Featured Insight The rise of Professor Milberg is the good news that Rover's under-threat Longbridge plant was waiting for, motor industry sources believe. But Dr Reitzle was overlooked after it became known that he had been considering jumping ship to head rival car group Porsche and Mr Pischetsrieder was chosen to head the company in his place. Editor's Picks
Read more... He is target-driven but I think his appointment will end the boardroom in-fighting," said a motor industry source. A union source added that Prof Milberg was regarded as "a safe pair of hands".
WHEN WOLFGANG REITZLE, until then a “car man” through and through, joined Linde in 2002, he found himself at the top of a pretty phlegmatic conglomerate, where each division and each subsidiary was playing a largely autonomous game to its own idiosyncratic rules. He was chairman of the Rover group between 1995 and 1997. "Milberg is well respected and pragmatic. Reitzle at once set about tightening the reins and focusing the group on its industrial gases and engineering business. Six months later he was appointed Chairman.
And to understand Reitzle, you need to know two things. Wolfgang Reitzle is married to TV presenter Nina Ruge, and since Linde relocated its headquarters in 2007 he has taken up residence in Munich again. They feared he wanted to cut production of Rover cars, possibly threatening the future of Longbridge. He studied Economics and Engineering in Munich. Three years later, he opted for a change of industry and joined capital goods manufacturer Linde AG as Member of the Executive Board with responsibility for Corporate Development and Technology. At the same time, von Linde diversified operations and began manufacturing engines in a move that would ultimately lead to the production of forklift trucks and the establishment of Linde's Material Handling division.In 2003, as new Chairman of the Board, Wolfgang Reitzle prescribed a comprehensive facelift for the entire conglomerate, aiming to refocus operations on the Gases and Engineering divisions. There was even a famous accident in 1995 when he lost control of a McLaren F1 sports car while hot-rodding outside Munich. He also demonstrated his long-term commitment to Longbridge." He was supposed to be the heir apparent to former BMW boss Eberhard von Kuenheim. His great-uncle Sir Alec Issigonis designed the Mini, which is built by Rover. Dr Reitzle has worked for the German firm since 1976 and has been behind a string of successful BMW models. He was hotly tipped to take the top job this time round but has failed to make it a second time. He refuses to shave off his trademark closely cropped beard and likes to wear smart suits and brogues. In 1895, von Linde first presented a process for the liquefaction of air by means of compression; a process that opened the door to the production of industrial gases. In 2006 he was voted "Manager of the Year". From 1983 onwards he held interim responsibility for research and development and in 1986 was appointed a Deputy Board Member. Prof. Dr. Reitzle began his career at BMW, where in 1987 he was appointed a regular member of the Executive Board, responsible for research and development. In 2006, Linde acquired the British industrial gases company BOC, in a deal that made it the world's leading supplier of industrial gases. One year later, he was made Executive Board Member responsible for Research & Development and from then on was widely expected to succeed von Kuenheim as Chairman. Mr Pischetsrieder is a popular figure with the unions. The BMW board is said to have run out of patience with his ability to turn around loss-making Rover.
Located near Lucca, it comprised some olive groves and a wine-growing area of approximately one hectare.
From simple beginnings as a specialist for manufacturing technology, Reitzle climbed the career ladder of the typical car executive at record speed.
By Andy Enright, 30 Jul 2020 Features In order to understand the BMW Z8, first you need to understand the man behind its genesis, Prof Dr Wolfgang Reitzle. Wolfgang Reitzle, CEO of Linde Group, is not short on ambition. Early life and education. He had outmanoeuvred Volkswagen chairman Ferdinand Piech for the rights to the Rolls-Royce brand name and was promising to build a new generation of top quality Rolls cars. Duncan Simpson, chief Rover negotiator for the Amalgamated Engineering and Electrical Union, said: "Mr Pischetsrieder secured the confidence of the unions because he is an honest and open negotiator.
The extravagant BMW 8 series was his pet project and his autobiography was called Luxus schafft Wohlstand – Luxury Creates Wealth. Gabriele Röhrl draws on trust and deep relationships to give her clients in the machinery, engineering, transportation, and process industries… Ruge is the daughter of an engineering professor and visited the Ina-Seidel-Schule in Braunschweig.Her sister Annette is an aeromedical doctor at the European Aviation Safety Agency in Cologne. He has held several top jobs with BMW including head of engine production, head of the technical planning division and general manager. The Bavarian is a car enthusiast - one of his most prized possessions is a Rolls-Royce Phantom II.