2020 marks the 130th anniversary of German vacuum technology company Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology AG.
Arthur Pfeiffer founded the company in Wetzlar, Germany, in 1890, to produce remote ignition systems for gas lamps. Once electric light bulbs arrived, Pfeiffer turned his attention to the new lighting technology and this led him to look at the vacuum technology used in its production. He went on to concentrate entirely on the vacuum technology field.
The company developed the turbomolecular pump in 1958.
Today, Pfeiffer Vacuum’s products range from individual components to complex vacuum systems. In addition to hybrid and magnetically levitated turbopumps, the Pfeiffer Vacuum product portfolio includes backing pumps, leak detectors, measurement and analysis devices, components as well as vacuum chambers and systems.
Customers include the Max Planck Institute, CERN, XFEL and EADS, while vacuum pumps made by the Asslar-based manufacturer are in use on the ISS space station.
“At Pfeiffer Vacuum, ‘sustainability’ is not just an empty word. We are aware of our responsibility. And this is why, at all our locations around the world, we establish the necessary conditions to make sure that our staff enjoy working for Pfeiffer Vacuum,” said Dr Eric Taberlet, CEO of Pfeiffer Vacuum Technology. “We are socially committed, because we want to give something back, and we produce our products in the most energy-efficient and environmentally-compatible manner possible. We have been living and breathing sustainability – by tradition – for 130 years.”