A pioneering spirit means having ideas, making decisions with conviction and being willing to take risks. If a company has been a successful market player for decades, is established around the world and continually grows, one could say the quest to be a pioneer has been fulfilled. Hermann Schwelling is a pioneer. He founded the company Hermann Schwelling Maschinenbau, or HSM, more than 45 years ago. The founder started his company with the idea of reducing the volume of materials required. This is why he developed baler presses to return paper, cardboard, film, PET and many others into the recycling system in the form of bales of material. These bales can reduce material quantities by up to 95%. The first baler press created in 1972 with a 6-tonne pressing force developed into a comprehensive range of balers with up to 150 tonnes in pressing force and state-of-the art technology. At the same time, HSM was also developing shredders for use on paper and data storage media, such as CDs, credit cards and hard drives thereby covering the entire spectrum of shredders and presses. Thanks to the true dedication of the firm's staff, HSM has been a market-leader in products and services for environmental technology and office equipment. A workforce of almost 800 employees and more than 100 service and sales support points around the entire world are integrated in the HSM network, which serves thousands of customers across the globe.HSM is an independent, family-run company with its founder, Hermann Schwelling as main shareholder. All company shares are kept within the founding family, which enables the company to quickly make decisions and pursue its long-term goals. The shareholders are: Hermann Schwelling, Christina Schwelling, Harald Schwelling and Sylvia Rimmele.Philosophy The philosophy of "Great Products, Great People" links together HSM with business partners around the world. The factors behind HSM's success includes a philosophy which is consistently followed by the family behind the company and management. It encompasses the values of flexibility, quality, self-awareness and corporate social responsibility. Together, these values have developed into a shared understanding of how HSM wishes to conduct itself both internally and in terms of its business partners: "Great Products, Great People".Flexibility This family company stands for making quick decisions, reacting flexibly to the market, agile business processes and ensuring healthy growth.Quality HSM concentrates on their core areas of shredders and presses upon which their quality concept is built. "Made in Germany" still enjoys an outstanding reputation even in these times of globalisation. Our employees' expertise guarantees HSM's understanding for quality and is reflected in the products, customer advice and unique services. Self-awareness We can focus more clearly if everyone in the team holds to joint guidelines. Living out the values to which we hold ensures a level of self-awareness. We know what our strengths are and can recognise potential.Corporate social responsibility HSM is committed to supporting people and conserving the environment. This is why HSM not only focusses on environmentally-friendly production (and associated economic advantages passed onto customers), but also supports social and ecological projects.