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History

 

1513 Hand needles are first made in Aachen Germany.
1566 A Elias Krause from Aachen is said to have started the needle manufacturing trade to England.
1615 The World’s first steel hand needles are made in Aachen Germany, by making fine needles from pure steel.
1663 An Aachen manufacturer invents a major engineering break-through for producing the head of a pin.
1755 First ever patent is awarded for a “needle with an eye”.
1790 Thomas Saint applies for a patent for a machine to sew shoes.
1794 Aachen becomes under French rule and becomes the principle needle supplier for France.
1807 Napoleon records that Aachen has 13 needle factories employing some 7,500 workers.
1840-50 The sewing machine is invented by Elias Howe, Hunt, Singer and others.
1869 Franz Neuss Company starts manufacturing sewing machine needles in Aachen.
1861 Leo Lammertz starts a needle factory which was later bought by the current Klasse’ manufacturer.
1897 Records show there are some 8 million sewing machines in the World using 200 million needles annually.
1900 Aachen now has 20 factories producing sewing machine needles.
1945 After the second world war, only 4 Aachen factories are able to re-start production.
1959 Aachen is once again producing 35% of the World’s sewing machine needles.
1965 12 Needle factories now operating in Aachen and surrounding districts producing approx 400 million needles.
1974 Production reaches 655 million needles per annum.
1980’s Now 11 needle factories in China producing 800 million needles and European factories such as Singer Clydebank, Prym Iselohm close down. By 1984 only 5 needle factories remain in Aachen, and the Aachen production is down to only 5.7% of domestic machine needles world-wide.
1993 The factory combining the original Rhinenadel, Beka and Lammertz factories introduces “integrated technology” which greatly increases production capacity and the quality of machine needles. This factory commences producing premium Klasse’ brand needles in 1995.
2000 Only 3 sewing machine needle factories remain in the Aachen district.
2007 All machine factories in Aachen now closed with all 3 major factories setting up new factories mainly in India due to cost of labor and India’s strength in engineering.
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