Werner Stengel - Interview (1/2)

After having married young and not being blessed with richness during my second study of engineering I had to work in Munich during semester-break. Sheer coincidence led me to an engineering office for which a bumper car for carney Schippers and van der Ville from Hamburg had to be calculated for the company Schwarzkopf. This small office was rather specialized in concrete than in steel. Therefore, Mr Schwarzkopf was put off over and over again. I felt sorry for him because the delay of his due dates and this was why I asked my boss there to commit the bumper car project to me. My work found favour with Mr Schwarzkopf, Mr. van der Ville and the German Technical Control Board. Shortly after that, Schippers and van der Ville were planning the construction of Germany’s first rollercoaster made of steel. They attracted me with a money bonus to do the engineering for this rollercoaster. That option money convinced me and this was why I did work on this interesting piece of work besides my studies. While carrying out this project “Super-Acht” I realized that every single discipline of engineering is involved in the construction of a rollercoaster. I already was a structural engineer and I was studying in this subject to become graduated engineer. I also acquired engine construction, electro technology, and vehicle construction autodidactic as well. This was all very interesting to me and I knew that there was no rollercoaster engineering course of studies anywhere. Furthermore, I then believed in the industry that concentrates on leisure time. This was why I arrived at the decision to choose flying constructions as my profession. At the beginning of my career I rather worked on carrousels and big wheels than on rollercoaster projects. But nowadays approximately 90% of all our projects are rollercoaster projects..

Well, I would call myself a good and creative engineer, who consequently followed his visions, who believed in his abilities, and who always gathered a good team around him. I tried to lead people in a way which gave them the feeling of being treated and paid fair. As a human being I tried to listen to them and to be tolerant and objective, in which I definitively not always succeeded. As a family-man I am very happy and content with my marriage, my three children and four grandchildren.

No one should have any prejudices. But there is that German saying that can be translated: “Every theory is only gray!” In the 1960s we often sat together with a few engineers and passed the DIN 4112 for flying constructions very quickly. Nowadays, in my opinion, there are far too many external persons in those standards committees, a fact which not necessarily is increasing the speed and content their decisions. Security rules are there for the protection of the people, environment and moral values and are independent of any nationality. But on European level, and even on a world level, it is often tried to force through own interests which are formulated by non-experts.

Experts know and always knew that our achievements are always made by a team. Ideas, know-how and employees, who form a company’s capital, never do get lost. Besides, I’m still present in the office.