Stories from Mannheim

Grandma’s Pride as a Former “Rubble Woman”

A Special MWM Moment of Axel Schmelzer

It strikes me how deeply MWM is rooted in the tradition of the city of Mannheim and its inhabitants. No matter where you look in and around Mannheim, you will see indications of MWM. I notice this especially in my dealings with others. Very often, I meet people who know somebody from the production or quality assurance or who have a cousin, brother, or relative who has worked for MWM.

I experienced a special moment when I embarked on my career with MWM, then still Deutz, more than 20 years ago. One of my grandmothers was very proud and told everybody I was going to join the “old Benz”. After the war, my grandmother had been very active as a “Trümmerfrau”, a “rubble woman” who helped restore numerous homes and companies. Therefore, she knew numerous buildings in Mannheim and the stories associated with them.

Many considered a job at MWM to be a “quality certificate”. In 2018, I was looking for a rental apartment in Mannheim. I found a beautiful two-room apartment in the Lindenhof district. Apart from myself, many others had also applied for the apartment. But see: When the landlord heard I was with MWM, I immediately got the apartment!

But why? My friendly prospective landlord had grown up on a Rhine ship powered by an MWM engine. He had lots of positive memories, and he was still full of enthusiasm about its reliability.