Our History

Leading with precision. Earning trust for generations.
It’s no coincidence that seca has remained the market leader for years. Our commitment to progress—step by step—has led to meaningful advancements that support better health outcomes around the world.

This journey began in 1840, when one bold idea sparked a legacy of innovation. And while others have followed, we've stayed ahead by standing beside healthcare professionals from the very beginning.

We're just getting started—and we're honored to move forward with you.

From the right sense for great success

Today the ambitious young metalworker A.C.C. Joachims would have been an apprentice with distinction.

His employer was the monk and mechanic Alois Quintenz who had already invented the decimal scale in Strasbourg in 1821. The clever apprentice acquired the necessary knowledge from him and brought it to Hamburg. There Joachims founded Germany's first scale factory on July 11th, 1840. He primarily produced weigh bridges, decimal scales, Roberval balances, and column scales that he sold all over the world. A small factory developed out of the metalwork shop whose luster faded when Joachims died in 1874.

The mechanical engineer Frederik Vogel bought the scale factory in 1888, expanded the product range, and introduced the brand name "seca" which he had copyrighted in 1897. The name is derived from the Latin word "secare" meaning "to cut." Why? Because one cut plays an important role in the measuring accuracy of a mechanical scale.

The move to Wandsbek.

seca grows.

At the start of the industrialization Frederik Vogel moved the company from Königstraße in the Altona district to the Hammer Steindamm in Wandsbek in 1904.

The headquarters of seca is still located there today. Just about every doctor was already familiar with and using the mechanical scales with the red logo in the first half of the 20th century because they are considered especially durable thanks to their high quality.

The Next Generation

seca stays in the family

seca had already survived World War I and the Great Depression as Frederik Vogel passed the management of seca on to his son Robert.

The new CEO carried the company through the difficult time of World War II and started with the reconstruction immediately afterward. His skill paid off, because seca quickly became famous for its groundbreaking developments.

He expanded the market leadership of seca with a new strategic orientation. His concept was to concentrate on medical measuring and weighing with top precision. "When it comes to weighing, use seca scales!" Delivery vans with large advertisements drove through the city presenting and selling the new products, always very close to the customer.

seca receives the design award

Inside and out: seca products are proud to show what they are made of.

These efforts were rewarded with the special award for exceptionally groundbreaking design. The seca 664 wheelchair scale was honored with the "red dot design award: intelligent design" by the Design Zentrum Nordrhein-Westfalen.

Since Sönke Vogel stepped down from the area of operations into the advisory board in 2010, seca has now been run by the fourth generation.

The company is now in the hands of his sons Robert Vogel (CEO Marketing & Sales) and Frederik Vogel (CEO Development & Manufacturing). Thomas Wessels is CEO Finance & Services. seca thereby remains a 100% family-owned company – and market leader.

The mBCA is the result of years of research and development as well as intensive collaboration with leading scientists in the field of body composition. The measurement takes just 17 seconds and provides medically validated results on the percentage of fat, muscle and water in the body. seca is the first manufacturer worldwide to have validated all measurements against the relevant gold standard and to have published the studies in a transparent manner.

When the talented locksmith A.C.C. Joachims founded a scale business in Hamburg in 1840 he had no way of knowing that his enterprise would still be operating 175 years later. As an owner-operated company that is now in its fourth generation, seca is established as a global player in over 110 countries and has expanded its position as a world market leader in the field of medical measuring and weighing. The story of our success is therefore surely not over yet and there are still many successful chapters in seca's history yet to be written.

With the mVSA, seca is entering a new market segment and driving the transformation from scale manufacturer to system provider. When developing its first spot-check-monitor, seca’s main focus was on ease of use. With the seca mVSA the emphasis is also on integration capacity. Measurement results from other seca scales and measuring devices can be transmitted wirelessly to the monitor and all data can be integrated into the hospital’s EMR system.

With the Scale-up Line, seca supplies the correct measuring and weighing solution for almost all medical applications. Seca’s hardware, software and service make a success of even complex IT integration projects. The modular concept offers standardized solutions for the entire hospital and can be fully integrated into the EMR system. The product development is based on direct user feedback, thus forming the interface between theoretical development and practical application

As Covid-19 meets a world completely unprepared and continues to spread, seca focuses on remaining a strong partner for the healthcare system worldwide. By maintaining production, securing supply chains and using innovative solutions such as Physical Distance Scales™, seca is contributing to the fight against the pandemic whilst the celebration of its own anniversary of 180 years goes almost unnoticed.

In addition to being a global market leader, seca has always maintained a company culture of innovation, combined with a focus on the well-being of employees and the customers whom we serve in over 110 countries.

Led by brothers Robert Vogel (CEO Marketing & Sales) and Frederik Vogel (CEO Development & Manufacturing) since 2010, seca is positioned as the premier solutions provider for medical weighing and measuring.

Choosing seca as your MedTech system solutions provider means choosing a global leader that brings 180+ years of medical device and diagnostic expertise to your organization. Our comprehensive solutions enable efficient workflow and faster diagnosis through innovative medical devices, precise data, integrated networks, intelligent software, and reliable services. We’re your end-to-end unified solutions provider.

In addition to sales via our eighteen branch offices, seca measuring systems and scales are also exported to over 110 countries. In addition, the seca service network guarantees the continual servicing of the precision devices. seca maintains close contact with users in order to support doctors and medical staff as professionally as possible. The results are innovative products that are precisely tailored to the needs of the respective medical areas of application. In doing so, the most advanced production techniques, durable materials, and worldwide quality management guarantee a product standard of the highest level.