Custom gears, gearing elements and drive systems – developed and manufactured at the Nördlingen site.
SPN Schwaben Präzision Fritz Hopf GmbH
Nördlingen (Fritz-Hopf-Straße 1)New on Amplifa
About SPN Schwaben Präzision
SPN Schwaben Präzision Fritz Hopf GmbH develops and manufactures custom gears, gearing elements, drive systems and components for drive technology and mechatronics at its headquarters in Nördlingen. With around 300 employees on 10,300 m² of production space, the company produces special gears such as planetary, spur, worm, bevel and screwdriver gears – starting from a batch size of 1. The manufacturing spectrum includes gearing (gear shaping, gear hobbing, rack milling), wire EDM, grinding, turning including hard turning, 5-axis milling, assembly and measurement. Materials include bronze, case-hardening steel, aluminium die casting and special plastics. Customers include companies from mechanical engineering, automation and robotics, packaging systems, the textile industry, aerospace, energy technology, food technology and automated guided vehicle systems. An in-house engineering team supports projects from gearing calculation and gear simulation through to series production.
- Site
- Nördlingen
- Processes
- Gearing (gear shaping), Gear shaping with automation, Gearing (gear hobbing), Gear hobbing with automation, Rack milling, Wire EDM, Bore grinding, External cylindrical grinding
- Materials
- Bronze (worm wheel), Case-hardened steel (worm shaft), Aluminium die casting (gear housing), Special plastic (worm wheel, high-profile gearing), Steel (steel component, integrated into the gear housing), Aluminium die casting, Steel (case-hardened), Bronze
- Certificates
- EN 9100:2018 (equivalent to AS 9100D / JISQ 9100:2016, includes DIN EN ISO, EMAS registration, EN 9100 / ISO 9001, EMAS
- Founded
- 1919
- Employees
- ca. 300
- Industries
- Mechanical engineering, Automation and robotics, Packaging systems, Textile industry, Aerospace, Energy technology
- 01
Engineering (gearing calculation, gear simulation)
- 02
Gearing (gear shaping, gear hobbing, rack milling)
- 03
Wire EDM
- 04
Turning and milling (CNC, 5-axis)
- 05
Grinding (flank, cylindrical, surface grinding)
- 06
Measurement (3D coordinate measuring machine, gear measuring center)
- 07
Assembly (system workstations, pick to light)
- 08
Logistics, support and after-sales
Materials and Processes
Aluminium die casting
Gear housings, e.g. for special worm gears for the weaving machine industry.
Steel (case-hardened)
Worm shafts and integrated steel components in the gear housing.
Bronze
Worm wheels for backlash-free worm gear drives.
Special plastic
Worm wheels with high-profile gearing for low-noise operation, e.g. in packaging robots.
Gear shaping
Gearing machining up to ø 3000 x 275 mm, automated up to ø 180 x 330 mm.
Gear hobbing
Gearing machining up to ø 500 x 1000 mm, automated up to ø 105 x 350 mm.
Wire EDM
Complex contours in metal with high precision, component height up to 340 mm, taper angle up to 45°.
Grinding
Flank, cylindrical, surface and worm grinding for high profile accuracy of gearings.
Turning (CNC, hard turning)
Bar stock up to ø 90 mm, sawn sections up to ø 300 mm, hard turning of forged parts.
Milling (5-axis, machining centers)
Series and single-part production of housings up to 630 x 630 mm.
Nördlingen Site
Nördlingen
DEHeadquarters: development, manufacturing (gearing, grinding, turning, milling, measurement), assembly and sales
- Part weight / size
- Gearing up to ø 3000 mm, wire EDM up to 340 mm height,
- Lot size
- Batch size 1 to series production
- Materials
- Steel, bronze, aluminium, plastic
- Gear shaping machine Liebherr LFS 300
- Wire EDM machine Sodick ALC 600
- Flank grinding machine Liebherr LCS150
- Lathe DMG CTX 1250 TC 4A
- Machining center DMG NHX 4000
- Gear measuring machine Klingelnberg P26
- 3D coordinate measuring machine
Industries
Processes & technical limits
| Processes | Tolerance | Max. part | Weight | Lot size | Materials |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gearing (gear shaping)Machining | – | 275 mm × ø 3000 mm | – | – | – |
| Gear shaping with automationMachining | – | 330 mm × ø 180 mm | – | – | – |
| Gearing (gear hobbing)Machining | – | 1000 mm × ø 500 mm | – | – | – |
| Gear hobbing with automationMachining | – | 350 mm × ø 105 mm | – | – | – |
| Rack millingMachining | – | 2000 mm × 100 mm × 100 mm | – | – | – |
| Wire EDMSurface | – | 340 mm | – | – | Metal |
| Bore grindingSurface | – | 600 mm × ø 300 mm | – | – | – |
| External cylindrical grindingSurface | – | 100 mm × ø 450 mm | – | – | – |
| External cylindrical grinding with automationSurface | – | 250 mm × ø 100 mm | – | – | – |
| Flank grinding (gear grinding)Surface | – | 750 mm × ø 350 mm | – | – | – |
| Worm grindingSurface | – | 3000 mm × ø 100 mm | – | – | – |
| Surface grindingSurface | – | 1200 mm × 400 mm | – | – | – |
| Ground gearing for precise positioningSurface | – | – | – | – | – |
| Turning of bar stock (CNC)Machining | – | up to ø 90 mm | – | – | – |
| Turning of sawn sectionsMachining | – | up to ø 300 mm | – | – | – |
| Hard turningMachining | – | – | – | – | Forged parts |
| Milling (3-axis machining center, series and single-part production of housings)Machining | – | 630 mm × 630 mm | – | Batch size 1 – Series production | – |
| 5-axis millingMachining | – | – | – | – | – |
| Assembly (system workstations, series assembly, pick to light)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Measurement (3D coordinate measuring machine, gear measuring center)Testing | – | – | – | – | – |
| Engineering (gearing calculation, gear simulation, gear test rigs)Engineering | – | – | – | – | – |
| Manufacturing of special gears (planetary, spur, worm, bevel, screwdriver gears)Assembly | – | – | – | Batch size 1 | – |
| Lift-swivel gears HSE12, HSE16, HSE20 (with servo motors and planetary gears)Assembly | – | – | – | – | – |
| Worm gears (backlash-free, torsional backlash < 1 arcmin)Assembly | Torsional backlash less than 1 arcmin | – | – | – | Case-hardening steel (worm shaft), Bronze (worm wheel), Special plastic |
| Beveloid gearingsMachining | minimal flank play | – | – | – | – |
| Bevel gearing with movable housingsMachining | – | – | – | – | – |
7 Anlagen & Maschinen
| Machine | Manufacturer / model | Quantity | Working area | Year built | Site |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gear shaping machine | Liebherr LFS 300 | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Wire EDM machine | Sodick ALC 600 | – | Component height up to 340 mm, taper angle up to 45° | – | Nördlingen |
| Flank grinding machine | Liebherr LCS150 | – | Flank grinding ø 350 x 750 mm | – | Nördlingen |
| Lathe (CNC) | DMG (DMG MORI) CTX 1250 TC 4A | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Machining center (milling, pallet change) | DMG NHX 4000 | – | Components up to 630 mm x 630 mm | – | Nördlingen |
| Gear measuring machine | Klingelnberg P26 | – | – | – | Nördlingen |
| Bevel gear milling machine (new investment of over EUR 1 million) | – | 1 | – | 2026 | Nördlingen |
Additional services
Reference customers
Quality and Certification
Quality inspection is carried out with 3D coordinate measuring machines and a Klingelnberg P26 gear measuring center; in addition, gear test rigs as well as material and function tests are used. The quality management system is certified according to EN 9100:2018 (including DIN EN ISO 9001:2015).
| Evidence | Nördlingen |
|---|---|
| EN 9100 / ISO 9001 | |
| EMAS |
History
- 1919
Foundation and entry into contract gearing
- 1935
Fritz Hopf joins the company Pilz & Hayard
- 1945
Reconstruction of the company in Nördlingen with clock manufacturing (Schwäbische Uhrenfabrik GmbH)
- 1954
First double worm gear
- 1969
Production expansion in drive technology
- 1986
Development of the first planetary gears
- 1996
Renaming to SPN Schwaben Präzision Fritz Hopf GmbH; founding of the Fritz and Lieselotte Hopf Foundation as owner
- 2000
Delivery of first aerospace components
- 2002
Development of first mechatronic systems
- 2013
Introduction of lean management
- 2015
EMAS certification
- 2016
Extension building to consolidate the production sites at Fritz-Hopf-Straße
- 2017
DIN EN 9100 aerospace certification; production now exclusively at the Fritz-Hopf-Straße site