Focus on coil processing
This also affects the company’s attitude to
issues such as quality, safety and training.
“Most of the productive force work in team-
work structures for extra flexibility,” explained
Katrin Bauer, assistant to both managing
directors and teamwork project coordina-
tor. “The team organizes its own structures
and production steps so that the people who
best understand the processes and products
organize the production process. We also do
training onsite. The teams work to set targets
and, since starting the teamwork system in
October 2003, we have measured productiv-
ity improvements of around 15-20%. We also
take over its full inventory of equipment and, have a very large training plan for workers and
consequently, widen its activity as well as management. It is important that everyone is
increase its capacity by around 5-10%. educated on production issues or changes
“This enabled us to follow our supply phi- in material quality/tolerances, new technical
losophy up to 7mm so that we now have the developments, legislation etc.”
same range of slit coil products as we had
in sheets and blanks,” Wolf Rudiger Otte
explained. “We are also the only service
centre in Europe able to apply liquid and dry
lubricants onto the material.”
Differentiation is also key when it comes to
quality certification.
“We are certified to ISO 9001: 2000, EN ISO
14001 (environmental management system)
and ISO/TS 16949,” added Otte. “This is the
highest automotive quality management mark
in Europe and there are only a few service
centres with this qualification – we received Looking to the future
ours in May 2006.” After such a major acquisition of machin-
ery, Hövelmann & Lueg will consolidate its
Top left:
Shearing
operations this year but also plans to make
operations smaller investments in its logistics operations
this year, as well as purchasing a new shear
Left: Metal
for one of its decoiling lines.
processing
“2006 was a mixed year for us,” Ulrich
Becker told ISMR. “We were not too happy
with the first part of the year. When we make
our annual contracts with automotive and other
companies, we have to try to maintain supply
lines at acceptable prices. In general, we had
a lot of competition – we are surrounded by
other service centres – and the price policy of
the mills had not been very clear and people
try to leverage that. The second part of the year
was much stronger for us.
32 March/April 2007 International Sheet Metal Review
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