Development and manufacture of passenger seats and complete seat systems for buses, trains and trams.
Franz Kiel GmbH
Nördlingen (DE) · Vienne (FR) · Rijen (NL) · Tetovo (MK) · Nowy Tomysl (PL) · Logroño (ES) · Bursa (TR) · Bellwood, IL (US) · Changzhou (CN)New on Amplifa
About Franz Kiel GmbH
Franz Kiel GmbH, headquartered in Nördlingen, develops and manufactures passenger seats and complete seat systems for buses, trains and trams in local, regional and long-distance transport. The production chain comprises metalworking with laser cutting, punching, welding and bending, powder coating and wet painting, injection moulding of plastic shell seats, its own upholstery workshop and the assembly of complete seating systems. Production is mainly in steel and plastic, even for small batch sizes, with capacity planning via SAP in two-shift operation. Customers include vehicle manufacturers such as Stadler, Solaris, MAN, Neoplan, Siemens, Bombardier and BYD. The group of companies employs around 1250 people worldwide and is represented with production and sales locations including in Poland, Macedonia, Spain, Turkey, the USA and China. The company is certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001:2015 and IRIS rev.2.
- Site
- Nördlingen
- Processes
- Metalworking including welding and bending, Painting (wet painting), Powder coating, Upholstery (upholstery workshop), Assembly of complete seat systems, Laser cutting with laser system, Punch shop (punching), Injection moulding (plastic shell seats)
- Materials
- Iron, Metal, Plastic (injection-moulded shell seats), Steel (iron/metal parts), Plastic (injection moulding), Upholstery materials
- Certificates
- DIN EN ISO 9001:2015, IRIS rev.2
- Founded
- 1945
- Employees
- 1250
- Industries
- Bus manufacturing (local, regional, long-distance transport), Rail vehicle manufacturing (local, regional, long-distance transport), Tram manufacturing, Commercial vehicles
- 01
Design/Product Development
- 02
Laser Cutting
- 03
Punching
- 04
Welding and Bending (Metalworking)
- 05
Powder Coating / Wet Painting
- 06
Injection Moulding of Plastic Shells
- 07
Upholstery
- 08
Assembly of Complete Seat Systems
- 09
After-Sales Service and Spare Parts Supply
Materials and Processes
Steel (iron/metal parts)
Base material for seat frames, structures and metal parts in seat construction, processed in metalworking with welding and bending.
Plastic (injection moulding)
One-piece self-supporting plastic shell seats for city buses, produced by injection moulding since 1981.
Upholstery materials
Seat and backrest cushions from the company's own upholstery workshop for greater comfort of the seat systems.
Group Locations
Nördlingen
DEHeadquarters, Production, Development
- Lot size
- also small batch sizes; laser cutting in two-shift operation
- Materials
- Steel, Plastic
- Laser system with automatic material loading and unloading
- Powder coating system
- Wet painting system
- Welding robots
- CNC-controlled equipment
- Punch shop
- Own upholstery workshop
Vienne
FRSales (Kiel France s.a.r.l.)
Rijen
NLSales (Franz Kiel B.V.)
Tetovo
MKProduction (KIEL Macedonija D.O.O.E.L.)
Nowy Tomysl
PLProduction (Kiel Polska Sp. z o.o.)
Logroño
ESProduction (EMAR Manufacturas Metálicas S.A.)
Bursa
TRProduction (FKT Koltuk Sistemleri A.Ş.)
Bellwood, IL
USSales/Location (Kiel N.A., L.L.C.)
Changzhou
CNJoint Venture Production (Jiangsu ARSALE KIEL Seats Co., Ltd.)
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Metalworking including welding and bendingJoining | – | – | – | also small batch sizes | Steel (iron/metal parts for seat construction) |
| Painting (wet painting)Surface | – | – | – | – | Metal |
| Powder coatingSurface | – | – | – | – | Metal |
| Upholstery (upholstery workshop)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Assembly of complete seat systemsAssembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Laser cutting with laser systemMachining | – | – | – | Two-shift operation | Metal |
| Punch shop (punching)Forming | – | – | – | – | Metal |
| Injection moulding (plastic shell seats)Plastics | – | – | – | – | Plastic |
| Manufacture of complete passenger seats and seat systems (bus, rail, tram)Assembly | – | – | – | – | Metal, Plastic |
6 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Laser system with automatic material loading and unloading | – | 1 | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Powder coating system | – | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Wet painting system | – | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Welding robots | – | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| CNC-controlled equipment | – | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Punch shop | – | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and Certification
Franz Kiel GmbH is certified according to DIN EN ISO 9001:2015 and IRIS rev.2 and maintains a comprehensive quality management system with periodic audits of procedures, products, processes and suppliers as well as specific problem-solving methods. Capacity planning within the Kiel Group is carried out via SAP to ensure process reliability and short production lead times.
| Evidence | Nördlingen |
|---|---|
| DIN EN ISO 9001:2015 | |
| IRIS rev.2 |