Heinrich Ehrhardt

Heinrich Ehrhardt (* 17 November 1840 in Zella St. Blasius ; † 20 November 1928 in Zella-Mehlis ) was a German inventor , industrialist and entrepreneur. Ehrhardt's uncle was the successful locomotive manufacturer and inventor Johann Heinrich Ehrhardt .

Life

Around 1864. he studied and worked at the company Richard Hartmann in Chemnitz , which was the largest Saxon companies.

Patents and start-ups

128 patents registered by him in the German Empire. In 1891 patented process that became known as the "Ehrhardt'schen pressing and drawing method" for the manufacture of seamless tubes are still used today in industry. Introduced him also the development of the recoiling gun . The 7.5-cm-Ehrhardt Model 04 Mountain cannon , their development and production, he was instrumental in was named after him.

He founded in 1878, among other things, a metal and arms factory in Zella St. Blasius, 1889 the Rhenish Metallwaren- und Maschinenfabrik AG in Dusseldorf , 1896, the Eisenach car factory and also in Zella St. Blasius 1903 Ehrhardt Automobil AG.

At the age of about 80 years, in 1920, Ehrhardt resigned from the leadership of Rheinmetall.

Commercial vehicle

Heinrich Ehrhardt taught in 1903 in his hometown of Zella St. Blasius under his name for the son of a factory as Gustav Ehrhardt Automobile AG for passenger utility vehicle a. This new automobile factory, which was housed in the Maschinenfabrik has existed since 1878, it merged with in his possession since 1873 companies to the state road in Dusseldorf . There have been since 1903 now trucks for the imperial army administration produced and classified as "fit for service". From 1906, subsidized by the German Reich trucks were only built. The purchasers of the truck had to establish that the army in case of war available. Sometimes called the army administration, these vehicles also for maneuver. The Ehrhardt truck passed in all the years had eleven types t gross vehicle weight of 2.5 to 6 tons. A balloon defense special vehicle was built with eight tons dead weight at the start of the war. 1924 two types of trucks were built with 35 hp and 80 hp and 1925 the commercial vehicle industry was shut down.

Personenwagenbau

In the joint-stock company vehicle factory Eisenach (FFE), he had initially 31.2 percent of the share capital. There were first guns and bikes of the brand "Wartburg" made. Already end of 1898 took place the production of the first car under the name " Wartburg motor car "after the model of the French two-cylinder engine" Decauville ", had acquired the license for the Heinrich Ehrhardt. This was the vehicle factory Eisenach to the companies " Daimler "and" Benz "the third company in Germany with an automobile production. Ehrhardt's son Gustav led the plant in Eisenach, the 1,300 workers belonged to the late 19th century to the large firms in Thuringia.

In order to convince the public and shareholders of the quality of the "Wartburg" -Motorwagens, Heinrich Ehrhardt went with this and a companion to the steep road to the Wartburg up what the car also managed.

From 1903, the Ehrhardt withdrew after losses and disagreements with the major shareholders of the company back, with the Decauville license was taken away and founded the Ehrhardt Automobil AG . These turned luxury cars, such as the "Emperor class" - her limousine. A brochure from 1911 shows an output of 50 hp from 8 liters capacity. The price was 26,000 marks. 1922, Szawe the company.

Writings

Hammer - 70 years German workers and inventor. 1922 (Reprint Heinrich Jung-Verlag, 2006, ISBN 3-930588-37-4 ).

Literature

George W. Oesterdiekhoff; Hermann Strasser : heads of the Ruhr. 200 years of industrial history and structural change in the light of biographies . Plaintext Verlag, Essen 2009, ISBN 978-3-8375-0036-3 , p 91-98

Hugo Racine: Ehrhardt, Henry. In: New German Biography (NDB). Volume 4, Duncker & Humblot, Berlin 1959. ISBN 3-428-00185-0 , p 579 f.

Joseph Wilder: Heinrich Ehrhardt (1840-1928). In: RWTH Economics Biographies, Volume IV Aschendorff, Münster 1941, pp 172-186..

"Chronicle of the city Zella-Mehlis - Volume 2", Heinrich Jung-Verlag

"History of the German truck construction", Volume 1 P. 68 + 2a. S. 126. worldview Verlag 1994 ISBN 3-89350-811-2