RATIONAL Marks 50th Anniversary With Production of 1.5 Millionth Combi Oven
Handover of the anniversary unit to the St. Nikolaus Children’s Hospice. From left to right: Martin Hermann (chief technical officer, RATIONAL), Markus Paschmann (chief sales and marketing officer, RATIONAL), Marlies Breher (chairwoman, Süddeutsche Kinderhospiz Foundation), Alfons Regler (managing director, St. Nikolaus – Süddeutsches Kinderhospiz), Franziska Steinhauser (deputy head of housekeeping, St. Nikolaus Children’s Hospice), Jürgen Dreer (regional sales manager, RATIONAL), Sebastian Meile (assembly technician, RATIONAL), Ulrike Fischer-Wirkus (head of housekeeping, St. Nikolaus Children’s Hospice).
Coinciding with its 50th anniversary, RATIONAL recently celebrated the production of its 1.5 millionth combi oven. The special anniversary unit, which features a golden dial, was donated to the St. Nikolaus Children’s Hospice in Bad Grönenbach, Germany.
RATIONAL presented its first combi oven, the CD 101, in 1976 — three years after the company was founded by Siegfried Meister. The combination of steam and convection enabled chefs to use a variety of cooking methods, such as roasting, baking, and steaming, with just one appliance. Four years later, RATIONAL debuted the CD 201, the first floor-standing combi oven to meet the demands of large kitchens with high production volumes. This laid the foundation for five decades of continuous development, up to the company’s most recent model, the iCombi Pro. About 180 million meals are now prepared each day using RATIONAL appliances.
“Fifty years of RATIONAL combi ovens and 1.5 million units are not just figures; they are an expression of the high level of satisfaction and trust that our customers have placed in us worldwide for decades,” Markus Paschmann, chief sales and marketing officer, said in a news release. “We’re proud of that. It motivates us to continue prioritizing customer benefit.”