SCHOTTEL

SCHOTTEL is a German marine propulsion and manoeuvring systems company headquartered in Spay on the Rhine. Founded by Josef Becker in 1921, the business began as a small metalworking workshop in Niederspay. Its roots in boatbuilding and practical shipyard work led to a defining innovation: Becker developed the steerable RudderPropeller in 1950, combining propulsion and steering in a unit that can turn through 360 degrees. SCHOTTEL describes this invention as the foundation of its propulsion expertise; the company says more than 17,000 RudderPropeller units have been installed worldwide. Today SCHOTTEL develops and manufactures steerable propulsion and manoeuvring systems, complete propulsion plants, and control and automation systems for vessels and offshore applications. Its product range includes the RudderPropeller, transverse thrusters and PumpJet, alongside other propulsion and control products identified by the company under names including SRP, SRE, STP, SCP, SRP-R, SPJ, STT, SRT, SAS and SMS. The company says its complete propulsion installations can reach up to 30 MW. Applications span many vessel types, including tugs, ferries, fishing and naval vessels, service and offshore construction vessels, research ships, cargo vessels, dredgers, yachts and passenger or river-cruise ships. The business operates internationally. The supplied company history describes 15 subsidiaries across nearly every continent, while the German Wikipedia entry reports more than 100 sales and service locations worldwide. SCHOTTEL also presents retrofit and after-sales services as part of a vessel’s lifecycle support. SCHOTTEL GmbH is part of Schottel Industries GmbH, a group that the supplied Wikipedia text says also holds interests in companies involved in gear technology, automation and electrical system integration. The official materials identify SCHOTTEL GmbH as based at Mainzer Str. 99, 56322 Spay/Rhein. The available evidence does not identify a founder’s successor, current executive leadership, or the ultimate owner of the group.

SCHOTTEL traces its beginnings to 21 November 1921, when Josef Becker established a metalworking workshop in an old barn in Niederspay. Becker had trained as a metalworker in his father’s forge. In its early years, the workshop repaired and manufactured machine parts and agricultural equipment. Becker’s early adoption of available technologies—including electric power for workshop machinery and welding equipment—formed part of the practical engineering culture that the company history emphasizes. The company’s development became closely linked to boatbuilding. In 1925, Becker built an iron boat for a local baker, an early vessel associated with the Schottel-Schaluppe. In the following years the workshop built motorboats and passenger boats. In 1934, the business moved from the space-constrained barn to a new shipyard on the Rhine at a river section called “Auf der Schottel.” The location supplied the name: the workshop became the Schottel-Werft. During the Second World War, shortages of workers and materials restricted operations, which focused largely on spare parts. In 1944 Becker registered a patent for a generator-fuelled heating appliance. Production gradually resumed after the war. Although the shipyard was seized as part of French reparation demands, it was not dismantled; the seizure was lifted in 1948. The post-war business combined boatbuilding and ship repairs with other work prompted by fuel shortages. By 1950 it was again building motorboats. The pivotal product milestone came in 1950, when Becker developed the RudderPropeller. The unit combined propulsion and steering without a separate rudder blade and could be steered continuously through 360 degrees around its vertical axis. SCHOTTEL’s company history presents the invention as a breakthrough in ship manoeuvrability. Commercial orders followed: the German Wikipedia account identifies initial customer orders in 1952, including regional water police and the Dutch waterways authority, and a later order for 15 vessels by the French Rhine Army in 1953. Becker received the Elmer A. Sperry Award posthumously in 2005 for the invention. The company expanded its reach and technical range in the following decades. Its German Wikipedia account says that by 1957, 70 percent of the boats built at the shipyard were going abroad, and that Becker established the first foreign subsidiary in the Netherlands in 1958. SCHOTTEL added transverse-thruster systems in the mid-1960s and entered offshore applications: in 1963 it supplied two RudderPropellers for the French drilling vessel Trebel, described in the source as equipped with the world’s first dynamic positioning system. In 1967, it equipped the harbour tug Janus with RudderPropellers. Development of the Schottel-Jet, the predecessor of the PumpJet (SPJ), began in 1972; the integrated, steerable waterjet was intended for vessels able to operate in very shallow water. SCHOTTEL also designed and built military engineering boats known as M-boats. The source reports that more than 800 M-boats had been designed, built and delivered by 1987, when the M-Boot 3 was introduced. Over time, the company’s focus represented in the available sources is that of an international supplier of propulsion and manoeuvring systems for a broad variety of commercial, offshore and other vessels. Its current official homepage describes systems for ships and offshore applications of many types and sizes, complete propulsion plants up to 30 MW, and support for newbuilds, retrofits and after-sales. The official company overview describes a group with 15 subsidiaries across nearly every continent. SCHOTTEL GmbH is part of Schottel Industries GmbH, according to the supplied German Wikipedia entry; the available evidence does not establish the group’s ultimate ownership or current executive team.

• 2005

  Josef Becker receives the Elmer A. Sperry Award posthumously.

• 1987

  M-Boot 3 is introduced.

• 1972

  Development of the Schottel-Jet begins.

• 1967

  The harbour tug Janus is equipped with RudderPropellers.

• 1963

  RudderPropellers supplied for the drilling vessel Trebel.

• 1958

  First foreign subsidiary established in the Netherlands.

• 1957

  Most shipyard boats are sold abroad.

• 1953

  A 15-vessel order is placed by the French Rhine Army.

• 1952

  Initial RudderPropeller orders

• 1950

  Josef Becker develops the RudderPropeller.

• 1948

  Post-war seizure of the shipyard is lifted.

• 1944

  Becker files a patent for a generator-fuelled heating appliance.

• 1934

  The Schottel-Werft name is adopted.

• 1925

  Early boatbuilding work

• 1921

  Josef Becker establishes his workshop in Niederspay.

A specialist marine propulsion provider presenting itself as an expert partner for propulsion and manoeuvring solutions across vessel types and throughout the vessel lifecycle, including newbuilds, retrofits and after-sales service.

• RudderPropeller (SRP)

  A steerable propulsion unit combining propulsion and steering; the company traces the invention to 1950.

• PumpJet (SPJ)

  A steerable waterjet integrated flush into a vessel’s bottom, described in the supplied history as suitable for very shallow water.

• TransverseThruster (STT)

  A transverse propulsion system that can provide thrust to port or starboard to improve manoeuvrability.

• PropControl 4

  A propulsion control system developed for azimuth thrusters, transverse thrusters and controllable-pitch propellers.

• Other listed product codes: SRE, SCP, SRP-R, SRT, SAS and SMS

  These product codes appear in the supplied official corporate governance page; the available text does not describe their individual functions.

• SCHOTTEL GmbH sets management representation targets through 2029.Other

• 2026-10-23

  L&T and SCHOTTEL expand partnership to marine propulsion shafting systems[7]L&T与SCHOTTEL将合作扩展至船舶推进轴系系统idrw.org

  Reported: 2026-10-23

  L&T Precision Engineering and Systems announced an expansion of its partnership with SCHOTTEL to include Controllable Pitch Propeller shafting systems for commercial vessels.

• Unconfirmed

  SCHOTTEL Canada service partnership in Canada[8]SCHOTTEL Canada 在加拿大建立服务合作en.portnews.ru

  Reported: 2021-08-22

  SCHOTTEL Inc and SCHOTTEL Canada entered into a cooperative agreement with Seaspan Vancouver Drydock and McRae Electric. Seaspan Vancouver Drydock will act as a service and support center, while McRae Electric will provide electrical and controls services.

1. 1Your Propulsion Experts | SCHOTTEL - YOUR PROPULSION EXPERTSschottel.de
2. 2100 Jahre SCHOTTEL Geschichte | SCHOTTEL - YOUR PROPULSION EXPERTSschottel.de
3. 3SCHOTTEL Corporate Governance | SCHOTTEL - YOUR PROPULSION EXPERTSschottel.de
4. 4Über uns | SCHOTTEL - YOUR PROPULSION EXPERTSschottel.de
5. 5Schottel GmbHwikidata.org
6. 6Schottelde.wikipedia.org
7. 7L&T与SCHOTTEL将合作扩展至船舶推进轴系系统idrw.org
8. 8SCHOTTEL Canada 在加拿大建立服务合作en.portnews.ru