Dec. /10 - VETTER Krantechnik

lIFT-it: Mr. Rojahn, how did the project
actually come about?
A. Rojahn: Flowserve came to us in May this
year and asked us for a quotation for relocating
racking storage and warehousing equipment
within Essen. We are a long-standing supplier
to Flowserve and so we were of course their first
port of call. After our initial site visit, we then
presented an overall concept to Flowserve which
covered the complete planning and management
of plant equipment, warehousing and
crane systems. As a result, Flowserve had
the benefit of knowing that everything was
coordinated by a single supplier and that we
would provide them with a regular contact for
the entire duration of the project. Our experience
with projects of this order of magnitude stood
us in great stead and it was ultimately the key
to Flowserve’s decision to award the entire
order to us.
lIFT-it: Why did you want to work together
with VETTER on this? Or to put it another
way: why didn’t you just turn up at the
customer’s on your own?
A. Rojahn: This project immediately presented
several challenges. On the one hand, there
was the range of products involved and on the
other the complexity of the products as well. The
manufacturer’s expertise was absolutely essential
for providing detailed advice on this type of
equipment; you only need to think of the accuracy
of fit you need to achieve when dealing with
such a large number of gantry crane systems.
Moreover, we had a very tight window of just two
months with the stipulation that no stoppages
in production were permitted. It was clear right
from the start that we needed to keep the lines of
decision-making tight. Speed was the factor that
clinched the entire project.
lIFT-it: How did it all go in practice? Is it
not time-consuming to have to coordinate
so many people to meet the deadlines when
you’re pressed for time?
A. Rojahn: Something like that only works
when everyone involved is pulling in the same
direction and never loses sight of the collective
aim. We know well the benefits of working with
Personal data
Alexander Rojahn,
product manager for plant Equipment
at Wollschläger GmbH & Co. KG
since 2008
VETTEr and knew that we could rely 100 per cent
on the team’s flexibility and speed. Having this
confidence was key for us in this project. The fact
that the main plant was able to move fast and
provided in-depth supervision on site contributed
to the success. But the active contribution of
other partners and the customer as well was of
course equally important. Flowserve was always
to the fore, whether it was in providing a flow of
information at the planning stage or supplying
additional staff for the installation work.
training of Mennes’ staff
Cranes and Krombacher
Two products where first-rate quality and
shared origins in the Siegerland are equally
to the fore. This was the consensus at the
end of September when 30 sales staff of
commercial supplier, Mennens, from the
Netherlands and Belgium arrived for training.
A guided tour and training courses
in all aspects of cranes were on the day’s
schedule. The day ended on a high note
when all the participants gathered later at
the Krombacher brewery and was judged to
have been an all-round success!
TEAMWORK
lIFT-it: What were the advantages for Wollschläger
of collaborating with VETTER on this
project?
A. Rojahn: One advantage was that we had the
overall management of the project and were able
to focus on our core competencies, i.e. advising,
supporting and all-round management. In terms
of the individual aspects of managing the project,
however, with VETTEr we had the assurance
of having the manufacturer behind us and
were able to depend on VETTEr’s proven project
management in crane systems. We have found
VETTEr to be a reliable partner who does not
just focus on profits but commits to a long-term
collaboration based on partnership. We are sure
we will be able to manage more projects to-
gether successfully in future.
We would like to thank Alexander Rojahn very
much indeed for the interview and for the excellent
cooperation. For us, this project is an
example of how much a commercial company
can offer its customers when it is supported by
the manufacturer’s specialist expertise. And with
our nationwide field staff who are always on call
with advice, we make even the more complex
crane projects feasible.
Whatever the need, it’s always worth giving us
a call!
sylvia.papior@vetter-krane.de
December 2010 Lift it 15