What started was a father’s dream of independence which then became reality 100 years ago and has continued through to his sons, grandsons and great-grandsons and is still continuing today.

 

100 years ago, on a summer Sunday morning in Nuremberg, the Speck story began.  While walking along the Schweiggerstrasse, Daniel Speck and his eldest son Otto, then 19, discovered an empty workshop, which (as often happens) allowed them to dream vividly about their own small business.  A clumsy attempt to peer through a half-open window brought a paraffin can crashing to the floor of the workshop thus attracting the attention of the owner who lived above.  The inquisitive pair were not in the least bit embarrassed about their strange behaviour and announced their serious interest in the property.  A very relieved owner whose small business was coincidentally for sale then joined the two Specks for a few beer's in a nearby beer garden.  A missed lunch with the family and a surely heated debate between father and son sealed the purchase of the machinist’s workshop by handshake that same afternoon.

 

At time father and sons often stood in the workshop form 6am until well after dark midnight until one day their wife and mother Emilie Speck declared that work must be finished by 9pm.  This was not up for discussion.  In his then enforced compulsory free time, Daniel designed a pump for which he obtained the German imperial patent in 1912 for its discharge device.  With the production of the plunger reciprocating pump, “DSB – Daniel Speck Nürnberg” laid the foundations for its successful history in pump building.  In 1947, the founder Daniel Speck died at the age of 83.  His four sons led the company to new success after World War II.

 

In the commercial upswing of the postwar period, trade fairs and exhibitions became more important than ever for the sale of Speck pumps.  One of the most outstanding pumps was the Büffel (buffalo) pump.  An amusing anecdote has survived the decades, enthused by the quality of the product – a customer enthusiastically thanked Willy Speck personally at a trade fair with the words “Mr. Buffalo, your pumps are really first class!”

 

In 1959, Karl Speck was the second son to leave the family company, and with his son Willy made himself independent as “Speck Pumpen Verkaufsgesellschaft Karl Speck”, which took over the task of central sales and marketing for all products of all Speck companies.  The sales company moved into the Hadermühle in Nuremberg, which had been destroyed in World War II and was then rebuilt.  In 1976 a company site was acquired in Lauf.  At first a central warehouse and the plastics and repairs departments were housed there until finally in 1980, with several new buildings, all departments moved from Nuremberg to Lauf.  The company management passed from Karl Speck to his son Willy Speck and then to Willy’s son Hermann Speck.

 

Willy Speck, who was a swimming pool enthusiast, established at various European trade fairs that all the swimming pool pumps on the market were produced in the USA.  Thanks to his conviction that “…we can do that too!” this situation would soon change.

 

In the mid-1960’s, swimming pool technology had become the central topic in the sales company.  So in 1965 and 1967 the entrepreneur, who was innovative and prepared to take risks, was able to bring his first two pool water circulation pumps, the cast metal BADU^®13 and  BADU^®17, onto the market.  But two disadvantages disturbed him:  bronze pumps were expensive, and if iron pumps were idle for a long time, they put rusty water into the pool.  In 1968, experiments with a new material for pump building produced the world’s first functioning, corrosion-resistant all-plastic pump, the BADU^®19.

 

Over the years, the sales company made a respected name for itself far beyond the German market, above all in the field of swimming pool pumps.  In January 1998, under the leadership of Hermann Speck, it took over the whole of plastic pump production from the Hilpoltstein factory.  Thus this offshoot of the family enterprise had its own pump production again, as well as production of the Jet systems.  Together with other products for swimming pools, and hanks to high quality, market leadership in this sector was quickly achieved.

 

In connection with the development and sale of swimming pool products, under the leadership of the sales company, several companies were formed abroad:  1969 Speck-Pumps South Africa, 1975 Speck-Española, 1978 Speck-Pumps Australia (later Speck-Pumps International), 1981 Speck-Pumps-Pool Products USA.  Today, the three independent Speck companies, with 900 employees in production sites throughout the world – including about 650 employees in Germany – are well positioned internationally.

 

Despite the different specializations and the independence of the individual companies, the origins have not been forgotten.  Just as in the old days the family council met regularly in Emilie Speck’s kitchen, today the chief executives meet for regular discussions, to maintain common values and a uniform image or to implement project together.  Many customers have had close links to the house of Speck for many years – certainly one of the most important reasons that today we can look back over 100 years of successful company history!  It is often a joy to see the relationships between customers, employees and chief executives continuing into the next generation, and the children continuing their fathers’ work together.

 

From Speck Pumps South Africa we are also very proud of our heritage as well as what we have created for ourselves over the last 40 years.  We have grown tremendously through the 40 years and continually seen many new products being developed and launched under the Speck Pumps SA banner with great success and achievement, and we still today continue on that foundation.

 

And it is with this in mind that we not only invest in our customers, but also the communities we serve in, through the sponsorship with key schools and clubs in our area over a national basis.  We are extremely proud to be associated with such an outstanding school like Jeppe Boys High, and we look forward to a very successful partnership together.