WILA Lichttechnik

WILA Lichttechnik GmbH is a German lighting company headquartered in Iserlohn. It develops, plans, produces and distributes lighting tools for indoor and outdoor applications, with a focus on office lighting as well as the illumination of administrative buildings and educational institutions. The company is internationally oriented, working with sales partners in 25 countries, and its primary market is Europe. It is managed by managing director Jan Paul Harteman. The company traces its origins to 1857, when Wilhelm von Hagen founded a family business in Iserlohn producing brass sheet rosettes. Over the following decades the firm expanded into brass castings and furniture fittings, and by the early 20th century it was a leading maker of bed fittings, exporting about 80 percent of its products. In 1932, during the Great Depression, the company established a new department for lighting fixtures and presented its first luminaires at the Leipzig Autumn Fair. By 1938 it had grown into the fourth-largest producer in the German lighting fixture industry. After the Second World War the lighting business resumed, and in 1977 the company was renamed WILA Leuchten Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen. In 1984 Helmuth K. Unger took over the then-struggling business and renamed it WILA Leuchten GmbH. The company went through insolvency in 2004; in 2005 WILA Lichttechnik GmbH acquired the WILA brand and repositioned itself in 2013. Since February 2016 WILA Lichttechnik GmbH has been part of NordeonGroup BV, based in Utrecht, the Netherlands. In the 1980s WILA focused production on technical luminaires and compact downlights. It introduced a lighting management system in 1997, added linear lighting systems in 1999, and began developing its first general LED-based lighting systems in 2007. Today the company offers luminaires and lighting components and develops intelligent lighting solutions together with lighting designers and architects. Its award-winning alphabet product family, launched in 2013, is a modular LED system that gives planners a wide range of lighting tools. Another notable product is the Transparency pendant luminaire, whose filigree frame is only 15 mm high when switched off and whose transparent surface becomes a light object in the room when switched on. WILA has supplied lighting for prominent projects including the central citizens' hall of the North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament (2006), the Toyota headquarters, the BBC New Media Village in the UK, the Sony Europe headquarters in Berlin, four ships of the AIDA fleet, Hamburg Airport, Terminal 2 of Dublin Airport, the Gasteig in Munich, Baader Bank in Unterschleissheim, the district administration building in Siegburg, the Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe and the DRIVE Volkswagen Group Forum in Berlin.

The company was founded in 1857 by Wilhelm von Hagen in Iserlohn. The family business initially produced brass sheet rosettes. After von Hagen's death, his widow renamed the company Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen in 1863 and in the 1870s expanded production to include brass castings and furniture fittings, which drove growth. The firm was entered in the commercial register on 18 June 1886. In 1887 she transferred the company to her children. In 1909, with August von Hagen (born 11 February 1890 in Iserlohn; died 18 March 1954 in Iserlohn) and Hugo von Hagen, the third generation joined the works; by then a second operation already existed in Meschede. In the field of bed fittings, Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen dominated the domestic market until the First World War. About 80 percent of products were exported. After the First World War the company was soon able to re-enter the export market. Even the Great Depression initially spared the company thanks to its high export share. By 1928 the operation employed 300 people and generated sales of 2.5 million marks. Then the Great Depression caught up with Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen: in the early 1930s bankruptcy seemed inevitable — at that time nearly a third of German industrial firms closed. The company sought market niches and took a risk: in 1932 it established a new department for lighting fixtures. In the same year they were presented to trade visitors for the first time at the Leipzig Autumn Fair. By 1938 the operation had grown into the fourth-largest producer in the German lighting fixture industry. During the Second World War the company was ordered to enter armaments production. At the death of August von Hagen in 1954, the workforce numbered 600. After the war Ulrich and Günter von Hagen, the fourth generation, joined the management. Conditions gradually normalised and the lamp business restarted. In 1977 the company was renamed WILA Leuchten Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen. When the company faced closure in 1983, Helmuth K. Unger took it over a year later, in 1984. He had already founded the luminaire manufacturer Hartmann & Unger in 1978. Unger renamed the company WILA Leuchten GmbH. Within the Unger holding, WILA Leuchten GmbH, like the acquired firm Bruck, operated as an independent company. WILA Leuchten GmbH went into insolvency in 2004. In 2005 WILA Lichttechnik GmbH bought the WILA brand and repositioned itself in 2013. Since February 2016 WILA Lichttechnik GmbH has been part of NordeonGroup BV, Utrecht, Netherlands. In the 1980s WILA focused production on technical luminaires and compact downlights. In 1997 the company brought a lighting management system to market, enabling flexible lighting solutions. In 1999 WILA expanded its product range with linear lighting systems. In 2007 WILA began developing its first general LED-based lighting systems. Today the company offers luminaires and lighting components and develops intelligent lighting solutions together with lighting designers and architects for numerous application areas. In 2013 the award-winning alphabet product family was created. With this modular LED product family, the company provides a large selection of lighting tools with which planners can realise their individual conceptions of a lighting solution. Another product is the Transparency pendant luminaire. When switched off, only the filigree frame with a visible height of 15 mm is visible. When switched on, the previously transparent surface becomes a light object in the room. Transparency has received multiple awards for this design concept.

• 2016

  Became part of NordeonGroup BV, Utrecht, Netherlands, in February.

• 2013

  Repositioned itself; created the award-winning alphabet product family.

• 2007

  Began developing its first general LED-based lighting systems.

• 2006

  Provided new lighting design for the central citizens' hall of the North Rhine-Westphalia state parliament.

• 2005

  WILA Lichttechnik GmbH bought the WILA brand.

• 2004

  WILA Leuchten GmbH went into insolvency.

• 1999

  Expanded product range with linear lighting systems.

• 1997

  Brought a lighting management system to market.

• 1984

  Helmuth K. Unger took over the company and renamed it WILA Leuchten GmbH.

• 1977

  Renamed WILA Leuchten Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen.

• 1954

  Death of August von Hagen; workforce numbered 600.

• 1938

  Grew into the fourth-largest producer in the German lighting fixture industry.

• 1932

  Established a new department for lighting fixtures; first presentation at the Leipzig Autumn Fair.

• 1928

  Employed 300 people and generated sales of 2.5 million marks.

• 1909

  Third generation (August and Hugo von Hagen) joined the works.

• 1887

  Transferred to the founder's children.

• 1886

  Entered in the commercial register on 18 June.

• 1863

  Renamed Wwe. Wilh. von Hagen by the founder's widow.

• 1857

  Founded by Wilhelm von Hagen in Iserlohn; initially produced brass sheet rosettes.

Developer and manufacturer of intelligent lighting tools and solutions for office, administrative and educational environments, working closely with lighting designers and architects.

• alphabet

  Modular LED product family launched in 2013, providing a wide range of lighting tools for planners.

• Transparency

  Pendant luminaire with a filigree frame (15 mm visible height when off) that becomes a light object when switched on; multiple design awards.

• Lighting management system

  Introduced in 1997 for flexible lighting solutions.

• Linear lighting systems

  Added to the product range in 1999.

• Technical luminaires and compact downlights

  Production focus in the 1980s.

1. 1WILA Lichttechnik – Wikipedia (German)de.wikipedia.org
2. 2WILA Lichttechnik – Wikidatawikidata.org