The Swiss expert in wastewater surface chemistry is reinventing itself: the company is relocating its headquarters from Dietikon to Rafz near Schaffhausen to serve a growing market.
Good connections: The Rafz train station is within sight of the new plantThecompany Färber & Schmid broke ground for its new company building in Rafz near the German border at the beginning of February. This marks the start of construction of the new company headquarters with production, laboratories, warehouse and administration in the town not far from Schaffhausen. Färber & Schmid is an expert and manufacturer of specialty products for industrial water and wastewater treatment as well as sustainable, organic specialty cleaners for industry.
"It's a milestone in our history," says Managing Director Felix Schmid, describing the construction project. The reason for the relocation of the workforce to the approximately 6,000 square meter site in the Rafz industrial estate is the high growth rate of the company, which works closely with the electroplating and surface treatment industry: The business has grown by 10 to 15% a year in recent years. The production volume has risen to 9,000 tons per year with a turnover of 25 million euros.
In addition to the expansion possibilities in Rafz, the price level and design capabilities on site also played a role in the decision for the new location. "We have everything under one roof here. This will also optimize just-in-time deliveries in the future. There is enough space here for raw materials as well as finished products and much more efficient production," says Managing Director Horst Färber enthusiastically. The previous hazardous goods warehouses at various locations in Switzerland will now also be moved centrally to a modern hazardous goods warehouse with 8 storage caverns, fire protection in accordance with regulations and a capacity of around 2000 pallet spaces in Rafz.
Felix Schmid and Horst Färber learned the chemical-technical basics in various electroplating companies and specialist firms, including in Schwäbisch Gmünd, before setting up their own company in 1994. "We are originally electroplating technicians," the entrepreneurs admit. Färber & Schmid is now part of the Swedish investment company Indutrade, which, however, gives the management a largely free hand in company management and development.
A four-storey building with production, laboratories, warehouse and administration is being built here. Färber & Schmid is also located in StuttgartTheSwiss company's most important products are used in industrial wastewater treatment and in cleaning and dissolving surface contamination. "The more complicated the task, the better for us," is how Felix Schmid sums up the company's work. "If, for example, complexing agents are used in electroplating processes, metals can bind in the wastewater and have to be broken down," says Schmid. Heavy metal precipitants such as Diplexin or HydroMet Alpha are used for this purpose, e.g. for alloy deposition in the automotive sector or in precious metal electroplating. "All of our product formulations are developed in-house," emphasize Färber and Schmid proudly. And there is nothing off-the-peg when it comes to system construction: "We don't just build the system, we customize it for the user. We start by asking how we can improve the situation and avoid or reduce wastewater," outlines Horst Färber. "Only then does the system design follow, always coupled with an investment and operating cost analysis."
The business with wastewater chemicals as well as cleaners and solvents, including for plastics, paint and adhesive manufacturers, accounts for the largest share of the company's steep growth. Färber & Schmid produces special organic cleaners for dissolving resins and adhesives, for example.
It is now zero hour at the building site in the Rafz industrial estate: an excavator rolls up and digs the first hole for the building, which will have four floors including a basement. The investment amounts to 15 million euros. The old location is around 30 kilometers away near Zurich. In future, some of the staff will have to make a longer journey to work. But the location is favorable: Swiss Federal Railways trains stop within sight of the building site and the proximity to the German border also offers advantages.
The company is reinventing itself elsewhere. That sounds like the beginnings of Färber & Schmid almost 28 years ago. "We created our own market," Horst Färber looks back and adds: "The products we sell today didn't exist before." That has since changed - but not the founders' motivation. "We are still putting our heart and soul into it," assures Färber with a smile. And a lot of it is still needed: In spring 2023, when the building is completed, the next stage in the company's history will begin.
