Innovating to Sustain Sustainable Development Voith Group's 150th Anniversary

On March 31, 2017, Voith 150th Anniversary Staff Day was held in Kunshan, China. Group family members, Dr. Herbert Lindhard, President and Chief Executive Officer, Voith, Dr. Roland Münch, Chairman, Management Group, Four Group Divisions, Mr. Uwe Wehnhardt, Mr. Bertram Staudenmaier, Dr. Uwe Knotzer and China Management Team Will attend this event and celebrate the festival with Voith employees to witness this historic moment. In the coming months, the entire Voith Asia Pacific region will continue to host more than 40 celebrations and involve 3,900 employees.

“In 1867, when the group was founded, electricity, paper, and mobility were confined to a very small number of people. At that time, the world was different. From that time on, Voith’s technology began to change this,” Lin Mr. Hart said: “Today we are standing in front of new opportunities for development. The world has entered the digital age. We are full of confidence and are full of expectations. The Voith people have changed – this is the only way to meet the new era. ”

In 1881, Voith's first complete set of paper machines began shipping. In 1899 Voith supplied paper machines to Russia for the first time. At the same time, Voith has become a global leader in hydropower. In 1870 Voith's first turbine was completed. In 1903, Voith delivered the largest Francis turbine in the world at the time to the Ontario hydropower station in Niagara Falls. In 1910, Voith built China's first hydroelectric power station.

The Voith Group's innovation and internationalization strategy continued into the 20th century, during which many breakthrough innovations were made available, such as Voith Schneider Propulsion (ship propulsion systems), Kaplan turbines, and for short-haul public Liquid dynamic power transmission (Fairgarten principle) invented by numerous applications in the transportation field. In addition, the flotation deinking method developed by Voith makes it possible to use waste paper. It is these inventions that have caused Voith to become famous in the industry.

Today, the Voith Group serves five major markets: energy, oil and gas, paper, raw materials, and transportation and automotive. With more than 4,000 patents, Voith Group has become a technological pioneer in many industries.

As part of Voith’s 150th Anniversary Celebration, Voith will launch “150 Corporate Social Responsibility Activities” around the world. In China, Voith Paper entered the elementary school of Kunshan migrant children's elementary school, bringing the “I and Paper” English dream to the children to open an open class; Voith Drive entered the “Love,” with the Shanghai Guangci Disabled Children Welfare Institute. I hope that my colleagues will contribute to the children's charity project; Shanghai Voith Hydro will donate to the abandoned baby care project of the Children's Care Service Center of the Community Charity, focusing on the fostering, companionship, and medical rehabilitation of abandoned babies and sick babies; Intelligent Intelligence Control conducted an open class program at Wulian Primary School in Yushan Town, Kunshan. Voith hopes to bring more love and rewards to the public through these charity events. For Voith, this is also a very meaningful thing.

"We are proud of Voith's deep and successful history. On this 150th anniversary, we also look to the future," said Dr. Herbert Linhald, President and CEO of Voith Group. " This is what we have said to meet the true connotation of the next 150 years.Friedrich Voith sees the opportunity of his time and decisively seizes the opportunity.We still retain this entrepreneurial spirit and pioneering spirit. It also hopes to follow the pace of the first industrial revolution, the founder of Voith, Friedrich Voith, and to play a key role in the fourth industrial revolution of the 21st century.

In the summer of 2017, the Voith Group’s 150th Anniversary celebrations will culminate in Voith’s headquarters, where it was originally founded—Hydheim, Germany. In July, more than 4,500 local employees will attend the celebration. Later, company employees can bring their families to visit their workplaces. This summer celebration will mark the successful conclusion of the Voith Group’s 150th anniversary celebration, and it will also open up a new journey for the Group’s future industrialization. At that time, guests from the global political, business and cultural sectors will gather at the Heideheim Convention Center to celebrate the 150th Anniversary of the Voith Group and welcome a better future.