Although life is not rich, Ferdinand Siemens has not relaxed his education for his children. The children's first teacher is their grandmother. She taught Werner brothers and sisters to read and write, and made them recite many poems to exercise their memory. Later, Ferdinand Siemens personally taught the children knowledge. At the age of 0, Siemens 165438+ entered the municipal middle school in a small town near Menzendorf. Ferdinand Siemens wanted his children to receive formal school education, but because the school was too far away from home and the children were too young, he hired a tutor in the spring of 1829. The tutor is a young seminary student named Shi Peng Hobe. The mentor hired by his father made a decisive turning point in his teenage life. He understands children's psychology and is good at arousing their enthusiasm and sense of responsibility, so he is also loved by children. He awakened Siemens' tireless happiness and enterprising spirit of beneficial work. Inspired and educated by him, Werner and his brothers and sisters felt great pleasure in their study, so they no longer needed anyone to supervise them, but studied consciously. Sometimes, they study late, and adults have to stop them in order to avoid overwork. This wonderful time of freedom, happiness and nature lasted less than a year, and the tutor died of illness. Soon, the father hired an elderly tutor for the children. The old teacher made many rules for the children, asking them to do things seriously and behave in a civilized way. But the old teacher was sickly and died after living in Siemens' home for two years.
When the children grew up, the father decided to send Werner and Hans to Lubeck Cowen Middle School (catherine Middle School). 1832, the Werner brothers passed the exam and entered the fifth and fourth grades of the school respectively. The main course of Kettering School is to learn ancient languages. Werner is interested in studying the works of classical writers, but he is tired of learning grammar. In addition, he is very interested in natural science and has taught himself mathematics for a long time. However, there are few math classes in catherine schools, and the content is very shallow. Werner studies this class in the senior year. Even so, his strong thirst for knowledge can hardly be satisfied. In the seventh grade, he stopped learning Greek, but found someone to teach mathematics and geodesy to prepare for entering the Berlin Institute of Architecture. The children of the poor are in charge early. Although he has not graduated from high school, Werner has begun to think about how to solve problems for his parents. He decided to switch to architecture because it was the only technical major at that time. In order to be admitted to the Berlin Institute of Architecture and become an architectural engineer in the future, he asked someone to teach him mathematics, geodesy and other courses. Just as he was working hard to realize his dream, he realized that it was very expensive to enter an architectural school, which would undoubtedly add a great burden to his parents. Werner was worried about this, but the teacher who taught him geodesy gave him a good idea. The teacher served in the Prussian artillery and knew the situation in Prussia. He suggested that Werner try to enter the Prussian Corps of Engineers, and then he could enter the Artillery Engineering School, because there he could study the same subjects in the School of Architecture, and he could still work in construction after retirement without paying tuition. This is a dead end. Werner was inspired by the idea of curve research, and he immediately told his father about the plan. Ferdinand Siemens fully agreed with his son's plan, thinking that the situation of Germany's division and chaos would not last long, and the hope of Germany's reunification lay in Prussia. So it is undoubtedly a wise choice to join the Prussian army at this moment.
/kloc-in the summer of 0/834, Werner Siemens bid farewell to Catlinwenk Middle School, parents, brothers and sisters and went to Berlin, the capital of Prussia. At that time, there were already many soldiers waiting for the call in the artillery engineering college, so after many twists and turns, he joined the artillery unit first. After six months of training, he was promoted to first class. 1In the autumn of 835, Siemens finally got his wish and went to the Berlin United Artillery Academy to study. In the three years of study, mathematics and physics were his most interested subjects, and the knowledge he learned in class laid the foundation for his later inventions. The three years spent in the college can be said to be the happiest time in Siemens' life. He successfully passed the three exams of reserve officer, officer and artillery officer and became an officer. At the same time, he spent a lot of time on scientific research. While others were eating, drinking and having fun, his keen interest in research helped him resist the temptation of the outside world and wholeheartedly seek to create scientific and technological miracles. Testing friction bolts is the first step of Werner's small-scale test. Due to bad conditions, this dangerous experiment caused an unexpected explosion. His right eardrum was punctured by strong airflow, and his left eardrum was injured in shooting training a year ago, which means that Mr. Werner-Siemens paid the price of hearing loss because of the experiment. Although his condition has improved through treatment, his hearing has never returned to normal. Obviously, this accident didn't stop him from devoting himself to the invention. It is this spirit of not being afraid of setbacks that helps him keep getting closer to his goal. The main driving force of Werner-Siemens' tireless invention and creation is economic factors. After the early death of their parents, the two younger brothers who inherited agriculture had limited income and were unable to pay for the education of other brothers. Werner-Siemens urgently needs to open up economic sources. His first industrial invention was gold and silver plating by electric current. He invested in technology, and cooperated with Henninge of Zinc-White Copper Factory to set up a gold-plated and silver-plated department, and the two sides shared dividends. The second invention is to improve the zinc plate printing machine, and the rotary fast printing machine will soon follow. Werner-Siemens, who achieved initial success, did not continue the experiment that brought him huge profits. He decided to attend lectures at Berlin University. In this regard, he explained: "As long as you are energetic, you are growing; Once you are mature, you will start to rot. Only by constantly looking for new growth points and development points will we continue to move forward. " 1840, Siemens' research work was interrupted because he was held in a fortress in magdeburg. Fortunately, life in prison is not so rigid, so he can set up a small laboratory in his cell and spend all his time doing research. The god of luck came here. He achieved amazing success in the electrolysis experiment, plating a teaspoon with gold. He was so happy that he even forgot that he was in prison. During his imprisonment, he improved the method of gold plating, drafted a patent application and obtained a Prussian patent for five years. Later, the king signed a pardon, and he regained his freedom.
Soon, he was sent to Berlin to serve the artillery factory. There, Siemens took advantage of technology to sign a contract with a zinc-white steel plant, which used his patented technology to establish a gold-plated and silver-plated department, which was the first such manufacturing department in Germany.
After graduating from school, Siemens' younger brother William joined his fledgling career. William successfully sold the British patent for gold and silver plating and moved to the United States to develop his career.
1844, Siemens was lucky enough to visit the first French industrial exposition held in Paris and was greatly inspired. After returning to Berlin, he carefully reviewed his research career and decided to give up his previous inventions and engage in rigorous academic work.
During the period of 1845, Siemens published several important scientific papers. The next year, his interest turned to the telegraph business-it was his research in this field that made him famous in history. 1846 shows that Eucommia ulmoides gum has good electrical insulation performance and can be used to make cable insulation. Soon, the communication cable was made. 1846, Werner-Siemens retired from the army. He gave up 12' s pension as an officer, because in order to get that reward, he had to submit a disability report to prove that he had retired according to regulations. However, Werner-Siemens thinks he is healthy. He firmly believes that the telegraph industry, which was still a new thing at that time, has a bright future, and its large-scale application will create great wealth, and he is the one who sees the opportunity and intends to seize it.
1847, Werner-Siemens and Halske jointly established the Siemens-Halske telegraph factory. Halske is a skilled mechanic. He helped Siemens make the pointer telegraph, and later, he made the wire die casting machine. They formed a tacit cooperation, Werner-Siemens put forward the idea, and Halske, the mechanic, turned it into reality. Before the establishment of the company, Werner-Siemens, which has extensive contacts in the national telegraph department, won a big order to lay an underground telegraph line from Berlin to Frankfurt, which is the first underground telegraph line in the world. 1847, in order to find a completely durable insulating material, Siemens wrapped copper wire with hot glue and made an insulated wire. In the same year, the first long underground telegraph line appeared in the world, which was laid with this kind of wire. This success has strengthened Siemens' determination to devote itself to the telegraph industry. 1847, Siemens established a telegraph equipment factory in partnership with others, which developed rapidly and soon set up semicolons in the capitals of many European countries. During the 1848 European Revolution, Siemens participated in some political and military activities, but that was not his interest. As soon as peace was restored, he returned to Berlin to continue his research work. Since then, Siemens has devoted more energy to research and eventually became the world-famous "father of electronics and electricity" in Germany.
1 852 65438+1October1,36-year-old Siemens married Mathilde drummond. The following year, the eldest son Arnold was born. 1855, the second son William was born. Mathilde died of illness after giving birth to two children for Siemens. 1869, Siemens married Miss Antoine. Their son Hertha was born in 1870. 1872, Siemens' youngest son came to the world. After the sons grew up, Siemens, who got married and had children, enjoyed family happiness in his later years. 1849 In March, King Friedrich William of Prussia was elected as the heir of Germany. At this time, the line from Frankfurt to Berlin was just connected in time. After the election results were announced at Paul's Church in Frankfurt, they were transmitted to Berlin by underground telegraph line one hour later. Next, Siemens-Halske Company undertook several projects of laying telegraph lines. However, the success did not last long. Immature technology, insufficient insulation of wires and too fast construction progress have caused the laid lines to fail to work normally soon. The Prussian army telegraph management director stopped the cooperation with Siemens, and the young company suddenly fell into crisis. Siemens-Halske, whose diversified operation is in trouble, has not been devastated by losing its biggest customer in China. Entrepreneurs foresaw this risk and took measures in advance. They tried to diversify their products and markets. Later, Werner-Siemens summarized a basic principle, that is, the company will take action in all electrical fields. In addition to laying telegraph lines, the company also produces railway signalers and water meters specially designed for the British market, and also produces alcohol meters, which are sold to government tax authorities to help them determine the level of alcohol tax.
1866, Werner-Siemens developed a DC generator, which was originally used for military purposes. After further improving the power and load capacity, he found that this machine also has a wide application prospect in the field of trams and motors. 1879, Siemens installed street lamps for Berlin streets. 1880 elevator manufacturing. 188 1 year, Siemens established the first electronic public transport system, enabling trams to run in the suburbs of Berlin. Since 1877, the telephone has also joined the company's products. Siemens improved the telephone invented by Graham Bell, but it didn't get a patent in Germany. This kind of telephone sold more than ten thousand sets in the first three years. Improving other people's inventions is Werner-Siemens' strong point. Through his efforts, the performance of the product has been greatly improved, and it can also avoid the constraints of patent law. Werner-Siemens realized in practice that enterprises must constantly improve the performance of products according to the changes in market demand and give consumers the best products. Of course, this improvement is not only to improve other people's products to expand the product line, but also to continuously improve existing products. Of course, the mining and smelting industries established by Siemens brothers also have to be mentioned. They put forward the open hearth steelmaking method, which directly smelted iron ore into steel by using a high-temperature regenerative furnace, and innovated the steelmaking process. Therefore, Siemens steel plant is also in the forefront of European steel manufacturing industry.
Siemens began to set foot in mine management because the Russian branch failed to find enough business after completing the project entrusted by the government, and it was profitable to contract copper mines in the Caucasus, so the head of the branch suggested that the company enter the mining industry. In areas with backward infrastructure, it takes a lot of money to operate mines by using modern principles. For the sake of prudence, Werner-Siemens personally visited the Caucasus. When the workshop and smelting equipment are ready, it becomes a problem to recruit people. Local residents have no pursuit of life. They live in underground caves and are very lazy. How can we arouse their enthusiasm? Werner-Siemens has a brilliant idea. They began to publicize the comfort of Shi Zhuan residence to women and cultivate their vanity. In order to meet their growing demand for quality of life, men have to work harder.
In terms of market diversification, Siemens-Halske has gone further. This old enterprise with a history of 160 years started its international expansion at an early stage. Werner-Siemens' younger brother William moved to England and was one of his important assistants. In addition to selling the differential regulator he invented, he is also the business agent of Siemens in the UK. 1850, William set up a representative office in Britain, 1858, and formally established the company. The core business of the company is to manufacture special cables and undertake submarine cable laying projects entrusted by the government. To this end, the company has specially established a manufacturing plant to provide products for submarine cable lines. Doing business in Russia is called a key turning point in his career by Werner-Siemens. 1849, Colonel Rudd, who was entrusted by the government to inspect European telegraph communication, joined Siemens. Under his introduction, the Russian government ordered machinery and equipment from Siemens-Halske. 1853, Siemens-Halske Company undertook the telegraph line laying project from Finland to Crimea. This line is more than 10,000 kilometers long, and the repair and maintenance of the line is also a major problem for the Russian government. Siemens-Halske took over the task and made a fortune. 1855, the Russian branch was established in Petersburg, led by Carl Siemens, the founder's brother. At the end of 65438+70s, Austria became a new expanding field. 1879 set up a branch in Vienna with the purpose of opening up the eastern European market. 1892, for the same purpose of opening up the market, it also set up an American branch. However, this time it got off to a bad start, and before long, the branch was forced to close. During this period, international development is an important strategy of the company, and branches have been set up in almost all key markets.
The war has brought unbearable pain to residents and a disaster to enterprises. However, some speculators took advantage of the chaos to stir up the national disaster, and Siemens once played such a disgraceful role. In World War I, Germany, as a defeated country, was badly weakened, foreign industries were confiscated, and patent rights became waste paper. Siemens felt the pressure deeply. They had to unite with other companies to tide over the difficulties, and transferred the research and development of electrical technology and equipment prohibited by the Treaty of Versailles to other European countries, and finally developed into the largest electrical company in Europe. The insight of karl friedrich, the leader, is an important factor to help Siemens quickly recover its leading position in global electrical engineering companies after the war. In a conversation with 1933, karl friedrich said: "Our company is based on electrical engineering and precision engineering and has experienced a natural development process; One branch after another; Sometimes, one branch will give birth to another branch. The scale of the company today cannot be achieved by connecting some unrelated work areas without purpose. Our company is active in all fields of electrical engineering. In this respect, it is very unique in the world, and we are proud of it, which will enable our new discoveries in one field to be quickly extended to other fields. " Since then, Siemens has devoted more energy to research and eventually became the world-famous "father of electronics and electricity" in Germany. 1 852 65438+1October1,36-year-old Siemens married Mathilde drummond. The following year, the eldest son Arnold was born. 1855, the second son William was born. Mathilde died of illness after giving birth to two children for Siemens. 1869, Siemens married Miss Antoine. Their son Hertha was born in 1870. 1872, Siemens' youngest son came to the world. After the sons grew up, Siemens, who got married and had children, enjoyed family happiness in his later years.
1890, Siemens handed over the leadership of the company to his younger brother Carl and his sons Arnold and William, completing the power transfer of the company. 189265438+On February 6th, Siemens died in Charlottenburg at the age of 76.
Today's Siemens company is still full of vitality and vitality under the proper management and operation of the younger generation of Siemens, and has become one of the most famous companies in the world. Siemens has more than 900,000 shareholders and is one of the largest listed companies in the world. More than 55% of the company's share capital was raised outside Germany. Since March 5438+0, 2006, Siemens shares have been listed on new york Stock Exchange (NYSE).
In addition, Siemens is the international unit system of physical circuit science, including conductance, susceptance and admittance. The symbol of Siemens is S, which is abbreviated as [West] in Chinese. English spelling is Siemens. This name is in memory of German electrical engineer Werner von Siemens.