Piller Group
German manufacturer of mission-critical UPS and power conditioning systems, headquartered in Osterode am Harz and owned by Langley Holdings.
Last updated September 27, 2026
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Overview
Piller Group GmbH is a German engineering company and one of Europe's leading producers of uninterruptible power supply (UPS) systems for mission-critical applications. Headquartered in Osterode am Harz near Hanover, the company designs and manufactures rotary and static UPS systems, power conditioning equipment, frequency converters, aircraft ground power systems and electrical systems for naval vessels. Its customer base spans data centres, banking and finance, communications and broadcasting, energy, healthcare, aviation, naval and modern manufacturing and process industries. The business traces its origins to 1909, when the engineer Anton Piller founded a factory in Hamburg to build fans and blowers. It relocated to Osterode am Harz in 1919 and over the following decades expanded into electric motors, generators and, from the mid-twentieth century, rotary UPS systems and aircraft ground power supplies. Today Piller employs around 1,000 people worldwide, with roughly 600 in Germany, and operates subsidiaries across Europe, the Americas and Australasia. Its main manufacturing and R&D campus in Osterode covers 14 hectares with more than 50,000 m² of workspace, supported by assembly and testing facilities in Bilshausen. Piller has been wholly owned by the British engineering group Langley Holdings since 2004/2005, and forms part of Langley's Power Solutions Division alongside Bergen Engines of Norway and Marelli Motori of Italy. In 2016 Piller acquired the business and assets of Active Power, the Texas-based flywheel UPS specialist. The company positions itself as "The Gold Standard in Mission Critical UPS and Power Conditioning" and as "The Power Behind AI", and in 2025 reported revenue of more than €332 million, up 28 percent year on year, with order intake above €370 million. Piller is regarded as one of the world market leaders for large-capacity UPS systems above 500 kW.
History
Piller was founded in 1909 in Hamburg by the engineer Anton Piller (born 1 January 1878 in Vienna; died 1 April 1954 in Osterode am Harz), initially producing organ and forge blowers. In August 1919 the company relocated to Osterode am Harz, starting with 18 employees; by 1927 it had 65. A second factory was opened in Moringen in 1939, and production expanded to include fans, electric motors and generators, which were exported worldwide. During the Second World War, under Nazi rule, the Osterode plant housed around 905 foreign workers in a company camp, including up to 513 forced labourers from 1942, mainly from the Soviet Union, France, the Netherlands and Poland; the town of Osterode and Piller also ran a civilian workers' camp from 1941. As an armaments supplier, the company produced electric motors and ventilation equipment for submarines and tanks, and by September 1944 employed around 1,900 people, mostly foreign workers. After the war, Hans Piller, the founder's son, took over management in 1954. By 1962 the Anton Piller K.G. employed around 1,000 people, and in the same year a plant was rented in Duderstadt to manufacture NBC protection air systems. In 1972 Piller was also a defence supplier for submarines and installed its first frequency converter and DC drive systems; from 1975 it supplied three-phase synchronous machines for submarines, and from 2003 generators for the Class 212A submarine. A UK subsidiary, Piller UK Ltd., was established in 1976, followed by a French subsidiary in 1986 and further subsidiaries in Australia and the USA between 1988 and 1990. Piller also supplies ground power systems for the AWACS system. In 1993 the company was renamed Piller GmbH and entered a cooperation with Lahmeyer AG for the energy sector, based in Bad Homburg. In 1997 Lahmeyer AG merged with RWE subsidiary Rheinelektra and was renamed Lahmeyer AG, based in Frankfurt am Main; through this merger the RWE group acquired a majority stake in Piller. Production of industrial fans was discontinued from 1996. In 2001 the Bilshausen site was expanded, and further subsidiaries were founded in Europe and Asia. Since 2005 Piller has been 100 percent owned by the British Langley Holdings. The Moringen site, with Piller Blowers & Compressors GmbH (known until 2013 as Piller Industrieventilatoren GmbH), has been an independent company since 1996 and is no longer part of the Piller Group GmbH portfolio. In 2016 Piller acquired the business areas and assets of Active Power, the Texas-based flywheel UPS specialist. In 2025 the Piller Group increased revenue to more than €332 million (up 28 percent) and order intake to more than €370 million (up 24 percent). Piller is among the world market leaders for uninterruptible power supply systems above 500 kW.
- 2025
Revenue exceeds €332 million (up 28 percent); order intake above €370 million (up 24 percent).
- 2016
Acquires business and assets of Active Power, the Texas-based flywheel UPS specialist.
- 2009
Bilshausen facility expanded with additional test bays up to 3000 kVA.
- 2005
Piller becomes 100 percent owned by Langley Holdings.
- 2004
Acquired by Langley Holdings.
- 2003
Supplies generators for the Class 212A submarine.
- 2001
Bilshausen site expanded.
- 1997
Lahmeyer AG merges with Rheinelektra; RWE acquires majority stake in Piller.
- 1996
Industrial fan production discontinued; Moringen becomes independent.
- 1993
Renamed Piller GmbH; cooperation with Lahmeyer AG.
Products and positioning
Premium, mission-critical power protection: "The Gold Standard in Mission Critical UPS and Power Conditioning" and "The Power Behind AI", focused on large-capacity UPS above 500 kW.
UNIBLOCK™ rotary UPS range
High-capacity diesel rotary UPS systems assembled and tested at the Bilshausen facility.
SHIELDX™ Dynamic Power Stabilization
Battery-free technology combining two complementary approaches to address disruptive AI-driven loads.
Active Power flywheel UPS
Flywheel-based UPS technology acquired with Active Power in 2016.
Aircraft ground power systems
Ground power supply and frequency converters for airports, runway lighting and terminal buildings.
Naval generators
Mains and charging generators for conventional and nuclear submarines and surface vessels.
Controversies
Second World War forced labour
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