Bad Homburg/ Niedernberg, October 2026. – "On the basis of our know-how, our high level of vertical integration and the flexible organisation of our production in Niedernberg, we can deliver compact precision couplings in batches of 1 and up within 48 hours," says Frank Kronmüller, Managing Director of RINGSPANN StS since 1 September of this year. With this offer to manufacture numerous metal bellows, elastomer and safety couplings from its current range in record time, the company is meeting the exact needs of many gearbox manufacturers and users of industrial drive systems. Whether it is the customer-specific diversification of drive systems, the development of new automation concepts, test runs in pre-series status or time-critical repair problems – all these cases require a supplier that can provide small quantities of backlash-free precision couplings immediately and quickly. "Thanks to our high level of vertical integration at the Niedernberg site, we can also take many different customer requirements into account," emphasises Frank Kronmüller, who is regarded as an acknowledged expert in the subject due to his more than 25 years of work in the industry.

On the way to becoming a centre of excellence

In addition to its 48-hour service, RINGSPANN StS will be presenting a selection of its metal bellows, elastomer and safety couplings at this year's SPS in Hall 3, booth 324 (new). In addition, the company will be informing visitors about the current status of the transformation and modernization process that it will be undergoing in the coming weeks as the youngest member of the RINGSPANN Group. "Our quality management system was recently recertified in accordance with DIN ISO 9001 and, as part of a medium-term investment programme, we are currently driving forward process optimization in production, assembly and service. At the same time, we are creating important foundations for the expansion of our plant into an international centre of excellence for precision couplings (CPC)," reports Frank Kronmüller.

Close to the customer worldwide

Thanks to its integration into the Group's structures, RINGSPANN StS is increasingly benefiting from numerous synergy effects. For example, the company achieves close proximity to customers in all relevant markets for precision couplings through the integration of its own products into RINGSPANN's one-stop shop and the global orientation of the Group's sales organisation. In addition, RINGSPANN StS now has a development environment at its disposal in which both specific modifications and new solutions can be implemented quickly. "The fact that we now have access to RINGSPANN's test center means an enormous boost in innovation for us. It also strengthens our position as a manufacturer of special solutions and partner for new developments," says Frank Kronmüller.

Entry into new market segments

With the inclusion of backlash-free precision couplings in the one-stop shop, the RINGSPANN Group is once again taking a big step closer to its goal of acting as an all-rounder for important components of industrial drive technology. The strategic dimension of this expansion of the product range should not be underestimated. While the selection of shaft couplings was previously geared towards industrial and heavy-duty applications with extremely high torques, the portfolio now also includes compact precision couplings for medium and low torque requirements. This new product line opens completely new market segments for the company. It significantly enhances RINGSPANN's attractiveness as a supplier of shaft couplings for use in robotics, automation, packaging technology, medical and measurement technology, as well as in printing technology, the semiconductor industry and aerospace. "Machine and plant manufacturers in these sectors in particular benefit greatly from the advantages of backlash-free precision couplings, which incorporate a low moment of inertia, high torsional stiffness and have the ability to compensate for shaft misalignments," states Frank Kronmüller. ms

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Michael Stöcker, freelance specialist journalist, Darmstadt

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The one-stop-shop continues to grow

As part of its one-stop-shop strategy, RINGSPANN is purposefully pushing ahead with the expansion of central product divisions in industrial drive technology. One focus of the company is on shaft couplings. This is expressed, for example, in the acquisition of the US coupling manufacturer AISCO (2023), the German drive shaft manufacturer Kempf (2024) and the merger of StS Coupling and Steigerwald CNC-Technik to form RINGSPANN StS (2025). A clever move was recently the appointment of Frank Kronmüller as Managing Director of RINGSPANN StS. This is because his professional career and technical expertise are closely interwoven with the high relevance of precision couplings for the implementation of modern drive solutions.

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