No property in Dinslaken – company draws consequences
Freeways can be reached quickly, and Dinslaken is the gateway to both the Ruhr region and the Lower Rhine towards the Netherlands. This location is an advantage for Dinslaken. Many companies therefore ask for commercial space. But that is the city’s problem. It is currently unable to offer companies its own plots of land. This is not only being felt by companies that would like to come to Dinslaken, but also by established businesses. The result of this dilemma is that GEZ Rails Solution GmbH is leaving Dinslaken because no land is available.
The company is located on the Pintsch site on Hünxer Straße and Düppelstraße. It was foreseeable that another domicile would be needed. This was communicated by Schaltbau-Holding, to which Pintsch belongs, after the changes in 2022. And so Managing Director Thomas Richter set off from the beginning of 2023.
He was unable to find anything in Dinslaken or the neighboring towns. All attempts to find a suitable plot of land or an existing property failed. The construction of a new production hall and an office building would also be feasible. But there is no space in Dinslaken. GEZ had this requirement: 3500 square meters for a production hall and around 1000 square meters for offices.
They were reluctant to leave Dinslaken. The city could not help. It only said that it did not have a single square meter of buildable space. There are still vacant plots on the former colliery site, but they have already been sold. Things are no better in the surrounding towns either.
The separation from SBRS in 2022 marked the beginning of an exciting time for GEZ. We didn’t know where the journey would take us. However, it was clear that they could only stay on the Pintsch site until the end of 2024. The move was the right one, says Richter. And points to the company’s development. Two years ago there were 50 employees, today there are around 70.
Because no suitable property was found in Dinslaken, the employees had to relocate in the summer. Finding a suitable property was not easy, Mr. Richter reports that he looked at over 100 exposés and viewed 30 properties. In the end, two were shortlisted. The decision was made in favor of a property in Gladbeck. Because it was easier to get to, according to Richter. Many discussions were held with the workforce and the works council.
The move was supposed to have been completed by now, but has been delayed. The Managing Director now assumes that the GEZ will have left Dinslaken by the middle of this year.
The space that will become available on the Pintsch site as a result of GEZ’s move has already been taken. Pintsch, which belongs to the Schaltbau holding company, is relocating the turnout drive production department from Velbert to Dinslaken.