TPT January 2019

I NDUS T RY

Trumpf senior figure and par tner Ber thold Leibinger passes away PROFESSOR Berthold Leibinger

actively involved in supporting cultural and social initiatives, for instance in his roles as chairman of the Friends of the German Literature Archive Marbach and chairman of the International Bach Academy. He was a member of the Christian Democratic Union of Germany (CDU). In 1992, Prof Leibinger established the Berthold Leibinger Stiftung, a not- for-profit foundation that dedicates its proceeds to cultural, scientific, religious and charitable purposes. In 2000 the foundation established the internationally renowned Berthold Leibinger Innovation Prize, which is awarded once every two years. It also presents its Comic Book Award on an annual basis. “Berthold Leibinger was a visionary engineer and entrepreneur. Everything he did was ultimately directed toward people’s welfare and the common good. He was an outstanding example to us all,” said Dr Jürgen Hambrecht, chairman of the supervisory board of the Trumpf Group. the first time. There is no room or time for reworks or doing it over, especially with the increased cost of raw material. This is one of the primary reasons the audience comes to these sessions – to learn to improve their operations.” In previous years, attendance at tube and pipe training sessions offered by Roll-Kraft had outnumbered the roll form training sessions. However, 2018 saw a more equal demand for training in both industries. Roll-Kraft’s training programmes – both regional seminars and in-house training sessions – focus on developing a standard for all to follow in the areas of mill integrity, alignment, setup and tooling maintenance. Trumpf Group – Germany Website: www.trumpf.com

passed away in Stuttgart in October following a long illness. He would have been 88 in November. After studying engineering in Stuttgart and spending two years in the USA, Prof Leibinger joined Trumpf in 1961 when the company was still a fledgling machine maker. For his numerous inventions, which he made in the interests of the company, he received company shares. He became a partner in 1966 at the same time as becoming managing director. Under his stewardship Trumpf evolved into one of the world’s leading machine manufacturers. Prof Leibinger understood the poten- tial of light as a tool more than any of his peers, and he is now regarded as one of the pioneers in the industrial application of lasers. In 2005 he handed over the reins of the company to his eldest daughter, Dr Nicola Leibinger-Kammüller. His son, Dr Peter Leibinger, is vice-chairman of the managing board. His second daughter, Professor Regine Leibinger, works as an architect in Berlin. In addition to his work at Trumpf Prof Leibinger held

Professor Berthold Leibinger

numerous other official positions in the German business community. These included his membership of the supervisory boards of Deutsche Bank AG and BMW AG as well as as chairman of the supervisory board of BASF SE. He was president of the Chamber of Industry and Commerce of the Stuttgart Region and, from 1990 to 1992, president of the German Mechanical Engineering Industry Association (VDMA). Prof Leibinger was also

Roll-Kraft’s annual seminar sets records ROLL-KRAFT hosted its annual regional tube and pipe and roll forming training seminars in Mentor, Ohio, USA, late last year. The event was attended by more than 60 companies from all over the USA, Canada and Mexico, and as far away as Korea. Many companies sent several attendees. Both seminars included tours of Roll-Kraft’s corporate facility in Mentor. Seminar attendees includedoperators, maintenance and quality personnel, supervisors, and management of varying experience levels in the tube and pipe and roll forming industries.

locations, has dramatically increased over the past two years, and attendance continues to grow, with programmes booked well into 2019. In this day and age, it is encouraging to see new businesses starting up, instead of shutting down. Today’s market demand for quality products is at an all-time high, and companies need to get it right

Robert A Sladky, vice president of tube mill engineering for Roll-Kraft, was the organiser of the event, as well as one of the speakers for each of the two programmes. Mr Sladky commented, “Demand for our regional seminars, as well as for our in-house programmes at customer

Roll-Kraft – USA Fax: +1 440 205 3110 Website: www.roll-kraft.com

10

www.read-tpt.com

JANUARY 2019