Brothers Gerhard and Wolfgang Schmack founded the company GEDIS mbH & Co. KG with the vision of raising the automation of building material mixing plants to a new level of technology and support. The development of hardware and software based on the microprocessor technology available at the time formed the core of their activities. By manufacturing its own self-sufficient programmable logic controller (PLC) and a dosing computer specially developed for the application area of building material mixing technology, the first delivery of the EPROM system: GDS-8 Plus with an operator terminal for process visualization was already possible in August 1991.
History an Milestones of our company
The company GEDIS mbH & Co. KG has more than 25 years of experience in the development, design and manufacture of automation systems for mixing technology. Continuous growth in various markets has turned an initially regionally active company into an internationally operating company with more than 700 control systems installed and currently in production in 25 countries.
1991
1992-1995
The creation of an in-house software department laid the foundation for the development of the IBS33 (DOS) system, based for the first time on standardized industrial PC technology. Customer requirements in the area of interfaces to billing, laboratory and scheduling systems as well as precise documentation and statistical evaluation of production data could thus be fully implemented. The result was a complete range of solutions for electronic process control tasks in the building materials industry. A large and loyal customer base quickly developed within Germany, Switzerland and Austria. The high demand for mixing plants in the new federal states, due to the reunification of Germany, made it possible to quickly establish the company in the market.
1995-2000
While the company continued to develop and establish itself on the German and Austrian markets, the Schmack brothers examined the opportunities for their start-up on other target markets within Europe and, following a market analysis, began delivering and installing control systems in Poland. One milestone was the establishment of a Polish representative office in Katowice with the aim of being able to adapt the products and system solutions to market requirements and customer needs. This affected both the service and the software itself. From then on, the control system was also available in English and Polish.
Further countries were to follow with Croatia, Bosnia and Greece. The “crisis in the construction industry” in 1996, with an 80% drop in sales in the German market, was compensated for not least by the strategically clever decision to expand into European markets.Parallel to day-to-day business, the company had already been working on a Windows-based solution since 1995. The IBS33W system was developed and successfully installed on the Microsoft Windows NT operating system for the first time at the end of 1996, and the new hardware and software development of a CAN-BUS-based programmable logic controller (PLC) began at the end of 1996. The IBS33W system, installed on the Microsoft Windows NT, Windows 98, Windows 2000 and later Windows XP operating systems, in conjunction with the newly developed CAN-BUS-based PLC, made it possible at an early stage to dispense with the previously very complex and costly manual control panels. The operation by mouse on the screen was realized and equipped with modern, innovative, self-developed and market-driven complete systems, new markets could be opened up. In 2000, the company was able to enter the Romanian market for the first time.
The agile and flexible way of working that GEDIS stands for made it possible for the IBS33W control system to be put into operation in the shortest possible time with the Romanian language version and in accordance with the country-specific requirements. Together with our long-standing customers, we carried out control system conversions of existing and complete installations (delivery: electrical installation, power section and control system) of new systems. We have been able to continue, expand and intensify this successful cooperation in recent years.
2001-2005
In 2001, the company celebrates its 10th anniversary. The industry-specific solutions and the ideas developed have decisively advanced and shaped concrete production.
2003 saw the establishment of the Northern branch office for sales and service in Northern Germany as well as the first exports to Northern and Western Europe (Finland/Netherlands). This was followed two years later by the installation of a new concrete mixing plant for the production of core and face concrete for paving stone production in Vilnius/Lithuania.
Thanks to the continuous further development of the IBS33W application, it was possible to use this process control system for both ready-mixed concrete and precast concrete plants and to technologically cover the complete product range of concrete mixing plant technology. The expansion into the Arabian region was realized through participation in the BIG5 Exhibition in Dubai from 1999 and the first delivery of control systems to Saudi Arabia in November 2001. Deliveries to Kuwait and Qatar began in 2004. One year later, the first deliveries of the IBS33W control system were made to the Ukraine.
2006-2010
Mohammed Kamaludheen / Shutterstock.com
A special event in 2006 was the delivery of a GEDIS IBS33W control system for a ready-mix concrete mixing plant in the city of MEKKA in western Saudi Arabia (with the sanctuary of the Kaaba, the central pilgrimage site of Islam). In good cooperation with the customer’s engineers, the system was put into operation by means of remote service. From 2006 to 2009, the 5-storey Jamarat Bridge (pilgrimage site for Muslims during the annual Hajj / construction cost USD 1.2 billion) was built using the IBS33W concrete production system.
Due to the powerful and extremely robust process control systems, the fast, uncomplicated and reliable support, as well as the multilingual, innovative and cost-efficient design of the control systems, GEDIS customers also relied on the usual successful cooperation in the course of the expanded activities in Northern and Eastern Europe. Deliveries to Norway, the Ukraine and Georgia followed. This rapid, outstanding export development in particular has made the company a sought-after and reliable leading supplier of control systems for concrete production and related products within the concrete industry since it was founded.
2010-2015
Due to the low level of investment activity in the building materials industry in Europe following the 2008 financial crisis, most existing mixing plant control systems were modernized and partially expanded between 2009 and 2012. GEDIS stands for individual technical development, know-how and constructive dialog with its customers and partners.
The close cooperation with a manufacturer of mobile mixing plant concepts from 2013 opened up further markets in Russia, Belgium and England.
From 2011, safety technology was integrated in accordance with the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC. As a system integrator, GEDIS introduced a high-performance, certified safety system for all hazardous areas within the plants. Retrofitting existing systems and initial equipment for new systems make no difference here.
2016 - 2019
Presentation of new GEDIS products at the bauma 2016 trade fair in Munich:
Development of a new database system
Use of a passively cooled IPC system (TANK)
GEDIS web interface Industry 4.0, etc.
SAP interface for direct coupling SAP<->GEDIS
Electronic signature via Signature-PADDelivery of process control technology for larger precast plants with:
Consistency controls in the mixers
Control of bucket conveyors, concrete requests via touch screen retrieval stations
Material feeding equipment for aggregates and binders.Supply of IBS33W control technology for new plants from almost all well-known manufacturers represented on the German market.
Modernization of existing plants with GEDIS IBS33W control systems in Romania.
Mr. Fabian Schmack joins the family business GEDIS from 01.10.2018 for future company management.2019 -2024
Internal projects, such as site modernization, digitalization of processes, the new recruiting process and the associated optimization of service and project work, have further improved our product quality. The company is constantly evolving and is undergoing a healthy growth process. Our appearances at Bauma2019 and Bauma2022 were a success. We were able to open up the Iceland and Lithuania markets and maintain and expand existing business relationships. The continuous and market-oriented further development of our product portfolio is the basis for a good and cooperative partnership with our customers at home and abroad.
2024- today
The company is setting the course for the future. In the preceding years 2020-2024, important personnel in the areas of IT and switch cabinet construction were built up and qualified.
Fabian Schmack is appointed Managing Director in summer 2024. He is responsible for corporate development human resources, sales, strategy and marketing as well as the general company organisation. The management team, which is now in the hands of Wolfgang and Fabian Schmack is working meticulously on the future. This can be seen, for example, in the new development of the company’s own PLC as well as in the expansion of the product portfolio.
Since 2024, the company has also been selling automation systems for gravel and loading systems as well as for scrapers, which will be proudly presented alongside the basic products at Bauma25.