The story
When they were still working for a supplier of what was then Swiss Telecom PTT (currently Swiss Post and Swisscom), Hans Reichle and Renato De-Massari had an idea for the development of a new, simpler to install telephone outlet. In 1964, they founded R&M as a two-man company to develop and produce what they called the Reichle connector. In subsequent years, the company extended its portfolio to include the entire connecting technology for data and voice networks based on copper cables for communications wiring. Fiber-optic communication technology was added in 1987.
In Poland, R&M opened its first Eastern European subsidiary in 1993 by founding Reichle & De-Massari Polska Sp.z.o.o., Warsaw.
Before Renato De-Massari died in 2000, his partner Hans Reichle took over the company as sole owner in 1996. In the years following, R&M drove international expansion by founding subsidiaries in Ukraine (Reichle & De-Massari Ukraine Ltd.), Malaysia (Reichle & De-Massari Malaysia) and Brazil (Reichle & De-Massari do Brasil Ltda.).
In 1999, Reichle & De-Massari merged all shares of the company in Reichle Holding AG as a holding company owned by the Reichle family. In the same year, Hans Reichle retired and became a member of the board of directors, handing over operational responsibility to his two sons Martin (chairman of the management board) and Peter (operational management), who from then on managed the company together with other members of the management board.
In 2006, R&M began to establish its own sales office and production in India. Two years later, the first management and logistics hub for the Asia-Pacific region was set up in Singapore. A subsidiary for product development and sales (Reichle & De-Massari Far East (Pte) Ltd.) had existed there since 1994. This was followed in 2009 by the establishment of a location in the United Arab Emirates. In 2010, the company moved into the R&M Kubus in Wetzikon, R&M's new corporate headquarters.
On September 1, 2012, Michel Riva was the first non-family member to be appointed CEO. Martin and Peter Reichle continue to be members of the six-man board of directors and, in that function, represent the interests of the owner family.
In July 2012, R&M opened a branch in the Dubai Freezone, where products are assembled for the regions Middle East and Africa (MEA), and Asia. In October 2012, a further fiber-optic production plant was commissioned in Sofia, Bulgaria. In the same year, the company opened a Saudi Arabian branch in Riyadh to pursue regional expansion plans and offer local customer service. In 2014, the company celebrated its 50th anniversary.
In February 2016, R&M acquired the fiber-optic specialist REALM Communications Group Inc. domiciled in Milpitas, California. The production and sales operations in North America have since been run as a subsidiary under the name R&M USA, Inc. In April 2017, R&M acquired the Brazilian corporate group Peltier Comércio e Industria LTDA (PETCOM), domiciled in Santa Rita do Sapucaí, the intention being to gain a foothold in the Southern American fiber-optic market. A production plant is part of the group.
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The company Transportkabel DIXI a.s., domiciled in Děčín, Czech Republic, acquired in May 2018, was renamed Reichle & De-Massari Czech Republic a.s. in August 2018. This takeover has allowed R&M to produce its own fiber-optic cables for the very first time. Furthermore, R&M opened a new production facility for fiber-optic products in Bangalore, India, in August 2018. With this investment, R&M is supporting the Make in India initiative. In May 2024, the Indian production facility relocated to a larger building in Bagaluru, Bangalore. With 400 workplaces, this is now the largest production R&M facility.
With the takeover of Optimum Fiberoptics Inc. domiciled in Elkridge, Maryland, in March 2019, R&M further expanded its business activities in the US. In the same year, the company acquired Durack Intelligent Electric Co. Ltd., Jinshan District, Shanghai, a Chinese manufacturer of network cabinets and enclosures for data centers. In January 2022, R&M acquired a further manufacturer of network cabinets and enclosures for data centers, the Tecnosteel S.r.l. based in Brunello (VA), Italy. In the same year, Hans Hess, who had been chairman of the board of directors for 15 years, handed over his position to Thomas A. Ernst.
From Wikipedia’s article on Reichle & De-Massari, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.4