Anyone dropping in on the test institute in Offenbach would think they had landed in a torture chamber for electrical appliances - at least when it comes to testing the electrical, thermal and mechanical properties of the devices. Electric cords are tensioned between tractions and subjected to merciless tests of endurance. A machine throwing balls punishes ceiling lamps designed for a sport hall with up to the equivalent of a handball thrown at 60 km/h.

In another test room, a special apparatus opens and closes the door of a microwave oven up to 100,000 times, whereby a tight fit and automatic switch-off are tested at defined intervals. And in numerous climate chambers, stress tests are carried out at high room temperatures and high humidity. The point of all these torturous goings-on is, of course, to eliminate sources of danger in an appliance before the customer uses it.