The ILO Motorenwerke was once the largest two-stroke engine works of Germany.

The term ILO originates from the art language Esperanto and means "tool ". Apparently there are two ways of writing of the name: ILO and JLO. The signature "JLO" was used as Design variant for Firmenlogo and engine name with the handwritten form of the capital letter I before the type character L. The other write style ILO was used in the correspondence and is correct.

The years of the foundation and the 1. World war

The company was created 1911 in Altona/Elbe. There the firm founder Heinrich Christiansen bought a engine works come into bankruptcy. Under the company name north German engine works GmbH busy it first approx. 25 coworkers. In particular devices for the track and bridge construction of the German National Railroad were manufactured. After approximately two years of the foundation of a firm the operating rooms in Altona had become too small. Heinrich Christiansen bought an area at the station Pinneberg. There for the manufacturing a small resounds established, in their cultivation also the office space were. Also during the 1. World war the track plugging machine developed for the National Railroad was continued to build. Equipment, which was used with the building of railways for the compression of the crushed stone between the thresholds. Around 1918 a two-stroke engine was then developed, which made the equipment independent of another source of strength. This was practically the first ILO engine.

Enterprise development of the time of the Weimar Republic up to 2. World war

After the end of war 1918 the enterprise had large economic problems. The defense contracts were missing and many workers had will dismiss. But the track plugging machines brought good sales impacts in the subsequent years. The production of the track plugging machines in Pinneberg ended 1922, after 1921 Heinrich Christiansen decided the patent of the track plugging machines to the Krupp AG to sell.

Now the enterprise concentrated on the building of two-stroke engines for motorcycles and Kleinlaster. Nearly all important German manufacturers of motorcycles built the engines in their vehicles. Against 1927 a bicycle auxiliary engine was developed, which was one of the first efficient drives for Starting from 1929 two-stroke engines for the agriculture were likewise offered. Thus there were to engine heels and pumps with ILO engines. Since 1922 became the enterprise constantly increased, until then also finally around 1930 also the name ILO stood over the entrance.

In the 30's the engines for Dreiradlieferwagen are a large turnover hit. In the models speed Vidal & son and Goliath Borgward running engines of ILO. one brought an a wheel car slidegate valve to 1931 to shifting railway trucks on the market. It was successfully sold many years. But the ILO two-wheeler engines had it ever more heavily itself against the competition of DKW to intersperse NSU and Sachs. Up to 2. World war grew the number of persons employed on 300.

Also during 2. World war manufactured one almost exclusively engines. Since these found however mainly for military purposes use, the work was explained as the and appointed Heinrich Christiansen the military industrial leader. In the time of the war - as in other enterprises - also approx. 160 forced laborers were used. They were accommodated in barracks on the work area. The factories remained intact during the war, since no bombs met the work.

After that 2. World war

After that 2. World war was fully operational the ILO work and Heinrich Christiansen June. the line of the work took over. Also a disassembly by English crew power hardly took place. One caught on with the manufacturing of sprags, egg cups, lighters and other articles, which one needed after end of war urgently. Of the engine construction was not to be thought at all, but engines of the English Army of the Rhine were repaired and the first orders for vehicle engines came likewise from crew power.

The first two-stroke engines for civilian purposes were manufactured again starting from 1947. To the first customers also those belonged to Hamburg company Vidal & Sohn. It again began with the production SPEED of tricycle load vehicles and inserted further ILO engines. Starting from 1948 began besides a motorizing wave. It began for most with the purchase of a motorcycle. Thus ILO experienced an order boom in the following years, but one was well prepared for this challenge, since the work had remained keeping nearly complete. The engines from the Vorkriegsjahren were ever continued to improve. Many motorcycle manufacturers decided for the ILO engine. Among them well-known was like e.g. Drkopp, vulture, Hercules, Hofmann, Maico, Rixe and Tornax. Until 1950 the number of the produced engines rose to approx. 56,000 pieces and the number of the persons employed to approx. 600 had risen. One caught on in three layers to work, in order to become fair the demand. But were not sufficient the existing manufacturing area. Thus 1950 the work on 8.750 m were increased At the same time a further work in Munich developed. ILO of works south. There mainly Mokickmotoren and the famous ILO Piano engine were built. The probably most well-known and most successful engine was however the ILO twin (M 2 x 125) with 250 ccm, which was manufactured in Pinneberg.

In the middle of 1954 approx. 1,500 persons employed in both works worked and produced about 184,000 engines. Thus ILO was not only largest employer in the circle Pinneberg, but also largest manufacturer for two-stroke engines in Germany. Further one built still before the war and far improved a wheel car slidegate valves already developed. Starting from 1957 ILO built also engines for the well-known Vespa scooter under license.

But in the middle of the 50's ended the boom for motorized two-wheelers. Numerous motorcycle manufacturers announced bankruptcy. Because the car became the favourite of the Germans. The production of motorcycle and scooter engines ran out against 1959. The enterprise had to dismiss approx. 600 coworkers. Because the program of the industrial engines had been neglected in the years of the two-wheeler boom. The enterprise turned out to the borders of its financing possibilities and one decided to a sales of the enterprise.

The assumption

With the Rockwell Manufacturing company one had found to at the end of of 1959 a buyer. Heinrich Christiansen June. still remained until 1960 as a managing director in the enterprise. A new workshop for armatures was built. The business with neglected industrial engines developed positively and the number the person employed rose 1200. Starting from 1963 the production halls were not sufficient and one shifted the armature manufacturing to Prisdorf.

Against 1960 the development of snow carriage engines for the North American and Scandinavian market began. Because in the USA and Canada the snow carriage had become sport equipment. Since 1963 the enterprise invested into this business. A broad engine pallet was available soon and success was not missing not. Starting from 1965 the paragraph in larger numbers of items increased and developed themselves further in the subsequent years. To at the end of of 1969 ILO produced approx. 283,000 engines.

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