Bartels Concrete and Marble Works, 1949 – 1959 Pinneberger Straße 96.
Hermann Bartels with some of
his employees, 1964.
The changing face of our natural stone plant.
Dietrich (l) and Hartwich (r) Bartels
From a concrete plant to a marble works - over 50 years of Bartels.
Bartels marble works is older than the Federal Republic of Germany: it was founded on 1st January 1949 by Hermann Bartels.
Back then, rather than requiring marble and granite, Germany was in desperate need of more classic construction materials for its reconstruction, especially concrete. In light of this, today's marble works originally started out as a concrete production plant. Steps, paving slabs and precast concrete units made up the product range initially manufactured at our plant in Wedel's Industriestraße. Our clients were construction companies and builders. Many of these quickly became regular customers thanks to Bartel's dedication to meeting their special requirements: made-to-measure pieces, processed quickly and precisely. The specialists at Bartels were also capable of carrying out even the most complicated requests. And for those who needed guidance, help was always at hand.
Gradually, demand not only grew in terms of processing, but also concerning the material used. The market began to demand granite and marble – and Bartels responded.
Simple concrete components were now joined by more valuable products: complete house entry areas in granite, window sills and stairs made of marble. As demand became increasingly exigent, the range available in Wedel grew.
And this is how a concrete plant which also fulfilled unusual requests gave way to the dawn of a marble works. Clients demanded the processing expertise of Bartels, but now applied to more noble materials. In just a few years, one of Northern Germany's largest marble and granite warehouses grew from strength to strength, enabling clients to select exactly the marble, granite, quartzite, limestone or sandstone variety they required. Customers also had the freedom to decide upon the processing, which was carried out by Bartels specialists using the latest machine technology.
"Three decades represent a generation", declared company founder, Hermann Bartels, and handed the business over to his two sons, Dietrich and Hartwich Bartels, on 1st January 1979, thirty years after its establishment. In 1982, the brothers enhanced the product portfolio with a series of kitchen worktops, washbasins and custom-made pieces in marble, limestone, granite, quartzite and sandstone.
Hamburg's renowned bathroom fitters and kitchen specialists welcomed this new range, and satisfied customers made sure that Bartels quickly became one of the largest kitchen worktop manufacturers in Northern Germany. Of course, Bartels returned the favour for such successful collaboration with retailers: kitchen worktops were only sold via distributors, such as specialist kitchen stores, furniture shops and carpenters.
And the company stormed full steam ahead in its quest to become a natural stone specialist. In 1990, a large warehouse was constructed for tiles, obviously made of natural stone. Granite, various hard stone varieties and limestone were offered in a range of surface finishes. The area of exterior and garden constructions followed in the year 2000, with further warehouse expansion, enabling garden architects and landscapers to view over 30 types of terrace and path paving directly on-site and meet their individual requirements from the exhaustive offer available in stock.
Walls, paving and large size tiles up to 100 x 100 cm were sold worldwide and kept in stock in the warehouse. Since 2004, luxury cruise liners have also been furnished with special thin and light Bartels natural stone panels, meeting the sector's 'renewed' demand for extravagant and precise processing.
The Bartels team 2007
Corporate philosophy
Comprehensive service - marble is a luxury, and service at Bartels Marble Works could be compared to a high-class Italian restaurant. Although clients are welcome to make quick choices without further ado, the real pleasure is experienced when perfect service and excellent products unite to form a complete menu.
Of course, many Bartels clients order standard elements, which are then supplied in the perfect form - distributors in particular have worked like this for many years.
Nevertheless, the Bartels corporate philosophy is really only discovered by those who take advantage of the company's complete service offer. This is a combination of expert advice, planning, production and assembly.
From measurement taking and the provision of a free quote to the perfect installation by our very own staff members.
Marble and granite are luxury materials which deserve much more than standard service. Only in the individual Bartels comprehensive service can marble and granite be given the attention and care they deserve. Only such a process can reveal their true worth.
The beginning is usually represented by a hazy idea, such as a HiFi shelf.
If you were then to consult an expert Bartels advisor, he would start by asking you about your living room (or wherever you wish to assemble your self). What kind of room is it? How is it furnished? With which materials, which colours? Who uses the room? What kind of atmosphere does the owner want, what does he want to portray to others? Only after such questions have been answered can we turn to the topic of which material to use, whether marble, granite, limestone, sandstone or quartzite. A tour of the warehouse then offers the client a glimpse into the endless range of marble and granite varieties available. Together with the Bartels advisor, the customer makes a narrower selection. Next, we turn to form. Classic? A pyramid? Enhanced with a glass base? And what about the front edges? Round? Angular? Interrupted? Finally, the exact measurements are contemplated. This is an important step - after all, just one centimetre over or under could have a considerable affect on the overall appearance.
After this, a detailed quotation is issued. Obviously completely free of charge.
We also welcome our clients' clients directly.
For years, retailers and architects have been sending their customers to us to allow them to make better informed decisions concerning how they want their final marble and granite products. Experience has shown us that those who send us their clients reap the benefits of our dedicated and individual customer service, thus also helping to increasing their reputation. At Bartels, every customer is a VIP.
All Bartels departments are on hand to assist you.
In-house sales
Everyone who wishes to have a look round the marble and granite range at Bartels Marble Works is first welcomed by the in-house sales team. The in-house sales department is also responsible for processing quotes and confirming orders made by Bartels' sales partners: specialist kitchen stores, bathroom fitters, furniture traders, carpenters and, of course, architects. Given that the in-house sales team manages projects, it also plans and monitors all schedules and deadlines.
Field staff
The Bartels field staff visit all clients and potential clients wherever they wish. The field team is also happy to assist in the sales rooms of Bartels' sales partners, offering such entities the opportunity to enhance their own knowledge with the special Bartels marble expertise. This can only have a positive effect on customer satisfaction (and sales success).
It goes without saying that samples can also be brought along. With one limitation: the weight of marble and granite and the size of the Bartels warehouse (800 tonnes!) make it impossible to achieve the same impression of the extensive range when presenting samples outside of the plant. If the Bartels field team is given sufficient information beforehand, however, they can use their experience to make an individual pre-selection from the warehouse.
Production and quality control
The production team cuts and processes the products. Although this may sound straightforward, in reality, it is anything but. Granite is harder than steel. It can only be sawed or shaped by those who possess sufficient expertise and good machinery. If on top of this, a special form is required, a great deal of in-depth knowledge, reliability and strength is called for. All of our production and quality control staff have received additional internal training and always work to an extremely high standard.
The installation teams
These specialists start by creating 1:1 measurements in order to ensure that everything functions precisely. These employees also offer on-site support services. The teams are also responsible for the subsequent installation of the final pieces, thus completing the circle of responsibility.
