A young company with a history
Carl Schwengers
Our company was founded in 2023 by Conrad Zilkens and named after his grandfather Carl Schwengers.
Carl Schwengers, (born 1920 in Düsseldorf, died 2015 in Munich) had a doctorate in chemistry and process engineering and worked for many years on the establishment and development of the chemical industry in Krefeld. For more than 25 years he worked for the German Solway Werke in Rheinberg, specialising in PVC production. He was also a member of the board of directors of Alberdingk & Boley GmbH, where he contributed his experience in chemical process engineering. Today the company is one of the leading manufacturers of water-based dispersions as well as special oils and adhesives.
Throughout his life, the latest developments in the automotive industry were also a focus of his interests. He was always up to date on the current technical advances and challenges faced by the major German premium manufacturers.
Character rather reserved and modest for himself, he supported the next generations in their professional development with great interest. He enthusiastically exchanged ideas with them about research, technology and development. Reliability and honesty were important to him in all matters. Without his influence, our company would probably not have been founded later.
We are proud to name our company after Carl Schwengers and to be able to show commitment to the next generation on the basis of his maxim and values and in his spirit:
- Sustainability in terms of the impact of our actions on future generations
- The reliability that our customers and partners trust in
- Orientation towards our customers and their satisfaction
- Our open welcoming culture and free space for ideas and arguments
- Acting honestly and fairly towards our customers and partners.
Curious?
Our beginnings
In May 2023, Carl SchwENGers GmbH begins operations as a development service provider, engineering firm, and technology consultant for the automotive and rail vehicle industries. From the very beginning, our focus lies on technically challenging projects, a high level of reliability, and close collaboration with customers and partners.
The first customer project launches as early as July 2023 – it is a valuable foundation and the start of the company’s ongoing growth.
First project & responsibilities
From the very beginning, Carl SchwENGers GmbH takes on responsibility for technically complex projects and assesses the safety implications of maintenance measures for rail vehicles.
A significant milestone is the complete preparation of safety documentation for a call-off order of a double-decker vehicle platform for a major new German client. The work involves assessing hazards and implementing measures to control them during operation. In doing so, we support the structured documentation process and technical documentation in accordance with applicable requirements and standards. In this way, we make our first contribution to maintaining safe rail transport.
In addition, we support a leading European rail vehicle manufacturer in the creation and maintenance of maintenance plans for all new EMU and BEMU vehicles. Through this work, we contribute to the long-term safety, availability, and maintainability of modern vehicle platforms.
These projects shape our profile early on and strengthen our expertise in safety-related development and documentation processes.
Expansion of the customer base
Thanks to our expertise in the functional analysis of E/E architectures in the automotive industry, we are able to secure one of Europe’s largest car manufacturers as a new client.
Here, we assist with the creation and maintenance of complex models that can map vehicle architectures at all levels—from functional logic through software implementation and signal processing to hardware. In doing so, we do not limit ourselves to the professional execution of the models, but also help optimize the underlying structures and processes. The automation of consistency checks and routine tasks implemented by Carl SchwENGers GmbH frees up capacity for focused work on the actual challenges of modeling.
Growth & Skill Development
As the demands of our projects grow, so does our company. We are strategically expanding our team to include additional areas of expertise.
Today, our team includes, among others, specialists in model-based systems engineering (MBSE) and experienced programmers. This allows us to expand our knowledge and abilities, particularly in the realm of digital development processes, modeling, and technical software solutions.
These capabilities are particularly valuable in supporting leading automotive manufacturers with the digital representation of various vehicle models and the implementation of a unified, cross-functional system architecture. Our modeling guidelines ensure consistent and continuously improving model quality.
Build on Strengths
Building on our successful projects and steadily growing customer relationships, we are able to further expand our project volume in the rail vehicle sector. The experience we’ve gained from conducting component-based safety assessments for seven additional vehicle projects, combined with the ongoing refinement of maintenance plans, forms a growing foundation that enables us to support our customers in the long term covering additional workloads of maintenance and vehicle safety.
Our range of services now also includes the development and review of maintenance work instructions, the preparation of supporting documentation for specific safety assessments, and assistance with bid preparation and the calculation of life cycle costs.
Our in-depth engagement with various vehicle components, maintenance processes, and products from different suppliers continuously expands our technical expertise. This broad understanding enables us to identify connections across individual disciplines and to quickly and effectively familiarize ourselves with new projects and requirements.
Back to the roots
Through a new partnership with a leading German rail service company, we are expanding our client base to include a specialist in operational maintenance. This brings us closer once again to the practical implementation of maintenance processes, which we have increasingly supported in recent years from the perspective of vehicle manufacturers.
Our experience in maintenance planning, vehicle safety, and technical documentation provides a solid foundation for supporting ECMs (Entities in Charge of Maintenance) in the future. At the same time, we are repeatingly gaining valuable insights into the requirements and processes arising from the day-to-day operation and maintenance of rail vehicles. This additional perspective strengthens the connection between technical development, safety considerations, and practical maintenance. At the same time, we are further expanding our role as technical consultants within the rail vehicle industry.
The road ahead
We look forward to continuing to grow together with our customers and partners and to tackling new technical challenges in the mobility industry. Our values remain unchanged: reliability, openness, honesty, and a commitment to sustainability.
