Mr. Johann A. Krause founded the parent company in 1950 as a contract-engineering firm. The company gradually added manufacturing capability and shop floor space to meet the needs of its local industry customer base. By 1960, several industries were employing the company’s services and the product range included vertical milling machines, boring heads, scales, and food-processing machines. The company even produced a wind tunnel model for a space shuttle.

       The company’s initial contact with the automotive industry dates back to 1967 when Ford Motor Company awarded an order for a front axle test stand. The approach of considering improved work flow and partial automation for powertrain component assembly, adopted by the automotive industry in the late 1960’s, provided the basis for Krause’s future focus and development as an assembly systems specialist.

       The quality and dependability of the company’s products together with the increased requirements of the customer base resulted in growth and international expansion. Subsidiaries were founded in Great Britain and France in 1980. A research and development facility was established in Hanover, Germany in 1982. A subsidiary was founded in Spain in 1989. Krause began offering products to the North American market in 1993 through Thyssen Production Systems Inc., located in Auburn Hills, Michigan – sharing space with the metal cutting and body-in-white divisions.

       In 1997 Krause’s decision to expand its capabilities within North America was concurrent with the acquisition of Giddings & Lewis by Thyssen. This resulted in the development of the Auburn Hills, Michigan facility as a focused factory for the Krause product line and a renaming of the company to Johann A. Krause, Inc. in 1998. As part of the Giddings & Lewis integration, Gilman Engineering and Manufacturing, LLC became a member of the Krause Group in 1999. In conjunction with a major project in Mexico and the developing market in this area of the world, Johann A. Krause Mexico S.A. DE C.V. was established in 1999. To support customers in Southeast United States, a sales and service office was opened in Huntsville, Alabama in 2001. As the company continued to undergo changes to become more cost-effective and more customer-oriented, the name of the company changed in October 2006 to ThyssenKrupp Krause, Inc.