The first Swiss patent was published in November 1888 and only eight months later, on July 24, 1889, Sulzer Brothers ("Gebrüder Sulzer") filed their first patent application at the Swiss Patent Office in Berne. The first Sulzer trademark was deposited at the Swiss Federal Office of Intellectual Property in Berne at 9 a.m. on May 28, 1930. Sulzer Brothers had already begun its international expansion on a wide basis in the 19th century. This development is not least documented by a series of historical patents and documents, valuable testimony of the times, which are still carefully guarded by the Patent Department today. A treasure trove of experience and competence which has been at the disposal of the Patent Department for many decades and from which our internal and external clients have profited right up to the present day.
In the 19th century and in the early 20th century, Sulzer Brothers were still using external firms in matters of industrial property rights. However, they soon founded their own patent department and trademark department which quickly developed into one of the most important patent departments in the Swiss machine industry. By 1975, the Patent Department had grown to a total of 22 employees, including 10 patent attorneys and 12 technical assistants. The number of patented inventions of Sulzer brothers had already grown to more than 5,000 patent families by this time.
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