Magazine for SUMITOMO-DEMAG-employees 1/2008

Who is Sumitomo?

From liquid metal to heavy transport.

Germany to China and re-turn.

Injection moulding reinvented.

2 3

Dear Readers,Dear Colleagues,

Since March we have been merged with Sumitomo, one of the most important companies in our sector, and now

we are extremely well placed for a successful future.

After six years of financial investors ownership, Demag now has again a long-term strategically thinking owner but

this is certainly not the time to rest on our laurels. We have to hold our own under keen competitive conditions

and convince our customers by superior performance. Size alone is not enough and iit could give us a false sense of

security. In our global economy it is not the big that devour the small ones, but rather the fast ones that will beat

the slower ones.

Information and communication are vital for our future success. Lack of information and communication is an often

heard complaint and indeed often interfers with our day-to-day work, affecting the performance of our company.

In our new international company, communication, information and confidence are prime requirements for success.

This new magazine is designed to provide our workforce in future with insights into important topics. It will appear

three times a year covering interesting points from different divisions. If we succeed with this publication in promo-

ting communication in our group in addition to giving information on concrete facts, we will have achieved a great

deal.

Enjoy reading this magazine.

Yours sincerely,

Dr. Tetsuya Okamura

WELCOME

Good day!

Konnichiwa

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WELCOME

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Who is Sumitomo?Three months after the merger to form a leading company in the injection moulding machine sector we are having a look at Japan

Brief introduction into Japanese etiquetteGermans and Japanese follow different rules of etiquette. Here is a discussion of Japanese idiosyncrasies

On the way to the new Demag From molten metal to heavy transport,this is how an injection moulding machine is created

Germany - China and backA report on Demag in China

It’s the drives that make the difference An interview with Dr. Okamura on the merger of Demag and Sumitomo

Injection moulding reinventedFrom a crazy idea to Entrepreneur of the Year

The European injection moulding machine marketFacts and figures about our industry

Workforce profilesTetsuhiko Sugimoto and Carsten Friedemann

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Impressum

Published byDemag Ergotech GmbHAltdorfer Straße 15, 90571 Schwaig, Germany, Phone: +49 911 5061-232, Fax: -750, e-mail: info-dpde@dpg.comwww.dpg.com

EditorsRaik Flämig (editor-in-chief), Stefanie Lauterbach, Dr. Axel von Wiedersperg, Franziska Heinrich, Susanne Zinckgraf (Plastverarbeiter)

PhotographsSebastian Reuter, Raik Flämig, Bianca Seipp, Susanne Zinckgraf

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Contents

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CONTENTS

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After the merger, the first thing

everyone of us did, was to visit

the Internet in order to learn more

about Sumitomo. So we were

quickly aware of the fact that the

name Sumitomo is to be found

under many headings and products

and that these are handled by many

widely different companies.

The roots of all Sumitomo com-

panies are in the Japanese family

of Sumitomo which can be traced

back to the years 1630 when Masa-

tomo Sumitomo (1585 – 1652) es-

tablished a business for the sale of

medical drugs and books in Kyoto.

Sumitomo’s brother-in-law who ran

a copper smelter and a forge disco-

vered a new forging technique, the

so-called ‘Nan-ban-buki’ process

to separate silver from raw copper.

It was this invention that made the

Sumitomo family known all over

Japan. It opened for Sumitomo the

possibility of becoming a leader in

the copper-producing and refining

industry at the end of the 18th

century. Later, new businesses were

added, including banks, depart-

ment stores and electric cables. To-

day, the Sumitomo Group maintains

the traditions of the family and ope-

rates in line with the rules establis-

hed by its founder.

At the present time, the Sumitomo

Group comprises 37 companies

and in 2007 ranked among the five

largest industrial groups worldwi-

de. The individual companies are

legally autonomous and so Demag

was acquired by Sumitomo Heavy

Industries Ltd. to be exact, a core

company of the Sumitomo Group.

Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. was

founded in 1888 by the name of

Kosakugata, to maintain and repair

machinery for the copper industry.

In 1934, just fifty years later, the

company, now renamed Sumito-

mo Kikai Seisaku K.K. (in English

Sumitomo Machinery Co. Ltd.)

underwent enormous growth due

to the development of machines

and equipment for the steel and

transport industries.

In 1969, Sumitomo Kikai Seisa-

ku K.K. merged with the Uraga

Senkyo Company (in English Uraga

Heavy Industries Co. Ltd.) to form

Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. In

the following years, the company

continued its expansion into new

markets and today, the comprehen-

sive production spectrum extends

from injection moulding machines,

mobile cranes and ships to liquid

crystal production and laser plant

equipment.

In 2006, Sumitomo Heavy Indus-

tries Ltd. generated yearly sales of

Euro 3.6 billion and employed more

than 11,300 people worldwide.

The company today is listed at the

Tokyo Stock Exchange.

The plastics machinery division of

Sumitomo Heavy Industries Ltd. has

been active since the inception of

the plastics era both in the injection

moulding as well as the injection

blow-moulding sectors. It has been

playing a central role in the quali-

tative and quantitative growth of

the plastics industry in Asia. In the

sector of injection moulding ma-

chines, Sumitomo had almost 1,600

people working in 2006. In Asia,

Sumitomo ranks among the leading

manufacturers and worldwide is the

dominating manufacturer of elec-

trical injection moulding machines.

Yearly sales amount to more than

Euro 350 million.

In developing the Sumitomo injec-

tion moulding machines, Sumitomo

Heavy Industries systematically use

key technologies from other areas

of the company. Sumitomo’s and

now also Demag’s competitive edge

over competitors is based on elec-

trical drives that have been specially

developed for injection moulding

and which Sumitomo and Fanuc as

the only manufacturers of injection

moulding machines manufacture

inhouse. All other competitors have

to buy-in the strategically important

electrical components and depend

on third parties for their develop-

ment.

As early as in the nineties, Sumi-

tomo had concentrated on the

development and production

of electrical injection moulding

machines and today ranks undispu-

tedly among the technology leaders

in this area. With efficient and

sophisticated injection moulding

machines, Sumitomo has achieved

for itself an out-standing market

position in Asia and North Ameri-

ca. In the Japanese market, every

fourth electrical injection moulding

machine is a Sumitomo machine.

In 2006, the company delivered a

total of 4,000 machines. In Europe,

however, Sumitomo has not yet

recorded a comparable success.

Today, there are some 1,000

Sumitomo machines including 600

electricals that are operating in

Europe.

In taking over Demag, Sumitomo is

now also assuming a strong role in

Europe. With the merger of the two

companies, the first really globally

acting company is taking shape

in the injection moulding industry

which is solidly represented on all

continents and is capable of being a

competent partner for its interna-

tional customers all over the world

without any compromises.

Whereas Sumitomo has outstan-

ding competence in electrical injec-

tion moulding machines, Demag’s

special strength is in its ability to

offer customised complete solutions

to its customers as an essential pre-

condition which is crucial in order

to be successful in Europe.

SUMITOMO SUMITOMO

America

5.000Europe

1.000

Japan

24.900North Asia

15.000

South Asia

5.000

Others

800

Who is Sumitomo?Since March of this year, Demag has been part of the Sumitomo Group. The integration of both companies is currently in full swing. Time to learn more about Sumitomo.

8 9

Sumitomo-Demag integration

Since the merger in March this year,

work is in hand by the development

divisions to handle the harmonis-

ing of the product lines; there are

three integration teams which have

been appointed to orchestrate the

integration of the two companies,

one for Asia, one for America and

another for Europe.

Sumitomo’s electrical machines are

earmarked for the markets in Asia

and America whereas in Europe it

is Demag’s IntElect that will form a

platform for the electrical injection

moulding machines. The reason is

that customers in Europe attach

special value to special options

and comprehensive automation.

Also in the eyes of the Sumitomo

colleagues, the IntElect is the best

suited machine in conjunction

with the experience of Demag’s

workforce. In combination with

Sumitomo’s time-tested electrical

components backed by long years

of development, the IntElect provi-

des an extremely competitive ma-

chine for Europe. At the same time,

the current Sumitomo machine in

Europe will remain available for cu-

stomers who are already operating

and preferring this machine. The

common goal is ultimately to achie-

ve a market share in Europe among

electrical machines of over 20 per

cent. This is conditional upon the

fact that Demag and Sumitomo

customers cannot be expected to

accept discontinuities in the product

range. One problem to be solved

would be, for instance, to avoid the

need for retraining for the different

control systems.

Apart from the harmonising of the

products, an equally important

When happened what?1910 The Demag Group created by various machine builders

joining forces

1967-69 Merger with Ankerwerk Nürnberg GmbH

(1950 Start of the manufacture of injection moulding ma-

chines (Ankerwerke Nürnberg)

1956 The world’s first single-screw injection moulding

machine built)

1972 Demag Plastics Ltd. formed inside Demag AG merging

Ankerwerk Nürnberg GmbH, Stübbe Machine Factory Ltd.,

Jünkerather Machine Factory Ltd. and the Plastics Proces-

sing Division of Demag AG

1972-74 Demag AG taken over by Mannesmann AG

1990-93 Acquisition and establishment of small machine facility Wie-

he / Van Dorn Demag Corp. joins the Mannesmann Group

1998 Mannesmann Demag Plastics Technology becomes Demag

Ergotech GmbH / Mannesmann Plastics Machinery formed

from Demag Ergotech, Krauss-Maffei, Netstal

2000 Acquisition of Mannesmann AG by Vodafone / Acquisition

of MPM by Siemens

2001 MPM acquired by financial investor KKR

2003 Demag Plastics Group formed from Demag Ergotech and

Van Dorn Demag

2006 MPM acquired by financial investor Madison Dearborn

2008 Merger of Sumitomo and Demag

Complying with etiquette is a very

important aspect in Japanese soci-

ety. Especially in Japan the saying

applies: “Other countries, other

customs and traditions”. First of all

and most importantly: Whatever

the situation, you must never lose

face and you should always try to

keep calm and avoid any gesticu-

lation.

Traditionally, Japanese people don’t

shake hands, instead one bows

to the other person one meets.

The deeper, the higher the other

person’s rank. A woman or man is

addressed by his/her family name to

which is added the syllable “san”.

For instance, “Meier-san”.

An important point to be obser-

ved on business trips is to have an

ample supply of visiting cards. If

possible, these should be printed on

both sides. One side in English, the

other in Japanese. Only by pre-

senting your visiting card will you

be getting a “face”. Presentation

is in a dignified manner. You offer

the card with both hands stan-

ding. After handing over the card,

you take the card of the Japanese

partner in both hands and read it

carefully and with admiring remarks

on the position of your counterpart,

the company logo or the address of

the firm’s headquarters. The worst

insult would be to just pocket the

visiting card or scribble notes on it.

In Japan, it is general custom to

present a small gift to the host. A

ballpoint pen with the firm’s im-

pression, a tie or some liquor of the

best quality are quite accepted.

Before the meal, hands are wiped

with a moist, warm refreshment

cloth. Don’t be afraid to make

noises when eating your soup or

noodles and also when sipping your

tea. Belching is totally objection-

able and is considered to be most

impolite.

Wiping one’s nose at the table or

in public is frowned upon. Also one

should never pour soya sauce on

boiled white rice. The way to eat is

to hold the rice bowl in one hand

and use the chopsticks with the

other one. Noodles may be slurped

with chopsticks from the bowl into

the mouth. Soup may be drunk

straight from the bowl. The solid

ingredients of the soup would be

cleaned out later with chopsticks or

a little ceramic spoon.

Alcohol is a socially acceptable

medium to open your innermost

to your company. Therefore, after

the official part of the day, there

is plenty of beer being served. The

host will see to it that the guest al-

ways has his glass full. If you would

prefer not to drink any more beer,

leave the glass full.

Refusal to drink alcohol would be

interpreted by your Japanese hosts

as a refusal to open your character

to your hosts and company.

SL

SUMITOMO JAPAN

topic is organisational integration.

In Asia, Demag and Sumitomo have

their own and highly successful

plants and establishments. The-

refore, it has been decided in the

light of this highly dynamic market

to run both organisations in close

cooperation but autonomously.

In America, the trend is to integrate

aftersales service under the direc-

tion of Demag and sales under the

direction of Sumitomo by the end

of the year.

In Europe, plans are on the same

basis with Schwaig-based Demag in

charge of service and sales by the

end of this year.

It goes without saying that in such

an integration process there will be

difficult issues to be resolved and

friction points to be eliminated. This

is quite normal. Far more important

is the fact that problems should be

addressed with mutual respect and

understanding and this is definitely

the case. Signs that efforts will be

successful are quite good and there

are good prospects that a strong

common enterprise will be feasible.

Perhaps even under a worldwide

unified brand.

SL/RF

I do not speak Japanese

Brief introduction to Japanese etiquette

Cherry blossom time in Japan

Cherry blossom is an important symbol in the

culture of Japan. Cherry blossom marks the be-

ginning of Spring and stands for new departures,

transitoriness and fragile female beauty. Cherry

blossom lasts about 10 days. Already the begin-

ning of cherry blossom is being celebrated. On

this occasion, the Japanese are gathering under

the cherry trees celebrating or enjoying their pic-

nic or drinking beer or sake. Tradition has it that

cherry blossom time was celebrated as early as in

812 under Emperor Saga. Some Japanese follow

cherry blossom by travelling from the North

where it begins right down to the very South.

Japanese English

Konnichiwa Good day!

Sayonara. Good bye!

Arigatou Thank you!

Douitashimashite Please!

Hai Yes.

lie No.

Onaka ga suite imasu. I am hungry.

Mou ichido itte kudasai. Would you repeat, please.

Nihongo wo hanase-masen

I don‘t speak Japa-nese.

Kanpai! Cheers!

10 11

On the way to the new DemagFrom molten metal to heavy transport

Hartmut Brüsch Managing Partner of SLM Kunststofftechnik GmbH

….employs a workforce of 100 people and owns 30 Demag machines. Brüsch’s company, a full-range

automobile supplier, is performing to full capacity. His new DEMAG he will insist on collecting personally.

REPORT REPORT

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Production of the ca-stings – this is where everything starts. The “heart” and the “feet” of our injection moulding machines.

More than 7,000 tonnes of raw

material are bought by Demag

every year for its production.

Almost 2,000 kilos are used in the

production departments every

hour. Production of the castings

also marks the start of the plan-

ning and production processes of

our machines. Up to 24 months in

advance are capacities booked with

the foundries so that orders can be

placed as and when required. Visi-

ting the foundries one finds oneself

back in the last century viewing the

molten metal being poured into the

mould boxes at a temperature of up

to 1,330 degrees. The molten metal

fills the mould and the casting so

produced passes via the cooling sta-

tion to the fettling shop. It is here

that accompanied by incredible

noise, the casting gets a finishing

treatment before being shipped to

Demag.

At first sight, the raw casting

seems to have little affinity with

the catchword “precision” but this

is misleading. A sample is taken

off every casting and subsequently

analysed carefully using ultrasonic

equipment for quality inspection

in order to check the interior of

the casting thoroughly in the literal

sense of the word.

Machining – from raw material to the precision part

But the proper precision starts with

the machining in Demag’s own

factories. 150 people in Schwaig

and in Wiehe produce precision

parts from raw material. Every year,

this involves almost 200,000 hours.

Here the rule applies “the spindle

must rotate”. The workforce is on

duty from Monday through Sat-

urday around the clock. With the

machine tool still running, the next

workpiece is already being prepared

in order to minimise setup time.

Overall, this enables the machine-

tools to work effectively nearly

90% of the possible running time.

But productivity is one thing,

quality another. In extreme cases, a

tolerance of 0.02 mm over a length

of 2.5 m may be specified, no mat-

ter whether in winter or in summer,

on Mondays in the early morning

shift or Saturdays in the late night

shift, precision is a must no matter

whether the part is produced on

a machine tool which is already a

few years old or in the case of a

part that is made for the first time.

Quality is ensured by the operator

making his own test on the machi-

ne in the case of critical parts even

beyond that by a 100 per cent in-

spection by 3D measurement in our

air-conditioned inspection cabins. If

any part fails to pass the inspection,

it will be rejected and returned to

the process, if necessary, by rework

and repeated measurements.

Preassembly – individual parts are assembled into complete components

From the machine shop, parts

pass to the preassembly area. In

Demag’s production setup the

On completion, there it is, mostly light blue, consisting of some 3,000 in-dividual parts and weighing over 100 metric tonnes. Built to a standard of precision down to within a few hundreds of a millimetre. Produced on an assembly line and finally inspected and checked thoroughly for proper func-tioning. The Demag injection moulding machine. What exactly does this process involve? This will be discussed on the next few pages.

machine shop people and the

preassembly people have long

considered themselves a team

committed to a common product.

Ultimately what counts is that the

subassembly is punctually deliver-

ed to the final assembly and to

Demag’s quality standards. Quality

and punctuality must be complied

with and passed on from the first

through to the last station. In order

to make the process as effective as

possible, we have been set for years

to create and refine a close-knit

network between Schwaig und

Wiehe. For instance, hydraulic units

are manufactured and assembled

in Schwaig for both facilities and

Wiehe, in turn, machines many

plasticising parts also for Schwaig

and assembles all smaller injection

units for both facilities.

The high degree of quality in all

areas makes it possible to omit time

consuming commissioning of indivi-

dual subassemblies. While formerly

every clamping unit was tested

individually for all its functions on

the test bed, this is today being

done as part of a function test of

the machine.

These process refinements also help

to save time. Any quality defects

also have special consequences

because in the worst case they will

come to light only at the end of the

process.

This does not mean that Demag

is going in for run-of-the-mill pro-

ducts only. Of course, we do, but

not only. There are also some highly

sophisticated products. The time

for assembly of, say, a 420 tonnes

clamping force unit compared to

that of a specialised machine would

be cut by up to 40%. The reason is

that our policy of customer-orienta-

tion starts right in the preassembly

and results in flexibility in meeting

customer requirements.

Assembly on timed sequence – from the premium machine to the standard machine

This is borne out by our key figures.

If we are punctual at the “front

end”, we will be punctual at the

“tail end”. The tight restraint of

time-planning require all sections to

be absolutely punctual. This applies

equally to clarification of orders,

engineering and obviously also to

preassembly. If the total lead time

for a standard machine in Schwaig

from order through to shipment

is, say, eight weeks, six weeks will

have passed already by the time

preassembly is completed. There is

no bufferage and so punctuality is

a must.

Take the example of a machine up

to the clamping force category of

420 tonnes, and not an exceptio-

nally sophisticated design of the

Gillette variety. Final assembly in

Wiehe and in Schwaig will start in

phase 1 on the timed sequence. All

the preassembled components, the

material supplies and the speciali-

sed labour from the fitters shop and

the electrical assembly shop meet,

and again on subsequent timed

sequences, to build an injection

moulding machine from the indivi-

dual parts. We allow a maximum of

5 days for the operation. In Schwaig

we have 21 different products in

hand from the 130 tonnes Systec to

the 420 tonnes El-Exis on the timed

assembly line. If the automobile

industry requires to run two diffe-

REPORT

1312

14 15

rent models on a timed assembly

line, we manage assembly pro-

cesses that may differ completely

from each other. Do these operate

perfectly? No, the timed sequence

is not always timed. But material

flow is closely controlled, the lead

times are abbreviated and – most

importantly – now any problems

come to light. While it was possible

still at the main assembly station to

hush up any defects and inaccura-

cies, they can be exactly identified

at this stage.

Phase 1 – ‘The wedding’: Assembly

of machine bed including hydraulic

powerpack. Phase 2 – Installation

of control cabinet. Phase 3 – Moun-

ting of clamping unit and injection

unit. Phases 4 and 5 – Installation

of electric wiring. Phases 6 and 7 –

Installation of safety enclosure.

The standard machine is now

complete.

It sounds easier than it is because

there is the rule: Only a machine

that is 100% ready to start can be

taken off the assembly line. Some

controlled exceptions apart, not a

single piece of metal and no screw

or bolt must be missing.

Function testing – Every-body can build machines – but perhaps not in the right quality. This is the reason why customers are still prepared even

today to pay “German prices”.

‘Function testing’ sounds simple

and may be so. If a standard ma-

chine is involved and given the up-

stream stations have done a good

job, then it is a matter of routine

and this is how it should be. Howe-

ver, if an EL-Exis – Multi for Gillette

is involved with 120 special options

or, say, an IntElect for Tyco with at

least as many options, then the task

of the function tester is similar to

that of a conductor of an orchestra.

The clarification, testing, coordina-

tion and optimisation effort which

ties up the mechanical, hydraulic

and electrical equipment as well as

the software calls for a high level

of know-how and expertise. This is

where the experts of the injection

moulding industry come in.

Subsequently, the machine passes

on to the final inspection people.

Here again it is an accepted rule: It

may be very simple and limited to

ensuring that the machine is clean

and without any scratches. It may

be highly complex, however, if,

say, there are peripheral devices or

if the inspection covers complete

production cells.

Not to be forgotten there is the

customer – a king for us. He is

allowed to do everything and

mostly he does so at the last minute

before delivery – then it is a matter

of choosing between plague and

cholera. Will we be able to do the

change by extra work including

night shift without the risk of bot-

ching things up? Or do we pass the

problem to our customer service

under the heading remedial work if

the customer’s insists on immediate

delivery?

Improvements - there are two pieces of good news from Demag on this topic.Firstly, there is still tre-mendous potential and secondly, we are on a good path to addressing any emerging challenges

Every production must be improved

on an ongoing basis. Pressure of

prices on the market, increases of

wages and salaries following trade

negotiations, the search for excel-

lence which also applies to com-

petitors – all these factors compel

us not only to talk about improve-

ments but actually to implement

them.

Three examples from Demag’s prac-

tice: (1) Lead times must be reduced

in order to optimise capital usage

in the production on the one hand

and to meet customer requirements

for ever shorter delivery times

on the other hand. In the case of

capital intensive large machines we

have succeeded last year in an 11%

reduction. (2) Faster is good, chea-

per is still better. Therefore it is our

constant goal to improve assembly

times. A comparison with Sumito-

mo has shown that here Wiehe has

done an excellent job – especially in

the case of hydraulic machines.

(3) Punctual delivery to customers

but also in upstream operations is

a decisive key for quality. The seg-

ment “clamping unit” has shown

that thanks to the joint effort of

machine operators, fitters, seg-

ment leaders and order manage-

ment center, a problem child may

become a paragon. It is a long time

since a clamp was delivered too late

to the assembly line without there

having been an unavoidable reason.

Improvement also means an eternal

compromising between conserving

things that are to be upheld and

changing things that are eligible for

improvement. Nobody can claim to

be immune to committing mistakes

here. The biggest mistake, however,

is to do nothing for fear of making

a mistake. Because he who does

not change things will not improve

anything.

Responsibility in produc-tion extends far beyond the actual production time

Even after successful delivery of the

machine, our work will not end.

The support for our erectors is one

thing, but more important is the

defect analysis and elimination of

the defects in the field. It is here

that we find out that, for examp-

le, 0.02% of all hydraulic bolted

joints tend to cause problems in

operation. Not many but still too

many. Here we also learn where

improvement potential exists in the

future. Responsibility of production

will cease only when the customer

after 20 years of successful use

will replace his “old” Demag by a

new one. There is nothing more

gratifying in the life of a machine

builder than a satisfied customer

who comes back saying he will buy

another Demag not because of its

price but because in his opinion it is

the best machine for his specific ap-

plication. But before this happens,

the machine must have come to the

customer in the first place.

If the assembly of the machine bed

and the clamping unit is referred to

as the „wedding“, then delivery of

the machine could be appropriately

referred to as the „wedding night“.

It is a good feeling for the machine

builder to see a machine suspended

from the crane hook having the sti-

cker “Made by Demag“ signed by

the inspector attached to it being

loaded onto the truck for shipment.

The finance man will then be seen

to have the Euro symbol in his eyes,

the production man’s eyes will

express his happiness about having

achieved a grand success.

And the customer, too, is happy. “I

am looking forward to every new

Demag as if it was my first one

despite the fact that I am already

having as many as 30 machines

producing for me. Therefore I

am still collecting my machines

personally from Demag” explains

Hartmut Brüsch, a satisfied Demag

customer of many years.

AvW

15

16 17

Die diesjährige Chinaplas in Shang-

hai führte es mit aller Deutlichkeit

vor Augen: Wenn Wachstum, dann

hier. Das riesige, super-moderne

Messegelände platzt bereits aus

allen Nähten und der Bau neuer

Messehallen ist bereits geplant.

Trotz der ständig steigenden Qua-

dratmeterpreise für Messestände

will hier kein Unternehmen der

Kunststoffindustrie fehlen. Jeder

will am Wachstum teilhaben.

Dort, wo Geld zu verdienen ist, ist

der Wettbewerb bekanntlich groß.

Solange der Kuchen, der zu ver-

teilen ist, noch wächst, erscheinen

immer neue Wettbewerber auf der

Bildfläche. Einen Eindruck davon er-

hält der Messebesucher bei seinem

Rundgang. Unzählige Hersteller von

Spritzgießmaschinen zeigen dort

ihre neuesten Modelle, und man

fragt sich sehr schnell, wie viele da-

von überleben können. Wenn man

dann auf dem Messestand eines

völlig unbekannten Wettbewerbers

auch noch seine vermeindlich eige-

ne Maschine zu sehen bekommt, ist

die Verwirrung perfekt.

„Die kopieren den Mei-ster. Damit musst Du leben!“

sagt Stefan Greif, Geschäftsfüh-

rer der Demag in China. Allein in

Ningbo, dem 200 km entfernten

Ballungszentrum der Kunststoffin-

dustrie, im Süden von Shanghai, ist

das beeindruckende Demag-Werk

nur eines von über hundert ande-

ren. Auf die Frage , warum Kunden

unsere Maschinen kaufen, hat Ste-

fan Greif eine deutliche Antwort:

„Weil wir Demag sind und einen

exzellenten Ruf hier haben. Wir sind

als erstes europäisches Unterneh-

men unserer Branche vor 10 Jahren

mit einer eigenen Produktionsstätte

nach China gekommen und haben

uns seit dem eine gute Marktpositi-

on erarbeitet.“

Zu den Kunden zählten damals

insbesondere internationale Un-

ternehmen, die wie die Demag in

China investiert hatten. Neben all

den Unwägbarkeiten, die mit der

Produktion in China verbunden

waren, wollte man sich wenigstens

bei den Spritzgießmaschinen auf

bewährte Technik verlassen. Einige

Jahre danach gab es dann die

ersten Bestrebungen, die teureren

Demag-Maschinen durch Maschi-

nen chinesischer Wettbewerber zu

ersetzen. „Nach entsprechenden

Erfahrungen sind viele dieser

Unternehmen heute wieder unsere

Kunden. Einmal Deutschland-China

und zurück . . .!“ bemerkt Greif

schmunzelnd.

Germany - China and back.The American market for injection moulding machines has dramatical-ly collapsed. In Europe, people would at best describe the situation as stagnation. In contrast to this, the rate of growth in Asia, specifically in China, can hardly be expressed in words. To be strong in Asia is vital for survival. Here is a report on Demag in China.

This was clearly evidenced by this

year’s Chinaplas in Shanghai. If

growth, then it is here. The en-

ormous, supermodern exhibition

grounds are bursting at the seams

and the erection of new fair halls is

already in a planning stage. Despite

the continuously increased square

meter prices for the exhibition

stalls, no manufacturer in the in-

jection moulding machine industry

wants to miss out, they all want to

participate in the growth.

Wherever there is money to be ear-

ned, competition tends to be extre-

mely keen. As long as the cake to

be distributed is still growing, there

are new competitors appearing all

the time. And this is impressed on

the fair visitor on his tour of the

exhibition. There are innumerable

manufacturers of injection moul-

ding machines displaying their latest

models and the question quickly

arises as to how many of these will

be able to survive. And if one hap-

pens to spot a machine at the stand

of a totally unknown competitor

that looks like a machine of one‘s

own, the confusion is complete.

“They copy the master, you can’t prevent them”

says Stephan Greif, Managing Di-

rector of Demag in China. In Ning-

bo alone, the conglomeration of

the plastics industry 200 km to the

South of Shanghai, the impressive

Demag factory is just one of over a

hundred others. When asked why

customers will buy our machines,

Stephan Greif knows a straight

answer:

“Because we are Demag and we enjoy an excel-lent reputation here ...”

“We are the first European compa-

ny in our industry which launched

its own production facility in China

10 years ago and we have since

built up an excellent market posi-

tion.” At that time our customers

included in particular international

companies who like Demag inve-

sted in China. Apart from the im-

ponderabilities involved in operating

in China, they decided to rely as far

as injection moulding machines are

concerned on time proved techno-

logy. A few years later there was a

trend for customers to replace the

more expensive Demag machines

by machines of Chinese manufac-

ture. “After some bad experiences,

many of these companies became

our customers again. “Germany,

China and return” remarks Greif

smiling. Due to the sustained

economic growth in recent years,

wages and salaries in China have

risen continuously. In addition, the

introduction of minimum wages,

compulsory insurance for emplo-

yees, tax rises and increases in the

cost of materials have increased co-

sts for the Chinese processors con-

siderably. Productivity and process

consistency through production

technology have therefore proved

to be of increasing importance. For

this reason, more and more local

companies that in the past bought

cheap Chinese technology have

found their way back to Demag.

As a result, we have recorded an

increased order influx. Today, about

600 machines up to the clamping

force size of 280 tonnes are being

produced in the Demag plant in

Ningbo. We plan to expand produc-

tion capacity to up to 800 tonnes

clamping force next year (in detail

350/420/500/650/800) and hence

it appears realistic to forecast

production and sales to the tune of

some 800 machines. That Demag

in Germany is greatly profiting from

this development becomes obvious

when one looks at the many fully

packed containers that are shipped

from Germany every week. “Every

machine that we build here in Chi-

na today will incorporate as many

as 60 per cent of parts that come

from Schwaig and Wiehe. Although

it is expected that this percentage

will be reduced over the next few

years to abt. 30%, we anticipate an

absolute increase in parts we need

Stephan Greif, CEO Demag China, in front of the Ningbo production plant

to import from our German facilities

due to the increase in our pro-

duction volume”, explains Markus

Stadtler, in charge of Technology

Development in Ningbo, adding

“Working single-shift, we have production capacities of 1,000 ma-chines or in two-shift operation, the capacity is 1,500 machines”Currently there are 5,500 Demag

machines produced in China for

widely different customers. 50 per

cent of these machines come from

Ningbo and are marketed under

the brand name “Dragon”. Dragon

is a symbol of good luck in China.

The other 50 per cent come from

Germany, either the Dragon pen-

dant series Systec or the fast-cycling

machine EL-EXIS. Where new pro-

jects are to be developed, Chinese

companies like to show German

machine technology to their poten-

tial customers.

CHINA

1716

18 19

Moreover, there are interesting

feedback effects in the case of

international projects. In a recent

example, a large-volume customer

has decided in favour of Demag

and against Arburg because Arburg

is not appropriately represented in

China.

„Again and again we have to prove our quality anew “

says Sascha Stellmacher who has

just begun to install a quality ma-

nagement system on the German

model in Ningbo.

The expansion of the product range

and the above average growth of

the company make such a system

absolutely necessary in order to

keep processes under control.

„Quality is like a puzzle combined

from many parts“ explains Stephan

Greif.

„You have to live quality and this already starts at the front door . . .“

„….We include our five to six major

Chinese suppliers into our quality

process and expect performance

at the same level. We want to

make our quality retraceable at all

times”. In this, the workforce and

its qualifications and loyalty to the

company play an important role.

Meanwhile it is no longer easy to

find and hold good staff. There is a

vast demand. Apart from salary and

wage levels it is becoming incre-

asingly more important that the

entrepreneurial environment should

be right. Among other things, this

includes that company celebrations

should be arranged at times, such

as, for instance, the Chinese New

Year’s Festival in February.

In addition to the Ningbo produc-

tion facility, Demag has a sales and

service entre in Shanghai which

exclusively handles the German

import business. There are further

sales and service offices in Chengdu

in Central China, in Guangzhou

in the South, in Hongkong and in

Tianyin near Beijing in Northern

China which is gaining in industrial

importance.

For Sumitomo, too, China is a cru-

cial market. Out of approximately

4,000 machines sold by Sumitomo

last year, as many as 2,000 were

destined for China. Sumitomo, like

Demag, also has production facili-

ties in Ningbo. It should be noted

that the products manufactured

here are mostly com-ponents which

are then assembled in the Chiba

headquarters to complete machine

units.

China is a market of vital impor-

tance for Demag and Sumitomo

and also for all the other facilities

in the world. Today there are more

than 1.3 billion people living in

China. About 500 million of them,

mostly in the industrialised East par-

ticipate in Western-style consumpti-

on. If ten per cent of the remaining

population were added every year,

then this would amount to a yearly

addition to the consumer market

of the equivalent of the popula-

tion of the FR of Germany over the

next 10 years. It is also a country

where special requirements prevail,

emphasises Stefan Greif who has

been working here for Demag for

over 10 years.

„Whoever comes to China should not do so

in the hope that he could shun the problems he may have back home. Who does so, is bound to fail: Apart from a sound measure of prag-matism what is needed here is mainly inner strength.“

RF

P.R. of China

Capital

Head of State

Head of Government

Area

Population

Currency

Beijing

Hu Jintao

Wen Jiabao

9.571.302 sq. kilomtr.

1,321 billion

Renminbi (RMB)

CHINA

18

20 21

It’s the drives that make the differenceExcerpts from an interview by Susanne Zinckgraf, Editor-in-chief of Plastverarbeiter with Dr. Tetsuya Okamura, Demag’s new CEO and Raik Flämig, Head of Marketing and press con-tact at Chinaplas.

Plastverarbeiter: Dr. Okamura, how is integration of Demag into the Sumitomo Group pro-cessing?

Okamura: Integration has only just

started. There is a lot to be done.

To start with, we have appointed

different project teams manned by

people from Sumitomo and Demag.

There is, for instance, a separate

team for North America, another

one here for China, and yet another

for Europe. At the same time we

have started integration of the

products, mainly of the electrical

machines.

Plastverarbeiter: Which changes will there be in the production sector?

Okamura: Sumitomo and Demag

both have electrical machines in

their product range, in the case of

Demag it is the IntElect series. We

have thoroughly evaluated the new

series and consider the IntElect to

be an excellent machine. Together

with the electrical components

from Sumitomo, this product is

highly competitive in Europe.

Flämig: We will definitely continue

and expand our product lines. The

IntElect is tailored for the European

market, our offering includes com-

plete solutions including automati-

on for the specific requirements in

Europe.

Plastverarbeiter: Which Sumito-mo components are proposed to be integrated complete?

Okamura: Sumitomo produces its

drives inhouse. And this is a defi-

nitive competitive edge. Fanuc and

Sumitomo are at present the only

companies worldwide to make the

drives for their injection moulding

machines inhouse and Demag will

be the third company to have this

inhouse competence.

Plastverarbeiter: Which techno-logical trends are you currently pursuing?

Okamura: Electrical machines are

the central focus not only with us

but also generally. We expect that

there will be a very strong growth

in the market share of electrical ma-

chines over the next five years from

a present 17 to over 50%. In the

USA, their market share at present

is already 50% and in Japan already

over 75% or actually close to 80%.

Plastverarbeiter: What development prospects do you see for Demag in the next few years?

Okamura: In Japan, Sumitomo has

a market share of 25% and I would

assume that Demag will be paralle-

ling this trend in Europe. At present,

the market share is about 10%.

Plastverarbeiter: How important is the Chinese market for Demag and Sumitomo today and how impor-tant will it be in the future?

Okamura: The growth market China

is very important for us. We can see

this at the Chinaplas where many

customers are visiting our stand

and both Demag and Sumitomo are

both selling well in China already,

Demag 600 machines per year and

Sumitomo 2,000. I would assume

that the number of high-end appli-

cations will increase in China. There

are many Japanese and European

manufacturers producing in China

already with the same technologies

they use in their main plants. At the

same time, an increasing number

of car makers are focussing on the

Chinese market which means the

demand for state-of-the-art precisi-

on parts in China will go up.

Plastverarbeiter: Conversely, the Chinese injection moulding ma-chine builders are striving to get a stronger foothold in the German and European markets. Will the Japanese and European machine builders be able to maintain their competitive edge in the future?

Okamura: The Chinese injection

moulding machine builders are con-

tinuously improving the quality of

their products. This means that the

difference in quality is becoming

less and less. But when it comes to

application know-how, the Chinese

are unlikely to catch up with us very

quickly. We Japanese and Euro-

peans not only know how to make

good products but we also can

customise a machine to meet very

specific requirements. These skills

the Chinese machine builders don’t

have so that our lead is bound to

get bigger.

Injection moul-ding reinven-ted

PROCESSING OF ORGANIC GRA-NULES REQUIRES UNCONVENTIONAL SOLUTIONS

Starting from the processing of bio-logically degradable polymers, Wim Pater, processor in Holland, went to the dogs in the literal sense of the word. His idea was to process dog food instead of plastics on injection moulding machines. This made him the Entrepreneur of the Year 2007. Every day he proves that it is also possible to injection mould water-containing, inconsistent materials with very good results. A conclusion that, to go back to Pater’s roots, has shown that processors of biologically degradable polymers can also benefit from this process.

INTERVIEW CUSTOMER REPORT

21

22 23

Injection moulding machines in

different clamping force categories,

extruders for pellets and extruded

stock, granulators for the recy-

cling of sprues and rejects, robots,

conveyors and long piping and

ducting for feeding pellets. There is

a high noise level in the production

departments of Paragon Products

in the old red-brick building of a

former chemical factory in Veen

dam near Groningen. At first sight,

there is

nothing to

suggest that

here in the

North of the

Netherlands

they are pro-

cessing any-

thing else but

plastics if there wasn’t this biting

smell which reminds one inevitably

of the feedstuff of one’s dear pets

at home and definitely not of mol-

ten plastics.

And indeed, the products that

come off the machines have

nothing to do with plastics. They

consist almost exclusively of starch

produced from wheat, potatoes

and tapioca. That this raw material

should be processed in machines

that originally were designed for

the plastics industry is explained by

the history of the company.

In 2003, Paragon Products, was

founded as a spin-off of a manage-

ment-buy-out of the Dutch Avebe

Group, the world-wide biggest po-

tato starch producer who had been

engaged since 1991 for over ten ye-

ars in the development of biologi-

cally degradable plastic products to

provide a second staple product for

the company. Wim Pater and Chiel

Ribbens, the two Paragon founders,

were in charge of these projects but

in time they came to the conclusi-

on that the potential of this new

material category would be difficult

to exploit in Western Europe. „The

raw materials are expensive and

have a huge density. Thus, a kilo of

raw material will yield less product

than a conventional plastic mate-

rial” explains Pater. „Not a good

basis to achieve success in a high-

wage country.“

Eventually it was Pater’s own dog

that started the idea to launch out

into the production of pet food

because Pater saw how greedily

he devoured the starch granules of

his employer. At the same time, an

American customer sent an enquiry

for raw material for the injection

moulding of dog bone snacks. „A

great idea, we immediately joined

as project partners“ recalls Pater.

So he abandoned the biologically

degradable plastics project and

went back to the starch granules

combining the product know-how

now with his injection moulding

expertise.

At that time, granules were Avebe’s

main business. But Pater focussed

on end products of his own. Since

this idea did not fit in at all with

the strategy of the Avebe Group

corporate management, Paragon

was founded. For his new company

Wim Pater did not just copy the

American dog snack concept but

again developed a completely new

100 % vegetarian pet food product

in widely different versions ranging

from injection-moulded parts to

extruded stock. The first product

range for the four-legged gourmets

was rolled out at the Interzoo Fair

in Nuremberg in May 2004 and first

orders were promptly received from

over 30 countries in all parts of the

world. Since the product does not

contain any animal constituents,

Paragon is able to avoid any import

restrictions. Then as now, the pro-

duct highlight are the bone snacks

which as the animal chews on the

bone, clean its teeth and that is

why the bones are shaped in the

form of a toothbrush at one end.

Plastics processing expertise makes

the difference

Now how do the products from

Veendam differ from the other

long-established brands?

Wim Pater has the answer right

away. It is quite clearly his produc-

tion strategy. „We have to be faster

than our competitors, produce less

wastage and use state-of-the-art

machine technology.“ Production

is running for seven days a week

and 24 hours a day and this with

a high degree of automation.

The experience from the plastics

industry where the cost pressure

is even higher than in the pet food

industry has secured for Pater and

his team the pole position. The USP

of the Dutch firm are the injection-

moulded products which according

to Pater have a finer structure than

those of competitors. „There is

hardly any other pet food producer

who has the same level of injection

moulding expertise“. Thus, Paragon

succeeded with „Premium Products

for little money“ to position itself

successfully on the market.

For this success, the young en-

trepreneur had to cover a thorny

path. Because it is not so simple to

process the starch-based material.

„At the beginning, our workshops

looked like a garage of steam en-

gines. The material splashed against

the ceiling and the parts got stuck

in the moulds. For the granules do

not become really molten in the

hot runner, they rather expand in

the mould – just like popcorn”. The

main cause for the many imperfec-

tions at the start of production has

primarily been the high water con-

tent of the feed granules which is

between ten and 15 per cent. „The

water serves as a softener, drying

would be fatal here“, explains Pater.

In cooperation with the injection

moulding machine builder Demag

he fiddled to optimise his processes.

The machine, the mould and, not to

forgetting, the composition of the

raw material were revised several

times. A critical aspect was the

optimisation of the temperature

window. While first-generation ma-

terials were injected into the mould

at temperatures of 180 to 200°C,

temperatures have now been

reduced to 125 and 150°C. Also

screw and barrels were redesigned

for the high water content. “We

had to further develop the comple-

te plasticising equip-ment. What is

needed are non-corroding surfaces

and screw pitches deviating from

standard pitches” says Willem Veer-

man, Head of the Packaging Team

at Demag and responsible for the

dog food project. „There was no

empirical information available on

these granules. I saw myself back in

the beginnings of plastic injection

moulding. Trial and error was our

motto.“

It was a complex process with many

detours which, however, in time

welded the companies together.

“The important thing was that

during the development phase we

The larger toothbrushes are injection-moulded using the two-component technique

often got together to sort things

out. These issues cannot be clarified

simply by a phone call or e-mail“,

emphasises Jan-Eiko Kor, Sales Engi-

neer with Landre Werkmetaal, the

Dutch Demag representation. „Here

we had to revise conventional ways

of thinking.“

Full control of material inconsis-

tency

Was there too much or too little

rain during the potato cultivation

season? Was there too much or too

little sun? What is the hardness of

water at the location of the factory?

- For the processing of the granules

this means that melting indices

and, consequently, the need to

vary the injection pressure during

production tend to change from

charge to charge. „What we aimed

at was that the software of the

injection moulding machine should

automatically regulate the holding

pressure as a function of the injec-

tion pressure“, explains Pater. „This

sounds simple but is not a standard

specification.“ Nevertheless we suc-

ceeded in meeting this requirement Pet food production imposes strict requirements in respect of quality control.

CUSTOMER REPORT CUSTOMER REPORT

„Organics prevail, or-ganics pass through changes. The processor has to rely on machine technology to provide flexibility.”Jan-Eiko Kor, Landré Werkmetaal

24 25

because the injection and holding

pressures are in constant relation-

ship to each other.

At this stage, this adaptation is a

specialised solution but enquiries

for this may increase in the future

seeing that processors of plastics on

the basis of renewable raw materi-

als have to address the problem of

varying charge quality.

Set for growth

Four to five million injection

moulding articles are shipped

from the Veendam factory every

week. Paragon’s capacity has long

reached its limits at the time the

company celebrated its five years’

anniversary. Only a few minutes

by car from the present location,

a new company headquarters is

being built. With a production floor

area of 5,000 square meters on the

ground floor and another 1,000 on

the first floor, this will double or

increase the company’s output four

fold. And entrepreneur Wim Pater

again thinks one step ahead. „ Our

new building is like the Lego toys.

We can add additional shops and

integrate new machines into the

existing structure.“

The next step will be to expand the

tool pool by all-electric injection

moulding machines. “These will

be cleaner and use less energy“

comments Wim Pater. „With some

8,000 hours operation a year, it

pays to cut energy costs“. At the

same time, the new machines will

reduce cycle times and accelerate

setup times.

- For in the pet food market, com-

petition is not asleep either. “Actu-

ally, I go and see many processors”

comments Ian Eiko Kor. “Most of

them are asking how they could go

a long way with as simple a machi-

ne as possible. Wim Pater thinks

differently. His idea is to always

use the latest machine technology

in order to remain flexible and to

avoid being limited by his machine

technology. This goes to extend

his know-how and gives rise to a

constant stream of new ideas“.

Susanne Zinckgraf

Digging Deeper

FUNCTIONALITY AND EFFICI-ENCY IN FOCUSMr. Pater, your company was founded just five years ago and has been growing ever since. What have been the reasons for this development?

Pater: We started as a small company which generated a loss of half a million Euros per year. We were told we should wait, have patience. But I told them: On the contrary, we must grow as fast as possible and expand, forget about the straight pellet business and let’s offer our own end products. In this we succeeded by turning away from organic plastics and concentrating on dog feed. Today, the pellet business accounts for only 15 to 20 % and even these percentages will be reduced. Over the last few years we have built up our know-how mainly in the area of injection moulding and this we want to keep in our company.

This means that other areas, such as extrusion, will be run down?

Pater: The injection-moulded products are what is most important for us. It is in this area that we have extensive know-how, this is our unique selling point. But customers are expecting a complete product range. Therefore we continue to make section extrusion. This area accounts for between 25 and 30 per cent of our total sales.

What is your vision? Which products will be launched on the market next?

Pater: I can’t tell you anything definite yet. This is our secret. One thing is sure: Also in the case of new products we have to see to it that both functionality and production efficiency are right. A trend that we will pursue is the wellness wave. Healthy snacks are in demand also in the pet food area. And it is here that we use our competence in two-component injection moulding. In the case of the toothbrushes, for instance, we can achieve bifunctionality. The green part contains healthy chlorophyll whereas the white part, i.e. the bristles, we can enrich with an extra portion of calcium. In this market segment, there are vast possibilities. Here we are opening for us a totally new market.

Last year you were awarded the distinction of „Entrepre-neur of the Year“ and were given just two minutes time to persuade the jury of your standing and activities. What was your story?

Pater: I made it clear to the jury that one must be very crazy with a family around your neck – my wife was pregnant at the time with our second child – to buy an enterprise that recorded a loss of half a million Euros a year and then to take out another loan on your house in order to invest all the money into this company. And I also made it clear why I was so crazy because I was convinced that it would work out and it has worked out and it’s working to this date.

CUSTOMER REPORT

Energy is the challenge of the future Willem Veerman is in charge of the packaging team at Demag and he speaks about trends and challenges in the packaging industry.

The dog-food production at Pa-

ragon is not a typical application

for your machines. Where are they

typically employed?

Veerman: We concentrate on

applications across the entire thin-

wall technology industry, in which

the use of fast-cycling machines is

required. This in-

cludes food pack-

ages, packages for

chemicals - such as

paints or varnishes -

and sealing appli-

cations such as caps

on bottles. Taken

together this amounts

to about 70%. Above

all, we expect high growth rates in

standard sealings. There is evidence

that the consumption of mineral

waters and non-alcoholic drinks

is increasing. At the moment, we

are devoting particular attention to

this market segment. This will have

consequential developments in the

machinery and equipment. This

is, above all, a question of energy

consumption – which will obviously

be the topic of the future.

What kind of strategies will you

employ to tackle the topic of Ener-

gy efficiency?

With our hybrid machine El-Exis,

we are market leaders regarding

packaging applications. Compared

to a standard injection moulding

machine, we sometimes achieve

energy savings exceeding 40%.

At present, all-electric machines,

admittedly, are the last word in

terms of energy consumption. But

they do have the disadvantage that

high injection speeds and accele-

ration cannot be achieved. That is

why hybrid technology will continue

to be the ideal combination? to be

used in machines. But this techno-

logy, too, will certainly be develo-

ped further. The trend is towards

replacing other hydraulic drives by

electric drives apart from the screw

drive.

Apart from the topic of Energy:

Which other trends are you follow-

ing in the packaging sector?

Veerman: We assume that the

multi-daylight technology will be

used to an ever greater extent. A

further trend is in-mould labelling

in the food packaging sector, which

is more widespread in Europe, but

is still in its infancy in the USA. The

key question of the future concerns

barrier coating. It is our aim to

increase the shelf life of foodstuffs

by a factor of three to five by using

the right packaging material. This

can be done using the barrier func-

tion of multi-layer labels or directly

by employing multi-layer plastics

produced by means of the two or

three-component injection moul-

ding process. This topic will become

very exciting in the future. In this

area, we are working together with

„At one time our opinion was that a point had been reached where there was little to be gained. But there is always still something to be gained and this is the interesting aspect of the whole story.” Willem Veerman

the leading manufacturers of poly-

mers and with universities.

Which further developments are to

be expected regarding machinery

and equipment?

Veerman: First and foremost, the

injection unit will change according

to the requirements of the machine.

The specific injection pressure will

increase, and the injection rate as

well as the acceleration will be of

ever increasing importance. As far

as the clamping unit is concerned,

the mould height and the mould

opening strokes will be slightly mo-

dified. At the same time, the rigidity

of the clamping mechanism will be

come more and more important

owing to increasing pressures. This

means that the platens will become

thicker, especially in six-cavity

CUSTOMER REPORT

Digging Deeper

26 27

Carsten Friedemann

Dipl.-Kfm. Carsten Friedemann

(40, born in Hamm/ Westphalia)

has been Head of Internal Audit

with Demag Plastics Group since

March 1, 2008. During the last

fifteen years he has been working

mainly in the internal audit of major

international firms in the area of

consumer products, capital goods

and building materials.

Mr. Friedemann’s hobbies are rea-

ding, sports and, time permitting,

short city tours.

Tetsuhiko Sugimoto

Mr. Tetsuhiko Sugimoto was born in

Chiba (Japan) in 1971. After gradu-

ating in Economics, Mr. Sugimoto

joined Sumitomo Heavy Industries.

After 9 years in the Controlling/

Audit Department of the Plastics

Machinery Division he moved to

Schwaig-based Demag Plastics

Group. Mr. Sugimoto intends to act

as a link between Demag and Su-

mitomo. Father of a daughter, Mr.

Sugimoto stated that his hobbies

are to go camping and reading,

especially history books.

The European injection moulding market

Demag’s market share in Euromap

(Association of the European Injec-

tion Moulding Machine Manufactu-

rers) rose from 10.4% in 2007 to a

current figure of 12.6% for the first

quarter of 2008. The reason was

in a decline in new orders placed

by European manufacturers with

Demag’s order influx continuing at

a stable level.

In the clamping force class up to 25

tonnes there was a drastic red-

uction in new orders placed with

Euromap members. Here again De-

mag has increased its market share

compared to the previous quarter

without increasing its new order

level. On average, Demag’s market

share has risen from 1.8 % in 2007

to 6.9 %.

Also in the clamping force class up

to 100 tonnes and in the medium

clamping force class up to 400

tonnes there has been a reduction

in new orders placed with Eu-

romap members. Demag’s order

influx, however, again remained

relatively stable and, as a result,

Demag’s market share in Euromap

in the clamping force class up to

100 tonnes increased by a good 2

percentage points to 13.8 % and

in the clamping force class up to

400 tonnes by a good 1 percentage

point to 12.2 %.

In the clamping force class up to

1,000 tonnes Demag recorded a

very good order influx with 42 ma-

chines in the first quarter. The Eu-

romap order influx, however, failed

to keep up with the result of the

fourth quarter of 2007. Demag’s

market share in Euromap conse-

quently rose from an average of 7.9

% in 2007 to a current figure of

13.6 %. Also in the clamping force

class over 1,000 tonnes Demag has

been able to increase market shares

which at 4.7 % are slightly above

the previous year’s level.

Among European manufacturers

there has been a trend towards

electrical machines. Here, new

orders in the first quarter increased

both with Euromap members and

also with Demag. Demag’s market

share in Euromap has risen from

11.6 % in the previous year to 14.7

%. The proportion of electrical

machines in Euromap increased

from 9.5 % in the previous year to

a present 13.7 %. In Demag, the

IntElect now accounts for 16 % of

new orders.

Market and market shares on the basis of new orders

NEWS AND TRENDS

Digging Deeper

CUSTOMER REPORT

moulds. In the case of a six-cavity

mould, two cavities are positioned

exactly between two columns,

where the platen has its weakest

spot. If the pressures continue to

increase even further, this must lead

to the use of four or eight-cavity

moulds or even multi-daylight tech-

nology.

How do you currently assess the

market for biodegradable plastics?

Veerman: In the foodstuff sector,

where the label is very important

these days, the use of biode-

gradable plastics does not make

much sense. It is not, after all,

our intention that the container

degrades while the label remains.

One would then have to use paper

labels, which, in turn, do not have

any barrier effect. Ultimately, it is a

matter of cost. With the raw ma-

terials available today, it is possible

to achieve fantastic cycle times

and output rates. If the cycle time

increases as a result of the use of

biodegradable plastics, the product

automatically becomes more expen-

sive, and the packaging material is,

of course, supposed to cost next to

nothing. The question is to what

extent the state will interfere by

taking regulatory action. If I need

15 different packing materials

within the EU for one and the same

cheese, this will inevitably make it

more expensive.

Should biodegradable plastics gain

acceptance, which specific de-

mands do you then impose on the

machines?

Veerman: Processing biodegradable

polymers poses other problems. We

have to adapt our machines speci-

fically to these groups of materials.

Among other things, this affects

the screw geometries. Basically, the

machine remains, of course, the

same.

The production of caps is a typical

application for the machines of the

El-Exis series. Let us revert to the

production of dog food, which, af-

ter all, in most parts means the use

of special-purpose machines. What

have you learned from this project

that could be relevant also for other

applications?

Veerman: One example is the

modified shut-off nozzle which we

have installed for the first time for

Paragon. We will adopt this shut-off

nozzle at some time in the future

for large-scale production. The

other example is the plasticating

unit. With the improved screws and

cylinders, we were able to increase

the plasticating capacity by a factor

of three and this will affect injection

moulding of conventional polymers.

In principle, we already had the

ideas here in our company. Paragon

accelerated this development.

Should you receive further inqui-

ries from this industry, would you

accept the order?

Veermann: As far as this is concer-

ned, count us in, definitely.

Can both markets perhaps be com-

bined one with the other?

Veerman: I must often reckon on

surprises, because I can certainly

imagine that some day there will be

a product which will attract or in-

terest the animals before they eat it.

What would be imaginable would,

for instance, be a plastic wrapping

which is directly combined with the

food. This is a marketing question.

Animal psychologists should deal

with this question one day soon.

Susanne Zinckgraf

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