Sick AG

Sick AG

Type	Aktiengesellschaft
Industry	Industrial sensors
Founded	1946
Headquarters	Waldkirch, Germany
Revenue	1009.5 million euro (2013)[1]
Net income	€59.2 million euro (2013)[1]
Number of employees	6,597 (2013)[1]
Website	www.sick.com

The headquarters of Sick in Waldkirch

Sick AG (or SICK, as spelled by the company), based in Waldkirch (Breisgau), Germany, is a global manufacturer of sensors and sensor solutions for industrial applications. The company is active in the areas of factory and logistics automation and process automation. The company employs around 6,600 employees worldwide and achieved sales of EUR 1009.5 million in 2013.^[2]

The company is particularly well known for its laser scanners, which are used as sensors in the fields of facility protection (security), ports and robotics, too. Five LIDARs produced by the Sick AG were used for short-range detection on Stanley, the autonomous car that won the 2005 DARPA Grand Challenge; they can be seen on the roof of the vehicle. SICK/IBEO LIDARs were also used for obstacle avoidance, mapping and pedestrian tracking on WAMbot, the autonomous vehicle that came 4th in the MAGIC 2010 competition. Out of the 6,302 persons working for SICK AG, 3,836 are employed in Germany, with an average number of 239 trainees per year (as at December 31, 2012). SICK AG has ranked among Germany's best employers for several years.

History

Sick AG was founded in 1946 by Erwin Sick (1909-1988); he had received a license from the then US-managed local government to operate his engineering firm.

The economic breakthrough came in 1952 with the volume production of the accident-prevention light curtain, presented at the International Machine-Tool Trade Fair in Hanover. In 1956, the company moved from Vaterstetten to Waldkirch (Breisgau). SICK AG has a global presence with almost 50 subsidiaries and participations as well as numerous sales agencies. According to the company’s own statements, it invests about 9% of its sales revenue in research and development each year.

Products

The company’s product portfolio includes photoelectric sensors, light grids, inductive, capacitive and magnetic sensors, opto-electronic protective devices, vision sensors, detection, ranging and identification solutions such as bar code scanners and RFID readers, analyzers for gas and liquid analysis as well as gas flow measuring devices.

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Sick.