SIG Sauer is since the 1970s a combined brand name of several Firearms manufacturing companies, with SIG referring to ''Swiss Industry Group'' originally founded 1853, while the latter part comes from

Sauer & Sohn J. P. Sauer und Sohn GmbH (Sauer & Sohn) is a manufacturer of firearms and machinery and is the oldest firearms manufacturer still active in Germany. The products of this company are frequently referred to as Sauer. J. P. Sauer und Sohn Histor ...

, founded in 1751 in Germany and still active there. With Switzerland limiting the export of weapons, the partnership started with the

SIG Sauer P220 The SIG Sauer P220 is a semi-automatic pistol designed in 1975 by the SIG Arms AG division of Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (now SIG Holding AG), and produced by J. P. Sauer & Sohn, in Eckernförde. It is currently manufactured by both ...

in 1975. Several sister companies design and manufacture firearms using the

trade name A trade name, trading name, or business name is a pseudonym used by companies that do not operate under their registered company name. The term for this type of alternative name is fictitious business name. Registering the fictitious name with ...

SIG Sauer and it is also a registered

brand name A brand is a name, term, design, symbol or any other feature that distinguishes one seller's goods or service from those of other sellers. Brands are used in business, marketing, and advertising for recognition and, importantly, to create and ...

. The original company, ''Schweizerische Waggonfabrik'' (SWF), later ''Schweizerische Industrie-Gesellschaft'' (SIG), went through several selloffs, leaving the SIG Sauer brand spread over several companies. The original SIG is now known as

SIG Group SIG Group AG is a Swiss multinational corporation and one of the biggest manufacturers in the packaging industry. Originally founded 1853 as a railway car producer named ''Schweizerische Waggonfabrik'' ("Swiss Wagon Factory"), it was renamed ...

and no longer has any firearms business. * The German company branch was SIG Sauer GmbH & Co. KG. It was formed in 1976 as a partnership between

Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft SIG Group AG is a Swiss multinational corporation and one of the biggest manufacturers in the packaging industry. Originally founded 1853 as a railway car producer named ''Schweizerische Waggonfabrik'' ("Swiss Wagon Factory"), it was renamed ...

(SIG) of

Switzerland Switzerland, officially the Swiss Confederation, is a landlocked country located in west-central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the south, France to the west, Germany to the north, and Austria and Liechtenstein to the east. Switzerland ...

and J.P. Sauer & Sohn of Germany before going defunct in 2020. * The Swiss company is SIG Sauer AG. Its predecessor SIG Arms AG was sold to L&O Holding in

western Germany The old states of Germany () is a jargon referring to the ten of the sixteen states of the Federal Republic of Germany (FRG) that were part of West Germany and that unified with the eastern German Democratic Republic's 5 states, which are giv ...

and was first renamed SAN Swiss Arms AG, commonly known as

Swiss Arms SIG Sauer AG is a Swiss manufacturer of armaments. The company is part of L&O Holding, which also owns the German-based SIG Sauer GmbH & Co. KG and the US-based Sig Sauer Inc. The company was previously registered as SAN Swiss Arms AG and chang ...

, and in late 2019 was further renamed SIG Sauer AG. * The American company is Sig Sauer, Inc (stylized as SIG SAUER). Its predecessor SIGARMS was founded in

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

in 1985 to import and distribute SIG Sauer firearms into the United States: Its headquarters were moved to

New Hampshire New Hampshire ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec t ...

in 1990. This company was renamed Sig Sauer, Inc. in 2007, and since 2000 is organizationally separate from SIG Sauer GmbH. L&O Holding is the parent company of the Swiss SIG Sauer AG and the American Sig Sauer Inc.

History

1853–1863

The origins of the SIG Sauer company lie in the company named Schweizerische Waggonfabrik ("Swiss

Wagon A wagon (or waggon) is a heavy four-wheeled vehicle pulled by Working animal#Draft animals, draft animals or on occasion by humans, used for transporting goods, commodities, agricultural materials, supplies and sometimes people. Wagons are i ...

Factory"), which was founded in 1853 by

Friedrich Peyer im Hof Johann Friedrich Peyer im Hof (18 June 1817 in Schaffhausen – 18 May 1900) was a Swiss politician A politician is a person who participates in Public policy, policy-making processes, usually holding an elective position in government. Politi ...

(1817–1900), Heinrich Moser (1805–1874) and Johann Conrad Neher (1818–1877). The group pooled their engineering talents and created the Prelaz-Burnand rifle, known as the "Prélaz-Burnand 1859" or "Prelaz-Burnand 1860" rifle. The invention of this rifle is credited to

gunsmith A gunsmith is a person who repairs, modifies, designs, or builds guns. The occupation differs from an armorer, who usually replaces only worn parts in standard firearms. Gunsmiths do modifications and changes to a firearm that may require a very ...

Jean-Louis Joseph Prélaz and army officer Edouard Burnand. The rifle was submitted to an 1860 competition by Switzerland's Federal Ministry of Defence. It won and in 1864 the company was awarded a contract to produce 30,000 Prelaz-Burnand rifles, adopted as the M1863.

1864–1975

Upon receiving the 1864 government contract to produce rifles, the company name was changed to

(SIG, German for "Swiss Industrial Company"), known as Société Industrielle Suisse in French-speaking regions of Switzerland, reflecting the new emphasis on their production. The

SIG P210 The SIG P210 ( Swiss Army designation Pistole 49, the civilian model was known as SP47/8 prior to 1957) is a locked breech self loading, semi-automatic pistol designed and manufactured in Neuhausen am Rheinfall (Canton of Schaffhausen, Switzer ...

pistol was developed in 1947 based on the French Modèle 1935 pistol (the Petter-Browning design was licensed). It was adopted by the Swiss military in 1949 as the "Pistole 49". This single-action semi-automatic P210 brought SIG much acclaim, due to the precision processes employed in its manufacture and its resultant accuracy and reliability. The P210 frame design incorporates external rails that fit closely with the slide, thus eliminating play in the mechanism during firing. The P210 was noted for its extreme accuracy. The Petter-Browning patent was a refinement of the Browning Hi-Power (P35), which was

John Moses Browning John Moses Browning (January 23, 1855 – November 26, 1926) was an American firearm designer who developed many varieties of military and civilian firearms, cartridges, and gun mechanisms, many of which are still in use around the world. He ...

's last design which was created for the French 1935 pistol, but not adopted. Swiss law limits the ability of Swiss companies to export firearms. Swiss companies which wish to do this have to do so by using a foreign partner. So in the 1970s SIG purchased both Swiss Hämmerli and German J. P. Sauer and Sohn, which resulted in the formation of SIG Sauer.

1976–1984

SIG Sauer's line of handguns began in 1975 with the SIG Sauer

SIG P220 The SIG Sauer P220 is a semi-automatic pistol designed in 1975 by the SIG Arms AG division of Schweizerische Industrie Gesellschaft (now SIG Holding AG), and produced by J. P. Sauer & Sohn, in Eckernförde. It is currently manufactured by bot ...

. It was initially developed by SIG and produced and distributed by J.P. Sauer & Sohn, but in 1976 SIG bought J.P. Sauer & Sohn and the resultant company was called SIG Sauer GmbH, based in Germany. Prior to World War II, Sauer had been primarily a maker of

shotgun A shotgun (also known as a scattergun, peppergun, or historically as a fowling piece) is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed to shoot a straight-walled cartridge (firearms), cartridge known as a shotshell, which discharges numerous small ...

s and hunting

rifle A rifle is a long gun, long-barreled firearm designed for accurate shooting and higher stopping power, with a gun barrel, barrel that has a helical or spiralling pattern of grooves (rifling) cut into the bore wall. In keeping with their focus o ...

s. During the war, they produced a handgun, the

Sauer 38H The Sauer 38H or often just H was a small semi-automatic pistol made in Nazi Germany from 1938 until just after the end of World War II by J. P. Sauer & Sohn, then based in Suhl, Germany. The "H" in the model number is short for "hahn", referrin ...

, but afterward had withdrawn from this market. With SIG as their partner/owner, Sauer returned to the business of manufacturing handguns. Their

had been produced in competition with other German makers such as Mauser and Walther at a time when new designs began to feature a double/single-action trigger. This double-action trigger mechanism, combined with advanced safety features including the hammer-lowering decocking lever, was incorporated by Sauer into the new P220 design. This new P220 design was derived from the Petter-Browning design and was created in response to a Swiss military and police requirement for a handgun to replace the P210. This new P220 design should properly be called the

SIG Sauer system The SIG Sauer system is a type of Action (firearms), action found in self-loading handguns. It is a refinement of designs based on the work of both John Browning, John M. Browning and Charles Petter which began with the Colt_M1900, Colt Model 190 ...

, which was, in fact, the labeling on one of the first SIG Sauer handguns, a modified

design produced for the Browning Arms company in 1977. On the right side of the slide are the words "SIG Sauer System". This was the first SIG Sauer P220 type sold in the US.

1985–1999

In January 1985, SIG established a subsidiary, SIGARMS, Inc, in

Tysons, Virginia Tysons, also known as Tysons Corner, is a census-designated place (CDP) in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States, spanning from the corner of Virginia State Route 123, SR 123 (Chain Bridge Road) and Virginia State Route 7, SR 7 (Leesburg Pike ...

, to import the P220 and P230 models into the United States. Two years later the firm moved to a larger facility in

Herndon, Virginia Herndon is a town in Fairfax County, Virginia, United States. Located in Northern Virginia, it is part of the Washington, D.C., metropolitan area, Washington, D.C. metropolitan area. In 2020, the population at the census was 24,655, which makes i ...

, and introduced models P225, P226 and P228. SIGARMS moved to

Exeter, New Hampshire Exeter is a New England town, town in Rockingham County, New Hampshire, United States. Its population was 16,049 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, up from 14,306 at the 2010 census. Exeter was the county seat until 1997, when county ...

, in 1990 where production facilities had been established and production began on the

P229 The SIG Sauer P226 is a full-sized service pistol made by SIG Sauer. This model is available in four chamberings: the 9×19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, or .22 Long Rifle. It has the same mechanism of operation as the SIG Sauer P220, but is d ...

in 1992.

2000–2007

SIG's firearms subsidiaries in Germany and the United States and its firearms subdivision in Switzerland were all sold to Michael Lüke and Thomas Ortmeier's L&O Holding in October 2000. Its firearms subdivision in Switzerland became a subsidiary in its own right, SAN Swiss Arms AG, more commonly known as

, although its products still used the SIG Sauer brand. In 2004, according to CEO Ron Cohen, the company was near failure with just 130 employees. Cohen decided to add AR-15 style rifles to the company's product catalog, which he credits with saving the company. In 2007, SIGARMS changed its name to Sig Sauer, Inc., sometimes called Sig Sauer USA. By 2016, it had over 1,000 employees and was selling more than 43,000 firearms a year.

2008–2018

In 2014 news reports first emerged reporting arms sales by SIG to Colombia which were in contravention of German weapons trafficking laws. The reporting was corroborated by whistleblowers inside the company including in New Hampshire. It was alleged that SIG had filed false export paperwork with the German government for nearly 38,000 pistols. SIG claimed that the end user of the weapons was in the US when in fact they were in Colombia, a location to which weapons exports were banned by German law. In 2015, SIG Sauer expanded to include

suppressor A silencer, also known as a sound suppressor, suppressor, or sound moderator, is a gun barrel#Muzzle, muzzle device that suppresses the muzzle blast, blast created when a gun (firearm or airgun) is discharged, thereby reducing the sound inten ...

optics Optics is the branch of physics that studies the behaviour and properties of light, including its interactions with matter and the construction of optical instruments, instruments that use or Photodetector, detect it. Optics usually describes t ...

ammo Ammunition, also known as ammo, is the material fired, scattered, dropped, or detonated from any weapon or weapon system. The term includes both expendable weapons (e.g., bombs, missiles, grenades, land mines), and the component parts of oth ...

and

airgun An air gun or airgun is a gun that uses energy from compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized and then released to propel and accelerate projectiles, similar to the principle of the primitive blowgun. This is in contr ...

s, aiming to provide a greater range of firearm and firearm safety equipment and accessories. Also in 2015 human rights campaigners in Germany brought a lawsuit against SIG for allegedly not doing enough to prevent the use of their weapons by cartel groups in

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

The US military has produced a requirement for a new handgun to replace the current M9 model (

Beretta 92FS The Beretta 92 (also Beretta 96 and Beretta 98) is a series of semi-automatic pistols designed and manufactured by Beretta of Italy. History Carlo Beretta, Giuseppe Mazzetti and Vittorio Valle, all experienced firearms designers, contributed to ...

). In February 2016, bids were submitted by 12 companies to compete for this contract which was expected to result in purchases of more than 500,000 pieces. On 1 July 2016, SIG Sauer was reported to be one of three remaining competitors who were in consideration for this contract. On 19 January 2017, SIG Sauer was awarded the contract for the P320. In a press event on 25 July 2018, SIG Sauer announced that its airgun division was renamed to SIG Air, and introduced its Precision Line

air rifle An air gun or airgun is a gun that uses energy from compressed air or other gases that are mechanically pressurized and then released to propel and accelerate projectiles, similar to the principle of the primitive blowgun. This is in contr ...

s, starting with the ASP20 break-barrel gas piston air rifle. On 5 November 2018, the

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and Admiralty law, law enforcement military branch, service branch of the armed forces of the United States. It is one of the country's eight Uniformed services ...

, which has long used the .40 caliber SIG P229 as its duty sidearm, announced that it will acquire the SIG Air ProForce P229 airsoft pistol (which was then produced under

brand licensing Brand licensing means renting or leasing of an intangible asset. It is a process of creating and managing contracts between the owner of a brand and a company or individual who wants to use the brand in association with a product, for an agreed ...

by French

airsoft Airsoft, also known as survival game () in Japan where it was popular, is a team sport, team-based shooting sport, shooting game in which participants eliminate opposing players out of play by shooting them with airsoft pellets, spherical plast ...

manufacturer CyberGun) as its new training pistol to give cadets and guardsmen the ability to practice gun handling, conduct target practice in various environments, and train in realistic force-on-force scenarios. SIG Air announced that "we are rapidly expanding the SIG AIR business, and it is important to us to assume full control to ensure all SIG Air products are of the highest quality", and they will no longer be licensing the "SIG" brand or trademarks for sale by commercial airsoft manufacturers. In April 2018 prosecutors in Kiel brought criminal charges against SIG and the executives who had been involved in the illegal arms trafficking to Colombia. Chief Executive Ron Cohen was arrested at Frankfurt Airport.

2019–2022

In April 2019 Cohen and two other executives were convicted of breaking export laws. Cohen was given an 18-month suspended sentence and fined $675,000. The German division of SIG was fined $12 million by the court. In late 2019, Swiss Arms was renamed SIG Sauer AG. On 4 June 2020, SIG Sauer GmbH announced it intended to close its factory at

Eckernförde Eckernförde (; , sometimes also ; , sometimes also ) is a city located in the of Rendsburg-Eckernförde, Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. Situated on the coast of the Baltic Sea, approximately 30 km north-west of Kiel, it has a populat ...

by year's end, resulting in losses of about 125 jobs as well as plans to fulfill purchase orders. It blamed "locational handicaps" hindering its sales, claiming "a few other local producers" were preferred in government purchases for the German police forces and the

Bundeswehr The (, ''Federal Defence'') are the armed forces of the Germany, Federal Republic of Germany. The is divided into a military part (armed forces or ''Streitkräfte'') and a civil part, the military part consists of the four armed forces: Germ ...

. According to SIG Sauer GmbH CEO Tim Castagne, "due to its international orientation, SIG Sauer is systematically excluded from tenders

n Germany N, or n, is the fourteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages, and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

On 19 April 2022, the

US Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of the United Stat ...

, following a 27-month evaluation process, announced it had awarded SIG Sauer a contract for two Next Generation Squad Weapon (NGSW) variations, the XM7 and XM250 automatic rifle, as well as for the 6.8 common cartridge ammunition used by both rifles. The initial value of the award was $20.4 million for the delivery of the weapons, ammunition, and accessories. The XM7 and XM250 are planned to replace the

M4 carbine The M4 carbine (officially Carbine, Caliber 5.56 mm, M4) is a 5.56×45mm NATO assault rifle developed in the United States during the 1980s. It is a shortened version of the M16A2 assault rifle. The M4 is extensively used by the US mi ...

and M249 light machine gun, respectively. In July 2022, the company opened the SIG Experience Center in Epping, co-located with the SIG Sauer Academy. The Experience Center includes a retail store, indoor shooting range, company museum, conference center, and corporate offices.

2023

In 2023, the most popular handgun for US law enforcement and Customs and Border Protection, the P-320, came under fire for unintentional discharge of the firearm. The semi-automatic pistol is used internationally, and the 80+ cases were limited to North America. The company said the gun is safe, and the cases were due to improper handling and a lack of

gun safety Gun safety is the study and practice of managing risk when using, transporting, storing and disposing of firearms, airguns and ammunition in order to avoid injury, illness or death. Gun safety includes the training of users, the design of fi ...

standards. According to gun safety officials, the user can avoid such discharge by "keeping the finger outside the trigger guard until the decision is made to shoot"."Can You Really Prevent Unintentional Discharges?"
''force.science.com''. Accessed 11 April 2023.

Products

SIG Sauer brand

Semi-automatic pistols

;Full size * P210 * P220 * P226 * P227 *

SIG Sauer P320 The SIG Sauer P320 is a modular semi-automatic pistol made by SIG Sauer, Inc., SIG Sauer's American branch. History The P320 chambered in 9×19mm Parabellum was introduced in the North American market on 15 January 2014, followed by the .45 A ...

* SIG Pro series (2009, 2022, 2340) * GSR *

Mosquito Mosquitoes, the Culicidae, are a Family (biology), family of small Diptera, flies consisting of 3,600 species. The word ''mosquito'' (formed by ''Musca (fly), mosca'' and diminutive ''-ito'') is Spanish and Portuguese for ''little fly''. Mos ...

* 1911 Series *

SIG Sauer M17 The SIG Sauer M17 and M18 are service pistols derived from the SIG Sauer P320 in use with the United States Armed Forces. Design When the requirements were formulated for a new handgun for the U.S. Army, one of the tenets of the proposal was ...

;Compact size *

P224 The SIG Sauer P226 is a full-sized service pistol made by SIG Sauer. This model is available in four chamberings: the 9×19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, or .22 Long Rifle. It has the same mechanism of operation as the SIG Sauer P220, but ...

* P225 *

P228 (M11) The SIG Sauer P226 is a full-sized service pistol made by SIG Sauer. This model is available in four chamberings: the 9×19mm Parabellum, .40 S&W, .357 SIG, or .22 Long Rifle. It has the same mechanism of operation as the SIG Sauer P220, but ...

* P230/P232 * P239 * P245 * SIG Sauer M18 * P322 ;Micro Compact * P238 * P290 * P290RS * P365 * P938 ;Modular * P250 Series * P320 Series

Submachine guns

* MPX

Rifles

* SSG 2000 * SSG 3000 * SIGM400 * SIG516 * SG 550 * SG 563 * SG 711 * SIG MCX * SIG MCX-SPEAR ** XM7 rifle *

CROSS A cross is a religious symbol consisting of two Intersection (set theory), intersecting Line (geometry), lines, usually perpendicular to each other. The lines usually run vertically and horizontally. A cross of oblique lines, in the shape of t ...

( AR-style

bolt-action Bolt action is a type of manual Action (firearms), firearm action that is operated by ''directly'' manipulating the bolt (firearms), turn-bolt via a cocking handle, bolt handle, most commonly placed on the right-hand side of the firearm (a ...

hybrid "precision hunting" rifle) * SIG Sauer SIGM400 (AR-15 style semi-automatic rifle)

Light machine guns

* MG 338 ** XM250

SIG Air brand

Air pistol

* SIG Air P226 ASP * SIG Air P320 ASP * SIG Air P320-M17 * SIG Air X-Five ASP * SIG Air P365 * SIG Air 1911 * SIG Air Precision Super Target Air Pistol ( single-stroke pneumatic pistol)

Air rifle

* SIG Air MPX ASP * SIG Air MCX ASP * SIG Air MCX Virtus PCP * SIG Air ASP20 ( break barrel gas piston spring air rifle)

Airsoft

* SIG Air ProForce M17 * SIG Air ProForce M18 * SIG Air ProForce P229 * SIG Air ProForce MCX Virtus

AEG The initials AEG are used for or may refer to: Common meanings * AEG (German company) ; AEG) was a German producer of electrical equipment. It was established in 1883 by Emil Rathenau as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte El ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Sig Sauer Companies based in Rockingham County, New Hampshire Firearm manufacturers of Germany Firearm manufacturers of Switzerland Firearm manufacturers of the United States Firearm importation companies of the United States Lüke & Ortmeier Gruppe Companies based in New Hampshire