productos Dornbracht

DORNBRACHT the SPIRITof WATER Home based player
DORNBRACHT the SPIRITof WATER Home based player
Home based
player
Dornbracht is continually developing. This applies as much for the products
as for the processes. Today, the Iserlohn-based company operates according
to the fractal principle. This term was coined by the mathematician Benoit
Mandelbrot, born 20 November 1924 in Warsaw, to describe the features of
self-similar structures.
The professor (emeritus) for industrial production and factory operations at
the University of Stuttgart, Hans-Jürgen Warnecke, transferred this thought
onto production companies. According to his perception, fractal companies
are autonomous and dynamic entities, which operate according to the principle
of self-organization and self-optimization. What is characteristic about
them is that they consist of decentralized structures which communicate intensely
with one another. They thus combine the advantages of an industrial
operation based on the distribution of labour with the high quality demands
for manufactures of traditional merit. The fractal structure covers every section
of the company: from the development and procurement through production
to sales. In well-organized groups the employees, as in manufactures,
“Home based players”
generate considerably more
added value per employee
On the location factor, sensitive robots and manufacturing quality
as a guarantee. A visit to the Dornbracht organism.
Fattore luogo, robot sensibili e qualità dei manufatti come garanzia.
Una visita all’organismo Dornbracht.
Sobre la importancia de la sede, robots sensibles y calidad de manufactura
como garantía. Una visita al organismo Dornbracht.
Text Gehard Samulat
Photography Hartmut Nägele
Made in Germany
Originally intended to protect the English market against goods from Germany,
the label “Made in Germany” has risen to become a stamp of quality
and today it stands for exceptional quality. German medium-sized businesses
in particular, such as Dornbracht, enjoy the best reputation for their
high-quality products. But even German manufacturers must still assert
themselves in the age of the global market. Besides the right strategies in the
target market, suitable concepts for the production processes and added value
chains are also needed here.
For particularly successful companies which, like Dornbracht, consciously
adhere to a regional procurement strategy, but still achieve an exceptionally
high share of their turnover on international markets, the Fraunhofer Institute
for Systems and Innovation Research ISI in Karlsruhe has coined the name
“home based player”. They generate decidedly more added value per employee
than those companies which focus exclusively on the national market,
and in many cases they even trump the widely praised “global players”.
German home based players do maintain branches abroad, in order to open up
new markets, but not so that they can produce there more cheaply. The company
managers are well aware that the bill for cheaper production never adds
up. In contrast: in fact, according to findings by the Fraunhofer experts, outsourcing
for reasons of staff expenditure often has fatal consequences on the
innovative strength and flexibility of a company. If, on the other hand, presence
on the foreign market is the main incitement, this often brings success in
boosting sales development and employment trends on the home market as
well. Thanks to tight logistics and a regional procurement strategy, home
based players simultaneously achieve the shortest delivery times and can react
quickly to new requirements by the customers even with small series.
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Moreover, the deliberately regional relation of Dornbracht leads to a distinctive
awareness for the economic, but also for social and cultural development
in the area. This includes questions about safeguarding resources. For instance,
Dornbracht works together intensely with environmental experts to
continuously fathom how production can be made sustainable. Explicitly, the
company aims at lowering the average water consumption of all the fittings
sold by a good third over the next three years.
Made in Iserlohn
>
The electroplating robot Gavaro refines highly complex fitting components //
Gavaro, il robot di galvanizzazione, rifinisce componenti di rubinetterie molto complessi //
El robot galvanizador Gavaro ennoblece piezas de grifería de gran complejidad
>
Quality inspection after grinding and polishing // Controllo di qualità dopo la
levigatura e la lucidatura // Comprobación de calidad tras rectificar y pulir
work together each on their own authority for the most part and orientate
their commitment towards the global aims of the company. In so doing they
contribute to the growth and success of the entire “organism”.
In addition, modern means of production are also included in this innovative
concept. On Dornbracht’s initiative, Gavaro was developed by a syndicate of
forward-looking partners. This modular and self-sufficient system, for which
the patent is pending, efficiently coats complicated components and small series
in the highest quality. The heart of the system is an industrial robot which
playfully controls even innovative design with the most sharp edges or zigzagging
geometry. With it, hitherto inconceivable innovations and products can
now be realized. In addition, the mobile cell which houses all the units, controls
and systems used for the flawless coating can be easily integrated into an available
production system. This unique combination of the creativity and the long
years of experience of the employees, together with the most modern means of
production, lends the Dornbracht products their unmistakable character.
Interview with Matthias Dornbracht
The third generation family business, Dornbracht, is managed by brothers
Matthias and Andreas Dornbracht. The fittings manufacturer based in Iserlohn
was founded by father and son team Aloys and Helmut Dornbracht
after the war, in 1950. In the family business with a clear commitment to
maintaining production in Germany, the tasks of the two brothers are neatly
divided. Andreas Dornbracht is responsible for marketing and sales,
while engineering graduate, Matthias Dornbracht, is dedicated to the domains
of production, procurement and logistics.
When it came to increasing the company area at the headquarters in Iserlohn,
Dornbracht did not opt for a classical new building geared to the
long term. Instead, they opted for the concept of both structurally and operationally
independent modules. Why?
“Today companies require maximum flexibility and adaptability. It is important
to be able to react quickly and make innovations marketable without
delay due to extensive internal discussion. Working in modules contributes
to this exactly. In a similar way to “brain tanks”, all functional units
which relate to one another are combined in every module. In the innovation
module, Management, Customer Advice, Product Marketing and
Sales, together with Design and Development nurture the future of Dornbracht.
In another module, with comparable “structures” everything pivots
about the launch of new products. This consolidation not only facilitates
communication, but also changes the hierarchy and focuses the employees
involved on a common purpose in their actions. Furthermore, the modules
can be created with relatively straightforward expenditure.”
Can this change in thinking also be measured in figures?
“Yes, in the form of a noticeable rise in efficiency. Our stocks have decreased
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