Rebuilding

Siemensstadt goes “back to work” on September 8, 1945

World War II ended 75 years ago. Large areas of Berlin were in ruins. And in Siemensstadt, the heart of the company likewise suffered the impact of the war, and subsequently faced the greatest challenge in its history: rebuilding. The Siemens employees, with an almost family-like sense of solidarity, gradually returned to the factories and set about the massive task of restoring operations. It is to that group, who rebuilt Siemensstadt with great effort and hardships, that this film is dedicated.

If it has been possible to rebuild the House of Siemens after the almost hopeless situation at the end of the war, we owe that first and foremost to the loyalty and self-sacrifice of the employees working here.

Hermann von Siemens, “Head of the House” of Siemens, 1949

Only a few weeks after the war ended, factory life gradually began to stir again at Siemensstadt. But several years would pass before rebuilding was complete.

The war caused terrible damage to all of Siemens as a company, but Berlin was especially hard hit. Forty percent of fabrication space was destroyed; early in May 1945, shortly after war action in the city ceased, the Red Army confiscated the company’s bank accounts. As soon as they had occupied Siemensstadt, Soviet troops began dismantling machinery throughout and destroying or removing vast amounts of drawings, design documents, and accounting records. Over the following years, Siemens lost about 98 percent of its capacity all over the Soviet Occupation Zone to expropriation by dismantling.

Amid this plight, the workforce was the company’s greatest support. The few who still remained at the plants after the Russians occupied Siemensstadt tried to keep the dismantling to a somewhat orderly course. On September 8, 1945, Siemens began emergency production at its works. It made items needed for everyday use: bicycle tires, coal shovels, pots, frying pans, and more. Over the next two years, production of electrical equipment gradually resumed at Siemensstadt, and the Siemens team returned to their jobs. By December 1945, 14,000 of them were already working again. Training for apprentices returned at the same time. For some families whose fathers had been killed or taken prisoner, a trainee’s wages were the only source of income.

Rebuilding at the Siemens plants in Berlin was largely complete by 1951, and production was again running within organized channels. Scarce raw materials, a limited infrastructure and labor shortages made the path a bumpy one, but the Siemens team, united in their strength, made headway. Besides repairing the factories, initial orders already began coming in during the first postwar years – some of the most important of these were for installations and repairs for the railways and the post office, and restoring the telecommunications network and communications infrastructure in Berlin.

By the mid-1950s, Siemens had largely recovered from its difficult postwar years. But the Berlin site had undergone drastic changes. In light of the imminent partitioning of Germany, in 1949 management had felt compelled to formally relocate headquarters, at least provisionally, from Berlin to Munich and Erlangen. The Berlin Blockade and the impending establishment of two Germanys lent the final push for the decision. Yet Siemensstadt would remain an important part of the company and contributed to its continuing upswing in operations.

Join us for a trip into the past, and discover on film how the inhabitants of Siemensstadt and the Siemens employees experienced and overcame the end of World War II and the arduous rebuilding of Siemensstadt. The Siemens Historical Institute interviewed eyewitnesses and historians for the project. They give us their impressions in four exciting episodes.

Part One: A new start at Siemensstadt

The war was over. Large areas of Siemensstadt were in ruins. People there faced occupation, the dismantling of the factories, and extreme hardship. Part One of the film shows how the residents of Siemensstadt defied these hard times and dared to make a new start.

Part Two: Tenacity and solidarity

Within a few months, the situation in Siemensstadt and at the factories had stabilized somewhat, and people started turning their attention to the challenges ahead – which were massive. All the same, the Siemens employees found new courage and strength. They stuck together in these hard times, and joined forces to rebuild the company.

Part Three: Heading to the west

The postwar years brought drastic changes for the Berlin site: In 1949, given the political situation, the company management had felt compelled to formally relocate headquarters from Berlin to Munich and Erlangen. The Berlin Blockade and the impending establishment of the two German states lent the final push for this difficult decision.

Part Four: Looking ahead

By the early 1950s, Siemensstadt had been rebuilt and the company was looking ahead. Its next major step was a return to the global market. In this new era, the heart of Siemens was no longer situated in Berlin. Siemensstadt was overshadowed by other sites. But today, as plans for Siemensstadt 2.0 advance, Berlin is a focus of attention once again, and the site is stepping into a new future.