Annual Report (PDF) - Feintool

Segment
A difficult business year
The Plastic/Metal Components segment
witnessed slight decreases in sales and
EBIT in a tough global market environment.
Existing orders were completed,
while call-ups from long-term orders are
declining. In addition, our efficiency and
quality improvement programs did not
yet have desired effect. Furthermore,
we were not yet able to expand our
portfolio with a sufficient number of new
orders.
Thanks to a Bosch supplier development program
involving four selected European suppliers, Mühlemann
was able to optimize changeover times.
Based on a spaghetti diagram, for example, our
internal process routes were assessed and optimized.
30
New business management
There is a certain degree of change and
upheaval in this segment. It was necessary
to restructure the segment's management
and stabilize the team in charge
at Biberist. Previous segment head
Thomas Grichting resigned for healthrelated
reasons. He was replaced at
Biberist headquarters by Bernhard
Zubler, the previous general manager at
Feintool Teile & Komponenten AG Lyss.
A successor as segment head has not
yet been appointed.
A new three-shift model was worked out
for the plant in Biberist and is expected
to increase output beginning in 2007.
Our production processes were subjected
to an optimization analysis and are
undergoing ongoing modification.
Cooperation between the individual
units and sales was also redefined and
is expected to operate in a more effective
manner.
Key customer Bosch
Together with our long-term key customer
Bosch (where Mühlemann enjoys
close business relationships with a variety
of plants in Europe), a number of
improvement programs are underway.
One important concern here involves
handling of current and future projects
in parallel in Europe, America and Asia.
In a Bosch supplier development program
involving four selected European
suppliers, Mühlemann was able to benefit
from intensive analysis and changeover-time
improvements.
The commodity price problem
The high cost of plastic granulates as
well as the burgeoning cost of precious
metals has negatively impacted our revenue.
This was compounded by the
inability to fully pass on added costs
to our customers.
When small customers make it big: Every year at
Biberist, several million pacifier disks are produced
for Lamprecht in about 50 different variants, to be
sold under the Swiss brand . The fully automated
pad printing system is outfitted with components
from Afag Huttwil.