SENNEBOGEN Maschinenfabrik celebrated its 50th anniversary in August with an open house for customers and dealers at its factory in Straubing, Germany.

Founder Erich Sennebogen Sr, who was just 21 when he established the company, gave a rousing speech, critical of interfering governments, state intervention and excess regulation inhibiting entrepreneurs like himself. As a result, German industry was today ‘close to chaos’ he said.

In his wide ranging speech, Sennebogen charted the development of the family owned company, from its roots in nearby Pilling in 1952 making agricultural machinery, to its current position with 1,000 employees, three factories and a turnover of more than E250m. Germany today was very different from how it was in the 1960s, Sennebogen said. With all today’s regulations, Germany would never have prospered they way it had, and reunification of East and West Germany would not have been possible because the west would not have been able to bear the cost.

It was not just the German government that was in the firing line but also the European Commission, whose requirement for privately owned companies to publish balance sheets was not just an infringement of personal liberty but also produced ‘the largest legalised espionage ever.’

The 50th anniversary celebrations, held in August, were attended by more than 200 customers from 24 countries and included lunch at a traditional local festival.