MEILLER Kipper is celebrating 175 years. Join us on a journey of discovery from the establishment of our company in 1850 until today.
We will be disclosing a new milestone every week, so it is well worth your while to look in here periodically.
Lorenz Meiller, the founder of the company, purchased a property on Lilienstrasse in 1850. It is here that the story of the Meiller enterprise began in Munich 175 years ago. The original premises on Lilienstrasse, where everything began, is still owned by the family today.
Franz Xaver Meiller, the nephew of Lorenz Meiller, took over the hammer mill and armoury in the Munich district of Au in 1881. Franz Xaver Meiller acquired the nearby workshop in Ottenhofen near Markt Schwaben, Upper Bavaria, in 1888 and transformed it into a hammer mill over the years.
The MEILLER company began with the production of tipping vehicles in 1907, thus laying the foundation stone for the “MEILLER tipper”. The tipping vehicles were originally operated manually using a gear winch, as hydraulic technology at this time was not mature enough for such operations.
Pioneering technology: The first hydraulic three-way tipper, which attained the designation “MEILLER Kipper” D.R.P. (an imperial German patent) and other international patents, was launched on the market in 1924. A technical innovation that replaced the toothed rack winch, decisively altering the construction industry and paving the way towards modern tipping technology.
Innovation from Munich meets inspiration from the USA. MEILLER began production of the skip loader in 1953; a solution developed on Landshuter Allee. This was a milestone that revolutionised working with interchangeable trailers and permanently transformed the construction sector.
A thrilling look back at the beginnings of bauma, the largest international exhibition for construction machinery, building material machinery, mining machines, construction vehicles and construction equipment.
The exhibition made its début in 1954 with 58 exhibitors, 8,000 trade visitors and 12,000 square metres of open-air area on the Munich Theresienhoehe.
MEILLER showcased itself back then on a broad scale with a mobile Messeturm (Trade Show Tower), and this was also used at IAA in Frankfurt. One of our product highlights was our legendary rear tipper.
MEILLER commenced production of steel rear tippers in 1959 especially developed for export overseas. This robust tipper was developed for the efficient transportation of bulk materials up to a medium grit size. With a tipper body manufactured completely with steel, a flexible top-hinged tailgate and the option to extend the front panel as a protective roof, it provided absolute versatility and had a high degree of resilience.
1971 saw MEILLER accept the challenge to develop a revolutionary roll-off system that enabled the depositing of entire loading platforms, thus preparing the way for the hooklift! Ultimately, it proved possible to purchase the KUKA patent and optimise it for Germany. The first MEILLER hooklift was launched in 1972, this being completely hydraulic and dispensing with a cable.
1973 saw MEILLER setting new standards with the hydraulic Bordmatic. As steel replaced wooden side walls, opening and closing became a challenge - a challenge that was solved by a system without a cable hoist, but with a mechanical locking system and integrated hydraulics in the corner posts.
This was a real plus in terms of safety and efficiency. Aluminium side panels were also available on request. This technology still impresses today.
The Soviet Union commenced building the Baikal–Amur Mainline (BAM) in 1974 – a 3,200 km long railway line traversing the ice-cold expanses of Siberia. The demands made of the fleet were extreme, with temperatures up to -50 °C, impassable terrain and loads weighing tonnes.
Magirus trucks with MEILLER heavy-duty dumpers were used for this purpose. 9,500 vehicles, 8,000 of which had MEILLER superstructures, mastered these conditions, thanks to air-cooled Deutz diesel engines and sturdy, heated tipper bodies. And the MEILLER hydraulics? They operated without problems in cold temperatures reminiscent of the Arctic.
A chapter of technological history that can still be felt today, as some of these vehicles are still in use.
The capacities of the MEILLER plant on Landshuter Allee in Munich were no longer adequate in the 1980s. 1984 therefore saw a move to the newly erected location on Untermenzinger Strasse in Moosach, Munich.
The relocation was realised in stages over more than a decade, being only fully completed in 1995. This ended the era of production on Landshuter Allee. The principal place of business today is still in Moosach, Munich.
MEILLER had already begun to erect its own branch in Karlsruhe in 1966.
An important step followed on 1 January 1990 with the takeover of the Adolf Spoth company which produced steel and construction machinery. The reason was the growing demand of the Daimler plant in Wörth for painted tipping superstructures with just-in-time delivery.
A modern assembly and painting facility was erected on the Spoth site. The location still operates under the name F. X. MEILLER GmbH & Co KG Fahrzeugbau Karlsruhe.
Due to the high demand on capacity, MEILLER began to look for another location for its production at the beginning of the 1990s. 1993 saw Slaný, around 30 km to the north-west of Prague, being selected for this purpose.
MEILLER acquired a site with an area of 90,000 m² and an existing building complex. Production commenced at the end of 1994, and 120 employees were already in action in 1995. A decision was reached only one year later that saw all steel construction, including tipper bodies and subframes, being moved to Slaný.
This saw work commencing on a central production location, and it still plays a key role in the MEILLER Group today.
