Trend to complete systems in material handling

Trend to complete systems
Interview with Helmut Wood, SEW Euro Drive

Interview

The site manufactures SEW in Bruchsal, the big drive solutions that are used for example in container terminals, the sugar cane processing, or mining sites. The IEE spoke to Helmut Wood, head of the Heavy Industrial Solutions business unit, on specific innovations and the transformation from a component supplier to a solutions business in the industrial gears.

Mr. Wood, you are responsible for seven months for the Heavy Industrial Solutions at SEW Euro Drive. What product range includes the division?

It includes responsibility for the gear industry, so large gear, around the world. These include more and more systems solutions, not just the solo gear. The trend in Europe is clearly in the direction of drive systems and system solutions. This means that the customer wants to get delivered next to the gear and brake, clutch, motor, inverter and the controller as a complete system on a steel / welding arm. And we have set ourselves. SEW has, like few others in the industry, the mechanical, electrical, electronic and software expertise in-house. We want to use for the industrial gear business. In China and in the U.S., the trend is towards systems are not as noticeable. Since we sell mostly solo or with standard transmission options.

If you push the Solution business must also be provided consulting expertise.

In Europe, you called in about two-thirds Engineered to Order (ETO) and one third Assembled to Order (ATO) start. This means that the orders for which we do not have a construction component are more likely in the minority. In many cases we have to construct and customize customer-related. Like our competitors in the industrial gear business, we have in certain cases, not all theoretically possible option available in our kit and that leads, among other things, that we have engineered a high-to-order content. And this means that a high level of consulting expertise must be available.

How can I imagine such a project?

You have to differentiate whether we are moving more in the cutthroat competition or whether it is a completely new plant project. During the displacement, we need to critically evaluate what we do as a company and drive more in order to competitors - often while retaining some connection dimensions - can replace. And if there is a new project, then we can interpret more bearings by our standard kit. Since there is often a means to carry out jointly with the customer at an early stage a kind of co-engineering. In addition, such projects are often international in nature, where you have to cross-border (including end-user, etc., EPC) at the beginning of the project intensive coordination activities and advisory services to the customer site and perform with its own sales organization. Our customers are always more active globally and are therefore also relevant requirements.

You must surely also work with several other departments within SEW. How is this cooperation? Do I buy the services, for example, at the Division of servo drives?