K>MOBIL 37 June 2011 - Kirchhoff Group

The Magazine for customers, staff and friends of the KIRCHHOFF Group 15 th volume l Issue 37 l June 2011
THE
GROUP MAGAZINE
KIRCHHOFF Group
KIRCHHOFF Automotive
REHA Group Automotive
WITTE Werkzeuge
FAUN
Product innovations and in-
With the takeover of Van-
Flexible vehicle conver-
Quality in the premium DIY
FAUN is Europe‘s market
novative service concepts for
Rob, KIRCHHOFF Automotive
sions are the REHA Group
market and professional
leader of refuse trucks.
customers take centre stage
strengthens its position on
Automotive’s specialty. Due
crafts segment is in demand:
Beside a good market share
in the KIRCHHOFF Group’s
the global market. Now the
to the continuously growing
WITTE bits and screwdrivers
in Middle East there is as well
research and development
company collectively pre-
demand, the Berlin site is
capture the European do-it-
a great potential for FAUN for
tasks.
pares for future challenges.
currently expanded.
yourself stores.
growth and success in China,
Africa and North America.
page 04
page 11
page 62
page 68
page 72
KIRCHHOFF BECOMES GLOBAL PLAYER:
KIRCHHOFF Automotive in Europe, Asia and North America

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
Contents
K>MOBIL 37
Contents
12 62
KIRCHHOFF Group
04 Mastering challenges
28 Efficient use of energy
46 KiCoKids – KIRCHHOFF
55 Growing volume of
and raw materials
Automotive Deutsch-
orders requires plant
06 Research and develop-
land establishes first
expansion
ment in the
30 5 years CME – a story
day care centre
KIRCHHOFF Group
of success
56 KIRCHHOFF Polska
48 Completion of the
10 Two decades
32 A successful appear-
vertical range of
58 No cause for concern
with KIRCHHOFF
ance in the Land of
manufacture
Automotive
Smiles
59 Education benefits all
50 KIRCHHOFF Automo-
KIRCHHOFF Automotive
36 In search of young
talent
tive - supplier of the
year
60 A strong relationship
14 Electro mobility takes
39 Fit for professional life
52 Working together for a
REHA Group Automotive
shape: The Street
successful future
Scooter goes around
40 Corporate communi-
64 REHA grows in Berlin
cations are now in new
53 The foundation has
16 KIRCHHOFF Automo-
hands
been built
65 Cutting-edge products
tive and Van-Rob
42 School partnerships
54 Production at the
66 Social commitment – a
24 KAPS II: Becoming
second Chinese site
prime example
leaner with the
44 Learn to Lead
has a successful start
KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Production System
2

Contents
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
68 72
WITTE Werkzeuge
Imprint
70 Successful start
83 Quality-tested
95 FAUN scoops manufac-
K>Mobil
The KIRCHHOFF Group magazine
71 On course for further
success in the DIY
sector
84 A sparkling array of
vehicles
86 Innovation Days
turing award
96 Steering new courses
New markets and
responsibilities
Editor: KIRCHHOFF Group,
Dr.-Ing. Jochen F. Kirchhoff
Stefanstraße 2, D-58638 Iserlohn
Postfach 26 26, D-58634 Iserlohn
Tel. +49 2371 820 - 261
Fax +49 2371 820 - 264
FAUN
74 The FAUN market:
76 Pssst. Here‘s where it‘s
all happening …
88 FAUN Services are
pressing on
90 FAUN employees
celebrate 130 year
milestone
98 We are FAUN
100 APSE Transport
Apprentices Visit
FAUN in Germany
Responsible for the contents:
Dr.-Ing. Jochen F. Kirchhoff;
Staff: Sabine Boehle, Nadine Frank,
Andreas Heine, Claudia Schaue;
Photo credits: CN Tower Toronto,
Canada; Chrysler Group LLC; Ford
Motor Company; General Motors
Company; KIRCHHOFF Group;
mediabunt; Messe Frankfurt;
private; SIHK Hagen
78 Facts. Figures. Data.
91 FAUN shortlisted for
two awards
101 Woman Power at
FAUN Zoeller
Editing, design, typesetting:
mediabunt, Essen
Printing: becker druck, Arnsberg
79 Things are looking up
102 2011 – the first six
92 FAUN reveals revo-
months in pictures
80 SIDEPRESS for SITA
lutionary product in
middle east
81 1 st Contract with Kier
Street Services
94 TRACKWAY set for
US office launch
82 Sweeping up after you!
3

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
Editorial
4

Editorial
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
Mastering challenges
Taking part in global growth, bearing responsibility
for the future
Dear customers and friends of our group of companies,
dear employees,
After the economic and financial crisis, the global
economy is now achieving new all-time peaks.In
2010, we experienced a global growth of 4.5% with a
potential of another5% growth for this year.
But we must be aware that even with this strong
growth, we are not without risk in our industry:
Within the first half of this year we have seen
capacity constraints within the supplier industry.
We see the dangers of these shortages with rising
raw material prices.
Our strategic decisions will put us in a very good
position in all areas we can directly influence.
We must be careful in areas of development we
cannot directly influence, particularly the future
energy supply. The catastrophe in Japan in the first
quarter of this year will without a doubt have consequences
that will have an impact on global energy
policy – a quick rethinking is inevitable. On the one
hand, we need reliability for the energy supply, on
the other hand, we have to switch to renewable
energy sources as quickly as possible. It may not take
another 20 years until we have finally managed the
nuclear phase-out. We must bear this responsibility
for our children.
In order to better prepare ourselves to evaluate these
risks, and to expand KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s position
as global partner of the automotive industry and
therefore to participate in the strong global growth,
our company has taken over the majority shares of
our long-standing cooperation partner, Van-Rob, with
its headquarters located in Aurora/Canada, effective
January 1 st , 2011 – details on this merger can be
found on page 16 in this K>MOBIL magazine.
We are proud to announce that the KIRCHHOFF
Group now has 42 production plants in 16 countries.
KIRCHHOFF Automotive can now operate as
a development partner of chassis products for our
customers in 28 manufacturing sites in 12 countries
around the globe.
As we move forward, our company, together with
Van-Rob, will achieve an overall sales turnover of
more than 1.3 billion Euros in 2011, with a global
workforce of over 9,200 employees.
To maintain our state-of-the-art capacity and to
increase it in order to keep up with our customers’
demands, we will invest in our existing plants, especially
in Germany and thus safeguard our jobs in
Germany.
The German Federal Government has been asked
to develop and implement new, feasible concepts at
short notice. The foundations must be outlined for
assuring a safe energy supply at reasonable costs
in order to compete in an international market. In
this context, it is absolutely necessary to talk about
inconvenient truths such as supply from natural gas
and coal-burning power plants, when we are thinking
about a quick nuclear phase-out.
Providing the necessary infrastructure and distribution
networks must not be delayed by any type of
demonstrations by our citizens. Every one of us can
make a contribution to this.
At this time, the goal can only be an ideal energy mix
from renewable, fossil and nuclear sources until the
final nuclear phase-out. The concept must not be an
isolated, local, German “insular solution”. There must
be, at least, a European consensus, achieved within
the responsible committees.
The KIRCHHOFF family will actively work on this
issue through their activities in trade associations
and political organisations in Germany and Europe.
A cordial good luck!
Arndt G. Kirchhoff
5

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
Company: Research
Research and development in the
KIRCHHOFF Group
steel
material
ligth alloy
(aluminium, magnesium)
The research and development department at the
KIRCHHOFF Group is busy with various projects.
We are focusing particularly however on increasing
customer benefits through dedicated research
and development. The aim is to generate innovations
within our products and innovative service
concepts.
We can only achieve this by finding out as much
as we can about exactly what our customers want
and need from our products and services. The only
way to do this is through close dialogue with our
customers.
In the automotive industry the important topics
are
· lightweight structures,
· innovative manufacturing technologies,
· the major changes to the body and interior struc-
ture (packaging) which are required for electrically
powered vehicles.
light weight contstruction
plastic material
engineering / design
shell structure
spaceframe
In the case of lightweight structures for car bodies
our engineers are pursuing a joined-up approach, as
shown in Figure 1. To make a part lighter depending
on the stiffness and strength requirements of the
part within a bodywork structure, new material mix
combination approaches are being researched and
tested in the form of hybrid materials and profileintensive
design i.e. hybrid design. In this approach,
the specific stresses resulting from the installation
location of a structural part are taken into account
by combining steel and aluminium and by optimising
the part geometry with extruded profiles and sheets
as illustrated in Figure 2 using the example of an
instrument panel carrier.
Although still at an early stage within our research
into dedicated lightweight constructions, we are also
considering the use of organic sheets of fibre reinforced
plastics. Using our knowledge of mechanical
material characteristics and the analysis of suitable
material models and their adjustment to the test
results, suitable product groups are being initially
sought and the part which is currently made out of
steel replaced with organic sheet. Experiments have
shown that we can achieve a weight-saving of over
40% for specific parts in this way. We now need to
address the production costs for possible series production,
which are currently far too high. We also
need to stabilise process reproducibility from a qualitative
perspective. From this description you can see
the risk for the company and equally the need to
face risks in our research and development projects.
While technically speaking our grand target is in
sight, the essential cost-benefit ratio of material and
the production process is still far in the distance. If
we cannot hit our cost targets, series production is
out of the question and the production order that our
company needs will not be issued.
Figure 1
hybrid-material
„material mix“
hybrid design
„shape intensive design“
Innovative production technologies currently include
a significant improvement of the monitoring of the
laser welding process. Online process monitoring
6

Company: Research
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
is being tested as part of our aim to guarantee the
quality requirements of mass production while
keeping costs down by minimising rejects and by
destruction-free testing and monitoring. In this case
the data which can be measured by the laser beam
and its reflections during welding is compared online
with the reference data of a control weld to create
perfect, reproducible welds in the process, as shown
in Figure 3.
Figure 2
KIRCHHOFF Automotive uses cementing technology
in series production!
Intensive research- and development enabled
cementing technology (Figure 4) to be used for the
first time in our production processes for a mass
production part. Thanks to intensified research and
development, further examples are to follow.
Refuse collection vehicles with greater consumption-
and cleaning efficiency
In the FAUN product division we are working intensively
with our customers on considerably improving
fuel consumption plus reducing harmful emissions
and noise. Through intensive research and development
FAUN has introduced to the market the
world‘s first diesel electric refuse collection truck
which delivers an average 33% reduction in fuel consumption
and corresponding reductions in emissions.
This objective has been achieved by developing
a special drive train which brakes „electrically“.
This means that the heat which is transformed into
kinetic energy in conventional brakes is saved as
electricity in super capacitors and can be used for the
next start-up process. Since a large-capacity refuse
collection vehicle stops more than 1000 times a day,
recovering the otherwise useless braking energy is
incredibly efficient.
Figure 3
Figure 4
7

ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER
The special design of the drive technology has also
greatly reduced noise emissions so that use of the
vehicles in low-traffic periods during the evening and
night-time is possible without disturbance.
In a further research project we are testing the
fuel cell to drive the compressor and filler mechanism
of a refuse collection vehicle. In the next step
we will be combining a fuel-cell power supply and
FAUN‘s in-house DUALPOWER drive technology to
create the first fully zero-emission refuse collection
vehicle, bearing in mind that the hydrogen required
for the fuel cell has been recovered from regenerative
energies.
The cleansing efficiency of our street cleansing vehicles
has been demonstrated in intensive research
and development resulting in the product VIAJET
FILTAIR.
The sweeper technology developed in our company
FAUN Viatec in Grimma uses a self-cleaning dry fine
dust filter with a separation rate of 99.8% particles
up to a diameter of 0.001 mm (fine dust).
ROTOPRESS FUELCELL
8

VIAJET FILTAIR
In this new heading for K>Mobile in this issue
we have been able look at just a few of the many
research and development projects within the group.
In future issues we will also tell you about projects
in our two other business divisions, WITTE Tools and
REHA Automotive.
Dr. Johannes F. Kirchhoff
VIAJET FILTAIR with possible
fine dust filter system shown
in figure (clicked on)
9

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
Company: People
Two decades with KIRCHHOFF Automotive
A look back by Ulrich G. Schröder
The KIRCHHOFF management
in 1998 (f.l.t.r.): Ulrich G.
Schröder, J. Wolfgang Kirchhoff,
Horst Wildförster, Dr.
Johannes F. Kirchhoff (back
row), Dr. Jochen F. Kirchhoff,
Arndt G. Kirchhoff (back row),
Josef Groß
„How long have you been working for
KIRCHHOFF“
I have always been able to answer this frequently
asked question very precisely. Today (June 3rd, 2011)
it is exactly 17 years, 10 months and 3 days.
“And how do you know this”
Because I do not want to miss a single day of it.
Iserlohn and the Mathias Kutsch GmbH & Co. KG in
Attendorn. Both had sales of about 100 million DM
each, and despite partly differing interests had to
be brought together. Furthermore, a change began
among the shareholders, and we had to accommodate
the “global sourcing” strategy that was initiated
by our customers.
It soon became clear how replaceable we would be
Almost half of my 40 years in the German automotive
supplier industry have been spent working for
when faced with international competition. So this
task was really exciting.
KIRCHHOFF Automotive. I do not know of any other
company that has fundamentally changed and developed
as much in just two decades. Beginning as a
Westphalian high-yield medium-sized company to a
global partner in the worldwide automotive industry,
from a “built to print” metal former to an acknowledged
development supplier.
In the first instance, with the introduction of new
products and new trend-setting technologies an alternative
was sought: diversification. The shareholders,
all of them thoroughbred engineers with innovative
talent, found this quite attractive and thus carried
forward the more than 200 years of eventful history
for the KIRCHHOFF family enterprise.
In the beginning, due to the slump after the reunification
boom, the development
went anything but well.
When I took over as Managing
Director of Development and
KIRCHHOFF has always remained a mediumsized
company, in a very positive sense
New environmentally friendly
exhaust systems, revolutionary
materials from renewables,
100% recyclable raw materials
Sales in 1993, the enterprise still consisted of two
companies, the Stephan Witte GmbH & Co. KG in for the production of metal forming tools, pro-
duction of complete driving cabs for special vehicles,
10

Company: People
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
cam control mechanisms and front and rear suspensions
for passenger vehicles – all these products were
trialed and market suitability was researched. With
all these new innovations, the core business was in
danger to be overlooked.
communicate it internally as well as externally.
Many successful trade fair appearances on the IAA
in Frankfurt and Hannover have significantly contributed
to success. KIRCHHOFF Automotive is its
customers’ acknowledged partner.
What was it that led to the new era and getting back
on the winning track The fourth Kirchhoff generation
was becoming integrated into the company,
fostered by the family’s seniors and supported by
managing directors from outside the family. Every
month the newly formed council met for a management
meeting, and every two years they met
for strategy conferences with a vision coming into
being at a great pace. The strategy was to concentrating
on the core competencies, and the guiding
principle being to follow our customers on their way
to globalization.
Thanks to the consistent implementation of the strategic
vision, KIRCHHOFF Automotive today employs
more than 7,200 people across 28 plants in 12 countries.
Generating sales of more than 900 million Euros
per annum.
Being able to participate in this development for
almost two decades makes me a bit proud, but also
grateful for our shareholders’ permanent support.
The results brought about some startling awareness:
metal is an interesting, innovative and promising
material, it will also be required in cars of the
future. Its lightweight construction uses less energy
which is highly topical. Potential projects included:
Forming and assembling high tensile steels to complex
modules in the car body shell, JIT production of
complete body shells in customer proximity worldwide,
combination of hybrids like steel, aluminium
and plastics and the development of the adequate
production technologies like press hardening, laser
welding, gluing.
And last but not at all least, a development centre
was established that can offer customers a bespoke
solution to their problem. Crash management, cross
car beams, complete floor panels with cost optimal
logistics concepts, just to mention a few concepts.
Implementing visionary strategies requires people
to be fully engaged. Today, I consider this to be the
biggest success of the KIRCHHOFF Automotive leadership
- bringing the right experts to the right task,
nationally as well as internationally, functionally as
well as humanly, highly identifying themselves with
the company and the entrepreneurial family. KIRCH-
HOFF has always remained a medium-sized company,
in a very positive sense.
I also thank my staff who as a team always knew
how to implement our motto “my performance =
our success” into our daily business, that was not
always easy.
Do you now understand why I do not want to miss
a single day of the 17 years, 10 months and 3 days
And why I am still on hand for the company as a consultant,
even after going into restless retirement
My cordial “Good luck” is given to all employees and
friends of KIRCHHOFF Automotive!
(f.l.t.r.): Eva Rademacher,
Sabine Boehle, Ulrich G.
Schröder, Kerstin Rinscheid,
Stefanie Schauerte
During the last few years my task has been to summarise
all this under a “KIRCHHOFF brand” and to
Ulrich G. Schröder
11

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
12

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
KIRCHHOFF Automotive

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Electro mobility takes shape:
The Street Scooter goes around
Company: Innovation
Powerful partners develop a new and innovative vehicle concept for electro mobility
roll forming
Our development manager
Dipl.-Ing. Christoph Wagener
(see picture, on the right) collaborated
in creating the concept
of ACS. Together with
executive partner Dipl.-Ing. J.
Wolfgang Kirchhoff he represents
our interests in the Street
Scooter GmbH.
laser machining/edging
deep-drawing
press hardening
The current debate about raw materials and energy
emphasizes the target of weight reduction that has
long been pursued by the automotive industry and
its suppliers.
With regards to future requirements in the automobile
construction in general and the development
of electro mobility in particular, the requirements
especially to light weight construction for car body
and chassis will change fundamentally. Completely
new vehicle concepts with entirely new characteristics
and features with regard to statics and dynamics
have to be developed. This means not only the substitution
of materials alone but their combination in
hybrid constructions is in demand. Weight reduction
does not only aim at the more efficient use of materials,
but also at the reduction of direct and indirect
energy consumption. At the same time, the active
and passive security and durability of vehicles with
low maintenance costs should be guaranteed at a
high rate - then we can talk about sustainability.
In the Street Scooter GmbH, KIRCHHOFF Automotive
participates in the development of an electric car
Together with other suppliers from the departments
of car body, electrical power train, on-board power
14

Company: Innovation
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
supply, thermo management (air conditioning),
storage systems (battery), safety system and interior,
an electric vehicle is developed up to series maturity.
And with engineering partners the concept of series
production regarding automation and assembly is
coordinated.
Economic light weight construction for the automobiles
of the future at the ACS
The Automotive Center Südwestfalen (ACS), based
in Attendorn is an association where the University
of Siegen, the University of Applied Sciences Südwestfalen,
the district of Olpe, the city of Attendorn
and automotive suppliers from South Westphalia
have united to co-develop solutions for the economic
light weight construction of the automobiles of the
future. Therefore, the fields of activity are car body
and chassis, construction and material, as well as
rational production methods for metal, synthetic
material and hybrids including surface technology.
Arndt G. Kirchhoff
15

M
Que
Hermosill
16

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Canada
Tecumseh
anchester I + II
o
rétaro
Puebla
Detroit
Waverly
Toronto I – III
KIRCHHOFF Automotive and
Van-Rob
The triad is complete. Presence in Europe,
Asia and North America is achieved
São Paulo
Since the beginning of this year KIRCHHOFF Automotive
is a real global player. We not only offer
development and production of complex metal and
hybrid structure parts in Europe and Asia as in the
past, we now also provide these services in North
America. Thanks to this development we are now
among the “Top Five” worldwide automotive suppliers
in our product portfolio.
Production Plants
Tec Centers
Sales Offices
The takeover of Van-Rob strengthens KIRCHHOFF
Automotive’s presence in North America
This remarkable improvement in our position in
the world market was possible because of the takeover
of the majority shares of the Canadian automotive
supplier Van-Rob, with headquarters located
in Aurora, Ontario. We have been working together
with Van-Rob for 12 years now, as a minority shareholder
in the Mexican Joint Venture plants in Puebla
and Querétaro. Further production sites are located
in Hermosillo in Mexico, Manchester in Tennessee
(2x), Waverly in Ohio, Tecumseh close to Detroit in
Michigan and 3 plants in the Toronto area in Ontario.
All in all KIRCHHOFF Automotive grew by approximately
3,000 employees in 10 locations and a turnover
of 400M Euros with the help of Van-Rob.
Toronto
Prospective strategic decisions
Van-Rob is a family-owned company like KIRCHHOFF.
The owner, Peter van Schaik, emigrated from the
Netherlands to Canada more than 40 years ago. As a
toolmaker he first opened a tool shop. It was in 1990
he installed his press shops specializing and devel-
17

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Global
Optimal conditions for entering the American
market
The American automotive industry was hit very
hard by the global economic crisis. Sales in the US
decreased from more than 16M to 10M vehicles. GM
as well as Chrysler went through Insolvency/Chapter
11. Entire plants of OEMs and suppliers were closed
down. As a consequence of the crisis the amount
of competitors is smaller and the market is more
open now. This consolidation put us in a much better
starting position and provided a good opportunity
to now enter this market. Due to the facts that we
knew Peter van Schaik and Van-Rob for quite a long
time and had established a friendship between our
companies it was logical to check the possibility
of starting activities in North America together. It
quickly turned out to be a perfect option for Peter
van Schaik too. Since there are no heirs in his
family interested in taking over the company he welcomed
and appreciated the takeover of the majority
shares of Van-Rob by the family-owned company
KIRCHHOFF Automotive. He himself is going to stay
Van-Rob employees
a minority shareholder and therefore, co-owner,
so that he can contribute to the continuous success
with his great experience and good reputation
within the American automotive industry. Not only
oping joining technology to a higher degree. We got the owners of both companies knew each other, our
to know Van-Rob in 1990 as we started our detailed customers knew us as well. Van-Rob and KIRCHHOFF
market research activities in the US American Automotive had been working successfully and won
market. At that time the local
global business and projects
automotive industry was very Longstanding successful cooperation together, e.g. the engine cradle
self-contained and entering into and friendly affinity have preceded for Opel Astra, the cross car
this market would have been the consolidation
beam for Opel Insignia and
very competitive with unpredictable
results for us. Instead
for Ford, BIW components for
Opel Astra, some front ends
of entering into this market we decided to expand VW, Mercedes and BMW, just to name a few.
our market penetration in Eastern Europe resulting
with representation in this market unmatched by SAP introduction and teambuilding measures: basis
our competition.
for a successful international cooperation
This mutual understanding between the owners
and the positive experience of the extraordinary
cooperation of the employees were to be recognized
at first glance during the first integration workshop
in Canada held at the end of March. There was a
special atmosphere of change in the air and a general
willingness to get started right away. During
the first 2½ days the entire management of Van-Rob
and KIRCHHOFF Automotive worked out the necessary
processes for making both companies become
one global player operating successfully on a worldwide
scale.
Where do we need to harmonize our processes
Where do we have strengths and how to advance
and be profitable at all of our global locations And
(f.l.t.r.) Peter van Schaik and Arndt G. Kirchhoff
how can everybody succeed from directors and man-
18

(f.l.t.r.) Dr. Heiko Engels, Dinesh Divakaran, Stuart Fraser, Klaus Lawory, Arndt G. Kirchhoff
agers to production staff to understand and support
them with all their competencies, capabilities and
experience After the workshop all of them had the
same clue and understanding. The integration and
merger of both companies represents a big challenge
for everybody involved, demanding the highest commitment,
discipline and a lot of communication. But
it was also clear and to be felt that this will also turn
out to be a success story for both our companies
and customers. All the participants in the workshop
worked together in such an open and cooperative
way and everybody was so committed and effective
as if they had been a perfect team for several years
already. And the most important aspect is that the
mutual trust is there we need to have as a basis for
making this ambitious project of merging these 2
companies happen and become a real success.
Automotive is being outlined. We are very optimistic
that we can get further integration processes started
or even completed during the upcoming months.
And this was not only obvious during the percussion
workshop. It did not take the trainer much
effort to develop a common KIRCHHOFF Automotive
/ Van-Rob rhythm together with the participants,
filling the room with quiet concentration as well as
very in-depth and loud conversation. Since the beginning
of this year the process of SAP implementation
within Van-Rob is on-going so that the IT-technical
foundation for working together with KIRCHHOFF
This was already close to perfection: one team – one rhythm!
19

The participants of the
integration workshop
in Toronto
Ireland Spain
France
Hungary
China
Germany
Portugal
Mexico
Poland
Canada
USA
KIRCHHOFF Automotive: 7.200 employees worldwide
New core competencies for challenges of the
American market
Despite these aspects we evaluate our chances and
development possibilities in the North American
market in the same positive way.
The USA will become the biggest automotive market
again in 2011 as we forecast production of 13 million
cars. Furthermore, the German premium-class
manufacturers are expanding their plants in the
USA that we currently supply with stamping parts.
The market share of German cars reached 12% last
year – a new all-time peak. In the premium-class
the German OEMs could even reach a market share
of more than 47%. In this market segment they are
leading with a big gap globally. And our position as
their supplier has significantly improved for several
reasons. The merger of KIRCHHOFF Automotive
and Van-Rob means both companies have new
20

core competencies at their disposal which they can
use together.
their weight but nevertheless achieve a higher degree
of hardness and stiffness.
Reducing weight – saving resources
KIRCHHOFF Automotive has been investing into the
development of high and ultrahigh-strength steel for
automotive lightweight design for the last few years.
Cars in the future are being designed to consume less
fuel in order to be more resource and environmentally
friendly. This target could be achieved by the
so called “downsizing” of the vehicle. With the help
of sophisticated technology, accurate fuel injection
and turbocharging by several turbo chargers, modern
engines nowadays achieve a performance that only
used to be possible in combination with a lot more
Employees
10,000
9,000
8,000
7,000
6,000
5,000
4,000
3,000
2,980
420
Employees KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Employees Van-Rob
Sales KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Sales Van-Rob
3,280
458
3,300
434
3,400
450
6,800
3,000
3,800
870
370
500
7,200
3,200
4,000
940
400
540
Sales
in mio. EUR
1,000
900
800
700
600
500
400
300
cubic inches and significantly higher fuel consump-
2,000
200
tion. But the weight of the vehicle is equally impor-
1,000
100
tant when calculating fuel consumption. Due to our
hot formed steels, car components have only half
2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 Plan 2011
21

laser welding robot
at Van-Rob
For the passenger this means less consumption and
more safety. This is particularly
the Street-Scooter project. Together with Thyssen
and Gedia we have developed a
of great importance for the
future development of electric
cars because pure electric cars
have completely new chassis
structure requirements. There
is no longer a need for a lot of
space in the front of the car for
the engine but a lot of space is
“With us, our customers get the
chance to have everything from one
hand: development, design and global
production close to their own production
sites; everything with the same
tools and processes”
completely new vehicle structure.
We are going to present
models of this new structure
and of the entire Street-
Scooter in our booth during
the IAA Frankfurt motor show
in September. An advantage
KIRCHHOFF can profit from is
reserved for the batteries in the vehicle floor. In order
to be involved from the very beginning in R&D topics
and be able to support and supply our customers in
an innovative way we are actively participating in
Van-Rob being a leader in the field of laser welding.
This offers new possibilities for us that we can use
for our customers’ advantage and new material combinations
also require new joining technologies.
Worldwide production in customer proximity
Due to the takeover of the majority share of Van-Rob
our position on the world market has decisively
changed. KIRCHHOFF Automotive now employs 7,200
people in 12 countries and is planning to achieve a
total turnover of more than 940 million Euros. We
can now follow our customers in their strategy of
worldwide production with our presence on the continents
of Europe, Asia and now North America. Our
customers are now producing most of their models
on global platforms such as the following:
VW (Polo, Golf, Passat), Ford (Fiesta, Focus, Mondeo),
Opel (Corsa, Astra, Insignia), BMW (3-series and
5-series), Audi A6, Mercedes C-class, Suzuki Swift
and SX4 as well as some models of Fiat, Peugeot and
Renault/Nissan and Honda.
Now we can serve this global platform strategy as a
single company on all continents demanded. With
us our customers get the chance to have everything
from one hand: development, design and global production
close to their own production sites; everything
with the same tools and processes.
Together with Van-Rob, KIRCHHOFF Automotive is
now a real global player – a worldwide acting supplier
with plants on 3 continents of Asia, Europe
and America. In our business segment there are not
many other suppliers who can offer this or a similar
global positioning. We now belong to these “Top
Five” and have gathered first hand positive feedback
from our customers. We are also ensuring the future
of our headquarters with this internationalization,
as we successfully did during the last 20 years with
the expansion of our European locations. Sustainability
is a value for which we cannot only attribute
to standing as a 225 year old family company, but
also one of the most important factors for being successful
as a modern global player on a long-term
international scale.
Arndt G. Kirchhoff
22

The Van-Rob headquarters in Aurora
Cross Car Beam
Technology:
Metal Forming, Laser Welding
Model
Ford F-250/350 Super Duty
Production Site:
Manchester / Tennessee, USA
Engine Cradle
Technology:
Stamping, Forming Part, Single
Wire Technology, Force Fitting
of Bushings, E-Coating, Grey Box
Design by KIRCHHOFF Automotive
and Van-Rob
Model
GM, Chevrolet Cruze,
Chevrolet Volt
Production Site:
North York (Toronto) / Ontario,
Canada
Querétaro / Mexico
Bulkhead Assembly
Technology:
Multi-Piece Body In White Structure,
330 Weld Spots
Model
Chrysler, Sebring Convertible
Production Site:
Aurora / Ontario, Canada
23

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Biography of the company
KAPS vision “5R“:
The
Right part
… of the Right quality
… at the Right time
… in the Right quantity
… in the Right place
KAPS II: Becoming leaner with the
KIRCHHOFF Automotive Production System
“Weightloss“ made easy with our 7 principles
Introducing a production system and lean processes
is a little like losing weight: The idea is come
quickly, but successful implementation is more of
a challenge. As ever so often in real life, clear principles
are required for successful implementation
of this excellent idea.
Goal-oriented production
KAPS is based on the fundamental principle of producing
parts only if they are really required. Other
system benefits include parts made free from defects
and availability at the right time, in the right place.
These principles are reflected in the KAPS vision “5R”
(see table above on the left).
Man-machine interaction
The implementation of this vision is implemented by
constant monitoring of all seven principles that have
been compiled in a cooperative process by international
KAPS experts. When defining the principles the
matter about the essentials took centre stage. What
makes a series production efficient Therefore the
focus is not only on the production machinery but
also on the person who operates the machine, plans
24

Company: Biography of the company
The 7 principles
Reduce waste
at all opportunities!
0-waste
Never stop learning!
0-defects
Don‘t accept
defects!
Continuous
learning
Flow
Standards
Levelling
Always follow
the standards!
Always keep
the balance!
Produce only
what is needed!
Continuous
improvement
Worksmarter,
not harder!
25

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Biography of the Werke: company Polen
Back row (f.l.t.r.): Stefan Keller,
Frank Buchholzki, Piotr Socha,
Frank Meier, Lukasz Cytarzynski,
Ryszard Muzyczka,
Maciej Brewka, Alexander
Ellert, Daniel Thompson, Piotr
Sakalowski, Sebastian Jurczyk
Front row (f.l.t.r.): Tamas Biro,
Miguel Angel Tena, Hugo Ferreira,
Nelson Alves, Nicolas
Lesage, Horst Mattausch
Private
Professional
its schedule, supplies it with material and makes
sure that it operates smoothly and efficiently.
Parking
Space
Clear message
An equally important question – how can we explain
Waste of resources
Inventory
Transport
these principles clearly and concisely to all company
employees, from the machine operator to the
Waste of space
Movement time
Overproduction
Waiting
time
manager KIRCHHOFF Automotive decided the most
obvious link was to relate the seven principles to
examples from everyday life so that all employees
Waste of time
Rework / defects
could relate to them.
Reduce waste
at all opportunities!
All seven KAPS principles are now clear messages
that are easy to understand.
Principle 1: Reduce waste at all opportunities
26

Company: Biography of the company
The seven KAPS principles have also been incorporated
into the new logo for further reinforcement.
The head says avoid waste, the heart says avoid mistakes,
the body asks you to follow the standards, the
Standard
respected
Private
Standard not
respected
Professional
legs ensure flow and balance. Constant improvement
and continuous learning move us forward.
KIRCHHOFF becomes lean: weightloss made easy
Standard
respected
Standard not
respected
Stefan Leitzgen
40 min 80 min
Always respect standards!
Principle 3: Always respect standards
27

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Environment
Efficient use of energy and raw materials
Environmental report 2010 shows positive results
In 2010, KIRCHHOFF Automotive Deutschland successfully
took part in the preliminary decision to
the European EMAS Award, resulting in second
place. This involved an environmental protection
award that was assigned by the EU Commission and
in the past year supported the issue of “resource
efficiency”.
Here are some facts from the environmental report
that underline our company’s efficiency: In the past
year, 110,657 tons of raw material were processed
at KIRCHHOFF Automotive Deutschland. A significant
increase in comparison to the crisis year of
2009 which at the sites Attendorn and Iserlohn has
led to a more efficient use of the energy required for
production.
The consumption development of drawing and
machine oils at the sites Attendorn and Iserlohn, in
terms of “kg oil per t of raw material” continues to be
positive (see illustration). In comparison to the previous
three years, the production department has
made significant savings in operating supplies. The
same also stands for the development of disposal
costs at the sites Attendorn and Iserlohn relating to
the respective consumption of raw materials.
Therefore, the issue of efficient use of energy and raw
materials is an important lever to the maintenance
and increase of KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s entrepreneurial
competitiveness, since in the coming years
we expect continuous cost increases.
Reasons enough to deal with it economically. You get
more information in the environment report 2010 in
K>MOBIL Online.
Uwe Suchland
kg
3.50
3.00
2.50
2.00
Oil consumptions in kg per t of raw material
3.05
2.53
1.80
1.50
1.00
0.50
1.14 1.14
1.24
0.98
0.76
1.41
0.72
1.24
0.49
0.77
0.39 0.30
0.45
0.26
Positive development: The
consumption of drawing and
0
year
2001
year
2002
year
2003
year
2004
year
2005
year
2006
year
2007
year
2008
year
2009
year
2010
machine oils continues to
decline
site Attendom
site Iserlohn
28

Company: Biography of the company
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Group
29

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Global
5 years CME – a story of success
One platform, one product,
three production sites: the
same equipment and production
standards for the GM
Delta cross car beam have
been installed in Iserlohn,
Gliwice and Suzhou
World-spanning production network
CME manager Armin Berthold
is convinced that the success
story of the Central Manufacturing
Engineering will
continue
In April 2006 the CME (Central Manufacturing Engineering)
was founded in order to introduce globally
consistent production standards, production processes
and logistical concepts on a technically high
level. Therefore a stable network was created, consisting
of development, purchasing of investment
goods as well as the KIRCHHOFF production sites, and
suppliers. In 2009, the CME incorporated the department
of tool purchasing, and so the organization was
complete.
Worldwide coherent production systems
Since then implementing consistent production processes
at our sites in Europe, Asia and North America
together with our suppliers takes centre stage of
the scope of duties. Therefore, in the scope of global
sourcing, we offer our customers worldwide cost
optimal logistical concepts and consistently high
quality standards.
CME competence centres
One of the CME’s biggest challenges was the global
realisation of different projects for the worldwide parts
production for our customer GM’s Epsilon and Delta
platforms. Therefore, the appropriate infrastructure
had to be created immediately at different KIRCHHOFF
sites. Besides the procurement of different welding
facilities and an e-coating plant for KIRCHHOFF sites
in Europe, at the same time a new site in Suzhou,
China developed at a “greenfield” site. In this completely
new-built production site a modern press line
was established and various welding cells according
to European standard were installed.
The department subdivides into the sections building,
forming, joining and surface technique and administration.
In the year 2008, the CME competence centres
in Mielec (Poland) and Ovar (Portugal) were founded.
From there, forming tools and welding facilities for
the KIRCHHOFF Automotive sites in East and South
Europe are planned.
Furthermore, in November 2009 we expanded the
CME network to Suzhou in China. Also their tools and
welding facilities are procured autarchically.
Global cooperation
The CME team has more than 40 employees that,
despite the geographical separation, cooperate
closely and cross-culturally in the family enterprise
KIRCHHOFF.
Up to now about 150 projects with an investment
volume of more than 140 million Euros have been
realised successfully.
A story of success for our customers’ added value.
Armin Berthold
30

Company: Global
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
CME team Suzhou:
Front row (f. l. t. r.): Kevin Guo,
Michael Yi, Ellen Zhang, Jacky
Liang, Johnson Qiu
Back row (f. l. t. r.): Wenjie li,
Walley Lv, Alwing Ma, Gorden
Zhang, Simon Zhang, Len Ren
CME team Mielec:
(f. l. t. r.): Michał Pająk, Dawid
Graboń, Piotr Pociask, Ryszard
Burek, Robert Krupa,
Waldemar Żółty, Dominik Gergont,
Zbigniew Szpakowski
CME team Attendorn:
Back row (f. l. t. r.): Gilbert
Wolf, Rainer Lock, Udo Bonorden,
Yasmin Herchenröder,
Gerhard Brockhinke, Alexander
Jostes, Joao Estevez, Lutz Leibe,
Herbert Schulz, Sascha Segers-
Bökenbrink, Ute Aufmkolk
Front row (f. l. t. r.): Uwe
Schneider, Thorsten Koch,
Sebastian Diez, Bekir Gülseven,
Dirk Schulte, Armin Berthold
31

KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s core competencies, using the example of a car body model on the Auto Shanghai
A successful appearance in the Land of Smiles
At the Auto Shanghai exhibition German suppliers show their innovative strength
The 14 th Auto Shanghai, which is the most important
automotive fair for Asia, took place on the
Shanghai New International Expo Centre grounds
from April 19 th – 28 th .
In 2007, KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s presence on the
„IAA in China“ was certainly pioneering. At the time,
customers and the public showed quite restrained
interest in it, so in 2009 the decision was made not
to take part in the trade fair. But now the tide has
turned: Auto Shanghai now ranks in the top five of
all international automotive fairs – maybe owning
to the amount of German manufacturers and suppliers
that are growing to rely on Shanghai, and also
KIRCHHOFF Automotive has arrived in China.
On the first press day, there were a vast number of
visitors to the 200 sqm twin level KIRCHHOFF Auto-
32

The booth staff in the second exhibition week,
front row – f. l. t. r.: Isabel Luo, Sabine Boehle, Ulrich G. Schröder
middle row – f. l. t. r.: Selina Qi, Dr. Sam Li, Anja Luke
back row – f. l. t. r.: Stefan Michler, Tony Lei, Hao Zhang, Knut Stinn
In debate f.l.t.r.: Arndt G. Kirchhoff, CEO KIRCHHOFF Automotive; Bong Gyu HAN, AutoGen
Director R & D Centre; Hong Shin CHO, President AutoGen, Dr. Thorsten Gaitzsch, Executive
Vice President S & TD KIRCHHOFF Automotive; John HJ MOON, Executive Director Planning &
Marketing AutoGen; Dr. Thomas Steinhaus, Director of Sales - Cars KIRCHHOFF Automotive
motive booth in the supplier hall W4 with its German
appearance. Among the visitors were high-ranking
representatives from European but also numerous
Chinese vehicle manufacturers. These interested parties
were impressed by the competent research and
development practices shown as well as the innovative
product range of the global automotive supplier
for metal and hybrid structures. The acquisition
of the Canadian automotive supplier Van-Rob’s
Always in a good mood – the booth management team: f.l.t.r. Sabine Boehle and Anja Luke
33

Fair: Auto Shanghai
The KIRCHHOFF Automotive booth at the
14 th Auto Shanghai in April 2011
majority shares was particularly welcomed and
noted. Our customers benefit from KIRCHHOFF now
being able to serve the global platform strategy that
all continents demand with the same tools, processes
and development achievements.
KIRCHHOFF Automotive will continue to expand its
presence and competence in China, in order to keep
up with the high growth rate that has shaped the
Chinese passenger car market in the previous years.
According to the VDA (Verband der Deutschen Automobilindustrie
– German Association of the Automotive
Industry), in 2010 passenger car sales in China
have increased by more than one third to 11.3 million
compared to the previous year. “We will push the
expansion and construction of further production
capacity at the Chinese site in Suzhou as well as our
new plant in Chongqing, in order to meet our customers’
requirements”, stresses Daniel Cheng, Managing
Director KIRCHHOFF Automotive China (please
also see pages 54 and 55 for further information).
The core team from China:
(f.l.t r.): Daniel Cheng, Isabel Luo, Selina Qi, Dr. Sam Li
The Chinese market, which in 2011 is expected to
grow by 11 per cent to 12.5 million vehicles, is evolving
into a market with high technological requirements.
In China, the consumption reduction and the associated
demand for automotive light weight construction
should take high priority – also because of the
increasing official emission limitations. It should be
added that China intensely focuses on the development
of electro mobility. In both areas, KIRCHHOFF
Automotive is equipped with the appropriate knowl-
34

Fair: Auto Shanghai
edge that is in great demand in this dynamic and
growing market.
The Auto Shanghai exhibition also turned out to be
an experience for our employees at the Suzhou site
who had accepted Daniel Cheng’s invitation to visit
the fair.
The Auto Shanghai is now among the most exciting
automotive fairs in Asia, and KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s
successful participation with more than 400
customer visits proves once more that our decision
made in 2006 to head for China was the right one.
Sabine Boehle
(f.l.t.r.): Kenji Fukuyama, KIRCHHOFF Automotive Representative Director S&TD Japan;
Hitoshi Tajima, Vice President Purchasing Mazda and Arndt G. Kirchhoff in front of the Van-
Rob cross car beam for the Ford F350 Truck which is assembled in a laser welding process
Future comes as standard
64 th International Motor Show
Info:
September 15 – 25, 2011
Frankfurt/Main
www.iaa.de
34 guests of SGM and PATAC accepted the invitation by Arndt G. Kirchhoff, Daniel Cheng
and Dr. Thorsten Gaitzsch to visit the Suzhou plant during the SGM supplier event that took
place on April 19 th , 2011 in the run-up to the Auto Shanghai.
The IAA, which is organized by the VDA, will
open its doors from September 15 th to 25 th in
Frankfurt/Main. It is the most important automotive
fair for KIRCHHOFF with more than 900
exhibitors from all over the world and therefore
will be considerably larger than previous
shows. KIRCHHOFF Automotive will be present
again this year and would like to show you
our latest developments and product range of
automotive lightweight construction. Experience
our newly acquired knowledge and concept
of vehicle frame structures for electric
cars that are ready for series production. We
extend a warm welcome to you at our booth
B08 in hall 5.1.
(f.l.t.r.): Daniel Cheng, Managing Director KIRCHHOFF China, Andreas Graffe, Deputy Executive
Director Purchasing SGM, Wilbert Brenner, Deputy Director Supplier Quality SGM
35

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Info:
Formula 1 in schools is a multidisciplinary
international technology competition. Using
computers, pupils aged 11 to 19 develop and
produce a miniature formula 1 racing car which
is then raced. The fascination and worldwide
presence from the “real” formula 1 is used vividly
to create an exciting and thrilling learning
experience for the youths. At the same time,
the experience sharpens the understanding
and insights into product development, technology
and science, accompanied by a first
insight into technical career opportunities.
In search of young talent
Human resource marketing at KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Not only in order to be current, but also to promote
the youths‘ abilities and interests, KIRCH-
HOFF Automotive supports the project “Formula 1
in schools”. Besides the design and production of a
competitive miniature racing car, pupils’ teams also
have to undertake complete project management,
which consists of project leadership, design and
production, resource management, marketing and
public relations, as well as innovation. This project
reality, reproduced in mini scenarios, communicates
real company procedures to the pupils.
For quite some time, KIRCHHOFF Automotive has
been sponsor of the “Formula 1 in schools” team
“Speed no Limit”. During the NRW regional championships
that took place on April 9 th , 2011 at the FH
Südwestfalen (Südwestfalen University of Applied
Sciences) in Iserlohn, the company established an
information booth. Between races, project presenta-
36

Fun among the formula 1 in schools team ‚Speed No Limit’: By winning the second place at the regional championship
NRW 2011, the committed pupils qualified themselves for the German championship 2011 in Paderborn
tions and jury decisions, the technics
affine participants of the 16
teams had the opportunity to
learn about prospective careers
and professional development at
KIRCHHOFF Automotive.
37

The career day team from KIRCHHOFF Automotive lends its support to interested students
Careers Day at the Fachhochschule Südwestfalen
(Südwestfalen University of Applied Sciences) in
Soest is one of the most established recruitment
fairs. On March 30 th , 121 companies including
KIRCHHOFF Automotive competed for the applicants’
attentions. In Soest, a growing interest in our
company can also be seen. The applicants have often
heard about KIRCHHOFF Automotive and ask specific
questions: “Can I write my master’s thesis about
your company and when can I do this”, “Do you also
offer six-week internships”, “Can I directly cooperate
in projects”, “I heard that afterwards there is the
opportunity to enter the company directly, how does
this work” For KIRCHHOFF Automotive, this is a sign
that our efforts in human resource marketing are
bearing fruit and obviously our corporate philosophy
is spreading. KIRCHHOFF Automotive also successfully
presented at the Chinese Talent Days in Cologne
on April 15th and 16th as well as at the vocational
fair in Olpe, which opened its doors on May 10th and
11th for interested pupils and their parents.
Heiko Aland
Group picture during the VIP tour at the KIRCHHOFF Automotive booth (f.l.t.r.): Dr. Johannes F. Kirchhoff, associate of the KIRCHHOFF Group and CEO
FAUN Umwelttechnik; Christiane Mackensen, First Vice Mayoress of the city of Soest, Dr. Jochen F. Kirchhoff, chairman of the KIRCHHOFF Group’s advisory
board and shareholder circle; Prof. Dr.-Ing. Reinhard Spörer (faculty engineering – automation), manager of the career days of the FH Südwestfalen (Südwestfalen
University of Applied Sciences); Prof. Dr.-Ing. Claus Schuster, president of the Fachhochschule Südwestfalen (Südwestfalen University of Applied
Sciences); Prof. Dr.-Ing. Erwin Schwab – vice president for research/technology transfer of the FH SWF (Südwestfalen University of Applied Sciences)
38

All pulling together, f. l. t. r.: Eugen Romanenko – apprentice machine and plant operator, Marco Bruno – apprentice tool mechanic, Julia Holterhoff –
apprentice industrial business management assistant
Fit for professional life
Apprentices‘ training sessions are essential
Starting out at work is a major milestone in the life
of a young apprentice – involving huge changes and
new rules to understand. There is a requirement
to instantly understand and meet expectations,
as well as handle new challenges. Therefore behaviour
and communication style is vital – do you risk
being overly formal or far too informal Who sets
the standard
“Do I have to knock if the door is off the latch” or
“Can I be on first name terms with my superior”
Questions like these often cause uncertainty.
Answers to these questions and further “unwritten
rules” in the professional life are detailed in the
KIRCHHOFF Automotive in-house publications “etiquette
manual for apprentices” and “communication
for apprentices” – offering preparation for differing
situations and conversations.
Apprentices also attend seminars based around the
publications. In the “etiquette manual for apprentices”
session, acceptable behavior during a business
lunch or a trade-fair appearance as well as conversations
with colleagues is practiced using a role
play. Body language and tone of voice is also covered,
highlighting that in a phone call with difficult customers
or during a verbal dispute with a colleague it
is not what you say, but how you say it that influences
the result.
Communication is not a one-way path but a game
between action and reaction. Not only the “what”
is essential, but above all the “how”: In the training
session “communication for apprentices” the attendees
reflect their own style of communication and
using role play they practice preparing and conducting
constructive and critical conversations.
With ever more intensive requirements, more complex
processes and an increasing range of tasks
during the apprenticeship a high level of personal
responsibility must be taken. With the abilities that
the apprentices acquire during these training sessions
an important foundation stone is laid.
We wish all apprentices good luck over the course of
their apprenticeship.
Heiko Aland
39

Corporate communications are
now in new hands
Andreas Heine – new head of the Communications & Marketing department
Andreas Heine
The Marketing & Strategic Planning department
has now become the Communications & Marketing
department. In order to fulfil the new role of a
global player in both internal and external communications,
the new department head Andreas
Heine is taking a different direction.
“Since January 1 st , I have held the position as head
of Communications & Marketing. Professionally, I
do not come from the automotive industry, but
always felt at home in the sphere of media and
higher education (editor in chief at Radio MK, programme
chief YOURZZ.FM, university lecturer at the
Business and Information Technology School, consultant
for the German Federal Agency for Civic Education,
etc.). However, I indeed have a relationship
with KIRCHHOFF Automotive’s area of operation. As
a hobby mechanic, I have welded my BMW and also
40

The team Communications
& Marketing (f.l.t.r.): Sabine
Boehle, Andreas Heine,
Stefanie Schauerte, Eva
Rademacher
repaired many things myself. When I represent our
products in public, I indeed have a feel for what we
make from metal.
With my competences in the field of communications,
I would like to support and lead our successful
marketing team with the biggest challenge in the
near future: the setup of a worldwide internal communication
system at KIRCHHOFF Automotive. As
a global player, our success will essentially depend
on sufficient and correct communication, so that all
employees are well informed and identify with the
company objectives. I gladly accept this challenge
and look forward to your support!”
Andreas Heine
41

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
People: Education
School partnerships
Intensive school network in Attendorn and Iserlohn
What am I good at What do I enjoy What profession
fits to me – Every young person has to answer
these questions when it comes to prepare optimally
for the prospective professional life. But also information
made to measure is needed to gain a realistic
picture of working life.
KIRCHHOFF Automotive offers support in precisely
this area and is currently working with 26 schools,
superordinate school relevant networks and business
colleges. However, finding potential new blood not
only requires contact with schools. Pupils also need
active support on the way to finding their chosen
careers.
Cooperations in Iserlohn
A new concept in Iserlohn, the school partnership,
is intended to open up career paths and improve
cooperation with companies in the region. Since
autumn last year KIRCHHOFF Automotive has
maintained a “documented” close contact with the
three secondary schools in Letmathe (Hauptschule,
Realschule and Gymnasium). We are also planning
to work very closely in the future with the secondary
school at Hennen (Hauptschule Hennen).
Using carefully conceived and appropriate internships
we want to make young people aware at an
early stage of exactly what is involved in the world of
work. Taster sessions, regular visits to the company
and an ongoing flow of information all complement
this aim. Teachers are essential to this concept and
they are closely involved. Company presentations
and works visits enable teachers to experience for
themselves the working environment for which they
are preparing their pupils.
42

People: Education
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Quite a practical occupational
orientation: The initiators
Heiko Aland (left) and Miriam
Graetz (right) with the workshop
participants of the Attendorn
Rivius Grammar School
Workshops and taster days in Attendorn
There are similar programmes underway in Attendorn.
The Attendorn secondary school (Gemeinschaftshauptschule
Attendorn) is to set aside one day
a week in future for visits to KIRCHHOFF Automotive.
KIRCHHOFF also supported the Rivius Gymnasium to
prepare its pupils for work in the form of a careers
workshop. Heiko Aland, personnel development/
marketing and training representative and Miriam
Graetz, personnel development trainee, focused on
job differentiation. The aim of the workshop was to
work with the girls to discover the actual differences
between different job groups and job descriptions.
In doing so the participants gained an impression
of the requirements which come with a particular
job. The girls then found it easier to compare the
features they had discovered with their own skills
and interests.
This close cooperation with schools is called “Taking
responsibility”. Everybody benefits. The young people
on the search for the right traineeship gain the different
resources needed to make a sensible career
choice. The companies, for their part, gain applicants
who are more likely to succeed in their chosen
career.
Heiko Aland
43

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Strategy
Corporate
.Culture
LEARN TO LEAD I
The managers of the subsidiaries and members of
the superior management of KIRCHHOFF Automotive
participated in the first two pilot meetings that
took place in spring. These workshop results and
evaluations helped to promote that the fine tuning
of the training contents could be realised. Now
“LEARN TO LEAD” goes into series, although even
today is sure that every training session will differentiate
according to the countries’ cultural idiosyncrasies.
However, these differences will not affect the
common values that are designed for sustainability
or the basic contents. With the given contents and
coherent leadership principles we ensure the objecoperational
Leadership strategic
LEARN TO LEAD IV
(International)
Language: national.
LEARN TO LEAD II
LEARN TO LEAD III
Lead to let Learn Leadership Learn to Lead sss
Language: national
Languages: D, E, PL, PT
Welcome workshops for new colleagues: corporate principles and management – critical incidents
LEARN TO LEAD
You don’t find future leaders within 9 months
Teamwork, communication, delegation, human
resources development, customer orientation, role
model function and above all respect – these are our
leadership principles’ keywords. Now the accompanying
workshops that support our managers in
implementing these principles have started under
the maxim LEARN TO LEAD. Because our managers’
behavior substantially influences our company’s
success.
.
The LEARN TO LEAD programme has been designed
especially for KIRCHHOFF Automotive and is the
training programme for all our corporation’s managers
worldwide.
Only if we succeed in motivating our employees to
realise our planned goals together, will we be successful
in the long term. Sustainability – a term we
formerly only knew from environmental aspects –
now defines our company’s whole image of values.
Sustainability also means stability of values and,
especially in a family-run enterprise, this is a crucial
factor of success. Our image of values also is
expressed in the KIRCHHOFF Automotive leadership
principles. These should help to promote that leading
employees at KIRCHHOFF follow the same basic principles
worldwide.
Team task: As a group, develop a process to recreate the given structure as
quickly as possible.
44

The members of the second workshop group LEARN TO LEAD I
tive of a common KIRCHHOFF leadership culture. In
doing so, YSC, one of the prestigious globally acting
consulting firms for human resources development,
supports us.
LEARN TO LEAD consists of different workshops
(see illustration) that all employees with leadership
responsibility successively pass through.
LEARN TO LEAD I addresses all team and department
managers and deals with the issues of management
tools, communication, motivation, decision
processes and team development. Finally, a personal
development schedule is compiled.
LEARN TO LEAD II includes contents like leading in
difficult situations, ambitions and employee development
as leadership task. Change management
should be recognised as chance. These modules are
conducted in all countries in the respective national
language.
LEARN TO LEAD III This is the first international
workshop, this means the participating group comprises
a mixture of leaders from all sites. This seminar
is conducted in the English language. Here the
participants learn to evaluate their weaknesses and
above all their strengths and to develop appropriately
as leaders. Also employee motivation plays a
crucial role.
Guiding principles
Respect We take our employees seriously
Human Resources Development We make our employees strong
Communication We inform on time and globally
Trust We faithfully set goals and install adequate controls
Delegation We delegate tasks and responsibility
Teamwork We work in a team
Customer orientation We work in a customer and performance oriented way
Role model function We lead as role model
LEARN TO LEAD IV Finally we concentrate on
strategy. On the agenda are issues like leading
managers in international teams, entrepreneurial
thinking and acting, leading in complex contexts up
to health management and work life balance.
KIRCHHOFF Automotive relies on the training and
development of its own employees in order to
staff also tomorrow’s leading positions with own
employees. LEARN TO LEAD is a major component
to achieve this objective.
Uwe Hartmann
45

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Employees: Future
KiCoKids – KIRCHHOFF Automotive Deutschland
establishes first day care centre
Attendorn. Flexible care periods for compatibility of family and career
AUTOMOTIVE
Familie
KiCoKids – the company’s day care centre
The day care centre KiCoKids is a commercial organization within KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Deutschland GmbH.
Under the supervision of the CJD Olpe – a subsidiary of the Christliches Jugenddorfwerk
Deutschland e. V. (Christian Children’s Countryside Organisation, Germany) the
day care centre offers up to 15 children from 0 to 6, proper support according to the
current education standard (KiBiz) in the federal state of North Rhine Westphalia.
Compatibility of family obligations and professional
requirements – with establishing a company
day care centre by July 1 st , 2011 in Attendorn
KIRCHHOFF Automotive Deutschland accommodates
this request of many employees.
The company day care centre “KiCoKids” will be
conducted as diurnal facility with a small group of
around 17 children of all ages. To ensure the pedagogical
care the CJD Olpe is in charge of the operation.
As a global company we are aware how important
the teaching of foreign languages is. Therefore,
the early learning of a foreign language (English) is
incorporated into the children’s daily routine with a
CJD Olpe employee (native speaker) who only speaks
English with the children.
After extensive renovations the company day care
centre will be opened by July 1st, 2011 and is open
throughout the year. We offer employees and their
families choices with the care of their children.
The KIRCHHOFF employees can choose how many
hours per week their children will be looked after.
If requested, also the children’s creature comforts
will be catered for. On March 24 th , 2011 all interested
people visited the facility on an “open day” and were
informed about the issue of child care at KIRCHHOFF
Automotive and the CJD Olpe’s pedagogical work.
For more information about this issue see
the KiCoKids flyer – available at Jürgen Dröge,
j.droege@ KIRCHHOFF-gruppe.de.
Jürgen Dröge
46

Employees: Future
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
FAMILY AND CAREER
KiCoKids is open all the year. You can
choose for how many hours per week
your children are looked after. We offer
a family atmosphere where parents and
pre-school teachers work together to
assist your children’s development in
the best way possible.
EXPERIENCE
Family and career
ARTS AND CULTURE
Music, dancing, theatre, crafts as
well as dealing with materials are
part of the learning plan. When
children paint, create, make
music and dance, they express
their view of the world and their
feelings.
Your children experience an interesting
year-round course which includes all the
annual festivals and special occasions.
We specifically promote exercise and
physical health, emotional development,
language and speaking, a basic understanding
of mathematics, and learning
and comprehension through all the
senses.
Experience
Nature
Arts and Culture
NATURE
Nature and environment are experienced
with special activities in a quasinatural
outdoor area.
BILINGUALISM
English is playfully integrated
into the daily routine. We
employ a native speaker who
only speaks English with the
children.
Children have an instinct for
connections, which makes them
curious. The dog barks, the cat
goes “meow”, and someone
from England speaks English.
Completely freely and without
any need for coercion children
want to learn comprehension
and how to speaking. Therefore
language skills are passed
on eagerly and gladly and
without stress
.
Bilingualism
Values
VALUES
At the centre, children and adults of
different origins, cultures and religions
meet. We impart values from our Christian
tradition. Openness, respect and tolerance
towards other cultures and faiths
are practiced and brought into our daily
life from birth. The children understand
differences, become acquainted with
customs and become aware of their
respective origins. At our centre, they
experience being accepted for who they
are as an individual.
Participation
PARTICIPATION
Children can participate.
Their issues and needs are
taken seriously. Children
learn to take initiative,
make arrangements, come
to an agreement, and to
help each other.
47

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Plants: Iserlohn
Completion of the vertical range of manufacture
Iserlohn. Operation of lasers enables processing from a single source
Laser cutting
Since the beginning of 2011 the Iserlohn site has put
another technology into operation. Two Trumpf solidstate
lasers have been installed for the necessary
cutting operations on press hardened components.
Besides the Ford A-pillar and the Daimler C-pillar
reinforcement, the VW body bulkhead assembly
is run on the laser plants. As a result of this, we
can offer the customer all process steps from a
single source that are required for press hardened
components.
cular an electromagnetic wave. This is generated by
a laser active medium.
Artur Rath
Excursus press hardening and laser cutting
Press hardened components of 22MnB5 are applied
as structural parts for transmission tunnels, bumpers
and/or A-, B-pillars. Manganese-boric steels in
their initial state have a ferritic-pearlitic structure
with a cohesiveness of approx. 500 to 700 N/mm 2 .
After the heat treatment with a subsequent forming
and cooling process the cohesiveness is increased to
1,500 N/mm 2 .
The excessive material of the forming process as
well as additional hole groups are lasered in a subsequent
contactless process. During the laser process
the material is heated at the place of action,
fused and brought out of the kerf by a process gas. A
laser beam in the easiest sense is light and in parti-
Adam Durdyn at the A-pillar production
Distention A80 in %
60
50
40
30
Hard backend
Steel
ZStE 180BH
ZStE300BH
IF-Steel
IF 180
IF 260
Phosphorus
alloyed
ZStE 220P
ZStE 300P
22MnB5
before forming
TRIP-Steel
TRIP 700
TRIP 800
Dual-Phase Steel
DP 500
DP 600
22MnB5
after forming
Complex-Phase
Steel
CP-W 800
CP-W 1000
20
10
Isotropic Steel
ZStE 220i
ZStE 280i
Tensile strength in MPa
Martensitic-Steel
MS-W 1000
MS-W 1200
Micro-alloyed
ZStE 260
ZStE 420
0
200 300 400 500 600 700 800 900 1000 1100 1200 1300 1400 1500
48

Giving the award to the staff
(f.l.t.r.): Arndt. G. Kirchhoff;
Thomasz Zwyrtek, GM Director
Structures & Closures; Susanna
Webber, Vice President GM
Europe Purchasing & Supply
Chain; Branislav Milicevic,
Kujtim Kastrati, Dr. Jochen F.
Kirchhoff
KIRCHHOFF Automotive - supplier of the year
GM honours the company with this prestigious award for the 8 th time
For seven consecutive years, KIRCHHOFF Automotive
has been recognized by one of the world leading
automotive companies, General Motors. In
total, General Motors has over 20,000 suppliers.
Only 82 companies, 14 of them in Europe and 6 in
Germany, have been given the supplier award.
At the end of April, Susanna S. Webber, Vice President
of General Motors Europe Purchasing & Supply
Chain, presented the award to staff at the Iserlohn
headquarters. KIRCHHOFF Automotive won the
award as supplier of the year for its stampings and
welding assemblies.
“Your dedication and commitment to consistently
perform above our expectations are appreciated
by the entire General Motors team and we want to
recognise your organisation for its outstanding performance”,
Tomasz Zwyrtec, GM Purchasing Director,
said in the award speech.
50

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
The KIRCHHOFF Automotive Iserlohn staff at the awards ceremony
The GM team (f.l.t.r.): Tomasz Zwyrtek/GM, Michael Eichert, Tobias Halbe, Christian Marcus,
Kordula Stinn, Gerhard Höffer, Nils Winkelmeyer, Silvia Rauterkus, Kirsten Entrup, Andrea
Engels, Christian Berg, Marion Kramer, Marc Uttich, Dr. Thomas Steinhaus, Norbert Heil
Arndt G. Kirchhoff was very pleased to receive the
award and passed his compliments to the KIRCH-
HOFF Automotive team, “It was your commitment
and dedication that meant we were able to meet and
exceed customer expectations.”
In his speech, Tomasz Zwyrtec also emphasised the
importance for automotive suppliers to have global
production. With the takeover of the Canadian company
Van-Rob at the beginning of the year, KIRCH-
HOFF Automotive is now present on the three most
important continents for the automotive industry:
Europe, Asia and North America, ensuring the company
is always close to the customer.
Editorial team K>MOBIL
Award presentation GM SOY in Detroit (f.l.t.r.): Jim Hentschel, Executive Director and Global
Functional Leader, Body, Exterior, Dimensional Engineering, GM; Arndt G. Kirchhoff, CEO
KIRCHHOFF Automotive; Randy Papall, Executive Director and Group Global Purchasing
Leader, Body/Exterior, Interior/Safety, HVAC and Mexico, GM
51

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Company: Partnership
“Working together for a successful future”
Traditional partnership should be extended
(f.l.t.r.): Artur Rath, production management KIRCHHOFF Automotive Iserlohn; Jens Brethauer, Head of Purchasing Linde Material Handling; J. Wolfgang
Kirchhoff, COO KIRCHHOFF Automotive; Dr. Matthias Schmitz, CFO Linde Material Handling; Raphael Florath, Key Account Manager
For many years, Linde Material Handling GmbH,
part of the KION Group, and KIRCHHOFF Automotive
have maintained a successful cooperation.
number of different production processes, the technically
elaborate manufacture of roofs for Linde
forklifts was examined.
With regard to new development and the production
of future vehicle generations by Linde, further developments
of the business relationship between both
companies has been confirmed during a visit to the
Iserlohn plant on March 11 th , 2011.
In addition to a global sales and service structure,
Linde Material Handling GmbH also operates production
sites in Germany, France, Great Britain, Czechia,
the USA and China. The single production departments
and the tool shop in Iserlohn were visited
in order to get an overview of the performance at
this particular production site. In addition to a large
Afterwards, the visitors got an idea of the development
competence at the Attendorn site. During a
visit to the development department, existing opportunities
of product and process development were
introduced. On the basis of these newly gained
impressions and the increasing global activities of
both companies, the continuation of the dialogue
and intensified collaboration have been confirmed
as common objective.
Raphael Florath
52

Plants: Hungary
The foundation has been built
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Esztergom. New orders lead to plant expansion
The excavators at work: The
KIRCHHOFF Hungária plant
in Esztergom is expanding by
5,400 sqm
In 2007, the last expansion of the production area
at KIRCHHOFF Hungária was completed. Now,
four years later, a new innovation and investment
project has begun in January 2011:
Info:
New contracts with Daimler, Ford, GM, VW and
Faurecia mean a required expansion of the production
area by 5,400 sqm. In the first construction
phase, the site will be enlarged by
3,000 sqm for the welding shop as well as 2,400
sqm for a second press shop.
In addition, a new administration wing with meeting
rooms and offices for the sales & engineering and
controlling & finance departments will be con-
structed. This first phase was completed at the end of
April and new welding cells have been installed. The
second construction phase, comprising of building
a new press shop with 550 t and 1,250 t transfer
presses, will be completed by the end of July / beginning
of August of this year.
Continuous development
At the end of the year, a newly developed cross car
beam for a French customer will reach series maturity.
New welding cells will be on hand for its production.
For the manufacture of further products
for VW, Daimler and Ford, which will go into production
in August and September, new press tools will
be used. The continuous development of KIRCHHOFF
Hungária ensures the future competitiveness of the
Esztergom site.
Szabolcs Sólyom
Expansion of the administration building in Esztergom
The foundations are laid –
construction of the new press
shop
53

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Plants: China
Production at the second Chinese site
has a successful start
Chongqing. 4,000 sqm production space was completed at the end of 2010
The second KIRCHHOFF Automotive plant in China,
in Chongqing, was planned and designed for
welding and assembly orders from CFMA. At the
end of 2010, the production area and administration
building were completed.
The 4,000 sqm production area is equipped with
welding and assembly facilities as well as machines
for tube drilling. Samples of the cross car beams for
the project C 346, the new Focus by CFMA, are already
produced at this site. Furthermore, the Sales & Technical
Development team in Chongqing is working on
new orders.
Daniel Cheng
The KIRCHHOFF Automotive site in Chongqing
54

Plants: China
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Growing volume of orders requires
plant expansion
Suzhou. KIRCHHOFF Automotive site in China is developing rapidly
After the start in 2007 in a rented assembly hall, in
2008 a new KIRCHHOFF Automotive site was established
at its current site in Suzhou. Growing customer
interest and employee commitment has led
to fast development of the site which is currently
on schedule.
Due to growing order volume, the existing production
capacities have become insufficient, so an expansion
of the production area and administration building
have become necessary. The construction work
will begin as soon as all permissions are on hand.
An expansion of the production halls by approx.
3,100 sqm is planned, the administration building is
also scheduled to receive a 500 sqm third storey.
Daniel Cheng
The proposed aerial view of the KIRCHHOFF Automotive site in Suzhou after the planned expansion (marked in blue)
5

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
KIRCHHOFF P olska
Plants: Poland
Gliwice. Mielec. Also in 2011, the Polish sites
are on the course for further success
3 D model of the
hot forming tool
Innovations: Cross-border tool development
Under the management of Bogdan Kiebzak, the
Mielec tool shop employs 43 people, including six
design engineers. In the last five years, the team
gathered experience that has been used to develop
new tools also outside Poland.
Late last year the first B-pillar press hardening tool
was constructed. This is a development tool for a
B-pillar where, among other things, three different
cooling systems were implemented for comparative
purpose. The first tests were completed in the
Attendorn R&D Centre and analysed according to
the tool’s new techniques. Currently the tool with the
new techniques is being used on the Iserlohn press
hardening line in order to verify the new developments’
suitability for series production. This innovation
was designed by KIRCHHOFF Polska tool designer
Krzysztof Slitz, in accordance with the specification
given by Markus Löcker, who manages predevelopment
of KIRCHHOFF Automotive Deutschland in
Attendorn. This is further evidence of how collaboration
of KIRCHHOFF Automotive employees’ global
competences enable development of innovative products
for our customers.
Investments
In 2010, investments in the Mielec and Gliwice plants’
infrastructure were made. This is certainly a fact that
contributed to the high increase of sales at both sites.
In the Mielec welding shop a modern extractor fan
was installed, which improved working conditions
and reduced impact on the environment. The second
floor of the administration building was released for
use. Besides offices for KAPS and SAP administration,
a cloakroom and break rooms for the employees
could be established. The staff now also have use of
a canteen, which we are especially glad about.
In Gliwice a suite of offices were also completed, significantly
improving the working conditions of the
logistics and process engineering departments.
Women working in the production department –
a milestone in KIRCHHOFF Polska’s development
For years KIRCHHOFF in Poland has been actively
promoting the recruitment of women in the manufacturing
department. In Gliwice, this is an important
element of the organisational development
Info:
Excellent start into the new year:
Sales in the first quarter 2011, compared to the
previous year:
Gliwice: 153 %
Mielec: 145 %
56

Plants: Poland
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
The tool at the tryout
press
strategy. Particular machine and plant project planning
have had necessary checks and changes made
so that women could be employed in the production
department.
At the beginning of 2008, this development experienced
another boost when the Polish labour market
experienced a shortage of labour. In April 2009 the
first group of women joined our team in Gliwice, they
were employed to put the e-coating plant into operation.
Thanks to new production methods, a high
level of automation and appropriate preparation this
opportunity presented itself for the first time.
In Mielec, investments in rest areas were necessary
and carried out. After this work was completed in
September 2010, the first ten women to work in production
took up their roles in the welding shop. After
further round of recruitment, the number of women
employed has now increased to 32 in the first quarter
of 2011. The plant management are impressed by
the women’s abilities and competences and often
wonder this change has been initiated so late …
Janusz Sobón
Currently women are employed in the e-coating,
welding and logistics departments. The 31 women
working in the Gliwice plant stand out due to their
accuracy, dexterity and their ability to execute repetitive
tasks with consistent quality.
Women in the production department of KIRCHHOFF Polska
57

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Plants: Portugal
The staff at Cucujães are glad to have six months “accident free”: Back row f. l. t. r.: Aníbal Martins (lift truck operator),
Ricardo Costa (setter), Jorge Freitas (maintenance technician), Júnior Munoz (operator), Carlos Rua (head of production
– service), Ricardo Santos (operator), Rui Sousa (operator).
Front: António Almeida (operator) receives the award for six months “accident free” from Tânia Peralta (health and
safety coordinator)
No cause for concern
Ovar, Cucujães – celebrate an excellent health and safety record
A full six months without any industrial accidents
was celebrated by employees of the KIRCHHOFF
Automotive site in Cucujães on February 16 th , 2011.
Of course one could say that accidents are not supposed
to happen, so there is no reason to celebrate.
We say quite the opposite; the prevention of industrial
accidents relies on the people, their behaviour
and provision of adequate working conditions and
safety equipment.
Culture of safety
We are on a journey to develop a culture of safety
and accident prevention. There is still a lot to do –
especially when it comes to devolution of the safety
responsibility to the operative teams themselves.
Small achievements should always be recognized
and acknowledged positively, they mean we are
taking steps in the right direction.
Antonio Rosas
58

Plants: Spain
K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
With the 3D measuring machine, Juan García García checks the coordinates
of the Opel Meriva wheel house
David Gallego Portillo on the welding line for the Opel Meriva wheel
houses
Sergio Barceló Navarro at the clinching station for the Opel Meriva
frontend
Education benefits all
Figueruelas. KIRCHHOFF España invests in further education
In 2010, almost all KIRCHHOFF España employees
made use of a broad offer of further education and
training. Their newly acquired abilities and knowledge
facilitate better working practice, which has
already led to an improvement in the workplace
atmosphere and individual performance. Investment
in employee development is sustainable – this was
reflected in results from the first two months of this
year, almost every day an improvement measure
has been initiated and up to 50% have already been
fully implemented. Besides the measurable economic
profitability, a significant change in employees’ way
of thinking and work attitude has been noticed. Each
team member feels more responsible for his actions
and reflects this accordingly.
Miguel A. Tena
59

K>MOBIL 37 // KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Plants: Ireland
A strong relationship
Letterkenny. Tanaiste and Ambassador express their appreciation
During his visit to Letterkenny,
newly appointed German
Ambassador in Ireland, Busso
von Alvensleben (middle, with
Sean McDermott, Managing
Director KIRCHHOFF Ireland,
left and Michael Stegemann,
Director Accounting/Controlling
KIRCHHOFF Automotive
Group, right) described the
plant as an excellent example
of the strong traditional relationship
that exists between
Ireland and Germany
During a recent visit to KIRCHHOFF Ireland, newly
elected Tanaiste and Minister for Foreign Affairs and
Trade Eamon Gilmore T. D. praised the initiative and
consistency shown by the company in continually
developing and growing the facility in Letterkenny for
the past 30 years. “I would like to especially congratulate
you on the on-going development of an innovative
and educative culture.”
Sean McDermott, Managing Director, stressed the
importance of government support and for process
development and education within this industry. The
upcoming months will see further change and development
at KIRCHHOFF Automotive Ireland as the
plant will see the rollout of the KAPS (KIRCHHOFF
Automotive Production System) and SAP as well as
HYDRA system going live.
John Roulstone
60

(f.l.t.r.): Sean McDermott, Managing Director KIRCHHOFF Automotive Ireland, Tanaiste & Minister for Foreign Affairs
and Trade Eamon Gilmore and Councillor Jimmy Harte
61

K>MOBIL 37 // REHA Group Automotive
62

K>MOBIL 37 // REHA Group Automotive
REHA Group Automotive
63

REHA grows in Berlin
The Berlin office doubles its production areas
In 2010, the REHA Berlin office saw a 24% increase
in sales and a 31% rise in new orders. Therefore, an
appropriate investment in the shop floor capacities
was inevitable. First, new employees for the shop
floor have been recruited, and this spring the shop
floor building extension could begin. After summer,
the construction work is supposed to be completed.
The production areas then will be twice as big.
Therefore, the flexible design of vehicle conversions
is guaranteed, meaning great progress especially
with regard to the increase of conversion quantity
in the area of commercial vehicles/transport vehicles
for disabled people.
The Berlin office is on course for further growth and
offers its customers premium conversions delivered
on time.
Heiko Richter
64

REHA: News
Cutting-edge products
Innovative technologies
The new rotary seats facilitate getting in and out
of the car for the driver as well as the passenger.
The seat can be turned mechanically or electrically
and moved out of the car. The passengers only have
to sit down, and using the control are comfortably
turned back into the car. These new devices for easy
entry facilitate the daily routine considerably, and for
many people they mean higher mobility. The rotary
seats are available in various versions for numerous
vehicle models.
65

K>MOBIL 37 // REHA Group Automotive
People: Sponsoring
Ralf Philipps, Managing Director of the REHA Group Automotive and Stephan Speck (left) are glad about the successful donation
to the children’s hospice Rainbowland
Social commitment – a prime example
REHA Group and Daimler AG donate a new Sprinter
for children’s hospice Rainbowland
The cry for help from the children’s hospice Rainbowland
has been answered. The old vehicle, used
by Rainbowland for courier trips and smaller excursions
for the children and their families, could not
be repaired.
Two companies offered their support: Daimler
AG provided a new Sprinter and the REHA Group
Automotive carried out the adaptations. In an exemplary
initiative by apprentices from the Daimler site
in Düsseldorf the new Sprinter for the children’s
hospice was decorated with multicoloured stickers,
then was passed to REHA Group Automotive, located
in Hilden, to convert the vehicle so that a disabledfriendly
transport of the children was possible.
During the official delivery to the site, Astrid Elbers,
wife of the current Düsseldorf senior mayor, as
patroness and Norbert Hüsson as chairman of the
sponsoring society (Förderverein Kinderhospiz Düsseldorf
e. V.) together with children from Rainbowland,
received the Sprinter with pleasure.
Michael Colberg, director production and centre
management of the Mercedes Benz site in Düssel-
66

People: Sponsoring
Info:
Rainbowland in Düsseldorf, Gerresheim is a
hospice for terminally ill children and their
families. The aim is to ensure that families
get the support they need to ensure the valuable
time they have with their children is best
spent.
Rainbowland was established in 2004 and
now assists and supports 260 families. Eight
children and their families can be accommodated
and looked after in the hospice. Their
motto is: “Not giving life more days, but the
days more life.”
Rainbowland relies on donations to cover
90% of its day to day running expenses. The
remaining 10% derive from health insurance
contributions. Brothers and sisters, parents
and grandparents of the children are always
accommodated free of charge.
Förderverein Kinderhospiz Düsseldorf e. V. is
the provider of Rainbowland and has committed
to the long-term funding of the hospice.
Please find further information from:
www.kinderhospiz-regenbogenland.de
dorf commented: “We hope that with our donation
we can lighten the daily routine of the children
and their families at Rainbowland.” He thanked
the young colleagues from the varnish department
who had actively supported the donation and put a
new face on the Sprinter. The sponsoring society’s
chairman Norbert Hüsson was very happy: “We are
very grateful to Daimler and the Mercedes Benz site
in Düsseldorf as well as REHA Group Automotive. We
give our thanks to them for their support. The children
are very excited about the prospect of travelling
in the new vehicle.”
Ralf Philipps, managing director of REHA Group
Automotive concluded: “The collaboration with the
Mercedes Benz site was excellent and we are glad
that we could make a small contribution to support
of the terminally ill children and their families.”
Ralf Philipps
67

K>MOBIL 37 // WITTE Werkzeuge

K>MOBIL 37 // WITTE Werkzeuge
WITTE Werkzeuge

K>MOBIL 37 // WITTE Werkzeuge
Tools: Assortment
Successful start
WITTE bits available in the Hornbach assortment
since autumn 2010
From autumn 2010, WITTE Werkzeuge have been
stocked in all European Hornbach do-it-yourself
stores, offering a broad bit assortment (see K>MOBIL
issue 36). The previous German supplier had been
listed at Hornbach for decades, but the end users
have adopted the new WITTE products very positively
after the reorganization.
We are confident that this positive trend will continue,
due to new openings of Hornbach do-it-yourself
stores in Europe and because of further product
developments in the sector of assembly tools for
screws and nuts.
Mark Liebholdt
Analysis of the Hornbach central purchasing also
confirms these good sales figures. In addition to
the originally listed products, in a short space of
time various further WITTE items for the ambitious
craftsman have joined the assortment.
70

Tools: Assortment
K>MOBIL 37 // WITTE Werkzeuge
On course for further success
in the DIY sector
WITTE screwdrivers are available in all Swiss JUMBO do-it-yourself stores
After the successful listing at one of the leading
European do-it-yourself stores in the last year, the
specialist in the production of assembly tools for
screws and nuts WITTE Werkzeuge has won a further
major customer in this area.
In the near future, a wide range of WITTE screwdrivers
will be stocked in all 40 branches of the
renowned Swiss do-it-yourself store chain JUMBO.
The products will be distributed by a Swiss wholesaler
located near Zurich.
Over 100 different articles in the series MAXXPRO
Nature (cork screw driver), PROTOP II Plus (screwdriver
with patented microfiber coating), MAXXPRO
VDE, WITTRON (precision screwdriver) and BITDRIVE
(assembly tool for screws and nuts, with ratchet
handle) have been listed.
This success must be especially emphasised because
WITTE Werkzeuge products have overtaken the only
Swiss producer of assembly tools for screws and
nuts in many areas. This competitor has a very high
market share in Switzerland; furthermore, due to
the customers’ brand loyalty awareness is strongly
preferred.
Besides the development and the production of highend
private labels for big brand manufacturers of the
tool market, WITTE Werkzeuge aims to establish its
assortment of professional hand tools in the highquality
segment of do-it-yourself stores.
Mark Liebholdt
71

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
72

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
FAUN

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
The FAUN market:
strategy and future outlook
With our own companies and direct market presence
in the German, French and Swiss markets FAUN is
leading the market in refuse collection vehicles. In
the UK, the biggest market in Europe for refuse collection
vehicles, the takeover of our previous distributor,
Zöller Waste Sytems UK and its merger
with FAUN Municipal Vehicles had set the course
for growth in the market sector. In the medium term
FAUN will become the second strongest supplier in
this important market. Its strong position in the core
markets and the comprehensive market presence of
distributors in other European states make FAUN
the market leader for refuse collection vehicles in
Europe. Furthermore the sales of our sweepers in
recent years have been very positive and market
shares have increased significantly. We not only need
to confirm our market leader position in the core
markets in the next few years but also to improve on
it. The course is set. As well as permanent product
innovations aimed at the changing waste and efficiency
requirements of our customers, FAUN has
been investing for some years in the expansion of its
comprehensive service network. This is to be flanked
by an ever increasing leasing and hire fleet and an
innovative tailored full-service package. Naturally
within the context of these activities, used vehicle
sales will also be expanded.
Numerous product innovations, service-orientated
market strategies and intensive marketing have
combined to ensure that our distributors also enjoy
market leadership in many regions of Europe. Our
environmental product division for instance occupies
a very strong position in Eastern and Southern Europe
and in Benelux. In Scandinavia, specially adapted
products are currently paving the way for expansion
of our market presence there. Our environmental
division is also currently very active in Russia and
its activities in terms of sales and local added value
offer great potential for further growth in this hugely
important market.
However, Europe is not the only place where FAUN‘s
market position is good. Particularly in the Middle
East FAUN is almost traditionally the leading supplier
in the industry of refuse collection vehicles and
sweepers. The strategy of intensive contact with the
local chassis distributors and the deliberate development
of an additional local distribution and
service network is manifested in a consistently high
74

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Dr. Johannes F. Kirchhoff
market share in this important growth region. This
successful approach will now be transferred in the
next two years to the African continent. The potential
success of FAUN is already evident in the actual
success of FAUN Environnement in North Africa
and in projects with resource-rich countries. The
continuing commercial success of our distributor in
South Africa is exemplary. The FAUN Performance
Kits are now available in Africa and elsewhere. These
parts kits offer added value to local body partners in
the form of transport cost-optimised parts-by-weight
with tried and tested FAUN technology in the core
components.
It is currently clear that FAUN can and must
achieve further growth in target markets in Asia and
America.
We have therefore significantly increased activities in
China alongside notable market success e.g. in Hong
Kong. FAUN is soon to have a production site there
and will supply parts to the group as well as market
compatible products and assemblies to the Chinese
and Far East markets. Together with an expansive
strategy with respect to a worldwide distribution
and service network this will smooth the path in this
prosperous and promising part of the world.
The American continent also offers great potential
for FAUN for growth and success. The United States
and Canada undoubtedly represent the greatest
developed market for municipal vehicles in the
world today. Since fundamental structural changes
have taken place on both the customer and supplier
sides, and the users are looking for new, efficient and
environmentally friendly products, it seems to us
to be the right time to make a strong market entry.
Together with our promising TRACKWAY Product
from the UK we are looking to establish a significant
presence in this market in the near future. We
have had initial success with the placement of the
ROTOPRESS with the world‘s biggest waste management
company (Waste Management Inc.).
Dr. Johannes F. Kirchhoff
75

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Pssst. Here‘s where it‘s all happening …
Products: Innovations
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. The future of disposal is in environmentally-friendly, low-noise
refuse collection vehicles. FAUN development manager Georg Sandkühler on the initial
experiences of the ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER in action
NEW 2011: VARIOPRESS DUALPOWER
FAUN development manager Georg Sandkühler
casts a satisfied look at the first three ROTOPRESS
DUALPOWER hybrid vehicles off the production
line, lined up outside the main building at the start
of the year. Since then the environmentally-friendly
refuse collectors have been at work for Nehlsen in
Darmstadt and in Offenbach. Seven more vehicles are
currently being assembled by Osterholz-Scharmbeck.
They will be in delivered in a few weeks to Krefeld
and to the company Heinz in Moosburg as well as an
order from Freiburg.
Targets met
“The test drives in Germany, France and the UK all
proceeded with no major problems. We are now in
series production and we are very satisfied with
the results from the first three vehicles which are
already in use. I am in frequent contact with the
operators and the crews. The vehicle crews are
really happy. A major plus in operator comfort. The
ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER is much quieter; a substantial
improvement on conventional vehicles. You can hardly
hear the DUALPOWER.” Otherwise the vehicle has
the same high payload and works just like a conventional
ROTOPRESS. The operators seem pretty
impressed too. The vehicle has achieved the projected
fuel savings of more than 33% in all working
situations! CO2 savings are equally important
however and a 33% reduction is achieved with the
ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER.
76

The company Nehlsen is on a demonstration trail with their ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER across Germany at the moment.
Looking ahead
The first fuel-cell vehicle is next on the agenda. The
lead partner is Berlin’s cleansing agency; Berliner
Stadtreinigungsbetriebe (BSR). Heliocentris is supplying
the fuel cells and FAUN the refuse vehicle.
Georg Sandkühler: “We decided on the micro-hybrid
solution in this case. This means that the superstructure
and lifters are electrically powered by a hydrogen
fuel cell.” When on the collection round, BSR vehicles
often remain standing for up to 20 – 30 minutes while
the bins are brought to the vehicle and unloaded. In
the previous vehicles the chassis motor was running
throughout this period. “Our approach is to switch off
the motor and operate the superstructure and lifters
electrically. We are keen to know whether a fuel cell
will function in a real refuse-collection environment.”
The handover to BSR will be at the start end of June.
According to Georg Sandkühler: “the next thing will
be to implement the chassis-drive”.
NEW in 2011
Building on the experiences of the ROTOPRESS DUAL-
POWER, Summer 2011 will see the DUALPOWER version
of the VARIOPRESS. The packer plate vehicle will
also be fitted with a Powerbox. The superstructure,
chassis and lifter will be electrically operated and the
traction motor will be used only for overland travel.
FAUN is thereby responding to customer demands,
supplying markets with widespread bag-removal
with an environmentally-sustainable and economical
vehicle with a lower loading sill. The VARIOPRESS
DUALPOWER will be on view for the first time to the
Swiss public in Berne on 21 st – 24 th June.
Claudia Schaue
The ROTOPRESS
DUALPOWER from
company ESO in Offenbach.
77

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Company: Spot light
Facts. Figures. Data.
Dr. Armin Vogel has been confirmed in
his office as Chair of the Standards Committee
for Municipal Technology (NKT) in the
DIN (Deutsches Institut für Normung e.V).
6 VARIOPRESS
POWER
PRESS
2012
To meet the demands of the expansion of its collection
region as of 1.1.2012, Rhein-Sieg-Entsorgung ordered 18
VARIOPRESS and 6 POWERPRESS for refuse collection.
50 years of the BDE (German Waste Disposal, Water
And Raw Materials Industry Federation ) Celebrations
are being held in the Capital on the 10th and 11th
November. Congratulations from all of us at FAUN!
The Hamburg street cleansing operation started off
on the right path by ordering 27 ROTOPRESS vehicles.
FAUN customers happy to return to the schoolroom.
Taking part in the 50 in-house training
sessions carried out by FAUN each year. FAUN’s
team of trainers provide comprehensive instruction
in vehicle operation or dealership training for
its refuse collection vehicles and sweepers. One
example is the refuse collection company Chistiy
Gorod from Rostov am Don in Russia. The firm
has been using 20 refuse collection vehicles since
2008. In 2009 Chistiy Gorod graduated from the
rear-loader training course. Since April, the streets
of Rostov have been kept clean by two VIAJET 6
sweepers. To ensure the sweepers are kept wellmaintained
and cared for, the customer enrolled
its driver and service team in the sweeper training
course in Grimma.
Claudia Schaue
1 week of hectic activity and FAUN’s ECOSWEEP
was needed to get the streets of Cologne spick
and span. ECOSWEEP is a mechanical sweeper
attachment for refuse collection vehicles.
78

Company: Spot light
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Things are looking up
Wörth/Cologne. A landmark vehicle for Daimler AG. The 10,000 th Econic, bought by Abfallwirtschaftbetriebe
Köln (AWB), sports a ROTOPRESS superstructure. K>MOBILE was present
as the keys were handed over to the AWB managing director Herbert Winkelhog
Happy faces in Wörth. Herbert Winkelhog (Managing Director of Abfallwirtschaftsbetriebe Köln), 6.f.l. took over the ROTOPRESS on ECONIC chassis from
Michael Dietz (Sales and Marketing Manager and Member of the Executive Board of Mercedes Benz Special Trucks), 3.f.l. and Burkard Oppmann (FAUN
Sales Manager Germany) 7.f.l.
The audience at the end of the production line in
the modern Mercedes-Benz works in Wörth was
treated to a spectacle. The 1000 Mercedes-Benz
employees applauded as Herbert Winkelhog received
the keys to the 10,000 th Econic-chassis on behalf of
Abfallwirtschaftsbetriebe Köln from Michael Dietz,
Sales and Marketing Manager and Member of the
Executive Board of Mercedes Benz Special Trucks.
Dietz spoke of an historic figure - the 10,000 th Econicchassis.
Many of these chasses carry a FAUN-superstructure
as the citizens of Cologne have relied on
FAUN expertise for their refuse collection vehicles
and sweepers for years. In his speech, Winkelhog
thanked the partners for their trust and cooperation
on behalf of his team. A good-natured atmosphere
prevailed as Winklehog accepted and brandished a
carnival banner in fine style.
76 new vehicles
FAUN has two things to celebrate. It has won
a tender for 76 vehicles for AWB. Tenders were
invited for replacement vehicles to be used by the
city of Cologne cleansing services. 18 ROTOPRESS,
13 POWERPRESS and 45 VARIOPRESS will be delivered
within the next two years. FAUN sales manager
Burkard Oppmann is delighted with this success
and thanked his team for its input and AWB for
its confidence.
Claudia Schaue
79

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Products: Usage
SIDEPRESS for SITA
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. SITA decides for innovative
side loader from FAUN
SITA Fleet Management GmbH in Knittlingen is a
long-standing customer. In the past year this refuse
disposal company has ordered 32 vehicles for the
collection of recyclable materials. The order was for
26 VARIOPRESS with 22 m3 and 24 m3 bodies on MAN-
TGS chasses. The star attraction - six further vehicles
with the latest sideloaders. FAUN sales officer
Helmut Fischer: “The sideloaders were part of a replacement
order. This was SITA‘s first purchase of sideloaders
from FAUN. The deciding factor was the durability and
quality of our vehicles.” The vehicles were handed over
to SITA in the spring of 2011. Mounted on Mercedes
Benz Actro chasses, the SIDEPRESS will be used in
domestic refuse collection. The C1100 lifter with a
hinged uptake is designed 2-wheeled and 4-wheeled
bins with 1.1 m3 volume.
Handover over to the SITA crews was accompanied
by full training. 20 colleagues, managers, fitters,
workshop personnel and drivers were instructed by
the FAUN team headed by Peter Knüfermann and
Christian Jung at the SITA site in Dillenburg Grube
Falkenstein
Our requirement is a consistently problem-free
refuse collection process.
Claudia Schaue
80

Products: Usage
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
1 st Contract with Kier Street Services
Redditch. FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd. has won their 1 st contract with
Kier Street Services worth £3,000,000
On Monday 7 th March 2011 FAUN Zoeller were
named as the official winner of Kier Street Services,
North Norfolk Contract. The main specification of
the vehicles are 26 T Mercedes Econic Chassis fitted
with 22 cubic meter VARIOPRESS bodies, and Otto
Lifts, and also 7.5 T Mitsubishi Canters with Cage
Tipper bodies. The North Norfolk Contract, which
starts on Saturday 2 nd April 2011 not only consists
of providing 16 vehicles, but also the Maintenance &
Repair of 45 vehicles as part of the service. Another
part of the Contract is to maintain an assortment of
grounds maintenance equipment and small trailers.
FAUN Zoeller will be employing four extra members
of staff that will be dedicated to working on
this contract, and working onsite. This will be three
mechanics, and also an administrator.
Kier Street Services Divisional Manager Paul Flight
said “We are excited about this contract. The importance
of selecting the right vehicles and the right maintenance
partner cannot be underestimated and we welcome the
opportunity to work with FAUN Zoeller on this prestigious
contract”. FAUN Zoeller are looking forward to
working with Kier, and are confident this is the start
of a mutually advantageous partnership.
Hannah Brewster
Info:
Kier is a leading construction, development
and service group specialising in building and
civil engineering, support services, public and
private house building, property development
and Private Finance Initiative (PFI).
More information: www.kier.co.uk
81

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Products: Usage
Sweeping up after you!
Grimma/Lünen. VIAJET 7 expert, sweeping up in the world’s biggest
copper recycling-centre
Aurubis AG in Lünen is the world’s biggest copper
recycling company.
Viatec engineers have made particularly good use of
filter technologies in their sweepers.
The group’s recycling centre handles highly complex
recycling materials and also manufactures anodes,
cathodes, iron silica sand and by-products at its plant
in Lünen. Aurubis employs RMG Industrie-Services
to keep its site clean and tidy. Sweeping up a copper
works requires a sweeper which can cope with particularly
demanding conditions. One requirement,
for example, is to produce is little dust as possible
during sweeping and to guarantee optimum sweeping
performance. RMG Industrie-Services uses a VIAJET
from FAUN Viatec which fits the bill. In recent years
Info:
Claudia Schaue
FAUN Viatec supplied a VIAJET 7R expert with
the following technical specification:
18-tonne Scania P 360 chassis
Superstructure volume: 7 m3
HP-system 120 l / 120 bar
3,500 litre water tank
Front sweeper attachment
82

Products: Usage
Quality-tested
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Grimma. Since March 2011, FAUN Viatec has been a RAL GGVU-tested manufacturer and
VIAJET aquatherm has been granted the RAL quality symbol 899 LKM
Accident scene, spillage and road-surface cleansing
is subject to stringent legal requirements.
Contractors need to be able to guarantee the quality
of these kinds of cleansing operations. GGVU, the
German quality association for road and accident
scene cleansing (Gütegemeinschaft for Verkehrsflächenreinigung
und Unfallstellensanierung e.V.) is
concerned with compliance with these directives and
evaluates vehicles according to three performance
classifications (LK). FAUN subjected the VIAJET 6
RHS aquatherm to the LKM test (wet cleansing
machinery performance class ) in which it received
top marks. Certification of the VIAJET aquaterm as
LKM according to RAL GGVU means that this model
can now be used by those who undertake accident
and road cleansing operations in accordance with
GGVU.
Claudia Schaue
Info:
Several companies, e.g. Hülsmann Umwelttechnik
from Drensteinfurt which has two
VIAJET aquatherm machines, have been
working successfully for a long time with this
type of sweeper. At its Grimma production
site Bonn All-Kran OHG also uses this kind of
machine, specially equipped with customerspecified
accessories.
www.ggvu.de
83

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Products: Shows
ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER of ESO Offenbach
A sparkling array of vehicles
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. FAUN waste disposal trucks -it is all about emotion.
Info:
FAUN presented seven refuse trucks and two
road sweepers in Hannover on 4 th and 5 th May
2011:
VIAJET 5 & 6 with 5 m3 and 6 m3 body
VARIOPRESS 007 with 7 m3
VARIOPRESS II - 24 m3
VARIOPRESS I - 24 m3
ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER
ROTOPRESS - 21 m3
POWERPRESS - 24 m3
FRONTPRESS - 33 m3
FAUN used the year between one IFAT ENTSORGA
and the next (7th – 11th May 2012) to take part in
an automotive manufacturer‘s industry convention.
Invited to the exhibition by MAN, Scania and, a few
weeks ago, by Mercedes Benz.
FAUN took part this year in Daimler AG‘s internal
exhibition - Kommunal Live - with nine new vehicles.
The visitors were also enticed to Hannover to
listen to expert talks, take part in lively test drives
and look at a total of 150 exhibits from the municipal
vehicle and airport vehicle sectors.
Claudia Schaue
VIAJET 5 of AWM Münster
84

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Products: Shows
Innovation Days
Redditch. In April and May the team from FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd. toured the UK with six
sweepers and refuse collection vehicles.
The Innovation Days gave customers an insight
into the innovative force of FAUN and of the manufacturers
Zoeller and Otto. The aim was to make
products accessible and real.
Vehicles like the ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER, the twocompartment
SELECTAPRESS, the latest version of
the VARIOPRESS and the VIAJET 4 were presented
in detail at six venues in Scotland, Wales and England.
For Simon G Hyde, Managing director of FAUN
Zoeller (UK) Ltd it is immensely important to bring
the customers closer to the vehicle.
„We only remember what we see and experience ourselves.
Many of our customers have no idea of the wide range of
products we supply. It was therefore extremely important
to me and the team to take these road-shows to the
front doors of our customers. I am delighted that so many
interested partners have taken up the offer.“
86

Products: Shows
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Another FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd. event was the APSE
National street cleansing seminar at the Aston Villa
football club. FAUN Zoeller sponsored this event and
exhibited for the second consecutive year. Since street
cleansing is an important issue the public sector, a
VIAJET 4 and a VIAJET 6 were on exhibition.
Claudia Schaue
Hannah Brewster
87

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Company: Strategy
(f.l.t.r.) Our team of FAUN
Services GmbH: Erhan Sun,
Maxim Silaew, Werner Heins,
Delev Leidig, Frank Bueldt,
Reinhard Frank, Sascha Reif,
Reinhard Kölpin, Michael
Grams, Ronald Sonnenburg,
Silke Reffken, André Gwosdek,
Bert Mennenga – missed at
this day: Swantje Ruschmeyer,
Sven Buttelmann, Wilfried
Wittenberg,
and members are of course the
teams form our service centres
FAUN Services are pressing on
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. New direction, expansion of the vehicle fleet and the
strange tale of the „Banana“
André Gwosdek, the new authorised represen tative
under the leadership of Managing Director Burkard
Oppmann, takes up the reins of FAUN Services
GmbH. André Gwosdek (we introduced him to you in
K-Mobile 36) succeeds Patrick Hermanspann and with
his team he intends to continue the expansion.
FAUN tasks:
· After-sales service (customer centre,
training, international technical support
and spare parts service)
· Used vehicles
· Heasing
· Hire fleet.
As the new manager of the spare parts service,
Erhan Sun and his three members of staff are now
the point-of-contact for our customers throughout
the world. We should mention that Erhan Sun has
already had quite a career with FAUN. The 31-yearold
worked for seven years for FAUN in the structural
steelwork department before going back to college
for two years to qualify as a mechanical engineer in
Bremen. His path brought him back to FAUN’s spare
parts sales department in April 2009 and in March
2011 Erhan Sun became the new head of the worldwide
spare parts service.
Hire fleet of the future
In the context of hire fleet renewal, FAUN Services
GmbH is investing in the future and has bought two
FAUN DUALPOWER vehicles. These are for presenta-
88

Company: Strategy
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
tion and short term hire contracts. The environmentally-sustainable
hybrid-refuse collection vehicles are
available for hire as of July 2011. The hire fleet now
has a modern front-sideloader EASYPRESS which is
ideal for both short and long term hire contracts.
Globalisation - hire vehicles abroad
Familiar with Esch, Kloten, Most, Graz, Fort de France,
Vilnius
These are just a few of the places in which FAUN Services
hire vehicles have been used for waste disposal
in the last few months. Widely-travelled and now
famous is the ROTOPRESS 522L – aka the “Banana”.
Originally used in Hamburg it was bought for the
FAUN Services fleet as a used vehicle in November
2009. After a brief overhaul, the vehicle was shipped
via Antwerp to Martinique. After the end of the hire
contract, it was used for several short jobs in Germany
before setting off to work in Vilniu. The customer
loved the tireless, robust vehicle so much that
he bought it in February 2011.
And now the only question is why the ROTOPRESS is
called the „Banana“ Well, the vehicle was shipped
back from Fort de France to Bremerhaven on a
banana boat.
Linda Gering & Ronald Sonnenburg
89

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Company: People
John, Alan and Will collect their certificates at the special lunch.
FAUN employees celebrate 130 year
milestone
Llangefni. Three employees celebrating 130 years in the business
The FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd. team in Anglesey have
been celebrating as three employees have jointly
achieved 130 years of service for the business.
The milestone was reached by Will Vaughan, Alan
Francis and John Morris.
Will and Alan started working as apprentices for the
business when they were 16, Will has been there for
41 years and Alan has notched up an impressive 47
years in the business. John has been part of the company
for 42 years, having started in 1968 as a 22 year
old miller in the machine shop. Will and John are now
production fitters for the municipal vehicles team
and Alan is a chargehand for TRACKWAY.
A special lunch was held in their honour and J
Alun Jones, COO, presented them each with a
gift voucher, a special edition model of the latest
FAUN VARIOPRESS II and a certificate.
Alun Jones remarked: “We aim to retain expertise within
the company and as the longest standing employees of
FAUN, Will, Alan and John‘s dedication is exemplary and
I applaud their commitment. Their ability to work in both
divisions of both FAUN and FAUN TRACKWAY means
they are a real asset and their hard work has played a big
part in helping to establish us as a manufacturing success
story.”
Rachael Hobbs
90

Company: People
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
FAUN shortlisted for
two awards
Llangefni. TRACKWAY honoured for successful exporting strategy
In the winter of 2010 FAUN TRACKWAY was shortlisted
for two prestigious accolades for its success
in expanding its export markets. The TRACKWAY
division has moved from limited international
sales to earning almost £6 million in 2009 across
multiple international markets. The team was first
shortlisted for the Daily Post’s Achievement Wales
Business Awards in the Welsh Assembly Government
Welsh wExporter of the Year category. They
were then honoured by being shortlisted for a Global
and Expansion award at the Confederation of British
Industry’s Growing Business Awards. Both schemes
celebrate small and medium sized companies (SMEs)
and showcase business enterprise and innovation.
J Alun Jones, managing director, said: “It is a testament
to the hard work of the FAUN TRACKWAY team that we
were shortlisted for these awards and it was an honour
to be named alongside the other nominees. By repositioning
the business, the team are securing our success in
the future as both a manufacturing company and as a
leader in our sector.”
Rachael Hobbs
91

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Products: News
FAUN reveals revolutionary product
in middle east
Llangefni. Latest product launched at IDEX 2011
FAUN TRACKWAY unveiled designs for its first recovery
solution – the Vehicle Recovery Mat (VRM) –
at this year’s prestigious International Defence
Exhibition and Conference (IDEX) in Abu Dhabi in
February. The largest event of its kind in the Middle
East, IDEX was attended by over 900 global companies
as well as key military and government
representatives.
The VRM can be used to rescue vehicles up to 70
tonnes in weight that have been stuck on tricky terrain
such as mud, sand or ice. Made from lightweight
aluminium, the mat has been designed for use in
the most challenging conditions and can be split or
connected by hand to ensure it meets the requirements
of any scenario. FAUN TRACKWAY’s team of
specialist engineers have created a non-slip surface
on the mat which allows trapped vehicles to grip to
the track and move across the land with ease. VRM
is the latest in a long line of revolutionary products
manufactured in Llangefni that include temporary
road solutions and landing mats which are used by
over 40 armed forces worldwide.
Chris Kendall, business development manager at
FAUN TRACKWAY, said: “Stranded vehicles can delay
crucial operations and traditional means of releasing them
are not always quick, practical or possible. After speaking
with our customers and military experts from all over the
world, our engineers designed a product that is flexible,
robust and able to act as a critical recovery tool.”
Rachael Hobbs
92

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
FAUN TRACKWAY USA Headquarters in Washington DC.
TRACKWAY set for US office launch
Llangefni. TRACKWAY make final plans for launch of US office this summer
The TRACKWAY team is preparing for the launch
of its US office which will take place at the British
Embassy, Washington DC, on the 26 th July. The event
will be attended by key members of the defence
industry and UK Trade and Investment (UKTI),
some of which will also be delivering speeches.
First opened in March, the company’s American
headquarters have been used regularly by business
development manager Chris Kendall and new
recruit Mike Holdcraft who has taken up a permanent
position at the site, leading sales throughout
the country.
Based in the heart of Washington’s defence community,
the US office will provide an invaluable platform
from which TRACKWAY can continue its expansion
across the States. The launch follows the business’
work with the United States military on designs for a
revolutionary aircraft landing mat (ALM) that is now
on the brink of completion. Following rigorous testing
of the initial prototype at the US Army’s Mississippibased
Engineering and Research Centre (ERDC), the
panels have returned to Llangefni for the second
stage of their development.
The next step will create a wider panel that has a
simple connecting system which makes it more flexible
and helps prevent a build up of pressure that
could damage the mat. As reported in the last edition
of K-MOBIL, the US require an alternative ALM
as its traditional landing mats are unable to withstand
the weight and temperatures of modern aircrafts
such as F-16 Fighter Jets.
Chris Kendall, TRACKWAY’s business development
manager, said: “The new design for our ALM has been
a work in progress for some time as we are striving
to create a product that is robust and meets all of the
US military’s objectives. Our strong relationship with
the team at ERDC has been a vital stepping stone to
launching our US office which is set to open full-time
in July.”
Rachael Hobbs
94

Company: Award
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Case study
FAUN MUNICIPAL VEHICLES
ENGAGES ITS WORKFORCE
TO TRANSFORM ITS BUSINESS
When its MD wanted to change the way his company
trained and engaged its workforce, FAUN Municipal
Vehicles worked with EEF to create a transformative
management and change programme.
‘We hadn’t done anything like this before. So we really wanted
a training partner – not just a provider. Looking back now,
this has made a huge difference to our people and our business.’
J Alun Jones, Managing Director, FMV,
pictured with Elaine Stott, HR Manager
FAUN scoops manufacturing award
Llangefni. Anglesey team wins second consecutive UK manufacturing award
FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd is now the proud owner of
two awards given by the UK’s leading manufacturing
organisation Engineering Employers’ Federation
(EEF) for its contribution to the Welsh
industry.
For the second consecutive year FAUN has been
recognised in the regional EEF awards for its innovative
people practices and commitment to developing
the skill set of the staff in Llangefni. The win
meant FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd was also shortlisted
for the national finals where it was in the company
of the sector’s key players such as BAE systems and
Siemens.
Held annually in central London, the scheme recognises
excellence in enterprise, innovation, environmental
performance and skills development across
the British manufacturing industry.
J Alun Jones, COO of FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd., said:
“We are part of the biggest manufacturing region in the
UK so we were up against some stiff competition. Being
shortlisted for the national award is a credit to everyone
here at Llangefni and the work they have done to make
sure that we continue to be innovative in our processes
and in development of our employees.”
Rachael Hobbs
95

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Company: People
Steering new courses New markets and
responsibilities
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. Jochen Schneider, long-standing managing director of the Osterholz-Scharmbeck
production team, has been focusing since February on new market opportunities
for FAUN in North America. He is succeeded by Patrick Hermanspann as CTO of the
FAUN Group. Claudia Schaue spoke with the two men for K>Mobile.
Mr Schneider, after six years as technical managing
director you‘ve taken on a new role. You have
achieved a lot, initiating new processes and stabilising
the manufacturing plant Two milestones were
certainly the installation of the blasting system and
the robotic welding centre decision. What do you
expect from your new job-description
Jochen Schneider:
I‘m looking forward to the new job with excitement. I
have always been interested in the American market and
I hardly hesitated when they dangled this challenge in front
of me. My fellow managing director, Dr. Armin Vogel, has
already placed a very good order in the USA. Now all we
have to do is produce the vehicles and get them into service.
We also need to build on the initial contacts which
we made during the Waste Expo trade fair and work out
appropriate business models.
Mr Hermanspann, you have been working for
FAUN for 12 years now. You‘ve learnt the business
from the bottom up so to speak. You got to know
every aspect of the company, firstly as marketing
manager and then as managing director of FAUN
Services. Now, as Chief Technical Officer and Managing
Director your responsible for production team
in the areas of manufacture, materials management,
logistics, technology & development. How
do you feel
Patrick Hermanspann:
It is always exciting to get involved with new issues and
enter unknown territory. Therefore on the one hand it is
a challenge which I‘m very glad to face but on the other
hand I have my previous experience to support me in this
position. There is great cooperation with the young, committed
management team within the factory and we have
plenty of fresh ideas.
Mr Schneider, looking back on your work at Osterholz-Scharmbeck,
what are you most proud of
Jochen Schneider:
Together, the team and I have achieved a lot and I think I
am handing over a well-established production operation
to Mr Hermanspann. Looking back, we have been through
some turbulent times. In 2006 we went through restructuring.
Processes such as Late Point of Customization or
the reorganisation of the painting process to priming the
bodies before they were mounted on the chasses, or projects
such as Lean Management have enabled us to continuously
increase productivity. Our highest productivity
ever in 2008 was 1,300 units at the Osterholz-Scharmbeck
site.
What can our customers look forward to
Patrick Hermanspann:
Delivery reliability, quality and sustainability are issues
which every manufacturing plant throughout the world
seeks to improve on a continuous basis. We‘re no exception.
To that end we are consolidating our strengths and using
the experience of all our employees; not just in production
but also in after-sales. The aim is to get closer to the wants
and needs of our customers and to solve problems more
quickly. As I used to be responsible for after-sales at FAUN,
I’m in a good position to engage with these issues.
Jochen Schneider:
Mr. Hermanspann is committed to continuing the quality
offensive we have begun. Introduction of the 6-S model,
and of FEM and FMEA analyses into the technical design
96

Company: People
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Jochen Schneider (left) and Patrick Hermanspann (right)
phase were starting points which are now firmly established
within the production process.
What new ideas can our employees expect from
you
Patrick Hermanspann:
We have started the FAUN initiative 2015 together with
a new mission statement which communicates our main
aims to every employee. It is enormously important to get
through to every single member of staff. Our core values
and the principles for which FAUN stands are as follows:
market focused, powerful and profitable. These are our
main objectives. With these in mind, we are developing
projects which will enable us to achieve these main objectives
in small steps.
When will the new robotic welding centre go into
action
Patrick Hermanspann:
The project is in full swing. Start of production should be in
july. This investment is another step forwards with regard
to quality - particularly in conjunction with the blasting
system. We also expect it to provide greater flexibility and
faster throughput times for our standard products.
some of the projects are still in their infancy. But our engineers
are coming up with new ideas all the time. They are
looking at improving product details but also at the overall
mission statements. The ROTOPRESS DUALPOWER has
taught us a lot, particularly in the area of alternative drive
concepts. We can now transfer this knowledge to other products.
For instance we are presenting the first VARIOPRESS
DUALPOWER at the Swiss Public trade fair which is currently
underway in Berne (21. to 24.06.2011).
Jochen Schneider:
As CEO for the TRACKWAY division we are looking forward
to entering the USA market. I am expecting a great
deal from this expansion step. The team has also developed
two major new products. K>MOBILE presents the Vehicle
Recovery Mat and the Aircraft Landing Mat.
K-MOBILE has enjoyed talking to you, many thanks.
We wish both men every success in their new waters,
and full steam ahead for all projects.
Claudia Schaue
Are you able to tell us anything about new products
from FAUN today
Patrick Hermanspann:
There is no lack of great new ideas. Unfortunately at this
point I can‘t tell you about anything specifically because
97

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Company: Mission Statements
We are FAUN
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. Fresh initiative to help every employee
live the vision and principles of the company.
Our mission statements
at a glance:
We want to …
… be the leading and pioneering company
for refuse disposal technology and its
components.
… be a tightly-lead and well-organised company
with which our employees can identify.
… provide exemplary care to our customers
and support them in their development.
… supply all our customers with the right
solutions through investment in research,
development and pioneering.
… expand the substance and strengths of our
company through stable growth.
… strengthen the skills of our employees
with appropriate education and training.
Market focused. Powerful. Profitable.
We deliver street cleansing and disposal technology
to our customers around the world.
This is the FAUN Group. This vision is communicated
to all staff at all FAUN sites, throughout Europe. And
the proof is:
· excellent products
· outstanding service
· strong individuals
· open communication
· efficient processes
98

Company: Mission Statements
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
FAUN‘S ANGELS!
GET SOME ACTION!
In order to make these values and principles real
and attainable for all our employees, we have teams
working on national campaigns at all the FAUN sites
in Germany, Switzerland, France and the UK. There
are motifs and mottoes for each of the mission statements
and values. Selected as appropriate in each
country and each activity, FAUN employees play
the leading roles and their workplaces are the sets.
This authenticity of imagery and the joint development
of the campaigns illustrate the strength of our
company.
Claudia Schaue
Those three angels inspire us everyday. (f.l.t.r.): Our colleague Julia (engineering department),
Tanja (shop floor FRONTPRESS) and Ina (apprentices)
99

Christine Foxley (3.f.r.) and Ashley Webster (right) from FAUN Zoeller (UK) and FAUN Sales Manager Export Jürgen Thirase (Middle) look after the
youngsters
APSE Transport Apprentices Visit FAUN
in Germany
Osterholz-Scharmbeck. At the APSE national environmental services seminar held in
October 2010 which included the Environmental Apprentice Awards, it was announced all
the short listed apprentices and winner of the Transport& Vehicle Maintenance Apprentice
Award would be taken to FAUN OHZ to visit the production facility.
FAUN Zoeller UK sponsored the award for the APSE
Transport & Vehicle Maintenance Apprentice. This
unique programme recognises the contribution of
councils in developing training and apprenticeship
schemes. Promoting excellence in public services,
APSE is the foremost specialist in local authority
front line services, hosting a network for front line
service providers in areas such as waste and refuse
collection, parks and environmental services, leisure,
school meals, cleaning, housing and building
maintenance.
Claudia Schaue
Info:
The apprentices taken to Germany were:
Leon Flattely (1 st place; Luton Borough Council)
Richard Houseman (East Riding of Yorkshire
Council)
Joshua Dale (Hull City Council)
Ethan Trumpet (London Borough of
Redbridge)
100

Employees: Success
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
Woman Power at FAUN Zoeller
Christine Foxley – Regional Account Manager at FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd
Christine Foxley joined FAUN Municipal Vehicles
in March 2007 leaving her position within Local
Authority which included Top Performing Councils
Lichfield District Council & Staffordshire Moorlands
District Council. Christine holds a Certificate of Professional
Competence in National Road Haulage in
addition to a HNC in Waste Management. Christine
has a good working knowledge of commercial
fleet vehicles & waste management gained from her
employment within local authority. She held a key
position in the implementation of the wheeled bin
service at Staffordshire Moorlands District Council
involving vehicle replacements, liaising with contractors
and council members to ensure a smooth
transition of the service changes. Her focus is on
quality and a keen eye for detail. Christine is experienced
in all aspects of vehicle operations including
refuse and recycling collection vehicles. Christine’s
current role with FAUN Zoeller (UK) Ltd is to develop
new business with Local Authorities and Waste Companies,
Managing accounts to develop relationships
to ensure customer satisfaction, covering the South
West, South of Wales and South Midlands.
Christine covers the area of South West, South
Wales & South Midlands (Zone 5)
Info:
Success story
Christine’s career with FAUN Zoeller has been
one of large success, with her selling over
50 vehicles in the last 3 years. In 2008 Christine
secured FAUN Zoeller’s first order with
Southampton CC, the first FAUN vehicles this
Council has ever ordered. Christine has also
secured orders with Torfaen CBC – this being the
1st FAUN business in South Wales since 2000.
Marshall Fleming - General Manager Municipal Operations:
“During her time with the company Christine
has become a valued member of the Municipal
Team. With her Local Authority background she has
been able to bring a new dimension to the role of
Regional Account Manager and direct sales for the
company. Christine’s experience and her ability to
handle customer sales in a correct and professional
manner have won her high praise from customers
within the UK market. By working alongside Christine,
other members of the Municipal sales team
have benefited from her high technical knowledge
of the products we produce. I take this opportunity
to thank her for all her hard work and commitment
to the company.”
Hannah Brewster
101

K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
FAUN: Impressions
1.
1.
2.
3. 4.
102

FAUN: Impressions
K>MOBIL 37 // FAUN
5.
5.
6.
6.
2011 – the first six months in pictures
1. We all know that sport brings people together and keeps the mind sharp. The annual FAUN ski trip and the Ski Olympiad, now in its third
year, also contributes to global understanding within the FAUN family. This year it was the women who stole the show with flair and wit.
Sylvi Lehmann took third place, Barbara Kirchhoff came second and the winner’s cup stayed in Switzerland and went to Chico Mendes.
2. Our sales representative, Markus Engbert, made the Waste Utilisation project day at this primary school in Jettingen into an unforgettable
experience. Invited by a keen mother, Engbert explained waste disposal and how a ROTOPRESS works to the curious Year 4’s in simple,
easy-to-understand words. The highlight of the day for many of the children was being able to touch the lifter. 3. The proceeds of 500 euros
from lottery ticket sales to employees in the Osterholz-Scharmbeck factory were distributed to the ATSV Scharmbeckstotel for uniforms
for the children’s sports group, to the junior and youth groups of the Heiligenfelde dog sport association and to the FC Hambergen and its
new grandstand. 4. From left to right: Neil Wigley, Simon G. Hyde and Roland Taylor (all FAUN Zoeller (UK) as well as Gordon Cromwell with
the apprentices in front of the FAUN Zoeller Demonstrator outside Stephenson’s college. Stephenson College, Coleville, Leicestershire are
at the forefront in training Apprentices in the Municipal Sector with major waste companies sending their apprentices on block release for
the duration of their apprenticeship. 5. Contractor Ralf May of RESO wisely relies on female intuition. Along with his driver he also sent
daughter Verena to Osterholz-Scharmbeck for collection of and instruction in his four new VARIOPRESS vehicles. Both were keen to benefit
from the instruction given by FAUN employee Reinhard Kölpin in the VARIOPRESS with 27 m3 body on a 4-axle chassis. 6. At this year’s children’s
careers day, twelve children wanted to know where their fathers or grandfathers worked and how refuse vehicles are made. A quiz
on the production and a drive in a really big refuse collection vehicle topped off the day.
103

WIR.BEWEGEN.ZUKUNFT.
Ein gutes Zeichen, um neue Horizonte zu erfahren.
Wir wünschen Ihnen einen schönen Urlaub.
KIRCHHOFF Gruppe l Stefanstraße 2 l 58638 Iserlohn l Telefon: +49 2371 820-00
Fax: +49 2371 820-222 l E-Mail: info@kirchhoff-gruppe.de l www.kirchhoff-gruppe.de