In 1988, the production of carbide products started in the Upper Franconian town of Kulmbach, Germany, with a focus on manufacturers of precision tools. Since that time, hand-formed parts and custom-designed special parts have been manufactured along with rods and flat bars. A major and trendsetting milestone was the development of carbide rods with integrated straight or helical coolant ducts that meet the increasing demand from the machine-tool industry for high performance tools.

Rods without coolant ducts, as well as rods with straight and helical ducts, are being produced using optimized manufacturing processes and fine-tuned successive production steps. The worldwide patented process for manufacturing carbide rods with integrated helical coolant ducts in conjunction with superior product quality, development know-how and customer service, allow Konrad Friedrichs GmbH & Co. KG to maintain an exceptional position in the world market for carbide rods.

Our carbide grades K40UF, K44UF, K55SF and K6UF have established a worldwide benchmark. We continue to meet and exceed the increasing performance demands from the machine-tool industry by focusing a major aspect of our R&D activities on the continued improvement of existing grades, particularly with respect to adapting material properties, e.g. hardness and toughness, to special customer requirements. Most notably in this context are high-performance cutting as well as high-speed cutting, hard machining and innovative composite materials. In 2005 we intensified our research activities in these areas and assigning high complexity to development of new cemented carbide products with our new R & D - equipment including laboratory - attritor and - kneeder.

The entire team of Konrad Friedrichs GmbH & Co. KG is eager to further expand and improve our flexibility, the worldwide distribution net and our superior development know-how.