Schülke & Mayr
Schülke is a Germany-based infection-prevention and hygiene company supplying disinfectants, antiseptics, medical skin-care products and related solutions.
Last updated September 25, 2026
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Overview
Schülke, historically Schülke & Mayr, is a German infection-prevention and hygiene company founded in Hamburg in 1889 by merchants Rudolf Schülke and Julius Mayr. Its beginnings are closely associated with Lysol: the founders began production of the disinfectant in the year the company was established. The company’s history also includes the 1892 Hamburg cholera epidemic, during which its milestone account says Lysol helped contain the outbreak. The company later developed products and brands for medical hygiene and industrial applications. Since 2007, its public-facing name has been schülke. Today, schülke describes its mission as protecting lives worldwide and presents itself as an expert in infection prevention and hygiene solutions. Its portfolio includes disinfectants, antiseptics and medical skin-care products, with products for hands, skin, wounds, instruments, surfaces and hygiene technology. Its product catalogue includes brands such as octenisept, mikrozid, desderman, gigasept, kodan and sensiva. The company says it works with customers to develop solutions for hospitals, care facilities, pharmacies, medical practices, emergency services, the pharmaceutical industry and cleanrooms. Its products and services are intended to address infection control and hygiene requirements for both people and materials. The company is headquartered in Norderstedt, Germany, where its official company profile says key company divisions are brought together. It emphasizes research and development, product quality and safety, and sustainability across product development and production. Its offerings also include services and advice alongside products. A German-language company history describes additional work in research and services and digital applications supporting hygiene and infection prevention, including tools for healthcare facilities’ hygiene plans and training. Schülke has changed ownership several times. After periods under various corporate owners, it became part of the French Air Liquide group in the 1990s, was acquired by Swedish investor EQT in 2020, and was sold in 2023 to a consortium led by the Athos Family Office associated with the Strüngmann family, with co-financing from Bitburger Holding and BBA Capitalpartners. The company remains active and continues to present its business around infection prevention, hygiene and protection of health.
History
Schülke & Mayr was founded in Hamburg in 1889 by merchants Rudolf Schülke and Julius Mayr. The company’s official milestones page dates the founders’ contract to April of that year and states that production of the branded disinfectant Lysol began in the same month. The German-language history supplies the specific date of 15 April and describes the founders as Rudolf Schülke, a ship’s captain, and Julius Mayr-Bertheau, a merchant from Amsterdam. It also says that the company acquired a world patent for making Lysol after its suitability was examined by bacteriologist Robert Koch. The supplied official milestone account describes Lysol as an early branded disinfectant at a time when disinfection was not widely understood. Lysol became central to the company’s early reputation. During Hamburg’s cholera epidemic in 1892, the official milestones page says the outbreak was contained with the help of the branded disinfectant. In 1893, the company received an honorary certificate from Hamburg in recognition of its work during and after the epidemic. The German-language history also records early activity beyond Europe, including a testing station near Lake Victoria in 1890. That account situates this activity in the context of German colonial rule; this history should be understood as part of the company’s historical record, rather than as a contemporary corporate activity. The company broadened its product range in the following decades. Its official milestones page lists medical products including Buraton, Primasept and Gigasept, and industrial products including Grotan, Parmetol and Euxyl. It records the patenting of chlorinated phenols in 1913 and the introduction of Sagrotan that year. The German-language history says the company became a joint-stock company in 1911 and that the first industrial branded biocide, Grotan, followed in 1924. It also records that Lehn & Fink Inc, a New York pharmaceutical distributor and Sagrotan license producer, acquired all company shares in 1920. The company’s German-language history documents its operations during the Nazi period and the Second World War. It states that the company was led by Fr. W. Michel Obladen during the Nazi era, that it received the “National Socialist model company” distinction and a Gold Flag in 1941, and that production facilities were established outside Hamburg to meet wartime demand for disinfectants. It further reports that at least nine Italian military internees have been identified as forced laborers at Schülke & Mayr, while noting that the full number of forced laborers has not been conclusively established. These are significant historical facts and are included here as reported by the supplied source. After the war, the company was converted into a GmbH in 1952. It moved to its Glashütte site near Hamburg in 1963; following later municipal changes, that location became part of Norderstedt. The business subsequently passed through several owners: Sterling Drug acquired it in 1966; Eastman Kodak took over Sterling Drug in 1988; Reckitt & Colman became a shareholder in 1994; and the company joined the French Air Liquide group from 1996. The German-language source says Sagrotan was separated from Schülke & Mayr and sold to Reckitt & Colman in 1997. In 1990, the company had introduced octenisept, an antiseptic for wounds and mucous membranes based on octenidine. The company adopted the public-facing name schülke after a corporate-identity redesign in 2007. It opened a logistics centre at Norderstedt in 2009. In 2019, it sold its technical biocides and oil-and-gas additives portfolio to Vink Chemicals. In April 2020, Swedish investor EQT acquired the company. In 2023, EQT sold it to a consortium led by the Athos Family Office associated with Andreas and Thomas Strüngmann, with co-financing from Bitburger Holding and BBA Capitalpartners. Today, schülke presents itself as a global infection-prevention and hygiene business, headquartered in Norderstedt, with products and services for healthcare and other settings requiring rigorous hygiene standards.
- 2023
Sold to consortium led by Athos Family Office
- 2020
Acquired by EQT
- 2019
Technical biocides and oil-and-gas additives portfolio sold
- 2009
Norderstedt logistics centre opens
- 2007
Public-facing name becomes schülke
- 1997
Sagrotan separated and sold
- 1996
Joins Air Liquide group
- 1994
Reckitt & Colman becomes a shareholder
- 1990
octenisept introduced
- 1988
Eastman Kodak takes over Sterling Drug
Products and positioning
A German specialist in infection prevention and hygiene, with a portfolio for healthcare and other settings requiring high standards of infection control. The company emphasizes tailored solutions, scientific research, quality, safety and protection of people and materials.
Lysol
Historical branded disinfectant whose production began in the company’s founding year.
octenisept
Antiseptic for wounds and mucous membranes; the official catalogue describes it as an aqueous wound and mucous-membrane antiseptic.
mikrozid
Range of rapid disinfection products for surfaces and non-invasive medical devices, including wipes.
desderman
A brand listed in the company’s product catalogue.
gigasept
A brand listed in the company’s product catalogue and historical milestones.
octenisan
The product catalogue includes octenisan wash mitts for cleaning and care of intact skin.
Controversies
Forced labor during the Second World War
Marketing campaigns
- World Sepsis Day
- World Hand Hygiene Day
- Rudolf Schülke Foundation Hygiene Prize
Brand decisions
2019
Sale of technical biocides and oil-and-gas additives portfolioOther2007
Change to the schülke public-facing nameOther
Sources6 sources
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