Berthold Leibinger has retired as chairman of the supervisory board of the Trumpf Group – and has been replaced by Jürgen Hambrecht, former chairman of the supervisory board of the BASF SE.
Leibinger had a long and close association with Trumpf, which he joined in 1950 as an apprentice mechanic. After studying mechanical engineering at Stuttgart Technical University and working for two years in the USA, Leibinger returned to Trumpf in 1961 as the company's chief designer.
In 1964 he became technical manager and partner, and in 1978 took over as president. In 2005 he handed over operational responsibility to his daughter, Nicola Leibinger-Kammüller.
In addition to his corporate functions, Leibinger also held a series of honorary positions. From 1985 to 1990 he was President of the Stuttgart Chamber of Trade and Industry, and until 1992 he was President of the German Engineering Federation.
