About Schlötter
History
Dr.-Ing. Max Schlötter GmbH & Co. KG is a leading German company in the field of electroplating and surface technologies with over 110 years of experience in developing innovative products, processes and solutions for the surface finishing industry.
Founded in 1912 by Max Schlötter, a chemist and pioneer in the field of metal surfaces, the company is based in Geislingen/Steige (Germany) and is now run by the fourth generation of the family.
Schlötter Global
The range comprises around 1,000 chemical products for functional and decorative electroplating applications, including corrosion protection, plastic metallisation, electronics and printed circuit boards. Around 95% of the products are developed in-house.
With subsidiaries and partnerships in Europe and Asia with presence in over 30 countries, the Schlötter Group employs around 330 people worldwide and generates around 40% of its chemical sales through exports.
What we are doing
Schlötter specialises in the development of electroplating electrolytes and chemicals with a strong focus on innovation in two sectors, GMF – General Metal Finishing and ELECTRONICS.
Research and development have always been a strategic pillar of the company as evidenced by its history and constant focus on innovation. At the Geislingen site, around 25% of the workforce is dedicated to R&D activities.
Schloetter Italia S.r.l.
In 2025 the company was established as the group's Italian subsidiary, based in the Milan metropolitan area. The new company was created with the aim of ensuring efficient material flow management, qualified technical assistance with direct and timely service to customers in the area.
In Italy we operate as an integral part of the international Group and are supported by a highly specialised team of engineers and technicians, ensuring application expertise, process support and technological solutions in line with the Group's global standards.
R&D Roadmap
- Hydrogen materials
- New materials and 5G/6G technology
- Metallisation of plastics and special glass
- CO2 reduction – footprint
- Closing material cycles
- Plug connectors
Cooperation
Partnership
- We establish relationship with our customers as technological partners not as a Cost Centres. No customer is small in our eyes
24h delivery
- We provide fast delivery service, 24h in Germany and 48 - 72 h in the rest of Europe to adapt to our customer´s needs
Sustainability
As a chemical company, we recognise our responsibility to the environment, and our goal is to become carbon neutral by 2030. To get there, we measure our carbon footprint across Scope 1, 2, and 3 emissions, work to reduce it wherever we can, and offset what remains.
Across every site in the Schlötter Group, we're taking concrete steps to cut our CO₂ emissions — installing solar panels and geothermal heat pumps, electrifying our company fleet, and switching from natural gas to green electricity.
A dedicated climate team works across all our sites, continuously identifying new ways to improve our carbon footprint and shape our climate strategy. That same expertise drives the way we develop our products and services, helping our customers move towards climate neutrality alongside us.
Water is essential to our production processes, and we treat it that way. We monitor consumption across all sites, recycle process water where feasible, and ensure wastewater meets regulatory standards before discharge.
We comply with all applicable regulations, work to minimise our impact on air, soil, and ecosystems, and continuously improve the standards we hold ourselves to.
Contact our Local Team
Contact Us
We are a family-run innovative chemical and electroplating business with over 110 years of experience in products, processes and solutions for surface finishing.
