Our History

With the AFM (Active Flow Meter), the founders achieve a first milestone that gives Sonplas a unique selling point and many customers. The special feature: The innovative component efficiently combines high-pressure generation and flow measurement.

Getting capable young people excited about the future of the company and ensuring that they receive professional training has been on Sonplas’ agenda since 1996. Since then, an average of ten new trainees start their careers every year.

Sonplas lands another success with hydroerosive grinding. Here, the company establishes another unique selling point in the field of deburring, rounding and flow calibration. Using an abrasive fluid in varying degrees of fineness, internal burrs can be smoothed and bore intersections rounded.

Nach dem Bau des ursprünglichen Gebäudes im Jahre 2001 steht bereits kurz darauf eine erste Erweiterung an, ein Anbau an die bisherige Produktionshalle. Diesen bezieht Sonplas 2008 – heute, zusammen mit dem ursprünglichen Gebäude, bekannt als Werk 1.

The development of hydroerosive grinding has far-reaching consequences – positive, of course – as the grinding process enables Sonplas to build up a global customer base. At the same time, Sonplas enters the field of pump testing, thus expanding its product portfolio.

The introduction of a service department is also due to the growth. This means that Sonplas is quickly and reliably available for maintenance and repairs at the customer’s site or remotely.

The first 20 years are up sooner than expected and Sonplas is celebrating its birthday. The company’s balance sheet: positive throughout. Healthy growth and a unique cohesion among the employees form the basis for the coming events.

The next addition to the portfolio is the entry into the field of ” aerospace technology”. Here, the focus is primarily on systems for the hydraulic and pneumatic testing of components. In concrete terms, this means: maintenance of aerospace equipment, radiation image measurement, functional testing of pumps and pneumatic pressure testing of pipes.

Actively shaping the future of mobility? Sonplas is succeeding in this with its entry into e-mobility. Initially, the focus is on assembly systems for rotors and stators, soon followed by the expansion of competence for assembly and testing technology in key production, for inverters and EMC filters as well as other powertrain components.

2017 will see the start of construction of Plant 2, directly opposite the first plant. From 2018, our customers’ systems will be developed and manufactured on a further total of around 6000 square meters of production space.

The new hall is completed in time for the company’s 25th anniversary. With the inauguration of Plant 2, there is now just under another 9600 square meters of office and production space available.

The battery product area is another innovation key driver at Sonplas. In the field of laser notching, i.e. the laser-assisted cutting of electrode material for batteries, Sonplas can draw on its extensive knowledge and experience in laser cutting processes. These competencies can also be applied to battery technologies such as pouch cells, solid-state or redox flow. Other technologies, e.g. for stacking the electrode material, are currently under development.

In addition, Sonplas begins the development of a hydrogen test stand to be used for hydrogen-carrying components in the corresponding engine.

Following the company’s entry into the hydrogen sector in 2020, the associated test bench and in-house test center will be ready for operation in 2022. The first customer projects with tests on the promising energy carrier will start in the third quarter.

The next expansion will follow in 2023 with the purchase of an existing building as the future Plant 3. This will become home to the IT, as well as software and service departments. The management board is also being expanded: Michael Frankl and Christian Wachtmeister will supplement the company’s lead management under Herbert Frankl as of January 2023.