Deutz AG

The company was founded by Nicolaus Otto, the inventor of the four-stroke internal combustion engine, and his partner Eugen Langen on 31 March 1864, as N. A. Otto & Cie, later renamed to Gasmotoren-Fabrik Deutz after moving operations in 1869, from Cologne to Deutz, located on the opposite side of the Rhine.

In the early years, Otto and Langen were interested only in producing stationary engines, not automobiles. The technical director, Gottlieb Daimler, was eager to produce automobiles. In the middle of the 1870s, it was suggested that he transfer to the company's St. Petersburg factory to reduce his influence. He then resigned, taking Wilhelm Maybach with him. Deutz also produced agricultural machines such as combine harvesters and tractors, as well as commercial vehicles such as trucks and buses.

In 1884, Edouard Sarazin, a Belgian patent lawyer and pioneer of automotive engineering, represented 'Gasmotorenfabrik Otto & Langen' (Deutz AG) and acquired the license to build Deutz engines in France, which he duly contracted to Perin, Panhard & Cie (later Panhard et Levassor) in Paris. Around 1886/1887, he similarly acquired licenses to build Daimler engines. His untimely death in 1887 left his widow Louise to develop the business relationships and complete the partnership negotiations.

Famous people who have worked for Deutz include Eugen Langen, Nicolaus Otto, Gottlieb Daimler (from 1872 until 1880), Wilhelm Maybach (from 1872 until 1880), Prosper L'Orange (from 1904 until October 1908), Ettore Bugatti (in 1907), and Robert Bosch.

During World War II, the company was ordered to produce artillery and operated under the name Klöckner Humboldt Deutz AG (KHD). In 1942, KHD was declared a war model company by the National Socialist German Workers' Front for its "services to the defense economy". In this context, the company relied heavily on the use of forced laborers. In the 1942/1943 financial year, 2127 people, mainly from western Europe, were forced to work at KHD. In some cases, up to 40 percent of the workers in the plants were forced laborers. The factory was almost destroyed by an air raid on the night of 3 and 4 July 1943 (→ Bombing of Cologne in WW II).

From 1892 to 1970, Deutz built locomotives in the power range from 3 to 1,491 kW (4 to 2,000 hp); until 1927, with gasoline engines, and from 1927, increasingly with diesel engine drive.

Commercial vehicles powered by Deutz engines were popular from 1960 to 1980. Fire engines built by Magirus in Ulm, Southern Germany, used an M-shaped logo, with the steeple of the world's tallest church, the Ulm Minster, in its center. After the Magirus-Deutz merger, the company continued to use this logo even though the twin towers of the Cologne Cathedral can be seen from the company headquarters.

Deutz's head office is in the Porz district of Cologne and, as of 2004, was manufacturing liquid and air-cooled diesel engines. The larger engines in the Deutz range were manufactured in Mannheim at a production facility that once belonged to Süddeutsche Bremsen-AG as MWM-Diesel. Deutz also has production facilities in other countries, including Spain, and a joint venture production facility in China. After Deutz took over, the plant specialized in marine engines. This facility now produces engines for marine and power generation, which can run on either fuel oils or fuel gases (including landfill gas). In 1995 Deutz sold its agricultural machinery division – Deutz-Fahr – to the Italian company SAME, forming SAME Deutz-Fahr.

Locomotive and wagon construction (1892-1970)

Until the 1950s, only small locomotives (e.g. light rail locomotives) were produced. After the interest group formed in 1953 with the United Westdeutsche Waggonfabriken AG (Westwaggon) and their final takeover in 1959, KHD was also able to build large bogie diesel locomotives.

Class V60 of the Deutsche Bundesbahn from 1957

Class V100 of the Deutsche Bundesbahn from 1961

Class V160 of the Deutsche Bundesbahn from 1966