Busch co-founder Dr Karl Busch dies aged 96

Together with his wife Ayhan, who survives him, he set up the business in 1963 with the aid of just 5,000 deutschmarks.

Over the next six decades, it grew into a global name earning US$2 billion in revenue, and employing 8,000 people in 44 countries worldwide via its Busch Vacuum Solutions and Pfeiffer Vacuum+Fab Solutions brands. 

In a statement, the company said its founder combined “visionary thinking with an engineer’s love of detail”.

It added: “His groundbreaking inventions, like the Huckepack and R5 vacuum pumps for food packaging, were not just technical achievements. They were expressions of his commitment to practical solutions and product excellence.”

Busch’s death occurred just two months after he celebrated his latest birthday at a family event in Italy. He also participated in the company’s most recent managers meeting staged in the Netherlands.

Born on April 20, 1929 in Lörrach, Baden-Württemberg, he studied mechanical engineering studies at the Technical University of Munich where he met his future wife and business partner Ayhan Gökay.

The company stated that the design of Busch’s “revolutionary” R5 pump became the most successful vacuum pump design in the world with millions sold.

A devoted family man, Karl Busch was known for his physical robustness even in later life. He continued hiking in the Black Forest up to his mid-nineties, ran a half marathon at age 87, having once cycled from Maulburg to Istanbul and climbed Mount Kilimanjaro. Past the age of 70, he also raced around the world in 80 days in an old time Mercedes in 2000 with his sons.

“Dr Karl Busch believed deeply in giving back, and he carried his values into everything he did, raising funds for humanitarian causes, supporting his community, and mentoring his children as the next generation to continue his life’s work in our company,” said the Busch Group statement.

To view a video tribute to Dr Karl Busch, click here.