on the origin of the name

We are regularly asked about the origins of our name. Finding a name for a company is no easy job. It is very easy to choose the wrong name, as many web sites covering this topic will agree. Schleifenbauer is a name that evokes confusion on the one hand (German or not?) and on the other hand has a uniqueness that ensures it will stay in your memory. At the time, Googling the name Schleifenbauer also produced very few 'hits', which confirmed the unique status of the name. If you are looking for a name, and a fantastic story behind a fantastic man coincidentally drifts into view, you should embrace the moment and think yourself lucky.
Jean-Louis Schleifenbauer, 1724 - 1768

In the small commune of Sondernach in the French Vosges you will find no monument or statue to commemorate Jean-Louis Schleifenbauer. This obscure former resident was a distinct recluse, who lived in his secluded home at the top of the Schnepfenried Mountain.

During his studies at the University of Strasbourg, he became fascinated by the universe and its almost infinite scope. He was one of the first people on earth to become aware of this. Calculating the actual size of the universe occupied him for the rest of his life. Fellow astronomers and friends called it an ‘obsessive pursuit'. The fact that he spent the last 23 years of his life doing nothing other than attempting to produce a definite calculation supports this assumption. Schleifenbauer would probably have been relegated to total obscurity if his last calculation - developed just before his sudden death in 1768 - had not concluded that the universe must be exactly 19 inches in size. This acquired insight could actually have played a part in his premature death.

That his name is attached to a company that also operates in a 19-inch universe almost 300 years later, may be seen as a posthumous homage from the founders of Schleifenbauer Products.