Making of a Rimowa aluminium suitcase: Inside the German brand’s Cologne factory

COLOGNE, Germany – It is not often Rimowa opens the doors to its manufacturing facility for a peek into how it makes its coveted, thousand-dollar suitcases.

This refrain is drummed into the heads of some 20 journalists, a group of which I am a part of, multiple times on our visit in mid-May. The subtext is clear: We are very lucky to be here.

We are on a trip to the luxury luggage maker’s home town of Cologne, where Rimowa began as a saddlery workshop. In 1898, entrepreneur Paul Morszeck established the company, producing leather goods for equestrian use that later evolved to bags and suitcases.

Aluminium, the heart of Rimowa’s identity, was introduced in the 1920s.

A century later, it is still in Cologne that Rimowa manufactures most of its aluminium products, including its Classic range – identifiable by its leather handles and exposed rivets – and newly introduced Crafted For You made-to-measure cases.

Polycarbonate cases are made in the Czech Republic, with a facility in Canada supporting additional manufacturing of both aluminium and polycarbonate products. Leather, canvas and nylon goods are produced by specialised partners in Italy.

The Cologne facility has grown from one to eight buildings – cheekily shaped like Rimowa’s grooved aluminium luggage, with rounded corners to boot – and 16 manufacturing stations.

Before heading into confidential territory, everyone is made to slip into protective footwear with hard-shelled toecaps. No photos inside, we are reminded, because rivals would run amok with these trade secrets.

The manufacturing process begins with sheets of anodised aluminium cut from a coil, that are grooved and formed into a shell. Anodisation creates a protective layer that enhances resistance to corrosion and external conditions.

A rhythmic “tack tack tack” accompanies the whir of machinery – the sound of imprinting Rimowa’s iconic grooves into the metal. Grooving is not just to establish a visual signature, but also helps create stress in the material to make it more durable.

Magnesium is added to aluminium to make it more tactile and adaptable to stress. “We want to have them bend, but not crack,” says Ole, the industrial engineer leading this tour, cheerily.

Each suitcase is made of two sheets with holes cut out for the wheels, handles and telescopic handle. Laser punching is used to create recesses, holes or grid patterns on the surface.

Making a sheet takes under four minutes, and while this is mostly done by a machine, the human touch is still needed to operate it.

Mastery of material

The next couple of stations get loud, so the group is handed protection from a little candy dispenser of neon-green ear plugs.

In the adjoining room, we are welcomed by cubbies full of deconstructed Classic cabin suitcases, their skeletons waiting to be bestowed life and form. There is something disconcerting about seeing the stacks of flat aluminium shells, casually folded up like catering trays at a buffet, knowing that these will become the precious cabin suitcases that cause owners to wince at every tiniest ding or scratch.

Said aluminium shells are inserted into frames and connected by rivets, itself no straightforward task.

To balance the tensions of the sheet to the frame, the operator has to understand “how the sheet is behaving” and tease it into the frame, looking out for gaps to ensure precise alignment. During framing, a unique serial number is added so each case is traceable.

Aviation-style rivets are the choice of joining technology as glue ages over time and can degrade the product. After riveting, parts such as the corners, logo badge, telescopic handle, locks, handles and wheels are attached.

Here, the assembly line of men do like miners at work, punching, passing and hammering in rote harmony.

At this point, Ole pauses to announce that a big advantage of aluminium is that it is highly recyclable – which means that if there are errors, scratches or waste in the making process, the entire sheet can be recycled and reused. A relief for anyone nervously eyeing the assembly line of manhandling.

The appliances may look rough, but every tool has some scratch-avoidance protection built in, we are assured.

The final point in assembly is the “Hochzeit”, or “wedding” in German, to join the two halves “hopefully forever”.

Snickers ensue, but are quickly interrupted by the next stop, a cabin which offers a view into the balancing process – akin to a Thai massage to “feel out and release tension in parts of the luggage”. Every step in the making introduces stress into the material, and if that gets too high, it affects wheel alignment and locks jamming.

Workers at this station are the most experienced, says Ole, because they know how to apply the right pressure to reduce tension and force the cases into shape.

Some Rimowa technicians have been working there for 30 to 40 years. “They’re very passionate and enjoy making a product,” he says. “It looks so ‘boring’, but every case is slightly different, so you need to adapt.”

End of the line

Once the body is done, it is time for the lining. After the seeming gruffness of the engineering, the next room has a gentler air, where textiles are folded in and attached to the suitcases.

This is handled by a department of mostly women, who add divider systems, polish and do quality checks.

Every factory technician can make a piece from start to finish, as he or she is often rotated through the different work stations to be able to truly understand the making of a case. This means women can rotate into the body manufacturing line if they want, or men into the interiors department.

The total time taken to produce a Classic Cabin ($2,160) is about 80 minutes. An aluminium Vanity Case ($2,770) looks smaller, but takes the same amount of time, as it is more intricate and needs more rivets. Speciality products like the vanity case, Personal Cross-Body Bag ($2,280) and Jewellery Case ($2,590) have dedicated departments as they require specialised tools.

Does it mean that the smaller a product, the more expensive it would be? “Time results in cost – so the price always gives you a hint of the effort we need to put into it,” admits Ole, clarifying that it is more labour cost than material cost.

While almost any technician now could make a Classic cabin blindfolded, a Crafted For You piece (which starts at €4,500, or S$6,700) calls for at least a decade of experience. “Once you master the sheet, master the frame, you can repeat it – but you don’t need to repeat it because you make the case only once.”