Making connections
Interview with Tobias Theis, Managing Director Wiesemann & Theis GmbH
It is difficult to recall a time when everything was not connected to the internet. Nowadays, people can control things as basic as lights and blinds with a smartphone, but this was still a dream in the early 2000s. It is the domain of Wiesemann & Theis GmbH in Wuppertal, Germany. The company has been a go-to partner in network, sensor and interface technology for industrial and office purposes since 1979.
As is tradition in the tech industry, Wiesemann & Theis began with two men in a garage. The founders had a tinkering spirit that still pervades the company. “Reinhard Wiesemann and my father were school friends and got the ball rolling with interfaces, but a key step in our development was the decision to turn towards networks,” says Managing Director Tobias Theis.
Another major stepping stone for roughly two dozen major innovations was the development of the web thermometer, a pioneering moment in the Internet of Things. “It’s a thermometer with a variety of communication interfaces,” Mr. Theis says. “You can see not only the temperatures being measured but also record them and set certain actions to take place if the temperatures go above or below certain levels.” This potpourri of integration possibilities is a classic example of IoT and has become a focal point for W&T.
A balanced standing
W&T covers four major areas: Web-IO, network technology, Single-Pair Ethernet, and serial interfaces. This broad range allows the company to maintain its standing as it is not reliant on any one field. Single-pair Ethernet is still in its infancy. “We just released our first product in this area: the SPE Thermo-Hygrometer,” Mr. Theis says. “The concept behind it is IP-based communication from the sensor to the cloud but with fewer cables than classic ethernet over longer distances.”
Mr. Theis believes customers choose W&T due to one reason: quality. “You can get cheaper products from Chinese manufacturers, but if you’re looking for quality, you need to come to us,” he says. “We are meticulous in production and later on in service, and our five-year warranty on all our products just underlines that.”
A family tradition
Mr. Theis joined W&T in 2019. “After school, I wanted to keep my options open and go my own way at first,” he says. He gathered experience in other sectors and realized he was best suited to a smaller business – like the 55-employee-strong W&T.
Recent global crises have allowed W&T to demonstrate its strength in supplying its customers. “From the beginning, we’ve been product-based and have always focused on our stock,” Mr. Theis says. “Procurement proved to be challenging, however. When you offer CE-tested hardware, you can’t just switch out components, so finding alternatives wasn’t easy. Thanks to our far-sighted procurement policies and our diligent purchasing staff, we mastered the situation brilliantly. Other companies weren’t able to deliver like we were.”