Weber Instrumente honored the Top 100 award as Industry Leading Innovator 2017

Überlingen – Once again, Weber Instrumente GmbH & Co. KG is among the most innovative companies in the German SME sector. With this year’s 24th presentation of the prestigious TOP 100 award, the company from Emmingen- Liptingen was honored by Ranga Yogeshwar, Prof. Dr. Nikolaus Franke and Compamedia for being one of the leading innovators in Germany.  This makes it the fourth time that Weber Instrumente managed to join the elite players in innovation. The company’s innovative success and its outward orientation were the most convincing aspects during the independent selection process.

Weber Instrumente brought medical instrument to a whole new level by developing their patented “Softgrip“. The TOP 100 award-winning company has revolutionized orthopedic and surgical instruments. Their handle is made out of steel and silicone, which both join inseparably and leave no room for gaps. “This way we can offer exceptionally hygienic instruments“, managing director Uli Kammerer says.

Now the family business from Emmingen-Liptingen, near Tuttlingen, is taking another step: It is developing the “Softgrip“ with a sensor to make it intelligent. This is handy for surgeons when conducting operations such as hip surgery, and will help to protect patients during the operation because too strong of a medical hammer hit can easily damage the hip socket when performing hip implant surgery. “We want this new sensor to warn surgeons and simultaneously record any improper handling“ Kammerer explains.

When developing such products, the industry leading innovator Weber Instrumente especially focuses on close communication with potential users. Managing Director Uli Kammerer is in constant contact with his clients; whether it’s a visit, phone call or video conference.

In February 2017 Weber Instrumente reached a new level. They were given the opportunity to present their prototype of the newly developed handle during a scientific event, which was funded by the federal government at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) in Cambridge, Massachusetts. “This was a rare opportunity that allowed us to come forward at an early stage with our innovation in front of an audience full of highly renowned scientists“, Kammerer reports.

Thanks to these sorts of innovations, Weber Instrumente, who has been active in the market since 1980 and holds 45 employees, belongs to the elite group of internationally leading companies and was awarded with the TOP 100 award for the fourth time. In the last three years alone, the company has been given 8 national and 6 international patents.

TOP 100: The competition

Since 1993 Compamedia presents the TOP 100 award for strong innovation drive and outstanding innovative success to the most innovative companies in the German SME sector. The scientific instruction has been carefully managed and overseen by Prof. Dr. Nikolaus Franke since 2002. Franke is the founder and Chairman of the Board at the Institute for Entrepreneurship and Innovation at Vienna University of Economics and Business. He is also a guest researcher at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Winning 18 research prizes and being featured in over 200 publications has made Franke one of the international leading innovation researchers.

Ranga Yogeshwa, science journalist and TV host, is the mentor of TOP 100. Project partners include the “Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft zur Förderung der angewandten Forschung“ and the German Association for Small and Medium Sized Businesses (BVMW). Our media partner, Manager Magazine, assists in the process of company comparisons. For more information see www.top100-germany.com.