extended, and new areas of application opened up. In 1965 the company opens up the Austrian market by setting up a sales company. Now progress comes thick and fast: 1968 sees a new production location in Walldorf; in 1971, new production locations in Great Britain;
in 1976: in the USA as well.
In 1980 fate deals a hard blow. The founder of 
the company, Dr. Hans-Georg Biermann, dies at the tragically early age of 51. His wife, 
Ibeth Biermann, had been with him in his business venture from the start and continues his life's work with great determination. In 1992 Roland Biermann takes over the management of the company.
In 1990 the company takes over Olympic Fastening Systems in the USA, with two GESIPA production locations there. And so it goes on: in 1991 it buys the Thüringer Verbindeelemente GmbH in Thal (Thuringia), and completely rebuilds it a year later.
In 1994 it takes over Weber + Ochsenfeld in Siegen, and in 1996 W + O moves into a new building in Olpe. The same year sees the establishment of GESIPA in France and the completion of the Technical Center in Walldorf. GESIPA Poland is set up in 1997, GESIPA Spain in 1999, and GESIPA Czech Republic in 2001. In 2002 the company takes over the firm of Unibolt in Denmark in order to expand the Weber + Ochsenfeld range of ”cold forged parts”.
Since 2009 GESIPA is part of the successful Swiss SFS intec group. Both firms complement one another in an ideal way.
The blind rivet has thus made history, and it should be added that its story is a highly unusual one. This is because it is needed and greatly appreciated almost everywhere in the world because of its joining properties, despite its being so small. But true character, as we all know, only emerges in day-to-day life, or perhaps we should say in daily work.
We can hardly believe it ourselves, but even Hollywood could not have made it more exciting. This screenplay, you see, has everything in it: hidden talent (initially), then the great breakthrough, the ceaseless expansion, and finally lasting success.
But let's start at the beginning. The year is 1955. Nobody can have imagined that the applications for patents for a “method for producing mandrel-break hollow rivet connections” and a “hand tool for carrying out blind-rivet connections” would set a revolution in motion. In those days, the time was not right and money was in short supply.
But then, in 1959, came the break through: the first appearance on the world market – at the Hanover Trade Fair. Hurrah! Applause!
The public is excited, success is now unstoppable. Production capacity is expanded, the product range is constantly