Robert Reiner

Robert Reiner (18 August 1880–22 August 1960) was a machinist, entrepreneur and businessman. His business is credited with helping to expand the machine embroidery industry in Hudson County, New Jersey during the first half of the twentieth century. By the 1950s, the area known as North Hudson comprising the municipalities of Weehawken, Union City, West New York, Guttenberg, and North Bergen had developed into one of the largest centers for machine embroidery in the world. Reiner first traveled to the United States about 1902. He first installed and then began importing embroidery and other textile machines from Europe. He established what became Robert Reiner Incorporated in Weehawken. Eventually he employed about 200 people. He was the sole importer of VOMAG (Vogtländische Maschinenfabrik AG) embroidery machines from Plauen, Germany. Eventually he produced the first American made schiffli embroidery machine. Reiner held an honorary doctorate of political economy and science from the University of Heidelberg. He remained a benefactor of his native Nürtingen. He was a member of the US Chamber of Commerce, the New York Board of Trade, and was president of the American-German Chamber of Commerce until World War II. In October 1928 he was one of twenty passengers aboard the Graf Zeppelin during its first trans Atlantic commercial passenger flight, flying from Friedrichshafen, Germany to Lakehurst, New Jersey.

Training

Reiner began training to be a machinist at age 15 (about 1895) at Heller Brothers in Nürtingen, Germany. Switzerland met much of this demand. The first and second world wars had a profound effect on the European embroidery industry and economy. The European embroidery industry collapsed during World War I. VOMAG and the city of Plauen were destroyed by bombing during World War II.

Meanwhile, a third center for machine embroidery, North Hudson, New Jersey emerged at the beginning of the twentieth century. Located on the west bank of the Hudson River, opposite New York City. Hudson County was close to the American market, e.g. New York City's garment district, textile manufacturing, and was a hub for both domestic and international transportation.

Reiner's business

A photo taken circa 1903 shows an advertisement for the Robert Reiner Importing Company on the side of a horse-drawn wagon. This would have been typical of the technology at that time. But, this would quickly change. Many Swiss and Germans immigrated to Hudson County at the beginning of the century, and helped to build the industry there. They brought knowledge of the machines, and the methods that were necessary to produce embroidery and lace. Ancillary businesses that supplied fabrics, thread, embroidery designs, "punching" or translating of designs to Jacquard punch tapes, dying, chemical lace etching, and bleaching of so-called "white goods" also developed in New Jersey. This network of interdependent businesses mirrored the industries in Switzerland and Germany. Reiner's connection to VOMAG enabled him to become the sole importer of their machines The machines were manufactured in Germany at the VOMAG factory and then assembled in New Jersey. Reiner imported semi-automated schiffli machines which used a pantograph as well as fully automated schiffli machines which were programmed using a Jacquard punch card reader. He also imported punching machines which were used to encode the design onto the schiffli punch cards. The 1917 advertisement at right shows 10 and 15 meter schiffli embroidery machines. Fifteen meter machines were state of the art at that time.

A Robert Reiner Importing Company catalog published about 1914 opens with an illustration of the VOMAG factory in Plauen. The captions reads: "3,800 experienced engineers and skilled workmen are continuously employed in this large establishment." The pages show awards won by VOMAG at various European expositions, and side by side portraits of Robert Reinier and the late Robert Zahn. Zahn adapted the Jacquard card reader to the embroidery machine. VOMAG's card reader was known as the automat, or the Zahn system. This was cast on the machine's frame. The catalog advertises: ten and 15-meter embroidery machines, demonstrations using the customer's own design, training, and also parts and technical support for other brands. The catalog provides a directory of every owner in the United States, and provides the following statistics: "total number of machines delivered by us in this country, 1,207." Also, "we have sold and delivered 36 pantograph machines and 72 Zahn automats (these will appear in our next year's statistics). Shuttle embroidery machines running in Switzerland, 8,090." Contemporary publications provide a similar description of the business and demonstration plant

The industry in New Jersey experienced multiple highs and lows as demand followed fashion. The Great Depression adversely affected all businesses. The war years benefitted the schiffli emblem manufacturers. Reiner's competition included Saentis (orthographic variant of: Säntis) in Union City. The latter was acquired by Saurer.