3 April 2018, 12:18
For three decades, Johann Mesch was at the top of Bauer Umwelt and, since 2010, of BAUER Resources GmbH. On April 1, he left his post and since then Peter Hingott (chair.) und Dr. Roman Breuer have formed the new dual leadership. But although he has definitely earned his retirement, Johann Mesch is not saying goodbye just yet. He has taken on interim management post for the BAUER Training Center GmbH and will remain available to take on special tasks from Bauer Resources.
The graduate chemist joined Bauer at the end of the 1980s, when the former head of the development department was busy setting up an environment department. Working under civil engineer Claus Brede, Johann Mesch was only the fifth employee of a very young environment department. With the Dutch company Mourik Grootammers, Bauer had found an experienced partner in the fields of project development, pollution remediation and environmental services. In this starting phase of Bauer Umwelt, Johann Mesch quickly grew into executive functions as project manager. After Brede had retired, Mesch continued to run the business together with Jan Hartog from Mourik. During this time, the first soil treatment center was opened in the Saxon town of Hirschfeld – after German reunification, pollution remediation in the former GDR was brought back into focus. Additional soil treatment centers in Germany (Schrobenhausen, Bleicherode and Hamburg) and Austria (Salzburg) have since been added.
From 1996, Johann Mesch was finally alone at the top of Bauer Umwelt, until a second managing director was appointed with Peter Hingott in 2007. That same year, BAUER Resources GmbH was founded as a third pillar alongside the construction and equipment segments. The new segment united several spin-offs; besides environmental technology, this included well-drilling, potable water drilling or the exploration of gold and diamond deposits.
Starting in 2000, Johann Mesch added reed bed technology to the environmental technology portfolio. Today, the 10.5 km² reed bed treatment plant in Oman is a lighthouse project that cleans contaminated water from the oil industry purely biologically. The local Resources subsidiary BAUER Nimr LLC was commissioned just last fall for the third expansion phase.
Dr. Roman Breuer is also closely linked to this project. He joined Bauer Umwelt as a trainee in 2004. He was initially charged with providing assistance on construction sites before becoming active in the areas of project calculation and marketing. Then he went into foreign businesses to assist the Bauer Umwelt companies in the Middle East region in the field of customer acquisition; ultimately, he helped to set up the environmental business in Abu Dhabi. "I wanted to go abroad right from the very beginning, so this was perfect for me", Roman Breuer recounts. In 2005/2006 in Qatar, he carried out his first smaller remediation contracts as project manager together with a colleague from Bauer Umwelt.
At the beginning of 2009, Bauer finally won the major project to construct and operate the reed bed treatment plant in Nimr. For two years, Roman Breuer was Managing Director of BAUER Nimr LLC. "It is fantastic to see how far this project has come today", he says, visibly proud, "in the fields of reed bed treatment plants, but also pollution remediation or drilling and constructing deep wells, Bauer is far ahead of its competitors today." Back in Germany, he assumed the post of Regional Manager for the Middle East, whilst also taking on managing director tasks in the areas of research and development, international business development and HSE.
Since April 1, Roman Breuer and Peter Hingott, who is also a Member of the Management Board at BAUER AG, form the new dual leadership of BAUER Resources GmbH. "I am looking forward to tackling my new tasks and the close collaboration with a very well-functioning management team", says Breuer. Prof. Thomas Bauer also affirmed: "Peter Hingott and Dr. Roman Breuer have an excellent management team on which they can rely. Coupled with their longstanding experience, they will ensure good development in this segment. We are very grateful to Johann Mesch for his commitment over three decades to Bauer", says the Chairman of the Management Board at BAUER AG, adding, "We wish Dr. Roman Breuer every success in his new role and the required degree of luck to ensure a successful future."
Source: Bauer Group