Life Hanns Grewenig

1 life

1.1 years
1.2 opel
1.3 vomag
1.4 bmw
1.5 †

life
early years

hanns grewenig born in strasbourg @ time in germany. in 1911 joined navy marine engineer. in 1917 obtained diploma ship s engineer after participated in war, serving chief engineer on submarine. after war ended grewenig s career took change of direction, undertook commercial apprenticeship , took charge of several vehicle service/repair shops. in 1927 joined ford, automobile manufacturer in 1925, rather tentatively, had opened vehicle assembly facility in western port quarter of berlin.

opel

a year later, in 1928, switched general motors (gm) had assembly facility @ berlin-borsigwalde, on same side of city ford business further city centre. | facility assembled small number of chevrolets , buicks few years around time. however, in 1929, year after grevening joined company gm purchased opel, germany s largest car producer in terms of volume, hitherto family owned automobile manufacturer modern car plant @ rüsselsheim west. during next decade opel, backed investment capabilities of detroit parent, more quadrupled domestic market sales in booming german automarket, , grewenig s career followed upward trajectory. gm-opel worked successively customer services director, director production , distribution of replacement parts, , sales director southern part of germany, covering bavaria, württemberg, baden und hessen.

in 1935, encouraged government, opel opened new truck plant @ brandenburg der havel. grewenig appointed plant director, retaining responsibility till 1938. year transferred company s main plant, @ rüsselsheim took on operations director. next year appointed full member of company s executive board.

vomag

in 1941 grewenig relocated plauen when recruited take charge @ vomag. vomag manufacturer of industrial sewing machines had reacted decline in plauen s textile business thirty years earlier diversifying trucks , buses. 1941 had switched war production, becoming major supplier of tanks military. grewenig mandated improve efficiencies , expand production. end of war. in may 1945, found left of germany divided 4 occupation zones. plauen had been heavily bombed, leaving it, according 1 source, 1 of destroyed towns in germany. town found on southern edge of soviet occupation zone (after october 1949 german democratic republic / east germany). vomag plant had been approximately 40% destroyed bombing, february 1946 nevertheless ready return truck production on limited scale. @ point, however, military administration ordered remains of factory disassembled, crated , shipped soviet union part of reparations package had, @ least in principal, been agreed between victorious powers before end of war. sources indicate grewenig remained in charge @ vomag plant till 1947. year crossed (at stage still porous) border separating soviet occupation zone bavaria, had ended in occupation zone (after may 1949 german federal republic / west germany).

bmw

grewenig joined bmw commercial director in 1948, retaining position till 1957. between 1948 , 1955 combined role of ceo (geschäftsführer). in 1947 military administration gave permission company s destroyed munich plant rebuilt motorbike factory. necessary investment amounted 63 million marks, leaving company heavily indebted. desperate shortage of cash defining feature of grewenig s time @ top of bmw. motorbike production nevertheless resumed in 1948, year of currency reform. 9,450 bmw motorbikes produced in 1949, had risen 28,300 1952, although in acute austerity of period, of machines found buyers relatively basic: there little demand expensive (and more profitable) heavy motorbikes bmw had been known in 1930s , 1940s.

bmw automobile production before war had taken place @ plant in eisenach company no longer had access since in soviet occupation zone. there nevertheless awareness if economy continued improve, growth in motorbike market not continue, , grewenig adamant return automobile production vital in order provide second leg if company have long term future. money invest in production challenge however. west mercedes-benz still had car plant , achieving significant additional cash flow truck range. of opel s factory had been disassembled , shipped moscow area, general motors cash rich , happy invest in new plant. in small car sector, miraculous revival unfolding @ volkswagen pre-war design had captured imagination of market. bmw s dire financial position ruled out investment in new factory volume production time soon, bavaria, population swollen refugees created 1945 frontier changes, rich in skilled craftsmen , wages low. grewenig , senior colleagues accordingly determined bmw s first west german passenger car should compete @ top end of market, attracting premium price small number of luxury saloon/sedan models.

fritz fiedler s 1951 proposal small bmw passenger car remained on shelf, , bmw 501 unveiled @ frankfurt motor show, though development issues delayed start of production until late 1952. powered @ stage compact 6-cylinder engine not massively changed since had first appeared in bmw 326 in 1936, bmw 501 1952 seen underpowered, , high warranty charges cars indicated underdeveloped @ launch, reflecting manufacturer s continuing acute cash shortage. mercedes-benz cash strapped, , contender in 6 cylinder class in many respects less elaborate design, württembergers had invested in more modern engine. applying simplistic telling comparison, contrasting mercedes-benz 220 of 1952 bmw 501, der spiegel reported power-to-weight ratio mercedes of 16 kg of car weight per unit of declared horsepower (pferdestärke / ps), whereas 65 ps engine of bmw resulted in anemic power-to-weight ratio of 19 kg of car weight per unit of declared horsepower, . 2 years later v8 engined 2.6 litre version addressed of criticisms of bmw s sluggish performance, overall market large cars in west germany still small, , dominated mercedes-benz. bmw found customers 3,000 cars annually. in respects bmw displayed bizarre money no object approach luxury car: adequate fastener luggage locker (boot/trunk) have been produced 8 marks, bmw insisted on developing superior fastener costed @ 98 marks. high cost of special fastener no doubt reflected relatively small number of cars on development costs had amortised. low production volumes and, in 1950s, high warranty costs meant bmw 501 never profitable board had hoped.

while bmw contested large car market, , middle market fought on several manufacturers, high volume small market in west germany becoming monopolised 1 car, volkswagen. discussion between hanns grewenig , c. a. drenowatz, bmw distributor switzerland, took place in 1954 @ 2 men identified way bmw might secure slice of small car market, inspired motorbike body shell ( verkleidetes motorrad ) had been displayed @ geneva motorshow iso, italian manufacturer lombardy. company looked ways exploit idea in germany, , in end grewenig, supported technical director kurt donath, able persuade reluctant board pay italians license manufacture version of iso design @ bmw munich plant, adapted take motorbike engine bmw s existing range along modified front suspension take weight of electric starter/dynamo motor bmw fitted. more 160,000 sold between 1955 , 1962 bmw isetta became, in sheer volume terms, successful bmw model date.

nevertheless, economies of scale volkswagen achieving had effect of depressing new car prices across small car sector in west germany, , bmw remained under acute financial pressure throughout 1950s. far bmw model range concerned, might thought bmw 501 , bubble car bmw isetta had little in common. unfortunately, 1 thing did have in common poor build quality, continued land manufacturer high warranty costs and, @ time when several (though not all) west german automakers building reputation quality, left bmw @ competitive disadvantage in market place: end of decade dealers accumulating stocks of unsold cars.

as automobile production continued loss making bmw, tensions mounted @ board level. 1956 there agreement company needed plug gaping gap in range mid-size model, grewenig determined avoid mistakes had been made 501, had been launched on basis of cost estimates in retrospect appeared ludicrously optimistic. accused colleagues failing provide convincing cost estimates proposed new models, @ stage no prototypes had been produced costing of proposals theoretical exercise. in end hanns grewenig resigned bmw in 1957. mutual agreement chairman of supervisory board, hans karl von mangoldt-reiboldt, grewenig s resignation took place 6 months ahead of date previous scheduled. successor in charge of executive board, heinrich richter-brohm (de), have challenging time @ top of company, culminated offer bmw daimler-benz. daimler benz ambitions bmw thwarted @ eleventh hour through massive cash investment industrialist herbert quandt, saved business and, matters turned out, gave bmw long term future.

†

hanns grewenig died in car accident in munich on 6 april 1961.