TPT January 2019

I NDUS T RY

Looking to the future with transfluid TRANSFLUID manufactures tube

bending machines and tube processing machines. The company has been developing its technologies for tube machining since 1988, and can provide customer-orientated, tailor- made solutions for plant and machine construction, the automotive and energy industries, shipbuilding and medical device manufacturers. transfluid’s managing director, Benedikt Hümmler, has answered a series of questions about the current state of the industry, as well as its future. What is your assessment of the current market situation for your sector? It is actually extremely positive at present for German mechanical engineering, which is working at a very high level. And also because of the great potential for innovation that we have. We take advantage of it in a very effective and deliberate manner. What do you understand by ‘Industry 4.0’? For our business, Industry 4.0 is an important step into the connected future. For many of our clients it is still not clear how it will benefit them. Many look at this topic in isolation and not

Benedikt Hümmler (left), managing director

It is fair to expect that the mechanical engineeringsectorwill have toconsolidate after this period of strong demand. Just as before, the trend towards adopting automation techniques will continue and more strongly so. This will make it easier to even out geographical differences. The higher the technical level of equipment, the more relevant it becomes to ask whether production can be done independently of the employee. transfluid Maschinenbau GmbH – Germany

as a supplementary and performance- improving opportunity. That is not quite happening yet. Is transfluid planning to or already integrating digital technologies? We are gradually making our products capable of 4.0 communications for our various customers and, if the customer wants it, we offer the corresponding software to install, which can collect and process the operational parameters. With this and the corresponding hardware we can achieve the current idea of 4.0. What do you see as future trends for your business sector?

Email: sales@transfluid.de Website: www.transfluid.net

Celebrating nine decades as a family business POPPE + Potthoff develops and manufactures customer-specific steel tubes, common rail subsystems, high- pressure tubes, precision components, line shafts, couplings, and specialised test stands and other machines. The family-owned enterprise, with headquarters and technology centre in Werther, Germany, recently celebrated the 90 th anniversary of its founding. With 1,500 employees at 17 locations, the company is active in more than 50 countries, in vehicle, ship and mechanical engineering, as well as many other industries. “Internet of Things and cyber-physical systems are important key factors to efficient customer-specific production,” said Dr Ing Bengt-Henning Maas, CEO of the tubing plant and head of the tubular components division. “We want to be a leader with regard to the digitalisation and networking of processes in the tubing industry and other business areas.” The company states that family management, diversification and

internationalisation ensure stability and growth: as a partner to its customers, the company is increasing its share of the value chain by expanding vertical integration and services such as the development and validation of components for demanding applications. Poppe + Potthoff GmbH – Germany Email: info@poppe-potthoff.com Website: www.poppe-potthoff.com

After 90 years, Poppe + Potthoff has remained a family business: (from left) Caroline Lagemann, Peter Potthoff- Sewing, Ursula Potthoff-Sewing, John Erik Lagemann, Dr Auliana Poon Potthoff-Sewing and Dr Christian Potthoff- Sewing

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JANUARY 2019