R&D department opened
2001: Founding member of the oSa
2002: 60% naphthalene free products
2014: New office in Shanghai, China
2015: 100% naphthalene free products
2015: Lowest specific CO² emissions in the industry
2019: Additional production facility in Germany
2020: New office in Bengaluru, India
2020: 125 years of Krebs & Riedel
2022: New representative office in Tokyo, Japan
2022: Eco-Management certification according to DIN ISO 14001