History

Sartorius commissioned an independent scientific study of the activities of the company and of its entrepreneurs during the Nazi era. The study was published in November 2019. What took place at Sartorius largely reflected the economic mainstream in the Third Reich: Sartorius profited from the arms industry and the use of forced labor, supporting the Nazi regime with its system-compliant actions.

In 1947, Erich Sartorius (right) died. He had been in a leading position within the company for 41 years. His son, Horst Sartorius, takes over the management of the company.

At the recommendation of Otto Hahn (chemist and Nobel Prize winner in 1944 and President of the Max-Planck Institute in Goettingen), Sartorius commences industrial-scale manufacture of hydrodynamic bearings (photo).

Sartorius’ first electromagnetic forcecompensating (EMC) balance, the Elektrono 1, enters commercial production.

The first microbalance for weighing under normal atmospheric conditions is introduced.

The analytical balance with production no. 100,000 is completed (photo).

Sartorius uses the first machine for automatic manufacture of synthetic membrane filters. As part of its global expansion, Sartorius establishes a growing number of international subsidiaries and sales offices.

The cellulose acetate membrane is introduced as a carrier matrix for electrophoresis.

The first laboratory balances with an analog output debut.

The publically-traded Sartorius-AG is converted to a GmbH (a limited liability company).

The first plate-and-frame crossflow ultrafiltration system for relatively large volumes premieres. This technology opens up new strategies for molecular biology and the separation of small hazardous molecules such as viruses from pharmaceutical products.

Sartorius builds the first electronic precision and analytical balances (photo). The resulting boom in orders leads to the founding of numerous foreign subsidiaries, and contributes decisively to the significance of the Sartorius Group today.