R.+ E. HUBER in Pfäffikon ZH

Hans Rudolf Huber opened his own cotton thread mill in Pfäffikon in the year 1882. He thereby laid the cornerstone for the subsequent Aktiengesellschaft R.+E. Huber. Because the textile industry was very volatile, R. Huber started winding cotton yarn around iron wire for the ladies’ hat industry. In 1885, the founder abandoned his cotton thread mill. He recognised the need of the emerging electrical engineering industry for insulated wire. He did not hesitate to seize this opportunity and began wrapping copper wires with textiles. From then on, he called his company a “Factory for the Production of Electrical Installations and Trading in Passementerie (braided) Goods”.

In 1889, the young company’s name changed to “Telegraph Wire and Cable Factory”. It operated its own wire drawing shop and – something of a sensation at that time – had electrical lighting. In 1894, Huber’s son Emil Rudolf joined his father’s business. In 1896, the additional designation “Rubber and Gutta-percha Goods Factory” was added to the company’s name in the trade register. Thanks to their superior insulating properties, these “state of the art” materials displaced yarn as a wire insulation material. In addition, the company started manufacturing engineering rubber articles such as rubber rollers.

At the turn of the century, the company had approximately 100 workers on its payroll. In the years that followed, it continuously extended its product range:

• 1908  Solid rubber tyres for lorries
• 1915  Copper bands manufactured in the company’s own copper rolling mill
• 1916  Hard-rubber linings for the chemical industry
• 1923  Telephone cable and resistor wire
• 1927  Enamelled wire
• 1929  Pneumatic car tyres of the “Pallas-Cord” brand.

After World War II, thermoplastics increasingly replaced rubber as an insulation material for cables. The variety of electrical conductor types gradually increased. RF cables were developed, and the production of enamelled wire was promoted. In France, the company held a stake in two renowned cable factories, which were mainly engaged in the manufacture of enamelled wire.

Starting in 1950, vibration absorbers for machine-building purposes were included in the range of products of Aktiengesellschaft R.+E. Huber. When the company turned 75 in 1957, it had 760 employees on its payroll.

The company took advantage of the booming sixties to develop its capabilities further, and distinguished itself as a manufacturer of cables and of engineering rubber and plastic products for a large community of customers inside and outside Switzerland.