Edmund Heckler (2 February 1906 – 2 July 1960) was a German engineer & weapons

manufacturer Manufacturing is the creation or Production (economics), production of goods with the help of equipment, Work (human activity), labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of the secondary se ...

, born in

Tuttlingen Tuttlingen (; Alemannic: ''Duttlinga'') is a town in Baden-Württemberg, capital of the district Tuttlingen. Nendingen, ''Möhringen'' and ''Eßlingen'' are three former municipalities that belong to Tuttlingen. Tuttlingen is located in Swabia ...

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

. After completing his

apprenticeship Apprenticeship is a system for training a potential new practitioners of a trade or profession with on-the-job training and often some accompanying study. Apprenticeships may also enable practitioners to gain a license to practice in a regulat ...

at the Mauser company in the city of Oberndorf, he attended the Württemberg State Higher Mechanical Engineering School in Esslingen from 1925. was employed by Hugo Schneider AG (HASAG), a metal processing and armaments company with approximately 50,000 employees. Heckler, who initially worked as a senior

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who Invention, invent, design, build, maintain and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials. They aim to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while ...

, soon became one of the company's authorized officers, and was given the task of setting up branch plants in Leipzig, Berlin, Taucha and Altenburg. He later worked in the three latter plants during

WWII World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. On December 28, 1949, together with two other Mauser engineers

Theodor Koch Theodor Koch (13 May 1905 – 21 October 1976) was a German engineer, investor and weapons manufacturer, born in Zuffenhausen, Germany. As a young man, Koch apprenticed as a precision mechanic. After completing his apprenticeship he attended ...

and

Alex Seidel Alex Seidel (4 July 1909 – 24 October 1989) was a German weapons manufacturer and the co-founder of Heckler & Koch Heckler & Koch GmbH (HK or H&K; ) is a German firearms manufacturer that produces handguns, rifles, submachine guns, and gr ...

, he founded

Heckler & Koch Heckler & Koch GmbH (HK or H&K; ) is a German firearms manufacturer that produces handguns, rifles, submachine guns, and grenade launchers. The company is located in Oberndorf am Neckar, Baden-Württemberg and also has subsidiaries in the United ...

which later developed into one of the most important German arms manufacturers in the post-war period.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Heckler, Edmund German company founders 1906 births 1960 deaths People from Tuttlingen 20th-century German businesspeople