History

 

On a business trip to Germany, our company founder Werner Hagenbucher was offered the opportunity to represent the cast iron pipe division of the German company Buderus. Based on the market study, he realized that the domestic supplier was not in a position to meet the demand that had built up over the war years. Hardly any cast iron pipes had been produced during the war.

Without further ado, Werner Hagenbucher obtained a trial order for 320 meters of DN 200 push-in socket pipes from Gaswerk Zürich and brought this order with him to the negotiations in Wetzlar. This apparently convinced the Buderus management so much that they entrusted him with the representation - despite his lack of industry knowledge and minimal own funds. This laid the foundation for TMH's success.

The cooperation agreement between Buderus and TMH was signed by Buderus on October 21, 1948 and countersigned by Werner Hagenbucher on December 31, 1948. However, it could only come into force after it had also been approved by the Hessian State Ministry of Economics and Technology and - even more importantly - by the American/British “Joint Export-Import Agency” (JEIA).

In the early years, the company consisted solely of the owner, who acquired the orders, and his wife, who took care of the administrative matters. Nevertheless, the company developed very well, and by 1950 it had already achieved a seven-figure annual turnover for the first time. In the following years and decades, projects were carried out in all parts of Switzerland. The company worked with many manufacturers whose products still have a good reputation on the Swiss market today.

Thomas Hagenbucher, the eldest son of the founder, joined the company in 1979 and took it over completely in 1990.

After Tiroler Röhren- und Metallwerke in Hall im Tirol was taken over by Buderus, the company decided to use its form-fit thrust-resisting system for transportation and supply lines in the municipal sector. Buderus had discontinued the production of fittings in the 1990s. TMH subsequently bought the company ARO AG and took over the warehouse including personnel and transported everything to Schaffhausen. What was still missing was a first-class range of fittings. In 1999, Erhard Armaturen AG from Heidenheim (DE) was taken over into the group. In later years, the agencies of EWE (Braunschweig DE) and Kettler (Dorsten DE) were added.

In 2005, TPS AG also became part of the Hagenbucher Group, proving that cast iron pipes are also suitable for trenchless installation.

In the wake of Hurricane Lothar in 1999, the cast iron tree grates from an old Buderus catalog were modified and then used not only for beautification, but above all to protect the root balls. Over the course of time, various other products such as barrier posts and benches were added for outdoor landscaping.

In 2009, the entire group was restructured and three joint stock companies were formed: TMH Hagenbucher AG for “Pipes and Fittings”, TPS Trenchless Piping Systems for “Trenchless” services and TMH Thomas Hagenbucher for “Exterior Design and Innovation”. At the beginning of the new decade, Hagenbucher and TPS AG parted ways: on January 1, 2020, Schenk AG from Heldswil took over TPS AG.