Entrepreneur Uwe Ziehl passes away at 79

KÜNZELSAU, Germany, 8 June 2026: The Ziehl family, the Supervisory Board, the Executive Board and all employees of Ziehl-Abegg are mourning the death of Uwe Ziehl. The entrepreneur and long-serving Chairman of the Supervisory Board died on June 6, 2026 at the age of 79, the company said through a June 8 Press Release.

With his passing away, Ziehl-Abegg said, it has lost a key figure who played a decisive role in shaping the company over several decades. As the grandson of founder, Emil Ziehl, he remained deeply committed throughout his life to the company, its employees and the region where it was established, the company said.

After completing his engineering studies, Uwe Ziehl founded Ziehl industrie-elektronik GmbH in Schwäbisch Hall in 1967. He went on to play a decisive role in developing Ziehl-Abegg into a globally operating technology company specialising in fans, electric motors and control systems, the company said.

One of the most important milestones during his career was bringing the family’s shareholdings together under a single holding structure, the company said. This step laid the foundation for Ziehl-Abegg’s continued development as an independent family-owned company and enabled substantial investment in research, development and manufacturing, the company added.

From 2005 to 2020, Uwe Ziehl served as Chairman of the Supervisory Board. In this role, he continued to guide the company’s strategic direction with strong commitment and technical expertise, the company said. His approach was shaped by long-term thinking, a clear focus on innovation and quality, and a strong appreciation for the people behind the company’s success, it added.

For many years, Uwe Ziehl drove the expansion of vertical integration and the strengthening of Ziehl-Abegg’s engineering capabilities, the company said. This included establishing in-house production of plastic components at the Gewerbepark Hohenlohe, as well as further developing the company’s aluminium foundry in Schöntal-Bieringen. Together, these investments created a manufacturing structure that remains one of the company’s key strengths, it added.

Joachim Ley, Chief Executive Officer of Ziehl-Abegg, said: “Uwe Ziehl played a decisive role in shaping Ziehl-Abegg. Over decades, he guided the company with clarity, technical expertise and entrepreneurial foresight. Our thoughts are with his family.”

Uwe Ziehl was born in Füssen in 1947 as the grandson of company founder Emil Ziehl. He grew up in Künzelsau and developed an early connection to the family business. Throughout his life, he remained closely tied to the region. He is survived by his wife and two children.

He prepared the generational transition within the family early on and, in 2021, handed over leadership responsibilities to the next generation. His son, Dennis Ziehl has served as Chairman of the Supervisory Board since January 2021.