A perfect implementation.

Works No. 3 in Lohne is located directly at the motorway A1 between Bremen and Osnabrück. With the impressive dimensions of the existing production and storage halls and a further production hall currently under construction it is a modern and architecturally stylish site. Immediately evident to every visitor is probably that Pöppelmann GmbH & Co. KG relies on quality and openness. The discussion with Engelbert Rechtien clarified to “inform” what characterizes this enterprise with 1,900 employees, what its meanwhile 66-year-old history amounts to and what values are upheld. Rechtien joined Pöppelmann after graduation from high school, first completed an apprenticeship here as an industrial businessman and then as a toolmaker. After further education to become an engineer he helped building up the FAMAC segment and is now Sales Manager of this business unit.

Mr Rechtien, to start with, would you please give us an impression of Pöppelmann GmbH & Co. KG?
Back in 1949 the brothers Josef and Hubert Pöppelmann started with the production of bottle corks in their parents’ chicken coop. Today the enterprise employs a workforce of about 1,900, trains more than 180 young persons in nine different professions and runs over 500 injection-moulding machines and 20 vacuum-forming systems. The family business Pöppelmann is today one of the leading producers in the plastics-processing industry of Germany.

Pöppelmann has a very wide range of products. How is it structured?
The spectrum of products is divided into four business segments. The KAPSTO standard programme comprises more than 3,000 protection elements of plastic for the most varied applications. Under the name of K-TECH we develop and produce highly precise technical plastic mouldings, in particular for the automotive industry. The business segment Pöppelmann TEKU supplies over 800 different flowerpots and growing systems in more than 2,000 executions to horticultur-ists (commercial growers). FAMAC is the youngest segment. Since 1997 we produce packaging and functional parts for foodstuffs, cosmetics, medicine and pharmaceuticals under this label. It is in this area that we rely on the moulds of Otto Hofstetter, among others. In 2010 we moved into the new works No. 3 in Pöppelmann Street.
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What does the acronym “FAMAC” stand for?
FAMAC is a registered brand and stands for Food And Medical And Cosmetics. In the foodstuffs area we produce for example thin-walled packaging articles, dispensers of artificial sweet-eners, household containers and closures. The product range for medicine and pharmaceuticals comprises functional parts for medical engineering, laboratory and diagnostics goods. Cosmetics concentrates on pumping and dispensing systems.

Your employees are often referred to as “Pöppelmen” and “Pöppelwomen”. How do you achieve this collective spirit?
This goes back to the founder Josef Pöppelmann and his wife Gertrud. He brought in countless ideas, was a „thoroughbred entrepreneur“ and put together the right crew to build up Pöppelmann. His wife provided important support to him right from the beginning. Gertrud Pöppelmann took over the operative business after the premature death of her husband. The sense of togetherness of all was very important to her.
The lady entrepreneur’s gratitude and respect for the efforts of the workers in the company’s operations were always perceivable. She felt indebted to these persons. It was an obligation she accepted as an honour and a spirit which exists unchanged to this day in the Pöppelmen and Pöppelwomen.
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The employees of Pöppelmann stand out by their marked self-responsibility. How come?
One important reason is no doubt the fact that Pöppelmann is a family business. The fellow workers are held in high esteem by the associates. The management, moreover, relies on flat hierarchies, which keeps the decision paths short and efficient. Much importance is also attached to teamwork. Well-trained and committed persons in young and growing departments create a climate of which we are rather proud. More than 180 young persons undergo training at Pöppelmann. This reveals considerable social responsibility.

What is your philosophy?
Well-trained and highly motivated employees are our most important capital. This is why we regard our engagement for job training as an important investment in our future. After completion of their training lasting between two and four years, more than 90 per cent of the young professionals stay in our enterprise. Many feel attracted again even after studies or a change to another company. No wonder we can frequently fill vacancies for professionals and executives with own young blood.
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You have three production locations, this one here in Lohne, one in France and one in the USA. What do you produce there?
Our plastics-processing plant in Rixheim has been concentrating on the French market since 1977. The subsidiary in the USA with its own works in Claremont has been making plastic plant pots and growing systems since 2007 and now moulds increasingly also technical parts from the K-TECH segment for the North American market.

What are the differences between the fields of activity in the FAMAC segment?
The customers’ cost-consciousness plays a major role in packaging products for foodstuffs. Furthermore, this business is characterized by short implementation periods and ever shorter product cycles at nonetheless high numbers of pieces. In consequence the investments in machines, moulds and automation are very considerable. The area of medical engineering and pharmaceuticals requires an all-comprehensive inspection effort and gapless documentation to make the overall process transparent at all times. A marked quality consciousness is essential seeing that complete subassemblies are moulded and put together under clean room conditions.

What distinguishes the “typical Pöppelmann quality”?
Here at Pöppelmann every customer has “its own” Project Manager and thereby a firm contact partner. Seeing that we offer everything out of one hand from the initial idea right to the finished product, the Project Manager coordinates the work and the necessary skilled persons. A further distinction is our flexibility in coping with a fluctuating demand. This is a challenge, especially when it comes to foodstuffs. Thanks to our high storage capacity we have sufficient quantities of raw materials, auxiliary means and consumables as well as finished products available. Our customers benefit from this high flexibility.
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You have more than 75,000 pallet spaces and, thanks to suitable stocks, guarantee permanent availability of the standard range of products. What quantities (numbers of pieces) are we talking about?
Looking at all four business segments, about 10,000 articles are likely to be permanently available. About 1,000 pallets leave our production each day. In the FAMAC segment we deliver more than 2.5 billion parts to our customers year after year.

You have been cooperating with Otto Hofstetter AG since 2006. What prompted this choice at the time?
We visited Otto Hofstetter AG and became aware of the potential. The chemistry was right and the experience was substantiated on the basis of examples. The infrastructure and the attitudes of the mould makers met our expectations. A first project confirmed our impression and this was enough. The moulds for our Q-buckets IML series with clip and hooded lid IML in four sizes were a big success.

In which areas are you now using moulds from OHAG?
Without exception for the injection-moulded packaging products of the FAMAC segment. Several moulds have been added since the first ones. In the meantime we have already realized 29 moulds in our cooperation.

What are the strengths of OHAG in your opinion?
Otto Hofstetter AG abides by the same philosophy as we do in matters of quality. The steel is worked to the last one hundredth and if necessary one thousandth. Apart from this I’m impressed by the transparence as regards the agreed deadlines. This builds the confidence which is an important element of success as far as I’m concerned. Qualitative and personnel continuity, all salient OHAG properties which, by the way, we at Pöppelmann also emphasize and foster.
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To what extent does it matter to you as a family business that OHAG is also a “family operation”?
Positive about it are the short decision paths at our place and at Otto Hofstetter AG. Beyond this I think it is a big advantage that, like in our case, the generated profits are reinvested in the own operation. In this way OHAG secures itself the long-term competitiveness on which Pöppelmann can depend.  

According to your documentations Pöppelmann holds a technological leadership position. What is OHAG’s contribution to this?
Otto Hofstetter AG supports us already in the article design and possible optimizations are worked out together. OHAG checks critical items in the design phase and on an ongoing basis while the mould progresses, so that errors can be avoided. An active transfer of knowledge is also taking place, so that we get more than just a mould from you. And we benefit from the long experience and ideas of the team in Uznach.

Innovation plays an important role at Pöppelmann. How do these novelties materialize?
Taking pleasure in innovation is something we inherited from our founder Josef Pöppelmann. His principle was: Each day a new product. And we hold on to this also after more than 60 years. We analyze social and technological changes and try to anticipate customer requirements. Development is divided into two focal points: “New technologies” cooper-ates with e.g. university research institutes and assesses new processes and product ideas, while “Design” devotes itself to optics, functionality, haptics and so on.
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When do you favour the own mould shop and when do you rely on the support of OHAG?
The idea with our in-house mould shop is to retain a certain independence. This enables us to not only carry out conversions and extensive maintenance, but to design and build our own separate moulds for all business segments. In parallel we cooperate with our external partners, including OHAG. Follow-up moulds, in particular, are ordered from external sources to avoid complete tying-up of our internal capacities. Mould mak-ing at Otto Hofstetter AG meets our requirements as regards execution and quality. This is why we like taking advantage of the professional competence of our long-standing partner.

Pöppelmann has grown steadily in the 66 years of its existence. What major challenges do you expect in the years ahead?
In our young business segment FAMAC we want to continue developing functional and appealing products which satisfy the expectations of our customers and of the market. Quick decisions will be needed more than ever. We view the future positively and full of vigour. The new works was moved into in 2010. A further production hall will be ready for commis-sioning in 2016. It surpasses everything built by Pöppelmann so far. As you can see, we really put the foot down also after 66 successful years.

Any wishes to OHAG for the future cooperation?
Otto Hofstetter AG is very reliable and, like we, makes no compromises for the mould, which is the heart of the pro-duction. I would welcome an intensified standardization which would enhance the flexibility in production. Apart from this, reproducibility is sometimes elaborate to achieve in mould overhauls, and transport to Switzerland takes valuable time. However, as already pointed out: the chemistry between Pöppelmann and Otto Hofstetter AG is right.

Mr Rechtien, many thanks for the interview and we wish you continued success.

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