Trusted Solutions

Trust is the cornerstone of secure access leader Dormakaba. For senior Vice President operations APAC oliver riess, this extends beyond solutions to the culture of the company itself.

- Lisa Schofield

Dormakaba is what’s known as a ‘hidden champion’. Although you don’t see its products, you may use them every day. It might be a sliding door, an office entry, a ticket gate at the airport, a safe lock or a revolving door. But in the security systems industry, there is no hiding this champion. And with more than 150 years of experience, dormakaba is widely recognised as one of its leaders, setting a global benchmark in smart access and security solutions.

In 2020, Oliver Riess, Senior Vice President Operations, celebrated 25 years with dormakaba after starting in the tool shop in Germany in 1995. “My grandfather worked for the company, and as I was interested in engineering, I stumbled into it,” Oliver chuckles. “After working my way up to a tool designer and then into operations, I was offered an opportunity as a project manager in China.” The timing was perfect, with major growth and development planned for the region, including the global merger of the Dorma and Kaba brands.

Originally established in 1862, the Kaba company went public in 1995 before merging with Dorma in 2015 to form dormakaba. “Both Dorma and Kaba had strong brands although slightly different product strengths,” Oliver explains. “Their product portfolios were very complementary.”