Our History
The history of the HOFFMANN MINERAL company is, above all, the history of one family. The story of four generations who have totally given themselves to the mining and upgrading of a special raw material: Neuburg Siliceous Earth (Neuburger Kieselerde), today mainly known under the name of SILLITIN, in previous times also called "Kieselkreide" (Siliceous Chalk), "Kieselsaure Kreide" (Silicic Chalk), "Neuburger Weiss" (Neuburg Whiting) or "Neuburger Kieselweiss" (Neuburg Siliceous Whiting). During the 100-year span of company history, many things have happened. A great deal has changed over the years, but some characteristic features have remained as ever before. To know more about the prominent stages starting from the foundation of the company up to right now:
| Why don’t you click yourself through the „Hoffmann Century“?
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Foundation in 1903
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Franz Hoffmann - |
View of the "Münchener Strasse" |
Siliceous Earth shipments |
| Franz Hoffmann, the original founder of today’s HOFFMANN MINERAL company, after successful studies and graduation, around 1888 joins a major Munich based builders and contractors company in a position of master builder. One of the construction projects takes him to Neuburg, where he meets and falls in love with Maria who became his wife. The couple has four children, Maria herself is the daughter of a Neuburg master builder, and beyond that a competent business woman. This encourages Franz Hoffmann to set up his own enterprise. Within short, he gains the reputation of a reliable and imaginative building expert. An Englishman by the name of Mason charges Franz Hoffmann with planning and erecting a siliceous earth factory. At that time, a number of polish manufacturers are in business with the Neuburg raw material: brass is highly appreciated, and siliceous earth is an important component of the metal polishing agents. After extended planning efforts, Mr. Mason unexpectedly calls the project off, probably because he has run into financial difficulties. In this situation, Franz Hoffmann decides to set up himself a "steam washing plant" for genuine Neuburg Silicic Whiting - which means the foundation of today’s company has been laid. |
1924
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| The Kreuth Pit |
Latest truck technology |
Great honor: Franz Hoffmann is appointed |
| Franz and Felix Hoffmann, in 1919, return safe and sound from the first World War. Jointly with their father, the former master builder Franz Hoffmann, they set up the general partnership corporation Franz Hoffmann & Söhne. Son Franz is a qualified merchant, Felix an architect, so the brothers nicely complement each other in their work. Franz assumes the responsibility for the commercial interests, Felix as a technician takes care of the buildings and the equipment. With all their forces, the two devote themselves to the "Chalk Business". Father and sons succeed in signing a supply and cooperation contract with the English company Reckitt & Colman, then the no. 1 manufacturer of polishing agents in the world. The resulting business relations have continued until today. Furthermore, the brothers open up the company’s way into the rubber industry. Skill, hard work and also courage are the elements of the successful approach that enables Franz and Felix Hoffmann to develop and consolidate the siliceous earth business. |
1935
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Pit visit of the brothers |
Pioneering work: |
"Tightrope act" |
| The flourishing business with siliceous earth, however, is overclouded by one peculiar flaw: silicosis, the occupational disease. This "dust lung" affection will be recognized and diagnosed in the years between 1920 and 1930. As soon as the causes of the illness have been identified, Franz and Felix Hoffmann, together with their inventive foreman Bayerle, start looking for solutions. The result are bags made out of silk tissue which are pulled over the head, and are furnished with fresh air from a compressor. In all likelihood, this is the very first fresh air mask in the world. At this time, there do not exist any work protection regulations to specify such protective measures, and all the same the mask will continually be improved. In fact, the investment into employees has always been regarded with Hoffmann as an investment into the future. Another important step towards the future is made in 1935. With an important local property owner, the foundation "Studienseminar Neuburg", a contract is signed for 50 years of exploiting rights of siliceous earth deposits to be found in the area. |
1950
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An old tradition: |
Research to secure the future: |
Work at the Pfaffengrund pit |
| After the war, Franz Hoffmann has revived the contacts with the rubber industry, and thus secured a strategically important market for the future. Manfred Hoffmann, the son of Franz, successfully finishes his chemistry studies, and joins the enterprise. The cooperation between father and son turns out excellent. Like previously his own father, Franz Hoffmann gives a free hand to his son who, therefore, can dedicate himself totally to the company. Already prior to 1950, a particular care product line is created: the trade mark SONAX is born, today the market leader for automobile care. Manfred Hoffmann also pushes further developments in production control and quality assurance, important investments go into novel processing and drying technologies, the company grows continually. In the mid-50s, only two Neuburg Siliceous Earth manufacturers have survived out of the previously numerous companies, and they fight a hard competition for customers: Globus-Werke, who some years earlier have taken over Kieselweiss GmbH, and Franz Hoffmann & Söhne, who in 1954 acquire Bayrische Kreidewerke. |
1963
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| Create and preserve natural habitats! | Nature pure! | The Hütting Biotope in 1988 |
| In the early times, it was absolutely normal to leave exploited pits to themselves. Yet as early as 1963, Franz Hoffmann & Söhne began with refilling and recultivation. At that time, no legal obligations exist to this effect. But already then the company acts from the point of view that he who takes something from nature, has also to hand back something. With this understanding, during the following decades numerous pits will be recultivated for the original use; in most cases forest trees are replanted. Nearly always, new biotopes come into being. At the end of the 20th century, the ultimate reintegration into the ecological system is planned even before opening a new pit. This is done in cooperation with the land owners, the mining authorities, and the forestry and nature protection experts. The renaturation and recultivation activities have been developed to a point that some years after refilling a pit nothing can be seen any longer to point to the former mining operations. |
1971
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The unique particle structure |
Siliceous Earth - |
The Neuburg plant site |
| In the first 70 years of the company’s history, the competitive situation has continually evolved. The year 1971 brings a last and substantial change. Manfred Hoffmann enters into discussions about a cooperation with the sole competitor, Globus-Werke. After long and fair negotiations it becomes apparent that the Globus associates are not very interested in continuing their activities with respect to siliceous earth. The result is the sale of this division to Hoffmann including all equipment and mining rights as well as the trade marks GLOXIL and SILFIN. With the new monopoly position for Neuburg Siliceous Earth, a life-long dream of Manfred Hoffmann has come true. As a child, at the time of the foundation of the company, he had seen how the other then powerful siliceous earth manufacturers looked down at his grandfather rather as to an outsider, and did not predict for him a significant future. |
1979
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Efficient open-pit mining |
The Kreuzgründe pit in 1979 |
History of long ago: |
| As early as about one-thousand years ago, underground mining already was carried out in the Neuburg region. At that time, the miners, however, dug for iron ore lumps and for clay. The 19th century saw a growing interest in siliceous earth, which mainly was extracted in open pits, but also underground. The mining underground resulted from the advantage that the work could take place with simple tools and irrespective of weather conditions. In view of safety considerations, it had to be accepted that large parts of a deposit could not be fully exploited. With modern equipment like dredges, heavy trucks and pumps, today open-pit mining not only offers substantially more safety, but also allows an almost complete exploitation of existing deposits. In 1979, Hoffmann sets an end to underground mining, and with this closes a whole chapter of the history of siliceous earth exploitation. |
1991
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Manfred Hoffmann jr. |
Top management and Advisory Board |
The Rubber Laboratory |
| Things evolve at a rapid pace. With the aid of intense development efforts, Neuburg Siliceous Earth grows into a highly valued filler for more and more application areas. Already in 1984, Manfred Hoffmann jr. entered the company. A new change of generations is due in 1991: Manfred Hoffmann sr., who determined the company history over several decades, gradually withdraws from the daily business, and takes the chair of the newly installed Advisory Board. The day-to-day management is turned over to his son Manfred Hoffmann jr. It looks worth mentioning that also this change of responsibilities proceeded along the well-proven company and family tradition of leaving a free hand to the successor. After all, this policy has substantially contributed to the success of the company. A success, which can today can celebrate its 100 years. |
2003 - today
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Air view of the |
With confidence into the future | From Neuburg all over the world |
| Siliceous earth sales over the last ten years increased from 40.000 to 50.000 tons per year, and there is no intention to further push the output. Deposits for exploitation have been prospected for at least 30 more years, and siliceous earth mining can be expected to continue for another 100 years. The deposits, however, are not planned to be prematurely exhausted, and not too many open pits should be kept active at the same time. Furthermore, it would require very high expenditures to increase the processing capacity of the plant over 55.000 tons/year. This is why another promising activity will be expanded with the necessary investments. Already since the 70s, know-how and processing capacities have been developed for the treatment and upgrading of Neuburg Siliceous Earth and of other materials: in other words, the treatment of powder materials with specialty chemicals in order to obtain improved properties for selected applications. |
