Kolbenschmidt is part of the Rheinmetall Group, a German-based company with a worldwide reputation. At the end of the 19th century, Christian Schmidt ran a knitting machine factory, also known as NSU. After the death of Christian Schmidt, the company started to focus on the production of two-wheelers. Christian's son Karl came to work in engineering after completing his training at the mechanical engineering school in Stuttgart. He founded Deutsche Ölfeuerungswerke Karl Schmidt in 1910. In 1917, he bought a large business park next to his father's company and founded a new company. He used patented furnaces to melt scrap (especially aluminium), which was very unusual at the time. Soon the NSU and Karl's company began collaborating and the aluminium found its way into the production of engine parts. It was not until 1921, however, that aluminium was officially permitted to be used as a material for pistons. In 1934 a workshop for processing pistons was set up and KS Kolbenschmidt, as the company was now called, started producing pistons for the automotive industry.
KS Kolbenschmidt develops, manufactures and supplies pistons for both petrol and diesel engines and is one of the market leaders in this segment. In recent years, Kolbenschmidt's research team has been focusing on more efficient combustion as well as the reduction of fuel consumption and emissions. Several engine manufacturers are regular customers of Kolbenschmidt and are familiar with the excellent quality they deliver. Would you like to know more about Kolbenschmidt or the Rheinmetall Group? Please visit their website or contact our product specialists.