De Beer Breidenbach is an injection moulding company that is fully specialised in processing soft plastics, such as thermoplastic elastomers (TPE) and soft PVC.
We produce 24 hours a day on 40 machines for a wide range of industries, such as the sealing industry, the sanitary industry, the toy industry and the automotive industry.
We process more than 1,000,000 kilos of soft materials annually, making us one of the largest TPE-processing injection moulding companies in Europe. We use about 350 different types of material, which vary in hardness, chemical resistance, temperature resistance and flexibility.
In 1951 Friedrich Wilhelm Breidenbach started a small workshop in Gelnhausen, making moulds for the local rubber industry.
When soft PVC emerged as an alternative to rubber in the 1960s, F.W. Breidenbach processes soft PVC on so-called Remaker machines, the forerunners of modern injection moulding machines.
In the eighties and nineties, under the leadership of second generation owner Wolfgang Breidenbach, Breidenbach increasingly developed into a producer and specialist of soft plastic products. Together with the largest customer at the time, toy manufacturer Playmobil, many innovative techniques were developed, for exam’80ple for the production of hollow tyres. PVC was increasingly replaced by thermoplastic elastomers (TPE).
In the nineties, Breidenbach continued to develop, acquiring a prominent position in the sanitary industry. Especially for toilet flushing systems and drains, the TPE seals and connectors made have become a key component.
In the ’00s, the importance of the toy industry further declined and Breidenbach developed more broadly, in various industries and technologies. Among other things, 2-component injection moulding was introduced.
On 1 January 2006, F.W. Breidenbach was acquired by the Dutch De Beer Groep: an existing customer in the sanitary sector.
In the nearby industrial area of Birkenhain, a second location was acquired for further growth. The mould manufacturing department and the warehouse were transferred to the new location.
Since the ’10s, Breidenbach has increasingly developed into an expert in the field of TPE processing. The mission is to push the boundaries of what is possible with soft plastics. As a result, the product portfolio has become increasingly high-end and sophisticated.
In 2020 the name was changed to De Beer Breidenbach GmbH, which expresses even more strongly the connection with the parent company and the other companies of the De Beer Group.
In 2021 and 2022, De Beer Breidenbach will build a future-oriented factory on a nearby 23,000 m2 plot. This will create a knowledge centre for the development and production of plastic injection moulding products.
