Suppliers to the glass industry
Suppliers to the glass industry
History
The history of our enterprise
On April 1, 1923, a trading company with a warehouse was established in Hirschberg/Schlesien (Silesa, now in Poland) by Kurt Merker. He supplied the glass factories and glass refining shops in the Riesengebirge mountains, in the Earldom of Glatz, and in the Lausitz region with glass making equipment. Later he moved to Hermsdorf u/Kynast.
His supplies included grinding and polishing wheels. He also supported the intrdouction of the newly developed man-made grinding wheels.
In 1948, at the age of 50, Kurt Merker returned home from a POW-camp in Russia and was discharged in Kelheim at the Danube River. He picked up his former business connections in the Bavarian glass industry and called on the newly established workshops of displaced Germans expelled from Silesia.
His son Gernot Merker entered the business in 1956. Together they expanded their supply line to include all types of tools and equipment for glass production and refining shops. Their clientele grew and included customers in all of Western Germany and abroad.
In 1972, the company moved into their new office building at Elsterstrasse. The warehouse has a storage area of 600 m2 and includes a demonstration workshop. In 1981, Gernot H. Merker published his first of several books specializing on glass. He organized numerous exhibitions on glass.
From 1982, the company for decades was regularly represented at the international trade fair GLASSTEC in Düsseldorf where they display a large cross section of their supplies.
The company was converted into a "GmbH" (Ltd.) in 1984.
After the death of Kurt Merker in 1986, Gernot H. Merker took over and carried on as sole owner until his daughter Isabell Merker joined the enterprise in 1991 after her business management studies. She visits numerous glass conferences and fairs in Germany and abroad.
After the death of Gernot Merker in 2022, Isabell Merker runs the Kurt Merker GmbH Kelheim in the 100-year tradition and supplies the glass industry, the glass refining shops, and everybody who works with glass.
Please call on our experience at any time! We will be honored to serve you!
Kurt Merker Ltd. at fairs
Kurt Merker Ltd. exhibited at fairs in Germany and Europe in the last decades.
Some examples:
- World Crafts Council, Wien-Oberlaa 1980, AUSTRIA
- Glass Art Society conference 2002 Amsterdam, THE NETHERLANDS
- Glasstec Düsseldorf, GERMANY
- 7th international Symposium of Engraved Glass, Kamenický Šenov, CZECH REPUBLIC 2017
- Glass Art Society conference 2018 Murano, ITALY
Head office
Office building and warehouse at the Old Harbour in Kelheim.
Former office of Leo von Klenze, who finished the construction of the Liberation Hall begun by Friedrich von Gärtner 160 years ago.
Office building and warehouse, Elsterstrasse 6 in Kelheim.