In 1949, the Liebherr family business was created by Hans Liebherr. His first claim to fame was the success of his inexpensive and easy-to-assemble mobile tower crane. It was upon this creation that the company's foundation flourished under. Now, The Liebherr business has grown to become amongst the world's leading manufacturers of construction machines. The company has also gained the reputation of being the acknowledged supplier of technically innovative user-oriented services and products in a variety of fields. The company has currently become a "Group" working in every continent with more than 130 companies and over 35,000 workers across the world.
To be able to ensure a manageable operating size, the Liebherr Group has been divided into various company units. These units have been designed to operate separately. This particular set up enables the business the ability to stay in tune with worldwide competition and be flexible to market signals. Moreover, having so many individual company units also keeps customer service running at an optimum level and ensures customer proximity.
The divisional control companies handle the production for the individual product segments and the operative management of the sales companies. The Liebherr Group presently encompasses 10 different product divisions.
The holding company of the Liebherr Group is Liebherr-International AG. Liebherr-International AG is located in Bulle, Switzerland and is operating by the Liebherr family members. Presently, the family business is being managed by Dr. H.C. Willi Liebherr and his sister Dr. H.C. Isolde Liebherr in the 2nd generation. Ever since 2012, some of the active individual divisions have been represented by members of the family in the third generation including: Jan Liebherr, Sophie Albrecht, Stefanie Wohlfarth and Patricia Ruf. These members of the family have been working together to be able to help set up the course of the family business in the future. They are staying on top of residential buildings and large-scale industrial projects all over the world.
Hans Liebherr began this quest in 1949, with his first business in the tiny South-German town of Kirchdorf/Iller. Nowadays, Kirchdorf is one of more than 20 key manufacturing sites of the Liebherr Group. They could average an annual output of roughly 2800 wheeled excavators and employ over 1400 people in that particular workforce. The company has enjoyed immense growth and diversity since it initially opened its doors. The Liebherr Group continues to remain devoted to engineering and implementing innovative designs. They have earned a positive and successful place in the material handling business.