 | |
| Industry | Vehicle engineering |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Vienna ,Austria |
| Products | Aircraft, trams, other vehicles |
Bombardier Transportation Austria GmbH is anAustriansubsidiary company ofBombardier Transportation located inVienna,Austria.
It was founded in the 19th century by Jacob Lohner asLohner-Werke or simplyLohner as a luxurycoachbuilding firm. Around 1900 the firm produced electric-cars, being the first in Austria to do so; the cars were designed byFerdinand Porsche. During the early 1900s the firm manufactured aircraft, after World War I the company manufactured trams, and after World War II the company began manufacturing scooters and mopeds using engines fromRotax, with which it merged in 1959, formingLohner Rotax. In 1970 Canadian firmBombardier Transportation acquired a controlling share in the company and renamed itBombardier-Rotax GmbH. Under Bombardier the company becameBombardier Wien Schienenfahrzeuge (BWS), laterBombardier Transportation Austria GmbH. It relocated to a specialised factory in 2007, and now produces only trams.
In 1821 German Heinrich Lohner (1786–1855) established a workshop in Vienna, Austria, establishing himself as a wagonmaster. In 1823 he formed a joint venture with master saddlemaker (Sattlermeister) Ludwig Laurenzi,Laurenzi & Lohner. After the death of Ludwig Laurenzi in 1863 the company becameJacob Lohner & Co. under Heinrich Lohner's son Jacob Lohner (1821–92). Jacob Lohner transformed his father's craft business into a factory eventually manufacturing between 300 and 500 vehicles per year. The company supplied vehicles to the courts of the royal houses of Norway, Sweden, and Romania, as well as to the Austrian emperor;[1][2] the company received the distinctionk.u.k. Hofwagenlieferant ("Royalcarriagemakers").[2]
In 1887 Jacob Lohner's son Ludwig Lohner (1858–1925) took over the company. He decided that self-powered cars were the future, initially working withBéla Egger, and in 1898 hiringFerdinand Porsche (fromBéla Egger's electricity company). During his employment Porsche designed a number of vehicles. TheLohner Porsche chaise was powered by batteries, with two front wheel electric motors mounted in the wheel hubs. One of hiselectric vehicles was a popular exhibit at theExposition Universelle (Paris world fair, 1900). Porsche later developed petrol-engined cars with electric transmissions, some versions of which had additional batteries. Vehicles using the petrol electric transmission with hub motors were sold to the German army and to the Viennese fire brigade. Porsche left the Lohner company in 1905, and joinedDaimler affiliate companyÖsterreichische Daimler Motoren Commanditgesellschaft Bierenz Fischer & Co.; vehicles were later built using theLohner Porsche system under the Mercedes brand of Daimler.[3]
In 1909, the firm undertook aircraft manufacture,[1] producingreconnaissance aircraft for theAustro-Hungarian army during theFirst World War, and a series offlying-boat patrol aircraft for the Navy,[4] which were later copied by the ItalianMacchi aviation firm for the Italian military in World War I.[citation needed] Lohner also produced aircraft for the buddingSpanish Air Force.[5]
After World War I the company abandoned aircraft production,[note 1] and shifted its production to the manufacturing oftrams, and coachbodies. During theGreat Depression the factory inFloridsdorf shut down.[1][2]
During theAnschluss with Germany, Lohner produced aircraft wings. The plant was damaged in 1944, and postWorld War II the company was in public administration until 1949 when it was returned to the control of the Lohner family.[1][2]
In 1949 Lohner began manufacturing scooters and mopeds which were designed byOtto Kauba,[6] a production range that would include the well-known of which was theLohner L125.[7] The scooter range included popular models such as theSissy, L125 and L98,[2] but sales were eventually reduced due to the popularity of the motorcar.[1] Tram production also resumed post World War II.[2]
In 1959, the Lohner factory merged withRotax which had supplied engines for its motorscooters. During the 1960s contracts included hay-loaders, gun carriages for the Austrian Army, andBombardier Ski-Doos which were produced under license from 1966 to 1970.[2]
In 1970 the company was acquired byBombardier purchased a majority of shares in the company and renamed itBombardier-Rotax GmbH.
Reorganized later as a division of Bombardier-Rotax namedBombardier Wien Schienenfahrzeuge (BWS).[citation needed] After Bombardier's acquisition ofAdtranz in 2001, the company's production plan designated the Vienna works for carbody production, specialising inLight rail vehicles (LRV).[8][9]
The company moved to a new plant in theDonaustadt district of Vienna in 2007.[note 2] As of 2012 the company operates asBombardier Transportation Austria GmbH & Co. KG, and manufactures trams.[10]
17-XII-1913 : Primer bombardeo aéreo de la historia con auténticas bombas de aviación: Los Capitanes Barrón y Cifuentes sobre biplano Lohner en Ben Karrix, Marruecos
Nach dem Zweiten Weltkrieg begann Lohner 1949 mit der Herstellung von Rollern nach Plänen und unter der Leitung von Ing. Otto Kauba. Dieser von einem Rotax- Motor (Lizenz Sachs) eher mäßig schnell fortbewegte Roller war ab 1950 käuflich..
