| Huggenberger AG
The legacy and evolution of Huggenberger
IN 1900, MECHANIC ULRICH HUGGENBERGER founded a precision machine shop in Zurich to produce slide gauges (instruments for measuring the thickness of objects). Due to their high precision and excellent manufacturing quality, these gauges were also sold well abroad. The production plan was later expanded with the construction of smaller machines and more complex devices. His son Arnold U. Huggenberger studied mechanical engineering at the ETH in Zurich, obtained his doctorate and was assistant to his teacher, the famous Prof. A. Stodola (he was also Albert Einstein’s teacher), for several years. In 1923, the Swiss Steam Boiler Owners’ Association commissioned him as a scientific assistant to review mathematical models for ships and steam boilers. In 1924, to verify the accuracy of the mathematical models by means of measurements, he developed the mechanical strain gauge, which was later widely used worldwide as a highly precise and handy measuring instrument under the name ‘Tensometer’. This thin strain gauge contributed significantly to the spread of practical strain measurement technology. In 1929, Dr. Huggenberger took over the father’s company and subsequently
developed and manufactured numerous measuring instruments and devices for testing the strength of building materials and for monitoring structures and buildings of all kinds, in particular for monitoring and testing dams. Huggenberger achieved great success
after the Second World War, when numerous dams were built in Alpine regions and Eastern European states, employing up to 70 people. A. U. Huggenberger was recognised as an expert in dam instrumentation and published the book ‘Talsperrenmesstechnik’ (Dam Measurement Technology) with Springer- Verlag in 1951. He also received several assignments abroad, including as an expert for the government of Romania. In 1969, at the age of 74, he sold his company to Elektrowatt AG, who in turn sold it in 1981 to J. Ziltener, who handed it over to engineer T. Roth in 1992 due to retirement. In 2000, the company was taken over by U. Marti and E. Meyer, who managed and promoted it until 2018, when they sold it to the Sisgeo Group due to the retirement of U. Marti, who held the position of technical director. The management was taken over by engineer D. Naterop (formerly the official representative
Above: Roberto Gardenghi, Huggenberger AG, CEO, Dipl. El. Eng. EPFL, Prof. SUPSI
of Sisgeo Switzerland) and engineer V. Caci (former sales manager and now general manager of Sisgeo) until 2022. From that year on, I personally took over the management of this historic company. In fact, I have known Huggenberger since back in 1994 when I joined Celio Engineering SA, which had been collaborating with Huggenberger since 1990 in the context of the joint development of the first ‘Telelot VDD2 telecoordinometer’. The collaboration continued with New Celio Electronics (a spin-off of Celio Engineering), of which I am still the director and owner. Since 2000, given the excellent personal relationship I had with U. Marti in particular, the partnership between the two companies has developed further and to all intents and purposes New Celio Electronics GmbH has assumed the role of external research, development, and production department for Huggenberger. In 2023, to bring the two entities even closer
Above: Direct pendulum system with Telelot VDD2v4 automatic device and KK84 hand instrument holder for concrete dam monitoring
together, Huggenberger moved from Horgen (on the shores of Lake Zurich) to Dongio (‘Sun Valley’ in the Swiss Alps) to the same location as New Celio Electronics. With a strengthened, younger, motivated, and reliable team, we put all our energy into serving our customers. Today, Huggenberger is known worldwide for its competence and reliability in the field of monitoring concrete dams and similar structures. To maintain the high quality of our products and services and to introduce new ones, we have intensified our investments in research and development, even collaborating directly with the University of Applied Sciences of Southern Switzerland (SUPSI) by developing new technologies.
roberto.gardenghi@
huggenberger.com |
www.huggenberger.com
www.waterpowermagazine.com | May 2024 | 27
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