Fruehauf

The originally US-based company Fruehauf was founded in 1918 in Detroit and was focused on the production and sale of trailers and other technical equipment. Its founder, August Fruehauf, invented the concept of a semi-trailer as a non-motorized vehicle without a front axle, where part of the weight is transferred to the towing vehicle. With his invention, he started a whole new industrial segment.

During its existence, Fruehauf has brought a number of revolutionary inventions in the field of freight transport, for which it has held more than 1,000 patents, including the 1956 patent for shipping containers. Despite all its successes, Fruehauf declared bankruptcy in 1997. Subsequently, individual parts of the company had to be sold off, leading to the fact that the Fruehauf brand is now used by various companies in France, Mexico, Japan and New Zealand. In 2015, Wielton, the largest Polish manufacturer of trailer technology, bought a 65% stake in Fruehauf France.