Dyckerhoff & Widmann (Dywidag)
Encyclopedia
Dyckerhoff & Widmann AG was a construction company based in Munich
, Germany
(formerly based in Karlsruhe
, Wiesbaden
and Berlin
, Germany).
.
The company introduced many innovations in the field of concrete construction. Eugen Dyckerhoff developed the Stampfbeton, a compressed concrete that became a standard for concrete construction in Germany in the 19th century. At the end of the 1920s the company developed the famous Zeiss-Dywidag-System. For this concrete shell construction system the company was awarded an Edward Longstreth Medal of Merit by the Franklin Institute
in 1938. Until the 1960s Dyckerhoff & Widmann built large quantities of buildings with shell constructions. The company Dyckerhoff & Widmann also played an important role for the establishment of prestressed concrete and the cantilever method in Germany.
In 1907 the company Dyckerhoff & Widmann moved its headquarters to Wiesbaden, and after World War II it finally moved to Munich. The building companys Siemens-Bauunion (1972) and Union-Bau AG (1991) was taked over by Dyckerhoff & Widmann. . In 2001 the company became part of the Walter Bau AG, a big building contractor. With the insolvency of the Walter Bau AG in 2005 the former company Dyckerhoff & Widmann was split up. The biggest part of the business was taken over by the Austrian building company STRABAG
.
Munich
Munich The city's motto is "" . Before 2006, it was "Weltstadt mit Herz" . Its native name, , is derived from the Old High German Munichen, meaning "by the monks' place". The city's name derives from the monks of the Benedictine order who founded the city; hence the monk depicted on the city's coat...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
(formerly based in Karlsruhe
Karlsruhe
The City of Karlsruhe is a city in the southwest of Germany, in the state of Baden-Württemberg, located near the French-German border.Karlsruhe was founded in 1715 as Karlsruhe Palace, when Germany was a series of principalities and city states...
, Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden
Wiesbaden is a city in southwest Germany and the capital of the federal state of Hesse. It has about 275,400 inhabitants, plus approximately 10,000 United States citizens...
and Berlin
Berlin
Berlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
, Germany).
History
The company was founded under the name Lang & Co. in 1865 by the German cement pioneer Wilhelm Gustav Dyckerhoff (1805–1894) in Karlsruhe, Germany. In the early years the company was mainly engaged in the production of concrete components. In 1866 Dyckerhoff's son Eugen Dyckerhoff (1844–1924) entered the company. He and his father-in-law Gottlieb Widmann changed the company's name to Dyckerhoff & Widmann and made it one of the leading companies for concrete construction in Germany. Starting in the field of construction engineering in the 1880s, the company soon got contracts for impressive buildings like the Centennial Hall (Jahrhunderthalle) in WroclawWroclaw
Wrocław , situated on the River Oder , is the main city of southwestern Poland.Wrocław was the historical capital of Silesia and is today the capital of the Lower Silesian Voivodeship. Over the centuries, the city has been part of either Poland, Bohemia, Austria, Prussia, or Germany, but since 1945...
.
The company introduced many innovations in the field of concrete construction. Eugen Dyckerhoff developed the Stampfbeton, a compressed concrete that became a standard for concrete construction in Germany in the 19th century. At the end of the 1920s the company developed the famous Zeiss-Dywidag-System. For this concrete shell construction system the company was awarded an Edward Longstreth Medal of Merit by the Franklin Institute
Franklin Institute
The Franklin Institute is a museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, and one of the oldest centers of science education and development in the United States, dating to 1824. The Institute also houses the Benjamin Franklin National Memorial.-History:On February 5, 1824, Samuel Vaughn Merrick and...
in 1938. Until the 1960s Dyckerhoff & Widmann built large quantities of buildings with shell constructions. The company Dyckerhoff & Widmann also played an important role for the establishment of prestressed concrete and the cantilever method in Germany.
In 1907 the company Dyckerhoff & Widmann moved its headquarters to Wiesbaden, and after World War II it finally moved to Munich. The building companys Siemens-Bauunion (1972) and Union-Bau AG (1991) was taked over by Dyckerhoff & Widmann. . In 2001 the company became part of the Walter Bau AG, a big building contractor. With the insolvency of the Walter Bau AG in 2005 the former company Dyckerhoff & Widmann was split up. The biggest part of the business was taken over by the Austrian building company STRABAG
Strabag
Strabag is a European construction company based in Villach, with its headquarters in Vienna, Austria). It is the largest construction company in Austria and one of the largest construction companies in Europe...
.
Nazi Concentration Camps
During World War II Dyckerhoff & Widmann used slave labour from Camp No. 36 at the new sub-camp of Auschwitz III called "Arbeitslager Blechhammer". Most of these would die in 1945 during the death marches and finally in Buchenwald.External links
- DYWIDAG (official homepage)
- Dyckerhoff & Widmann at StructuraeStructuraeStructurae is an online database containing works of structural and civil engineering of all kinds such as bridges, high-rise buildings, towers, dams, etc. Additionally, the database contains information on companies and persons involved in the design or construction of the structures...