July 1952
Heinz Nixdorf founds Nixdorf Computer

In 1952, Heinz Nixdorf founds the computer company Nixdorf Computer AG, then known as Labor für Impulstechnik. The company's headquarters were in Paderborn, Germany.

Nixdorf first manufactured electronic calculators, but quickly moved on to design and build computers. By the mid-1960s, Nixdorf supplied small and medium-sized business across Europe.

Its most popular products included:

• The 886x family of Branch Network Computers
• The 8870 mini computer for business
• The 8812 Electronic Point of Sale (EPOS) terminal

At its height, Nixdorf was a worldwide specialist in banking systems, and became the fourth largest computer company in Europe. In 1990, Siemens acquired the company and renamed it to Siemens Nixdorf Informationssysteme.

Heinz Nixdorf's name lives on in the Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum which claims to be the largest computer museum in the world and occupies the former company headquarters in Padeborg, Germany.

Related information:

• Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum: The Products of Nixdorf Computer AG

Image:

• Heinz Nixdorf and his company's logo.
  Credit: © Heinz Nixdorf MuseumsForum.