Staedtler Mars GmbH & Co. KG () is a German multinational

stationery Stationery refers to commercially manufactured writing materials, including cut paper, envelopes, writing implements, continuous form paper, and other office supplies. Stationery includes materials to be written on by hand (e.g., letter paper) ...

manufacturing company Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to a r ...

based in

Nuremberg Nuremberg ( ; german: link=no, Nürnberg ; in the local East Franconian dialect: ''Nämberch'' ) is the second-largest city of the German state of Bavaria after its capital Munich, and its 518,370 (2019) inhabitants make it the 14th-largest ...

. The firm was founded by J.S. Staedtler (1800–1872) in 1835 and produces a large variety of

products, such as

writing implement A writing implement or writing instrument is an object used to produce writing. Writing consists of different figures, lines, and or forms. Most of these items can be also used for other functions such as painting, drawing and technical drawing, ...

s (including

technical drawing Technical drawing, drafting or drawing, is the act and Academic discipline, discipline of composing Plan (drawing), drawings that Visual communication, visually communicate how something functions or is constructed. Technical drawing is essent ...

instruments),

art materials Arts media is the material and tools used by an artist, composer or designer to create a work of art, for example, "pen and ink" where the pen is the tool and the ink is the material. Here is a list of types of art and the media used within thos ...

, and

office supplies Office supplies are consumables and equipment regularly used in offices by businesses and other organizations, by individuals engaged in written communications, recordkeeping or bookkeeping, janitorial and cleaning, and for storage of supplies o ...

. Staedtler claims to be the largest European manufacturer of wood-cased pencils,

overhead projector An overhead projector (often abbreviated to OHP), like a film or slide projector, uses light to project an enlarged image on a screen, allowing the view of a small document or picture to be shared with a large audience. In the overhead project ...

pens,

mechanical pencil A mechanical pencil, also clutch pencil, is a pencil with a replaceable and mechanically extendable solid pigment core called a "lead" . The lead, often made of graphite, is not bonded to the outer casing, and can be mechanically extended as its ...

leads Lead is a chemical element with symbol Pb and atomic number 82. Lead or The Lead may also refer to: Animal handling * Leash, or lead * Lead (leg), the leg that advances most in a quadruped's cantering or galloping stride * Lead (tack), a lin ...

eraser An eraser (also known as a rubber in some Commonwealth countries, including South Africa from the material first used) is an article of stationery that is used for removing marks from paper or skin (e.g. parchment or vellum). Erasers have a ...

s, and

modelling clay Modelling clay or modelling compound is any of a group of malleable substances used in building and sculpting. The material compositions and production processes vary considerably. Ceramic clay Ceramic clays are water-based substances made f ...

s. Staedtler has over 26 global subsidiaries and nine manufacturing facilities. Almost two thirds of the production take place in the four production facilities in Nuremberg, Germany, though some of its products are made in

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

. Its "''Noris line of pencils is extremely common in British schools.

History

The origins of the brand can be traced since the 17th century, when Friedrich Staedtler took over the totality of the pencil manufacturing process, from the lead to the wood. However, that activity was forbidden by the Council of Nuremberg, which stated that the manufacturing had to be developed by two different experts. Eventually, Staedtler's work helped to abolish that regulation, therefore facilitating the work of other pencil manufacturers in Nuremberg. The company was founded by Johann Sebastian Staedtler in 1835 as a pencil factory, first established in

, but the roots of the company go back to 1662, when references to Friedrich Staedtler as a pencil-making craftsman were made in the city annals. Staedtler received permission from the municipal council to produce black lead, red chalk and pastel pencils in his industrial plant. In 1866, the company had 54 employees and produced 15,000 gross (2,160,000 pencils) per year.Quality and history
on Staedtler website Staedtler head mars logo 1908

In 1900, Staedtler registered the ''Mars'' brand (which represented the

Ancient Roman In modern historiography, ancient Rome refers to Roman civilisation from the founding of the city of Rome in the 8th century BC to the collapse of the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century AD. It encompasses the Roman Kingdom (753–509 BC ...

god of war A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...

), using the name for some lines of products, also launching the ''head of

Mars Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun and the second-smallest planet in the Solar System, only being larger than Mercury (planet), Mercury. In the English language, Mars is named for the Mars (mythology), Roman god of war. Mars is a terr ...

'' logo.Logotipo de Staedlter
on Ofistore.com In 1901 the ''Noris'' brand was released by the company.
by María Matos Elices on ''El País'' In 1922 a

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

subsidiary (located in

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

) was established, It was followed by a

ese subsidiary four years later. In 1937 the name was changed to ''Mars Pencil and Fountain Pen Factory'' and the product range was expanded to include mechanical writing instruments. In 1949 began the production of

ballpoint pen A ballpoint pen, also known as a biro (British English), ball pen (Hong Kong, Indian and Philippine English), or dot pen ( Nepali) is a pen that dispenses ink (usually in paste form) over a metal ball at its point, i.e. over a "ball point". ...

s, which started to be widely used instead of

fountain pen A fountain pen is a writing instrument which uses a metal nib to apply a water-based ink to paper. It is distinguished from earlier dip pens by using an internal reservoir to hold ink, eliminating the need to repeatedly dip the pen in an inkw ...

s (although Staedtler still produces the latter today). In 1950 propelling pencils (or

s) began to be manufactured, the first being made out of

wood Wood is a porous and fibrous structural tissue found in the stems and roots of trees and other woody plants. It is an organic materiala natural composite of cellulose fibers that are strong in tension and embedded in a matrix of lignin th ...

. Four years later, the "Lumocolor" brand was registered. This brand was used to design the wide range of Staedtler markers. The head of Mars became the Staedtler definitive logo in 1958. This logo has had several style modifications since then, the last in 2001. In 1962 the company began producing

technical pen A technical pen is a specialized instrument used by an engineer, architect, or drafter to make lines of constant width for architectural, engineering, or technical drawings. " Rapidograph" is a trademarked name for one type of technical pen. T ...

s. In the 1970s, Staedtler bought the Neumarkt factory, which used to be the Eberhard Faber factory. Nevertheless, in 2009 Staedtler sold the rights to the brand "Eberhard Faber" to

Faber-Castell Faber-Castell AG is a manufacturer of pens, pencils, other office supplies (e.g., staplers, slide rules, erasers, rulers)Faber-Castell InternationalOffice Products and art supplies,Faber-Castell InternationalProducts for FineArts and FineWriting ...

, although the company kept the Neumarkt factory, where Staedtler makes wood pencils nowadays.Visiting Staedtler's Nuremberg factory
14 Sep 2016 As from 2010,

Fimo Fimo is a brand of polymer clay made by German company Staedtler (''STAEDTLER Mars GmbH & Co. KG''). Fimo is sold worldwide. Its main U.S. competitor is the American brand Sculpey. The material comes in many different colors; there are many fin ...

(

products), Mali, Aquasoft and further brands were marketed under the Staedtler name. In addition, the company celebrated its 175th anniversary that same year.

Products

The following chart contains all the Staedtler product lines:Staedtler products
retrieved 4 Dec 2019 Staedtler Mars Plastic Eraser

Awards

Staedtler has won awards for its products, most recently for the Wopex Graphite Pencils (designed with "Teams Design") and the Triplus line.

2008

Red Dot The Red Dot Design Award is a German international design prize awarded by Red Dot GmbH & Co. KG. There are prize categories for product design, brands and communication design, and design concept. Since 1955, designers and producers can apply ...

Award, Lumocolor Twister Dry MarkersAnnouncement of 2008 Red Dot Award
/ref>

2009

* Bio Composite of the Year, Wopex Graphite Pencils2009 Bio Composite of the Year Award
* ISH Design Plus Award, Wopex Graphite Pencils
/ref> * Red Dot Award, Triplus 776 Mechanical PencilsStaedtler Announcement of 2009 Red Dot Award
/ref>

2011

* Red Dot Award, Triplus 426 Ballpoint Pens2011 Red Dot Award Triplus Pens
/ref>

References

External links

*

{{Portal bar, Companies Manufacturing companies based in Nuremberg Art materials brands German brands Companies established in 1835 Pencil brands Office supply companies of Germany Pen manufacturers Manufacturing companies established in 1835 Oil paint brands Ink brands