Strengthening our common Mittelstand
08 November, 2012
Here at Ceramicx we are taking great pleasure in preparing to host next week’s meetings with our valued German distributor partner, Friedr Freek. Ceramicx IR heating sales in Germany have been thriving under Freek management; and particularly so over the last three years. We are particularly excited about the appetite in German manufacturing for new IR heating innovations in industry. We call this side of our business applications engineering and we shall use part of next week to plan to reach more of these German companies over the coming months. 
Ceramicx has of course invested in marketing methods to communicate with the German industrial marketplace: Our German language website, for example, is playing a key role, and next week’s joint meetings with Freek will see both our companies planning further expansion and growth. We also have a great target to aim for in the shape of the world’s most important plastics show, K 2013, Dusseldorf, October 16-23. At this triennial show- our fourth such - Ceramicx will unveil and exhibit a world-first in Infrared Heat testing. Our new rig will be developed by the world-class engineering team at Trinity College, Dublin University. Dr Tony Robinson, Project Leader, will be on hand at K 2013 to demonstrate the IR breakthroughs that will then be available for plastics processors and for thermoforming machinery builders. This website and our IR heating magazine, HeatWorks, will provide further details on the new IR testing technology as the clock ticks down to the show in October 2013. As we prepare to address these issues it seems to me that Ceramicx cannot but recommend the values and drive of Germany’s Mittelstand; the largely family-owned SME sector which still comprises over 70% of Germany’s private employment. European manufacturing would do very well to look and learn from the success of the Mittelstand model: long term business orientation; lean manufacturing methods; investment, product innovation and, of course, a fierce commitment to export success. It’s no accident that Germany – punching well over its weight – is today the world’s 2nd largest exporter. Ceramicx; a world-class manufacturer, long term planner and a 95% plus exporter already shares many of the traditions and guiding strategies.
08 November, 2012
Here at Ceramicx we are taking great pleasure in preparing to host next week’s meetings with our valued German distributor partner, Friedr Freek. Ceramicx IR heating sales in Germany have been thriving under Freek management; and particularly so over the last three years. We are particularly excited about the appetite in German manufacturing for new IR heating innovations in industry. We call this side of our business applications engineering and we shall use part of next week to plan to reach more of these German companies over the coming months. Ceramicx has of course invested in marketing methods to communicate with the German industrial marketplace: Our German language website, for example, is playing a key role, and next week’s joint meetings with Freek will see both our companies planning further expansion and growth. We also have a great target to aim for in the shape of the world’s most important plastics show, K 2013, Dusseldorf, October 16-23. At this triennial show- our fourth such - Ceramicx will unveil and exhibit a world-first in Infrared Heat testing. Our new rig will be developed by the world-class engineering team at Trinity College, Dublin University. Dr Tony Robinson, Project Leader, will be on hand at K 2013 to demonstrate the IR breakthroughs that will then be available for plastics processors and for thermoforming machinery builders. This website and our IR heating magazine, HeatWorks, will provide further details on the new IR testing technology as the clock ticks down to the show in October 2013. As we prepare to address these issues it seems to me that Ceramicx cannot but recommend the values and drive of Germany’s Mittelstand; the largely family-owned SME sector which still comprises over 70% of Germany’s private employment. European manufacturing would do very well to look and learn from the success of the Mittelstand model: long term business orientation; lean manufacturing methods; investment, product innovation and, of course, a fierce commitment to export success. It’s no accident that Germany – punching well over its weight – is today the world’s 2nd largest exporter. Ceramicx; a world-class manufacturer, long term planner and a 95% plus exporter already shares many of the traditions and guiding strategies.
