With the generational change in 2025, Josef Kränzle handed over the management of the family business to experienced hands: Ludwig Kränzle and Dr Mario Kordt now jointly manage the company's fortunes. With a quick-witted team behind them, they combine technical expertise, decades of experience and the ambition to consistently continue Kränzle's values and success story while at the same time setting new impulses for the future.
Ludwig Kränzle has been with the company since 1989. After starting out as production manager in the family business, he was promoted to the management board in 2010 and appointed managing director of sales in 2012. Following the retirement of his father Josef Kränzle from the management board, Ludwig Kränzle now shares overall management responsibility with Dr Mario Kordt. In this position, he aims to continue and expand the values and success of the company.
Ludwig Kränzle cares deeply about the well-being of the workforce, as he is convinced that the success of the company depends on the entire team. That is why he listens closely to his employees. He values constructive and open communication and attaches great importance to modern workplace design and regular company events to promote team motivation. Well-organised structures are designed to promote independent work and make everyday working life easier, while informal get-togethers at company parties further enhance the atmosphere within the company.
In his free time, Ludwig Kränzle, like his father, is closely associated with football, having played actively for 30 years. He is also involved in various institutions, currently including the Chamber of Industry and Commerce.
Dr Mario Kordt holds a doctorate in mechanical engineering with a focus on production technology and has many years of experience in the industry. Born in Aachen, he was, among other things, Chief Technical Officer at Michael Weinig AG, the global market leader in woodworking machinery, before joining Kränzle.
He has been contributing this comprehensive expertise in production, development, corporate management and international sales as Managing Director at Kränzle since 2025, working together with Ludwig Kränzle to continue the company's success.
Michael Iske has been a pillar of our company since April 2010. With over a decade of experience, he has proven himself to be an extremely competent and dedicated operations manager. In 2019, he took over overall production management and was simultaneously appointed to the Executive Board.
With his extensive knowledge and strategic thinking, Michael Iske contributes significantly to the success and further development of our production processes. His leadership qualities and innovative spirit are an indispensable part of our corporate philosophy.
We are proud to have Michael Iske on our management team and look forward to continuing to work together to continuously improve our production standards and further strengthen our market position.
Josef Kränzle was born in Illertissen in 1944, the second of four children. After training as an iron turner, he became the youngest master craftsman in the chamber district in 1966 at the age of 21 and ventured into self-employment eight years later with a used lathe. Through hard work and thanks to his wealth of ideas, Josef Kränzle developed his company over the following decades into one of the most successful in its industry, which continues to grow steadily to this day and offers its customers innovative and high-quality cleaning solutions thanks to numerous patents and new developments.
In 2025, Josef Kränzle retired from the management board, but remains associated with the company as a shareholder and source of ideas.
Incidentally, Josef Kränzle has been involved in football since his youth, when he narrowly missed promotion to the 2nd Bundesliga twice as goalkeeper for the amateur league team SSV Ulm 1846. This connection continues to this day, with him still supporting FV Illertissen after ending his active career. Josef Kränzle is also involved in politics. In the 1996 local elections, he ran for the first time for the Illertissen City Council and the Neu-Ulm District Council. He was elected to both bodies with impressive results. In 2008, he was 2nd Mayor of Illertissen.
Josef Kränzle has received numerous awards in his career to date:
