The young couple, Carl Albert and Emilie Greiner, founds the company in Nürtingen, Germany and opens a general store, which amongst other goods sells bottled soda water sealed with hand-made corks.
Carl Albert Greiner receives a patent for a quadruple cork cutting machine, which replaces purely manual cutting to size. Following a visit to the World Exhibition in Paris, where he also sees a cork cutting machine, Carl Albert soon begins to supply other beverage producers with his bottle stoppers.
Hermann Greiner (Carl Albert’s second oldest son) is entrusted with the equipping and management of a cork stopper factory in Kremsmünster, Upper Austria. Hermann Greiner starts production on 1 July with a workforce of 45.
Greiner founds a branch in Chile, its first outside Europe. The company also has branches in Portugal, Spain and France and exports to Australia, Asia and the Americas.
During the year, the cork supplier countries impose exorbitantly high export duties. At the company, plastics and foam are already the object of consideration.
A machine for the production of PU flexible foam is installed in Nürtingen (Germany). Following typical teething troubles, business with foam develops in excellent fashion.
Foam manufacture commences in Kremsmünster using a small, non-automatic foam machine.
Success takes somewhat longer than in Germany.
Success takes somewhat longer than in Germany.
1960 sees the commissioning of the first injection molding machine in Kremsmünster. Beginning in 1962, plastic cups are manufactured at the suggestion of a customer and this launches Greiner Packaging.
Production of the first petri dishes in Germany commences and thus marks the birth of Greiner Bio-One. Reagent vessels and tubes are also soon offered.
Following initial activities as a sales partner for laboratory products from Nürtingen, Kremsmünster (Austria) also initiates its own production of petri dishes.
The two sales companies in Germany and Austria are merged under the new Greiner Holding AG, which is headquartered in Kremsmünster (Austria). During the year, the company is one of the first to respond to the opening up of the Eastern European transition economies and purchases a plant in Hungary.
In 1992, Greiner founds a joint venture with the Belgian company Recticel in order to push ahead with expansion in the foam area in Eastern Europe. In 1993, the joint venture is renamed Eurofoam GmbH.
Following restructuring on 1 January, all company units operate as single, independent entities. The group possesses an extensive and diversified product portfolio based on its core competences in the areas of plastics and foam.
Greiner Packaging purchases the Swiss company Sandherr with its K3 packaging know-how, which involves the combination of plastic and paperboard.
With Axel Kühner (2009) and Hannes Moser (2011), for the first time a Management Board formed by non-family members assumes responsibility for the group.
With a joint venture in South Africa, Greiner Foam International founds the first group location on the African continent and Greiner Bio-One starts to explore the Indian market. At the end of the year, the Greiner Group has 138 locations in 31 countries.
A group company is founded in China in order to provide the divisions with optimum support during and after market entry.
The most successful financial year in Greiner history. Presentation of the “Vision 2020” program and the “Plastics for Life” sustainability strategy.
Greiner Packaging expands in Turkey and purchases a majority holding in Greiner Packaging Teknik Plastik in Istanbul. This move is made with an eye to possible expansion in the Asian region.
17 October sees the groundbreaking ceremony for the enlargement of the existing headquarters in Kremsmünster to form the Greiner Campus. For the first time in its history the group has a workforce of more than 10,000 employees.
Greiner celebrates its 150th birthday. The Greiner Holding AG is renamed Greiner AG.
May sees the ceremonial opening of the Greiner Campus in Kremsmünster. Some EUR 16 million have been invested in the construction of this modern administrative and training center. The 11,000 m2 complex includes a multi-level car park, an office building with superbly equipped workplaces, open workspaces, the Greinerei bistro and the new Greiner Training Center with apprentice workshops, conference and seminar facilities.
After eighteen years, with the closing on 1 July 2020, Greiner acquires the remaining 50% of the Eurofoam joint venture from the Belgian Recticel Group and thus strengthens its activities in the foam area. Eurofoam is the leading manufacturer of polyurethane flexible foam in Central and Eastern Europe and has 62 locations in seventeen countries.
Since February 2021 Greiner Foam International GmbH operates under the name of NEVEON Holding GmbH. NEVEON is a leading global integrated foam group. In December 2021 Greiner Extrusion was sold to the Dutch-German investment company Nimbus.
Future business must be developed just as professionally as the existing areas must be continually improved and expanded. Greiner Innoventures was founded with this motivation and for the long-term success of the group of companies. Since its foundation, five investments have already been realized: Temprify, Zeroplast, Liquibot, Hempstatic and MATЯ.