Semperit

1824 Johann Nepomuk Reithoffer receives the patent for waterproof fabrics

1852 Construction of first European factory for rubber products in Wimpassing, Austria

1890 Semperit goes public

1920 Start of latex glove production

1938-1945 After the Anschluss of Austria in 1938, Semperit remained formally independent, although the company entered into a cooperation agreement with Continental AG. During the years that followed, Semperit became part of the German wartime economy. The company produced rubber products for military use, including protective suits and inflatable boats. Because many workers were drafted into the military, Semperit also used forced labour during the war.

Franz Josef Messner became General Director of Semperit in 1937. Although he managed a company of importance for the wartime economy, he was also involved in the Austrian resistance. He was a member of the Maier-Messner-Caldonazzi resistance group, which passed military and industrial information to the Allies. In March 1944, Messner was arrested by the Gestapo. After several months in prison, he was executed in Mauthausen concentration camp on 23 April 1945.

In the aftermath of the Second World War, large quantities of the company's machinery were dismantled as war reparations. Even though this rendered manufacturing more difficult, Semperit restarted production in August 1945 and slowly rebuilt the company in the years that followed.

1949 Semperit begins manufacturing System Hans Hass swim fins designed by Hans Hass