1953 Gerhard Hänel forms the company Hänel Büro- und Lagersysteme in Bad Friedrichshall, Germany. 1957 Hänel is the first manufacturer in Europe to offer mass-produced office carousels using the Ferris wheel principle. 1968 Plant 2 is brought on line in Wiesentheid, Bavaria. Introduction in the 70's of Hänel's first industrial vertical carousel. 1972 Plant 3 takes up production in Altstätten near St. Gallen. 1973 Hänel develops the first aluminum carousels.

1978

Hänel designs a heavy duty carousel with a storage capacity of more than 10 metric tons. The 80's see a vast extension of the range of industrial carousels worldwide. Hanel USA and Hanel France are founded. These are joined in 1990 by Hänel Netherlands.

1993

Hänel Germany is the first company in its sector (vertical lift technology) worldwide to be awarded the ISO 9001 certificate.

1994

The first Lean-Lift with vertical lift technology and a capacity of 250kg / 552lbs per container.

1995 Hänel Altstätten also awarded ISO 9001 certificate ­ the first company in its sector (vertical lift technology) in Switzerland. 1996 Lean-Lift with a capacity of 500kg / 1,104lbs per container. 1997/98 Vast expansion of production facilities utilizing the latest engineering technology. 1999 Lean-Lift with a capacity of 1,000kg / 2,208lbs per container. 2001 Hänel opens a new Demonstration Center in Bad Friedrichshall.

2003 Hänel moves into its new administration building. 2005 In a world premiere Hanel presented at the CeMAT Fair the 3-axis storage system Multi-Space – the new definition of vertical lift technology. 2007 50 Years of Hanel Vertical Carousels 2008 Today Hanel is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of industrial storage and office organization systems, with sales centers in more than 60 countries.