Biography of Ernst Abbe

Ernst Abbe was a physicist, inventor, entrepreneur and social reformer. In all areas in which he was active, he made outstanding achievements and therefore played a decisive role in the technical lead, business success and continued existence of the two companies Carl Zeiss and SCHOTT.

With his foundation statutes of 1896, Abbe gave the enterprise a unique corporate constitution. In addition to revolutionary stipulations on corporate management and legally enshrined labor relations, the constitution reflected Abbe’s high degree of social commitment. Some examples include co-determination rights for the employees, paid vacation, profit-sharing, a documented right to retirement pensions, continued payment of wages in the event of illness and, from 1900, the eight-hour working day. This made the foundation companies Carl Zeiss and SCHOTT forerunners of modern social legislation. Abbe’s amazing creative power is impressively underscored in his numerous inventions and in his many publications on scientific, entrepreneurial and social issues. He died in Jena on 14 January 1905.

Achieves high growth rates for the company

Successful adaptation of corporate organization to the high growth rates
Creation of product groups with clear allocation of responsibilities to scientific, technical and commercial staff.

Sustained profitability despite enormous growth

Integration of R&D into the company in order to generate innovation
Scientific employees were hired for all product groups. They successfully created innovations and therefore achieved the technology leadership of Carl Zeiss

Training of capable employees and successors, also in the
entrepreneurial and commercial areas.

Implementation of high quality standards
by the appropriate training of capable employees and quality inspection

Diversification in the 1890s through the set-up of new business divisions:
• analytical measuring instruments
• cameras
• binoculars
• astronomical instruments
• defense optics

Initiation of internationalization process
Sales branches in London (1894), Vienna (1902) and St. Petersburg (1903).

Shortly after the development of the new microscopes, decisive breakthroughs were made in the field of bacteriology.

In 1904 Robert Koch wrote:

„I owe a large proportion of the success
I have achieved for science to your excellent microscopes."

In the decades before the First World War, medical research in Germany had a world standing that was paralleled only by the reputation enjoyed by the Zeiss instruments. Emil Behring in the field of serology or Paul Ehrlich in the field of chemotherapy are only two examples of many. Needless to say, their success was not attributable to their instruments alone, but the microscopes did play an important role.

The firm Carl Zeiss also created products for the field of chemistry, some of which were customized solutions: the gas interferometer for Fritz Haber, for example. Abbe persisted in his endeavors to also provide other manufacturers with new types of optical glass being thus a great help to the German optical industry.

Abbe was skeptical about the patenting of the products, which he saw as an obstruction to scientific progress in general. Not until competitive pressure made it unavoidable did the patenting of camera lenses and binoculars begin. However, his early pioneering work remained accessible for general use, which was a major help to instrument construction in Germany.

Carl Zeiss manufactured its products with almost unparalleled precision. In 1925 Albert Einstein wrote the following words to the firm Anschütz in Kiel about the production of a gyrocompass:

"As the accuracy requirements are so high,
the difficulties involved are so immense
that Zeiss is currently the only firm
that can achieve a feat of this magnitude."

With the aid of Abbe’s comparator principle, instruments for the highly accurate measurement of workpieces were produced. These were important aids for German industry which was geared more toward high precision production than toward mass manufacture.

The 1860s saw the start of the process of integrating science into industry. Other forerunners apart from Carl Zeiss included Siemens and Bayer. Ernst Abbe himself was a pioneer in this field and drove the process by hiring scientific personnel.

Many companies started introducing social policies in the late 19th century. Each of Abbe’s measures (health insurance, pensions, 8-hour working day, etc.) had forerunners. However, the decisive aspect about Abbe’s reforms was that he was strongly opposed to the “lord of the house” attitude of other industrialists and did not see these benefits as good, charitable deeds, but as the rights of his employees.

A council was set up to represent the interests of employees. Although this could not be seen as codetermination in the modern sense of the term, it did entitle the representatives to voice their opinion in all matters concerning the enterprise.

The statues of the Carl Zeiss Foundation helped to enshrine labor relations in law. This and these institutional mechanisms for conflict resolution are precursors of the concept known as the social market economy.

Tolerance was central to Ernst Abbe’s basic philosophy of life. Although he was certainly not a social democrat, it was important to him that this political party was able to evolve and develop freely. He was also vehemently against racism, a phenomenon which was already prevalent during his times. He ensured that no-one at Carl Zeiss suffered in any way due to their origin, religion or political affiliation. This attitude was reflected in the fact that two of his closest management colleagues, Siegfried Czapski and Rudolf Straubel, were Jewish citizens.

Abbe always attached great importance to the promotion not only of science and research, but also of culture. As a private citizen, Abbe supported the university with anonymous donations.