WTO had its beginning in 1977 when the founder of the company, Werner Tschiggfrei, developed the first multiple spindle heads for Machining Centers with automatic tool change. It was a world sensation and the start of a new epoch.
History in the making occurred in 1983 with the founding of WTO Werkzeug-Einrichtungen GmbH located in Offenburg,Germany and the design and manufacturing of tool holders for metal cutting. In 1998, WTO relocated and established a new and larger manufacturing facility in Ohlsbach, Germany. Until today, WTO continues to design and manufacture precision tool holders for Turning Centers, Swiss Type Lathes and Multi-Spindle Turning Centers as well as Ultra-High Speed Spindles at its headquarters in Ohlsbach, Germany.
As a world market leader, WTO’s strives to keep up with and utilize new and improved innovations and technologies. To accommodate its continued growth, the company annually invests in new machines and expanded space for its manufacturing area.
Since 1998, the headquarters in Ohlsbach has increased its facility size six times. In 2021, WTO occupied its largest expansion in the company's history. Of the approximately 14,000 m² (~150,695 square foot) expansion, roughly 9,000 m² (~97,000 square foot) are occupied by the “Smart Factory” with the latest industry 4.0 production technology. The remaining 5,000 m² (~54,000 square foot) are dedicated to office space with a large window-view of the castle.
2023: WTO celebrates its 40th anniversary
The revolutionary idea for the CoolSpeed® mini was developed in 2014 with the founding of San Francisco Industrial (SFI). SFI developed a coolant/oil driven-product line and an air mist-driven product line, known as the “Toodle Blue“ and “Toodle Green“, respectively. The Toodle was marketed and sold through key distributors worldwide.
WTO acquired the SFI assets, patents, and customer contracts in late 2019 and began to offer the product line under the WTO brand “CoolSpeed®”. This provided a major growth opportunity for the technology, utilizing WTO’s distribution and sales network and extending WTO’s product offering for it’s existing customer base.
Following WTO’s tradition of innovation, WTO engineers in Ohlsbach, Germany quickly began developing additional solutions for the product line. Stay tuned to find out what technological advances will usher in the next generation of CoolSpeed® high-speed spindles.
