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Despite its rapid growth in the past few decades, DORMA has
remained a family-owned company.
Rudolf Mankel and his
brother-in-law, Wilhelm Dörken, founded Dörken & Mankel KG in Ennepetal on 1
July, 1908. The first products to come out of the factory were double-action
door hinges and milled screws. Right from the start, the two partners imposed
the very highest quality standards on their products. The principle that applied
even at that time - "Better the best at a good price than to disappoint our
customers" - was destined to influence significantly the path adopted by the
company.
The brand name DORMA, an acronym formed from the two surnames of
the company founders, was registered with the German Patent Office in 1927.
Then, in 1936, Wilhelm Dörken left Dörken & Mankel KG and Rudolf Mankel set
about running the company as its sole proprietor.
In 1950, after the
upheavals of the Second World War, the company began manufacturing the TS 50
door closer, taking us into a sector in which - in revenue terms - we are today
the world market leader. The product range was also extended to include, for a
period, the "Mekanik" metal construction kit, and punched components for the
radio and television industry. By 1962, DORMA had begun production of a range of
door operators and so took its first steps into the automatics market. And here
too, the company is among the world elite.
In 1970 saw the establishment
of DORMA GmbH + Co. KG and in the same year Karl-Rudolf Mankel, grandson of the
co-founder, joined the company. The ensuing period saw increased emphasis on
global alignment and further extensions to the product segments. In 1976, the
company moved into the field of glass door furniture and fittings, and 1977 saw
the creation of a subsidiary specialising in this sector, DORMA-Glas. Also in
1977, we established our first foreign sales company in the form of DORMA
France. And just one year later, our first foreign manufacturing facility was
opened in Singapore.
DORMA gained access to further new markets by
entering into the security and emergency escape technology sector in 1987. The
year 2000 heralded a new management structure comprising a holding company, five
divisions and 13 sales regions, established with the purpose of further
improving DORMA's global position and better preparing it for the challenges of
the future.
2008 saw celebrations at many of DORMA's sites around the
world to mark its 100th year of existence. And at the beginning of 2009, the
fourth generation of proprietors assumed a share of the responsibility for
managing the company, with sole proprietor Karl-Rudolf Mankel passing on a
majority of his participating interest in DORMA to his daughters Christine and
Stephanie Mankel.
In order to be even better equipped to meet present and
future global market demands, in 2010 DORMA introduced its strategic programme
"DORMA 2020" and, on January 1, 2011, a new management structure aligned to this
new commitment. The new organisation, consisting of a 14-member international
management committee and five sales regions with P+L responsibility, reflects
the strategy adopted for growth through to 2020.
Today, DORMA enjoys
ongoing success with its business segments Door Control, Automatic, Glass
Fittings and Accessories, Security / Time and Access, and Movable Walls and sees
itself as the trusted global partner for premium access solutions and services
enabling better buildings.
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