Atlas GmbH
Tradition since 1919
The predecessor of the Atlas GmbH construction machinery manufacturer was founded in 1919 by Hinrich Weyhausen. At the beginning of the company’s history, which is steeped in tradition, the focus was on the production of agricultural equipment. After the first patent was granted for the Atlas mounted crane in 1945, the company’s first fully hydraulic excavator went into operation five years later. In the years that followed, the company, which was then still known as “Hinrich Weyhausen KG”, continued to develop its hydraulic excavators so that the company became a world leader. In the mid-1960s, more than 1,000 employees worked in the factories founded in Vechta, Ganderkesee and Löningen. In 1986, Hinrich Weyhausen KG was renamed Atlas Weyhausen GmbH. In the same year, the Atlas 1304 wheeled excavator came onto the market. This model is still Atlas’ best-selling excavator model today.
Due to financial difficulties in 1999, the company was sold to the construction machinery manufacturer Terex from the USA in 2001. The company was then renamed Atlas-Terex GmbH.
In 2010, the company again suffered losses, so the investor Flilp Filipov took over the division for one euro. In the same year, Filipov bought back the Kaelble brand name from Terex and runs the company Atlas GmbH, which was renamed in 2016, together with the managing director Brahim Stitou.
Atlas GmbH in the present:
The company employs more than 550 people. The modern construction machines are sold worldwide.
Atlas GmbH sells a wide range of construction machinery in the field of mobile excavators, handling machines, road-rail excavators, crawler excavators, loader cranes as well as attachments for cranes and excavators. These are manufactured at the three production sites in Ganderkesee, Delmenhorst and Vechta. A subsidiary is located in Bredford with a focus on crane sales.
In the Vechta plant, loading cranes are available in various sizes. The possible lifting capacities range from 14 to 620 kNm and offer a wide range of applications. In addition, special cranes and cranes with lifting devices are manufactured and sold.