The board of Konrad Hornschuch AG was surprised to learn last Thursday that Rolf J. Gemmersdörfer, President and CEO of the Hornschuch Group, had passed away Feb. 6 in his adopted hometown of Bad Mergentheim.

“The news shocked and devastated all of us,” said Dr. Hans-Hinrich Kruse, Chairman of the Board of Konrad Hornschuch AG. “We mourn for a man for whom closeness to the employees and Hornschuch was particularly important. This, together with his extraordinarily strategic foresight, his negotiating skill, and his highly committed personality shaped his dealings in the management of our company.”

Gemmersdörfer entered the company as the sole member of the board on Aug. 1, 1998. Since mid-2003, he has been the chairman of the board, which consisted of two members. During his tenure at the global surface specialist, he presided over the management buyout and subsequent private equity financing with the participation of an expanded management team. The turnover of the Hornschuch Group more than tripled during his years at the head of the company.

On Oct. 1, 2013, Gemmersdörfer assumed the position of the President and CEO of Hornschuch Group GmbH. His successor as the chairman of the board and CEO of Konrad Hornschuch AG was his colleague, Dr. Hans-Hinrich Kruse.

In addition to his function at Hornschuch, Gemmersdörfer was active in numerous honorary offices, including vice president and Senator h. c. of the Senat der Wirtschaft, on the board of the Wirtschafts- und Arbeitgeberverband Südwesttextil, and in the advisory board of the Bad Mergentheim campus of the Duale Hochschule Baden-Württemberg, Mosbach. Gemmersdörfer repeatedly campaigned for the concept of the Duale Hochschule, a matter close to his heart, in particular.

Gemmersdörfer was 61.

 For more information, contact Axel Schmidt 49 (0)7947 81-522 or axel.schmidt@hornschuch.de.