Bucher Industries

Bucher Industries AG is a diversified Swiss industrial group headquartered in Niederweningen and listed on the SIX Swiss Exchange. Its roots reach back to 1807, when Heinrich Bucher-Weiss took over a forge in Niederweningen and began making agricultural tools. Over more than two centuries, the business developed from a local metalworking and farm-equipment workshop into an internationally active group serving specialized machinery markets. The group’s principal activities are organized around Kuhn Group, Bucher Municipal, Bucher Hydraulics, Bucher Emhart Glass, and Bucher Specials. Kuhn Group is the largest business and manufactures agricultural machinery for soil preparation, seeding, fertilization, crop protection, hay and forage harvesting, livestock operations, and landscape maintenance. Its brands and product families serve professional farmers, contractors, and agricultural distributors across Europe, North and South America, and other markets. Bucher Municipal supplies equipment for maintaining public and private infrastructure. Its portfolio includes compact and truck-mounted sweepers, sewer-cleaning vehicles, winter-maintenance equipment, and refuse-collection solutions. The division has expanded through acquisitions and operates across Europe, North America, Australia, and Asia. Its electric compact sweepers have positioned the business within the shift toward lower-emission municipal fleets. Bucher Hydraulics develops hydraulic and electronic components, including pumps, motors, valves, manifold systems, cylinders, power units, and electric or electro-hydraulic drive technologies. Bucher Emhart Glass provides forming and inspection machinery, services, and related technologies for hollow-glass container manufacturers. Bucher Specials brings together several focused activities, including wine-processing equipment through Bucher Vaslin, fruit-juice and food-processing technologies through Bucher Unipektin, automation and process-control activities through Bucher Automation, and Swiss agricultural machinery distribution through Bucher Landtechnik. Bucher’s growth has combined internal engineering with acquisitions. Important expansion steps included the development of Kuhn, the addition of municipal-vehicle and street-sweeping businesses, the acquisition of Emhart Glass, and the broadening of hydraulic, automation, and agricultural-equipment capabilities. The group has also used joint ventures and majority investments to enter or strengthen positions in China and other international markets. The company emphasizes technically demanding niche markets, long-term customer relationships, decentralized operating businesses, and product quality rather than mass-market consumer branding. Its customers are generally professional users, municipalities, infrastructure operators, industrial manufacturers, agricultural enterprises, and specialized food and beverage producers. In the 2025 financial year, the supplied reference material reported sales of CHF 2.9 billion and 14,198 employees; these figures should be read as year-specific rather than as timeless company characteristics. Bucher is described in the reference material as the fourth-oldest listed company in Switzerland. Its current portfolio combines established mechanical-engineering expertise with automation, electrification, energy efficiency, and digitally controlled equipment.

Bucher Industries traces its origin to 1807, when Heinrich Bucher-Weiss assumed control of a forge in Murzeln, Niederweningen. The early workshop produced basic agricultural tools. During the nineteenth century, the business expanded under the Bucher family into slurry pumps, feed cutters, hand mills, fruit mills, grape and fruit presses, and metal components for farm machinery. In the 1870s it had only a handful of employees, but its product range and trading activities broadened steadily. In the late nineteenth century, Bucher-Manz began importing and reselling foreign machinery, including horse rakes, while continuing to manufacture its own equipment. The enterprise was renamed Maschinenfabrik Johann Bucher-Manz in 1895. Hydraulic fruit-press technology became increasingly important, and the company produced its first hydraulic fruit press with a high-pressure pump in 1901. A second site was established in Griessen in 1923, supporting the continuing expansion of agricultural machinery and food-processing equipment. The first half of the twentieth century brought several significant products. The Luna centrifugal slurry pump, introduced in 1921, offered easier maintenance and flexible power options compared with earlier hand-operated pumps. In 1934 Bucher introduced a team-driven mower with an auxiliary engine, and in 1945 it launched the Rekord single-axle motor mower. The Rekord became a notable commercial success, with the supplied reference material reporting 116,000 units sold by 2003. Bucher also entered tractor production in the 1950s and delivered approximately 5,000 Bucher tractors before production ended in 1964. In 1946 it acquired a 50 percent interest in French agricultural-machinery maker Kuhn, creating an important foundation for the group’s later agricultural division. The company became a public limited company in 1951. In 1984 the group was reorganized as Bucher Holding AG, and it went public in 1986. At the time of the listing, the group had sales of CHF 430 million and 2,730 employees, according to the supplied reference material. The public-company structure enabled a period of international expansion. Kuhn added businesses such as Huard, Nodet, Knight Manufacturing, Metasa, Blanchard, Kverneland’s press division, Montana, and Artec. Bucher also built municipal-vehicle capabilities through street-sweeper and special-machinery acquisitions, and expanded hydraulics through companies including Beringer Hydraulik, Hydrotechnik, Sterling Fluid Technologies, Monarch Hydraulics, and Command Controls. A major diversification step came in 1998 with the acquisition of Emhart Glass, giving the group a position in machinery for glass-container manufacturing. In 1996 the core activities had been organized into five divisions: agricultural equipment, vehicles, food technology, hydraulic components, and machinery. Bucher Holding AG adopted the name Bucher Industries AG in 2000. Philip Mosimann became chief executive in 2002, while Rudolf Hauser became chairman. During the 2000s and early 2010s, the group continued to grow through acquisitions, new production facilities, joint ventures, and majority investments in agricultural, hydraulic, municipal, automation, and glass technologies. Since 2014, the operating structure has centered on Kuhn Group, Bucher Municipal, Bucher Hydraulics, Bucher Emhart Glass, and Bucher Specials. Recent developments have included the acquisition of Danish sewer-cleaning specialist J. Hvidtved Larsen, entry into Chinese sewer-cleaning vehicles through Zynkon, investment in Chinese hydraulic technology, and the purchase of Lenze Mobile Drives’ mobile electric-drive activities. Bucher Emhart Glass completed its acquisition of Sanjin Glass Machinery in 2018. In 2023, Jetter and Futronic were merged into Bucher Automation, strengthening the group’s automation identity. The modern group combines long-established mechanical engineering with electrification, electronic controls, energy-efficient hydraulics, automation, and environmental-service equipment. Bucher Municipal introduced an early fully electric compact sweeper in 2016 and later presented the CityCat V20e. Bucher Hydraulics introduced Helax technology in 2020, combining a hydraulic cylinder with an electrically controlled decentralized drive. These developments illustrate the group’s effort to adapt traditional machinery businesses to lower-emission and digitally controlled operating environments while retaining a portfolio of specialized industrial niches.

1. 2023Bucher Automation created

   Jetter AG and Futronic GmbH were merged and renamed Bucher Automation.

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2. 2020Helax hydraulic-electric drive technology launched

   Bucher Hydraulics introduced Helax, a decentralized linear-drive concept combining hydraulic and electric technologies.

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3. 2016First fully electric compact sweeper introduced

   Bucher Municipal introduced an electric compact sweeper in the two-cubic-meter class.

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4. 2014Five-division structure established

   The group organized operations into Kuhn Group, Bucher Municipal, Bucher Hydraulics, Bucher Emhart Glass, and Bucher Specials.

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5. 2000Bucher Holding renamed Bucher Industries

   The group adopted its current corporate name.

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6. 1998Emhart Glass acquired

   The acquisition established Bucher’s position in glass-container manufacturing equipment.

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7. 1996Core businesses divided into five divisions

   The group organized its activities around agricultural equipment, vehicles, food technology, hydraulic components, and machinery.

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8. 1986Listed on the Swiss stock exchange

   Bucher went public and began a more acquisition-led phase of international expansion.

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9. 1984Reorganized as Bucher Holding AG

   The group was reorganized under the Bucher Holding AG structure before its stock-market listing.

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10. 1951Converted into a public limited company

    The business adopted a public limited-company structure.

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11. 1946Investment in Kuhn

    Bucher acquired a 50 percent stake in French agricultural-machinery manufacturer Kuhn.

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12. 1945Rekord motor mower launched

    Bucher introduced the single-axle Rekord motor mower, a product later reported to have sold 116,000 units by 2003.

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13. 1921Luna centrifugal slurry pump introduced

    The Luna pump became one of Bucher’s successful products and offered easier maintenance than earlier piston pumps.

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14. 1901First hydraulic fruit press with high-pressure pump

    Bucher expanded its fruit-processing technology with a hydraulic press using a high-pressure pump.

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15. 1874Business formally registered as a mechanical workshop

    The enterprise was registered under a name describing its manufacture of mechanical components for agricultural machinery.

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16. 1807Forge acquired in Niederweningen

    Heinrich Bucher-Weiss took over a forge and began producing agricultural tools, establishing the origins of the future group.

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Diversified, engineering-led industrial group focused on specialized machinery, vehicle systems, hydraulics, automation, and process technologies for professional and infrastructure-intensive markets.

• Kuhn agricultural machineryAgricultural equipment

  Kuhn develops and manufactures machinery for tillage, planting and seeding, nutrient management, crop protection, hay and forage harvesting, livestock bedding and feeding, and landscape maintenance. The business is Bucher Industries’ largest division by sales and operates manufacturing sites in France, the Netherlands, the United States, and Brazil. Its products are sold through international agricultural-equipment markets to farmers, contractors, and distributors.

• Bucher Municipal sweepersMunicipal vehicles

  Bucher Municipal supplies compact and truck-mounted sweepers for roads, pedestrian areas, and other traffic surfaces. The division also provides sewer-cleaning, winter-maintenance, and refuse-collection vehicles and equipment. Its portfolio serves municipalities, contractors, and infrastructure operators, with production and commercial activity spanning Europe, North America, Australia, and Asia.

• Bucher Hydraulics systemsHydraulic and electronic components

  Bucher Hydraulics makes pumps, motors, valves, manifold blocks, cylinders, power units, and power-electronics solutions. It serves mobile and industrial machinery manufacturers with components and integrated systems. The division also develops electro-hydraulic and electric-drive technologies intended to improve controllability, efficiency, and machine performance.

• Bucher Emhart Glass equipmentGlass-container manufacturing machinery1998

  Bucher Emhart Glass provides forming and inspection machinery, spare parts, consulting, and service for the hollow-glass industry. Its technologies support manufacturers of glass containers and combine mechanical equipment with process expertise and inspection capabilities. Production facilities are located in Sweden, the United States, and Malaysia, with research and development activity in the United States.

• Bucher Vaslin wine-processing equipmentWine-processing machinery

  Bucher Vaslin is part of Bucher Specials and supplies machinery and equipment for wine production. Its activities extend Bucher’s historical connection with fruit and grape processing into modern winery operations and specialized process equipment.

• CityCat V20eElectric compact sweeper2021

  The CityCat V20e is an electric compact sweeper developed by Bucher Municipal for urban and public-area cleaning. It was presented as a lower-emission alternative to diesel-powered sweepers and was associated in the supplied reference material with substantial potential annual carbon-dioxide savings compared with a diesel equivalent.

• HelaxElectro-hydraulic drive technology2020

  Helax is a Bucher Hydraulics decentralized linear-drive technology introduced in 2020. It combines a hydraulic cylinder with electric-motor control, allowing the drive system to be integrated close to the actuator and designed for reduced energy use in suitable applications.

• 2021CityCat V20e electric sweeper

  International municipal-equipment markets

  Bucher Municipal presented the CityCat V20e as an electric urban sweeper designed to reduce operating emissions relative to diesel equipment.

  Outcome. The model reinforced Bucher Municipal’s electrification and sustainability positioning.

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• 2016Electric compact sweeper introduction

  International municipal-equipment markets

  Bucher Municipal introduced a fully electric compact sweeper in the two-cubic-meter class, promoting electrification for urban cleaning and municipal fleets.

  Outcome. The launch established an early electric product position for the municipal division and preceded later CityCat electric models.

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• 2023Merge Jetter and Futronic into Bucher AutomationM&A

  Bucher sought to consolidate control technology and automation capabilities within its specialized businesses.

  What changed. Jetter AG and its subsidiary Futronic GmbH were merged and renamed Bucher Automation.

  Aftermath. Automation became a more clearly identified business within Bucher Specials.

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• 2014Adopt the five-division operating structureStrategy

  Bucher had accumulated businesses across several specialized industrial markets and needed a clearer group structure.

  What changed. The group organized operations into Kuhn Group, Bucher Municipal, Bucher Hydraulics, Bucher Emhart Glass, and Bucher Specials.

  Aftermath. The structure remains the framework used to describe the group’s principal activities.

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• 1998Acquire Emhart GlassM&A

  Bucher sought to broaden its industrial portfolio beyond agricultural and municipal machinery.

  What changed. The group acquired Emhart Glass and entered the machinery and technology market for glass-container production.

  Aftermath. Emhart Glass became a long-term Bucher division and later operated as Bucher Emhart Glass.

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• 1986Pursue public listing and acquisition-led expansionStrategy

  Following the reorganization as Bucher Holding AG, the group sought capital and organizational scale for international growth.

  What changed. Bucher listed on the Swiss stock exchange and subsequently expanded through acquisitions across agriculture, municipal vehicles, hydraulics, glass, and automation.

  Aftermath. The listing preceded the development of the diversified five-division industrial group.

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• 2026Stefan Scheiber succeeds Urs Kaufmann as chairman

  The supplied reference material states that Stefan Scheiber became chairman of Bucher, replacing Urs Kaufmann.

  Leadership change
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• 2025Bucher Industries reports 2025 sales of CHF 2.9 billion and 14,198 employees

  The supplied reference material reports the group’s 2025 revenue and workforce figures, reflecting its scale across agricultural machinery, municipal vehicles, hydraulics, glass technology, and specialized businesses.

  Other
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• 2023Bucher Automation formed through merger of Jetter and Futronic

  Jetter AG and its subsidiary Futronic GmbH were merged and renamed Bucher Automation, consolidating automation and control-technology activities within Bucher Specials.

  M&A
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• 2023CityCat VR50e receives German Innovation Award Gold

  Bucher Municipal’s electric sweeper was recognized with a German Innovation Award Gold, according to the supplied reference material.

  Other
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1. Bucher Industries
2. Bucher Industries official website