3 Jul 2026
,Germany
The timber construction company CL Tech from Kaiserslautern has applied for insolvency in self-administration. The proceedings aim at restructuring — a sharp break for a company that until recently was regarded as a high-tech pioneer in the industry and pursued an unprecedented growth trajectory.
The company’s origins date back to 2019, when founder Jürgen Gottschall started with eight employees and the idea of fully automated production. In the following years CL Tech grew rapidly: demand rose, business boomed, and the company positioned itself as a technological leader seeking to actively shape the future of timber construction.
In 2023 Gottschall invested around 50 million euros in a second plant — also to gain independence from the major timber industry groups. In an 11,000-square-meter hall, a new cross-laminated timber facility was inaugurated that operated with a high degree of automation. The workforce at CL Tech grew to 75 employees, while the group as a whole employed 110 people. Total investments at the Kaiserslautern site alone amounted to approximately 27.8 million euros.
The public sector also placed its trust in the company: in 2023 the Rhineland-Palatinate Ministry of Economic Affairs awarded CL Tech an innovation grant of around 2.9 million euros to advance its digitization efforts. Plans included the first production of hybrid cross-laminated timber panels made from different materials as well as a new production line for cross-laminated timber — both without material waste.
The insolvency filing now stands in stark contrast to this recent corporate history, the state funding, and the company’s technological ambitions. It is not yet known why the strong growth could not be placed on a stable footing. The coming weeks will show whether the restructuring succeeds and whether CL Tech can continue as an innovative timber construction company.
