User:James nester/Kern Precision Scales

History of Kern Precision Scales

Kern & Sohn, the calibrator and distributor of precision scales and force gauges, has played a major role in growing Southern Germany's reputation for precision weighing. The company was founded in 1844 by Gottlieb Kern and has remained a family run business ever since. In fact it is one of only two German companies (the other is Bizerba) to have survived unchanged throughout history in its original form as a family company.

Founder Gottlieb Kern belonged to a family of accomplished European artists and stonemasons. The family has a history of about 160 years of growth and producing high quality products. In 1870, Albert Sauter, the step-son of Kern, joined the Board of Directors of the company, and three years later, Kern & Sohn became one of the largest precision balances manufacturers in Germany.

During the last quarter of the nineteenth century, Kern & Sohn brought a number of innovations and modifications into their designs and manufacturing in order to improve the accuracy of the instruments they produced. In 1886, Gottlieb Kern passed away. Sauter took over as the President. The period was marked with expansion and technological development. By the turn of the century, Kern & Sohn held a dominant market position in a number of weight measurement fields.

In 1903, Albert Sauter's son Gustav took over the company and - surviving through the two devastating world wars - Kern & Sohn continued a period of further growth. Throughout the twentieth century, Kern & Sohn has become one of the market leaders in the German scientific supplies industry.

Modern Day Operations

Today, Kern & Sohn deals in a variety of scale products, including laboratory balances, industrial scales, medical scales, test weights, basic scales, with ground-breaking solar powered scales and other related accessories.

Basic scales Laboratory balances Industrial scales Medical scales Test weights Force measurement Torque measurement Coating thickness Material thickness Hardness testing Stroboscopes Length measurement Software Accessories

Advertising campaigns

Recently, Kern has created several advertising campaigns that have gained the company more visibility, both in the science and advertising communities. These campaigns have demonstrated the precision of Kern technology. For example, Kern's redesigned corporate stationery features the weights of each element - from the weight of the business card, to the very ink used to print it. The advertising work has been recognised at various national and international advertising awards including Cannes Lions and D&AD:

Recognition

2011: Gold, Global Creative Leadership, Lester Wunderman awards 2 x Silver DMAs, Webby 'Official Honoree', Bronze, Ads of the World

2010: In Book, Copywriting, D&AD Gold, B2B Marketing Silver, Email, DMA Silver, B2B, DMA Silver, WPPED CREAM Silver, B2B Marketing Bronze, Global Creative Leadership 3 finalists, B2B Marketing 2 finalists, Campaign BIG 2 shortlists, Marketing Engage

2009: Gold, B2B DM, DMA Silver, Integrated, DMA Silver, Small Budget, DMA Bronze, Business DM, DMA Bronze, B2B DM, DMA Nomination, Integrated, Eurobest Nomination, Integrated, Cannes Lions

Distributors

Kern sells directly to end-users of precision scales and force gauges as well as distributors throughout the world.