Theben celebrates 100 years in building automation
Sometime in 1921, for the first time ever, the stairwell lights in a Stuttgart apartment block were automatically switched off. The trigger was a reversible switch, a time switch, which Paul Schwenk had just started to manufacture in his own factory. No one knew the term at the time, but it was the birth of building automation. This was the moment when Theben was founded. And now they are celebrating their centenary.
Postcards from the past
In the midst of the preparations for the anniversary year, Paul Sebastian Schwenk came across an old postcard his great-grandfather had written to his parents about the founding of the company.
One hundred years later, the postcard was a pleasant surprise:
Dear Parents!
Hope you are well! We are fine too. Today we started an appliance manufacturing company (Mezger & Schwenk). We'll see if everything goes well. Everything is still part-time for now. Then we will start from 1920.
Theben-timer 26 time switch
To celebrate its 100th birthday, Theben has re-released the legendary Theben-timer 26 in three special colours: yellow, light blue and salmon red. The plug-in manual timer was developed in 1977 and has since sold over 33 million units worldwide, making it a bestseller in Theben's product range. What's more: the manufacturer offers a 100 year warranty!!!
