While the world is full of different people, cultures, traditions, religions, languages, and (of course) dishes, when food tastes great, everyone's on the same page: Mmm! At RATIONAL, we strive for that every single day. That's why we choose to specialize in thermal food preparation. In restaurants, hotels, company canteens, hospitals, schools, supermarkets, and everywhere else food is cooked. Thanks to our partners, specialist dealers and service partners, all of those places enjoy the best possible service around the globe.
The world market leader in commercial kitchen appliances.
Combi ovens and multifunctional tilting pans for intelligent professional kitchens.
For over 50 years, we've been offering our customers the best possible cooking tool. Our goal is always to maximize customer satisfaction, which is why we see ourselves not as machine builders, but as solution providers.
Over 50 years as a technology leader for restaurant and commercial kitchen appliances.
When it tastes great, we all speak the same language.
Our corporate culture.
We offer people working in commercial kitchens the greatest possible benefit in thermal food preparation.
Our self-perception.
We view ourselves as thermal food preparation specialists who develop the best solutions for a clearly defined target group, namely professional kitchens. We are focused on becoming and remaining product leaders. We also want to be pioneers in sustainability.
Customer benefit.
We are in close contact with our target group; we know what they need, which is why we and our cooking systems can give them the greatest possible customer benefit. Long-term partnerships with our customers are important to us – before and after they purchase cooking systems.
Our employees.
The mainstay for our employees and their personal success is the U.i.U. principle: we want everyone at the company to see themselves as entrepreneurs within the enterprise (U.i.U. in German). Personal initiative, a sense of responsibility, trust, and creative freedom are fundamental to that principle. Responsibility for making this work lies with managers, who are partners to their employees.
"Our employees are the most important building block for our customers‘ success. Our "entrepreneur within the enterprise‘ principle both demands and fosters responsible thought and action from each individual. Our cooperation is partnership-oriented, dedicated, and on equal footing."
Dr. Peter Stadelmann, CEO, RATIONAL AG.
Awards and recognition.
Numbers, data, and facts.
RATIONAL is the global market and technology leader with above-average customer satisfaction: every day, more than 180 million dishes are prepared every day in over 1.5 million RATIONAL cooking systems.
- Approximately 50% global market share
- More than 1.5 million combi ovens produced to date
- Over 50 years of cooking research
- Around 80,000 iVarios built (since 2005)
- Over 600 patents, utility patents, and patent applications
- 180 million meals daily
- Over 2,700 employees worldwide (as of Dec. 31, 2024)
- ...of which 600 chefs worldwide
- 32 subsidiaries
Production sites.
GermanyLandsberg am Lech
Combi ovens are built for the entire world in Landsberg am Lech. At the company‘s original location, around 1,500 people work in research & development, production, technical service, shipping, commercial, sales, and marketing. Since the first RATIONAL combi oven came onto the market in 1976, around 1.4 million cooking systems have been built here. No wonder future growth and expansion are already in the works.
FranceWittenheim
The French plant has been part of RATIONAL since 1991 (originally as FRIMA), and has been growing steadily ever since. The company still has big plans for the iVario, as its new building in Alsace demonstrates; more than 260 people work here on the development, production and marketing of the multifunctional cooking system.
ChinaSuzhou
RATIONAL appliances have been used in Chinese kitchens for over 20 years. This production site, the company‘s third, was founded in China as a way of getting closer to the market and understanding customer needs even more effectively. The groundbreaking ceremony for the new production and development center took place in July 2023, and the site officially opened in March 2024.
Executive & Supervisory Boards.
Executive Board.
Chief Executive Officer (CEO).Dr. Peter Stadelmann
Chief Technology Officer (CTO/COO).Dr. Martin Hermann
Chief Sales & Marketing Officer (CSMO).Markus Paschmann
Chief Financial Officer (CFO).Jörg Walter
Supervisory board.
Chairman of the Supervisory Board, founding member and anchor shareholder.Walter Kurtz
- Deputy Chairman of the Supervisory Board.
Erich Baumgärtner
- Supervisory Board member.
Dr. Johannes Würbser
- Supervisory Board member.
Dr. Christoph Lintz
- Supervisory Board member.
Clarissa Käfer
- Supervisory Board member.
Werner Schwind
- Supervisory Board member.
Moritz Graser
FAQs.
The German market and technology leader in thermal food preparation is distinguished by exceptional innovation power. This has garnered RATIONAL numerous prestigious awards, including:
- Best Managed Company Award 2025 – for the third consecutive year, for outstanding corporate governance
- Best of Technology Award 2024 for the ConnectedCooking networking solution (ERP interface)
- Factory of the Year 2022 for excellence in cost and agility management at the Landsberg am Lech plant
- German Innovation Award 2021 - “Kitchen” category winner for iCombi Pro & iVario Pro
RATIONAL sells its products in over 120 countries, has an unparalleled service network for commercial kitchen technology, and generated over €1.1 billion in sales in 2024. Excellent customer satisfaction levels and a leading Net Promoter Score demonstrate that RATIONAL is considered the best brand choice for commercial kitchens.
RATIONAL has received numerous prestigious awards for design, innovation and management. The RATIONAL iCombi Pro is the world’s best-selling combi oven; it combines steaming, roasting, baking, grilling, and sous-vide cooking functions into a single system – with intelligent monitoring and support, precise cooking cabinet climate management, and energy savings of up to 35%.
RATIONAL's history stretches back over five decades. The company has been evolving continuously ever since and is now a global leader in commercial kitchen technology. With a market share of around 50% and more than 1.1 million combi ovens manufactured since 1976, RATIONAL sets industry standards. In the digital sector, the company excels with ConnectedCooking, its digital kitchen management system. Distribute cooking programs, update unit software, and document HACCP data – all digitally and remotely.
Numerous international awards reflect RATIONAL's innovative power. In 2024, the company was awarded the BEST Managed Companies Award for the third time in a row, the Internorga Future Award in the “Technology & Equipment” category for iCareSystem AutoDose and the BEST of Technology Award in the Process Management category, among others. The company also received the World Technology Leader Award for its advanced sensor technology and AI-enhanced optimization of cooking processes.
Innovation power is at the heart of the intelligent iCombi Pro, the multifunctional iVario Pro, or the iHexagon, the world’s first cooking system that intelligently and adaptively combines steam, hot air, and microwave on all six racks. RATIONAL appliances symbolize innovation.
To ensure that RATIONAL continues to drive innovation, it has expanded its research and development budget to over €59 million. The company makes, and will continue to make, an excellent case for itself as the best choice for large kitchen appliances like combi steamers and tilting skillets.
RATIONAL customers' high satisfaction reflects the quality of RATIONAL's products. With a Net Promoter Score (NPS) of 64, the company is well above the industry average (30–37). Restaurateurs are more satisfied with RATIONAL cooking systems than with competitor appliances – thanks to RATIONAL's customer-centric approach, which is the company's top priority.
Customers appreciate the cooking systems' reliability and efficiency, as evidenced by their very high repeat purchase rate. BMW-Welt, Hilton, and dean&david are just a few of the many companies counting on RATIONAL appliances – as it should be for the world's best commercial kitchen equipment.
Customer proximity is very important to RATIONAL. Nearly all of its outside sales staff are chefs; it knows customer challenges and offers targeted solutions.
With subsidiaries in Europe, Asia, North America, and South America, RATIONAL guarantees customer proximity and a deep understanding of the local markets. Together with its subsidiaries, RATIONAL is present in 120 countries.
The company is committed to sustainability, which is reflected in its corporate principles for environment, community, and responsibility.
All iCombi units carry the ENERGY STAR label, marking them as sustainable and energy-efficient solutions in commercial kitchen technology. A real-world study conducted by the Weihenstephan Triesdorf University of Applied Science offered additional concrete evidence of their resource-saving advantages. RATIONAL was also awarded the ENERGY STAR Partner of the Year 2024.
RATIONAL’s innovative strength is based on intensive research and development. With over 600 active patents, patent applications, and designs, the company has its finger on the pulse of modern technology. The iCombi Pro and iVario Pro received the German Innovation Award 2021 and the German Design Award 2021 product awards. The iHexagon won the German Innovation Award 2025.
Offering customers the maximum possible benefit at all times is firmly anchored in the company philosophy. To help RATIONAL understand customer requirements as effectively as possible, it employs around 600 chefs who know and understand commercial kitchen requirements around the world and can help optimize day-to-day kitchen life. Year after year, numerous international awards confirm the high quality of RATIONAL employees' work.
RATIONAL is an excellent employer that attaches great importance to structured orientation and high-quality training. New employees are shadowed extensively to help them settle in quickly. In accordance with the principle of “strengthening strengths”, every employee is viewed as a talent; regular development discussions and a wide range of continuous-education courses help each employee actively shape their path as an entrepreneur within the enterprise (U.i.U.). Managers and the People Team are always available to provide advice and support.
RATIONAL regularly offers live events where interested parties can experience the appliances in action and test them personally. Experienced chefs give practical cooking demonstrations to show how RATIONAL products can be used in everyday life – with efficiency, versatility, and the best possible cooking results. The demonstrations give everyone an up-close look at the cooking systems' performance and added value.