Heinrich Witzenmann and a partner founded a jewellery factory in Pforzheim in 1854. Their invention of the metal hose opened up a new, promising industrial sector for the two entrepreneurs, with the result that jewellery production was abandoned. Today, Witzenmann GmbH (external link) is a manufacturer of metal hoses, expansion joints and vehicle parts, among other things, with more than twenty subsidiaries worldwide.
The entrepreneur and local politician Walter Witzenmann (external link) (1908-2004) studied economics and sociology; in 1935 he obtained his doctorate in philosophy under Alfred Weber in Heidelberg. He then worked at the Witzenmann company, which he later managed for decades in the third generation.
Walter Witzenmann died on 15 August 2004, the year in which Witzenmann GmbH celebrated its 150th anniversary.