Honor for outstanding corporate performance – personal handover of award in Niederwinkling
Niederwinkling, October 2025 – Great joy at Wallstabe & Schneider: The family-owned company has been awarded the prestigious “Grand Prize for Medium-Sized Businesses” by the Oskar Patzelt Foundation.
The award is one of Germany’s most prestigious business prizes and honors medium-sized companies that stand out for their innovative strength, sustainable growth, social commitment, and exceptional customer focus.
The official award ceremony took place on September 13, 2025, at the Maritim Hotel Würzburg as part of a festive gala. As Wallstabe & Schneider was unable to attend the event, the award ceremony was rescheduled for October 23, 2025, in Niederwinkling. Heiko Weit, managing director of WEIT Führung GmbH and authorized consultant in the “Grand Prize for Medium-Sized Businesses” network, presented the award to Christian Wallstabe, managing partner of the company.
“It is a great honor for us to win this award – and we are very grateful that Mr. Weit took the time to come to Niederwinkling in person,” emphasized Christian Wallstabe at the presentation. “This award is a great recognition for the entire dedicated team at Wallstabe & Schneider. Because all our employees contribute to the sustainable success of our company every day.”
After the award handover, there was time for a detailed discussion about the history of the company, as well as the development of the award competition and the work of the Oskar Patzelt Foundation. The trophy itself leaves a “heavy impression” in the truest sense of the word: the 5.5 kg sculpture will take pride of place on the awards wall in the foyer of the main entrance.
Wallstabe & Schneider has been closely associated with the award competition for many years: the company has been nominated 19 times since 2005; and in 2013 it reached the final round of the best. This year’s honor as one of 15 award winners represents another highlight in the successful history of the sealing specialist. Nationwide, more than 512 institutions nominated a total of 4,208 companies, banks, and municipalities for the 2025 competition.
The “Grand Prize for Medium-Sized Businesses” has been awarded annually by the Oskar Patzelt Foundation since 1994. The aim of the competition is to highlight the achievements of medium-sized companies and to recognize their role as the backbone of the German economy. Participants are evaluated holistically according to five criteria: corporate development, job creation and security, innovative strength, commitment to the region, and service and customer focus.
The award recognizes the sustainable development of Wallstabe & Schneider – a company that has stood for quality, innovative strength, and a sense of responsibility since its founding in 1960. Today, the sealing specialist is one of the leading suppliers of precision seals for the automotive and commercial vehicle industry in Europe.
In addition to technical excellence, Wallstabe & Schneider is characterized by a high degree of flexibility and crisis resilience – qualities that the company has demonstrated time and again in economically challenging times. Its commitment to its employees, the environment, and the region is also firmly anchored in the corporate culture. With a two-year talent management program, continuous training, and sustainable production processes, the company sets standards among medium-sized businesses.
