100 YEARS OF EXPERIENCE. AND ALWAYS ONE STEP AHEAD.

GKD combines experience with a pioneering spirit and develops solutions throughout the world that improve processes, conserve resources, and make the future possible.

GKD Group – Technical weavers for industry and architecture

Solutions made of mesh. For 100 years.

What started out as a small wire weaving mill in Düren back in 1925 is now an international technology leader with locations on five continents. As a fourth-generation family-owned company, we create solutions made of technical meshes and spirals – for industry and architecture, for clean processes, safe systems, and sustainable applications.

Our vision FOR A HEALTHIER, CLEANER, SAFER WORLD defines what we do and how we do it. Whether microplastics filtration, green energy, or resource efficiency: GKD stands for solutions that make an impact – technologically leading, entrepreneurially independent, and focused on long-term success.

It is not the quick fix that drives us, but the sustainable impact - for a century and into the future.
Lara Kufferath, CEO and 4th generation of the owner family

The Management Board of the GKD Group introduces itself

“Born and raised in Germany” – GKD is still, to this day, entirely family-owned. The company is led by Lara Kufferath in the fourth family generation, Dr. Daniel Holstein and Ilonka von Bodman. Since July 2024, they form the three-member executive board

of the GKD Group with clear division of responsibilities, which takes into account the strategic priorities and thus the future viability of the board, as well as aspects such as process orientation and a clearer allocation of responsibilities.

Lara Kufferath GKD

„As a company, we have a responsibility toward future generations. Sustainability is therefore our business strategy.”

Lara Kufferath
Chief Executive Officer

Daniel Holstein GKD

„Digital transformation and the evolution toward sustainable solutions are the big challenges facing GKD and its many customers worldwide. We meet these challenges and find creative solutions with enthusiasm. “

Dr. Daniel Holstein
Chief Technology & Operations Officer

Ilonka von Bodman GKD

„Alongside the task of ensuring the long-term financial stability of the GKD Group and supporting its international growth, I look forward to shaping the future of a technologically strong company whose values I fully identify with.“

Ilonka von Bodman
Chief Financial Officer

The beginnings of GKD

In 1925, Josef Kufferath founds his own company with the support of his siblings. Despite crises, competition, and headwinds. Rather than settling for a secondary role in the family business, he set out to take the lead in a venture of his own.

WITH COURAGE!

How it all started – the story of Josef Kufferath and the founding of GKD.

MILESTONES AND MOMENTS
1925 TO 2025 IN TIME LAPSE

From a small industrial enterprise to international technological expertise: GKD has stood for innovation, pioneering spirit, and continuous development since 1925. What started out as a wire weaving mill has developed over decades into a global solution provider – with products and systems that set new standards across a wide range of industries worldwide. This path has been characterized by courageous decisions, visionary thinking, and a firm belief in the power of change.

The timeline helps visualize this development. It shows the stages of an eventful century – from the first successes to global milestones. What becomes clear: Progress comes from the interplay of deliberate action and fortunate circumstance. The timeline tells the story of GKD in a compact overview – chronological, concise, and full of defining moments.

1925 – 1939

The early years of Gebr. Kufferath prove to be a constant rollercoaster for founder Josef. Although success comes quickly, the economic crisis then nearly led to bankruptcy. This was followed – before the great catastrophe – by an almost explosive surge in growth.

  • 1925
  • 1929
  • 1932
  • 1935
  • 1938
1940 – 1967

Growth, Düren‘s destruction, new beginnings. Josef Kufferath navigates the company through challenging times. When he dies in 1967, the company has 225 employees and generates a profit of 1.2 million German Marks. But: What will the family business do now?

  • 1940
  • 1942
  • 1944
  • 1949
  • 1957
  • 1967
1968 – 1981

With Karl Kufferath-Kassner, the second generation takes over the fortunes of the company. And how! New looms, new weaving techniques, new materials, and thereby also new products such as process belts and meshes for belt presses ensure that the oil and economic crises do not affect the company.

  • 1968
  • 1971
  • 1973
  • 1975
  • 1976
1982 - 1992

They are only in their mid-20s when Karl Kufferath-Kassner brings his two sons Ingo and Stephan into the company. And in their very first decade of management, they experience all the ups and downs that come with running an enterprise.

  • 1982
  • 1983
  • 1984
  • 1992
1993 - 2018

More international, more professional, larger, more diverse, more focused, more innovative, more sustainable. Ingo and Stephan Kufferath continue to develop the company consistently and drive growth. But the DNA of the family business remains.

  • 1993
  • 1996
  • 1999
  • 2001
  • 2014
  • 2017
  • 2018
2019 - 2025

The fourth generation joins the company and once again far-reaching changes are on the horizon: strategic, organizational, personnel-related, and cultural.

  • 2019
  • 2020
  • 2021
  • 2022
  • 2023
  • 2024
1925 – 1939

The early years of Gebr. Kufferath prove to be a constant rollercoaster for founder Josef. Although success comes quickly, the economic crisis then nearly led to bankruptcy. This was followed – before the great catastrophe – by an almost explosive surge in growth.

1925
1929
1932
1935
1938
1940 – 1967

Growth, Düren‘s destruction, new beginnings. Josef Kufferath navigates the company through challenging times. When he dies in 1967, the company has 225 employees and generates a profit of 1.2 million German Marks. But: What will the family business do now?

1940
1942
1944
1949
1957
1967
1968 – 1981

With Karl Kufferath-Kassner, the second generation takes over the fortunes of the company. And how! New looms, new weaving techniques, new materials, and thereby also new products such as process belts and meshes for belt presses ensure that the oil and economic crises do not affect the company.

1968
1971
1973
1975
1976
1982 - 1992

They are only in their mid-20s when Karl Kufferath-Kassner brings his two sons Ingo and Stephan into the company. And in their very first decade of management, they experience all the ups and downs that come with running an enterprise.

1982
1983
1984
1992
1993 - 2018

More international, more professional, larger, more diverse, more focused, more innovative, more sustainable. Ingo and Stephan Kufferath continue to develop the company consistently and drive growth. But the DNA of the family business remains.

1993
1996
1999
2001
2014
2017
2018
2019 - 2025

The fourth generation joins the company and once again far-reaching changes are on the horizon: strategic, organizational, personnel-related, and cultural.

2019
2020
2021
2022
2023
2024

GKD Group – Responsibility in family hands

What began in Mariaweiler with a brief entry in the commercial register has grown into a family business with a global presence united by a living intergenerational legacy.

On August 7, 1925, the general partnership Gebr. Kufferath is entered in the commercial register. Over time, it has grown into a corporate group that is now active through six companies spread across five continents – all under the umbrella of Düren-based company GKD – Gebr. Kufferath AG.

The stock corporation is wholly family-owned. Three branches of the family jointly hold ownership. Each of these branches is represented by its own family company, and each has one seat on the six-member Supervisory Board. The majority of the Management Board is made up of external experts.

The Chair of the Supervisory Board is Heike Hermann, CFO of the Butting Group. The common objectives of all stakeholders are to secure entrepreneurial freedom, spread responsibility across many shoulders, and strengthen long-term prospects – in the interests of the business, its employees, and the next generation.

GKD Vorstand / board

GKD is one of Germany’s TOP 100 innovators

Continuous innovation work, which we have been doing every day for over 100 years with our 800 employees around the world, coupled with the other components of our DNA tradition and sustainability – this is what makes us one of the most innovative medium-sized companies in Germany, as has now been confirmed by the TOP 100 seal.

Innovation has been a crucial element for us since our company was founded in 1925, helping us to realize our vision FOR A HEALTHIER, CLEANER, SAFER WORLD.

Read more about GKD as a TOP innovator