Our history

Very old photo of a tractor transporting logs

From the sawmill to the company group

Since 1875, our mission has been to process the sustainable and versatile raw material that is wood into innovative products. In doing so, we aim to create added value today and for the future. We rely on innovation, a solution-driven approach and attention to quality. As a family business in its fifth generation, we see our cooperative and family-like culture as the basis for further development.

Fascination with wood since 1875

We have dedicated ourselves to wood since Leonhard Lehmann established the first sawmill at Erlenhof in 1875. We process the material in state-of-the-art facilities, combining high-tech equipment with traditional craftsmanship. At the same time, we are always in search of new applications and pursue groundbreaking new ideas. From its beginnings with the original sawmill many years ago, the Lehmann Group has now grown into three companies with more than 300 employees. Today, it is the workplace, business centre and inspiration for employees and customers from all over the world.

«My grandfather firmly believed that finding new possibilities was a joint effort. This is still true and will continue to remain so. We can count on our team and their expert knowledge, experience, creativity, commitment and pleasure in timber.»

Katharina Lehmann, CEO and Owner

Our history in pictures

1875 | Sawmill is established | Leonhard Lehmann builds a waterwheel-powered sawmill at Erlenhof and carries out the first work.

1905 | Generation change | Leonhard and Martina Lehmann-Eilinger buy the sawmill and a portion of the farm.

1914 | The sawmill grinds to a halt | The economic situation in Eastern Switzerland deteriorates. Nothing is built. The sawmill grinds to a halt when the First World War breaks out and the family lives off farming.

1935 | Sawmill and carpentry | Leonhard and Marta Lehmann-Ledergerber take over as the third generation. They expand sawmill operations to include a carpentry workshop.

1939 | War years: Marta Lehmann takes the helm | The Second World War breaks out. Leonhard Lehmann and his employees must enlist along with the transport horses. Marta Lehmann keeps the business going with the help of an apprentice and servicemen temporarily released from duty.

1945 | Building and expanding | Leonhard Lehmann completes a new building. Supported by brother-in-law Otto Ledergerber, brother Max Lehmann and veteran staff, Leonhard and Marta Lehman continue to expand the company.

1959 | Family enterprise | The parents Leonhard and Marta Lehmann-Ledergerber arrange succession and found a family-owned stock company.

"We all sat together at the table in the dining room and the kitchen, and formed a big community on both workdays and Sundays – our 9-person family, the journeymen, apprentices and young women. Being together with one another, talking with each other and helping out in the house and the business helped to clearly shape our everyday lives." Norbert Lehmann

1960 | Expansion with joinery and window construction | The timber construction company Scheiwiler is bought, allowing the establishment of a branch for carpentry and window construction.

1960-1975 | Further development and serial production | The company expands further in its specialist area of agricultural building, general timber construction, carpentry and the sawmill. "In the sixties, we built the first ‘T110’ Swiss standardised barns and developed them further. This meant that we didn’t produce just one barn in the carpenter’s assembly, but mostly a series of up to 20 units simultaneously." Magnus Ledergerber

1986 | Reorganisation | The business is reorganised: the timber market in Gossau is established, operations in Edliswil are relocated to Arnegg and the new company Lehmann Arnegg AG brings with it window construction, joinery and agricultural planning.

1988 | Automation | The first trimming line is installed.

1992 | Small timber processing, a new service | The new chipping plant at the sawmill paves the way for the processing of small timber.

1997 | Company take-over | The company Blumer Elementtechnik AG in Waldstatt is taken over.

2000 | Silo and system construction | The Lehmann company group enters the silo and system construction sector. They take over the silo construction division of the company Schmid in Wattwil.

2002/2003 | Internationalisation | The timber industry continues to develop. We expand our sawmill. We also implement some amazing timber construction projects in Switzerland and abroad, such as the ‘Trilogy’ at Expo.02 in Neuenburg.

2005/2008 | Adding to our skill set | With the take-over of Wey Modulbau AG, the construction of the new planing mill and the expansion of processing operations, the company group continues to add and strengthen its skill set.

2010 | Closed cycle | The sustainable production cycle goes full circle with the founding of Lehmann Energie AG and the commissioning of the ORC power plant.

2011 | International Free Form project | The Free Form construction division starts cultivating the international market.

2011 | Development of silo construction | The independent BL Silobau AG spins off from the silo construction division. Blumer-Lehmann GmbH is founded in Germany, specialising in brine technology.

2013 | Skill set expanded with pellet production | The company Beniwood AG and its expertise in pellet production is integrated into the company group as the subsidiary Lehmann Pellets AG.

2014/2015 | Competency centre for CNC technology | The founding of Timber Code AG and the commissioning of a new CNC technology centre creates a competency centre for complex CNC processing and freely formed wood elements.

2016 | Restructuring of the business divisions | Real estate activities combine into Lehmann Immobilien AG Fusion of Lehmann Energie AG, Lehmann Pellets AG and Lehmann Holzwerk AG Integration of the business activities of Lehmann Timber Code AG into Blumer-Lehmann AG

1875 | Sawmill is established | Leonhard Lehmann builds a waterwheel-powered sawmill at Erlenhof and carries out the first work.
1905 | Generation change | Leonhard and Martina Lehmann-Eilinger buy the sawmill and a portion of the farm.
1914 | The sawmill grinds to a halt | The economic situation in Eastern Switzerland deteriorates. Nothing is built. The sawmill grinds to a halt when the First World War breaks out and the family lives off farming.
1935 | Sawmill and carpentry | Leonhard and Marta Lehmann-Ledergerber take over as the third generation. They expand sawmill operations to include a carpentry workshop.
1939 | War years: Marta Lehmann takes the helm | The Second World War breaks out. Leonhard Lehmann and his employees must enlist along with the transport horses. Marta Lehmann keeps the business going with the help of an apprentice and servicemen temporarily released from duty.
1945 | Building and expanding | Leonhard Lehmann completes a new building. Supported by brother-in-law Otto Ledergerber, brother Max Lehmann and veteran staff, Leonhard and Marta Lehman continue to expand the company.
1959 | Family enterprise | The parents Leonhard and Marta Lehmann-Ledergerber arrange succession and found a family-owned stock company.
"We all sat together at the table in the dining room and the kitchen, and formed a big community on both workdays and Sundays – our 9-person family, the journeymen, apprentices and young women. Being together with one another, talking with each other and helping out in the house and the business helped to clearly shape our everyday lives." Norbert Lehmann
1960 | Expansion with joinery and window construction | The timber construction company Scheiwiler is bought, allowing the establishment of a branch for carpentry and window construction.
1960-1975 | Further development and serial production | The company expands further in its specialist area of agricultural building, general timber construction, carpentry and the sawmill. "In the sixties, we built the first ‘T110’ Swiss standardised barns and developed them further. This meant that we didn’t produce just one barn in the carpenter’s assembly, but mostly a series of up to 20 units simultaneously." Magnus Ledergerber
1986 | Reorganisation | The business is reorganised: the timber market in Gossau is established, operations in Edliswil are relocated to Arnegg and the new company Lehmann Arnegg AG brings with it window construction, joinery and agricultural planning.
1988 | Automation | The first trimming line is installed.
1992 | Small timber processing, a new service | The new chipping plant at the sawmill paves the way for the processing of small timber.
1997 | Company take-over | The company Blumer Elementtechnik AG in Waldstatt is taken over.
2000 | Silo and system construction | The Lehmann company group enters the silo and system construction sector. They take over the silo construction division of the company Schmid in Wattwil.
2002/2003 | Internationalisation | The timber industry continues to develop. We expand our sawmill. We also implement some amazing timber construction projects in Switzerland and abroad, such as the ‘Trilogy’ at Expo.02 in Neuenburg.
2005/2008 | Adding to our skill set | With the take-over of Wey Modulbau AG, the construction of the new planing mill and the expansion of processing operations, the company group continues to add and strengthen its skill set.
2010 | Closed cycle | The sustainable production cycle goes full circle with the founding of Lehmann Energie AG and the commissioning of the ORC power plant.
2011 | International Free Form project | The Free Form construction division starts cultivating the international market.
2011 | Development of silo construction | The independent BL Silobau AG spins off from the silo construction division. Blumer-Lehmann GmbH is founded in Germany, specialising in brine technology.
2013 | Skill set expanded with pellet production | The company Beniwood AG and its expertise in pellet production is integrated into the company group as the subsidiary Lehmann Pellets AG.
2014/2015 | Competency centre for CNC technology | The founding of Timber Code AG and the commissioning of a new CNC technology centre creates a competency centre for complex CNC processing and freely formed wood elements.
2016 | Restructuring of the business divisions | Real estate activities combine into Lehmann Immobilien AG Fusion of Lehmann Energie AG, Lehmann Pellets AG and Lehmann Holzwerk AG Integration of the business activities of Lehmann Timber Code AG into Blumer-Lehmann AG