Andreas Stihl is considered the “Father of the Chainsaw”. His “STIHL tree felling machine” alleviated the hard work carried out by lumberjacks, even though he was not the inventor of the chainsaw. Using Stihl’s machine lumberjacks no longer needed to bring felled tree trunks into a saw mill but were able to work on site with the chainsaw instead. The gearless petrol-powered STIHL Contra chainsaw was a breakthrough – it was lighter and more manageable than any competing products.

Stihl continues to be an important and valued employer in Waiblingen today. The Stihl calendar is iconic in workshops all over the world.