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Getecha Managing Director Burkhard Vogel: "The fact that we have been increasingly sought after for some years now as automating company for production-related extraction, granulation and recycling processed up to ground material delivery and big-bag filling gives us much satisfaction and makes us optimistic! |
This autumn the family business Getecha from Aschaffenburg celebrates its 60th anniversary. Having started in a garage in 1956 the company developed over the decades to becoming one of the leading German manufacturers of innovative granulators for the plastics-processing industry. Today Getecha is a business partner on the international scale for the realisation of integrated extraction, granulating and recycling systems with a high degree of automation. Enjoy reading the interview with Burkhard Vogel, Managing Director of Getecha for many years, how the company asserts itself amidst global competition.
Mr. Vogel, what makes you most happy in this anniversary year of Getecha?
Vogel: I am proud that we have succeeded in establishing ourselves in Europe as one of the leading manufacturers of energy-efficient granulation solutions for the plastics-processing industry. The fact that we have been increasingly sought after for some years now as automating company for production-related extraction, granulation and recycling processes up to ground material delivery and big-bag filling also gives us satisfaction and makes us optimistic! Both is not to be taken for granted nowadays for a medium-sized plant engineering company based in Germany.
Which events have decisively influenced this positive development of the company?
Vogel: When our company founder, Ernst Rosenberger, decided to becoming an entrepreneur as young engineer in 1956 he actually intended to focus on pure engineering development in his garage at home and sell some machinery on the side. He did not plan to develop his own production facility at first. But then everything turned out differently. In the early 1960's the first production and assembly hall was built at the current location in Aschaffenburg; a few warehouses were built soon afterwards to optimise procurement logistics. This created the foundation for the business infrastructure for the development and manufacturing of high-performance granulators for the plastics-processing industry.
Can you tell at which time the change of the company from a pure granulator manufacturer to an automating enterprise with own project engineering began?
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Involved from the start: The photo shows the booth of Getecha at the K trade fair in 1975 |
Vogel: Yes, the first signs are quite early in the company's history. When in the 1970's the Danish toy maker LEGO asked us to help transfer the sprues from its injection moulding machines directly into granulators, we started with the development and production of fast, electropneumatic sprue pickers and extraction systems. This was the first step to the automating company. Today, thanks to advanced linear and control technology, we realise even highly complex multiple axis systems in this field with excellent positioning and repeat accuracy. Important milestones toward automation, however, were the involvement of the young business generation with Christine and Eva Rosenberger at the end of the 1990's. I joined Getecha in 2002 and took over the position as managing director of sales in April 2004. Two years later we opted for a new logo and modernised our corporate image – especially to underline the new orientation of the company. Since then we do not only advance the development of modular and energy-efficient granulators but are also increasingly discovered by plastics processors as manufacturer of customised, customer-focused granulation and automation solutions.
Where do you see the strengths of Getecha today – also in regard to distinction against the competition?
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Powerful work horse: The large grinding chamber and the oblique rotor of the GRS 300 granulator allow granulating bulky sprues from injection moulding |
Vogel: Only delivering reliable and powerful granulators is by far no longer sufficient today. Customers – whether at home or abroad – meanwhile expect much more. They are looking for a partner who – beyond pure granulation technology – offers custom-tailored and highly automated package solutions, including feeding, removal, conveying, packaging and recirculating systems. Today Getecha is positioned to meeting all these demands. This covers all areas of the plastics-processing industry from injection moulding and thermoforming to blow moulding and plastics recycling. Our major strengths do not only lie in the plant and control technology know-how but also in the intelligent combination of state of the art granulation technology with all kinds of peripheral conveying, handling and packaging systems. This is then the distinguishing feature compared to many competitors.
Can you observe changes in the relationship between you as plant engineering company and the customers?
Vogel: Yes, we especially observe an increasing division of the customers into two groups. One group only looks at the price in purchasing and puts even quality aspects second. They primarily take advantage of the product offering of companies from Asia. The other, somewhat smaller group, banks on high-quality engineering and focuses more on the added value of a plant engineering package solution taking the comprehensive view of Total Cost of Ownership (TCO) as decision-making basis for their investments. We feel more loyalty between the customers of this group and us and their usually long-term perspective of solid cooperation. This is also based on our self-concept: In spite of all international dimensions in sales, Getecha is a family-based company with a sound basis always available to its customers. Having a huge number of customers is not so critical. Being able to support each customer with sufficient attention necessary to developing a trusting and lasting partnership is much more important to us. Our actions are based on this customer orientation, and we always strive to create true win-win situations.
Which considerations are guiding you then at this time n your product developments?
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Quiet and efficient: Getecha will introduce new sound-insulated hopper granulators such as the RS 45090 shown here at the K trade fair |
Vogel: In the engineering sector we focus especially on the aspects of energy efficiency, environmental compatibility and system integration for our development work. At this time, we are also implementing many ideas from engineering that will reduce the maintenance effort for the customers and further simplify operation of the machines. Many of the current granulators and system components are being modernised accordingly. The flexibility and modularity of our machines constitutes key success factors that encompass all Rotary Cutter model series. Especially these two aspects ensure that we can match each large central and beside-the-press granulator quickly and with little effort individually to the need of the customer – also in regard to their integration into complex package solutions and their linking to the higher level production guidance systems.
Will you also present innovations in this area at the K plastics trade fair in October?
Vogel: I will not give too much information away at this time. Yes, we will come with some innovations for the K in Düsseldorf. They will significantly simplify and improve the integration of our Rotary Cutter granulators in the production lines of our customers.
Concerning the details.... well, trade fair visitors are welcome to take a look for themselves at our booth A21 in hall 9.
Are there policy developments that give reason to concern to you and Getecha management?
Vogel: Yes, but they are not new and concern nearly all branches of the industrial landscape. We are latently always concerned about forces that object to the use of plastics categorically without realising the many different ways how these materials simplify our lives today. Campaigns levelled against the plastics industry with slogans such as "plastic bags in the ocean" completely miss the point! The question here is much more: "Who dumped the bag in the ocean?" Such wild types of disposal need to be stopped for good. Everything must focus on recycling all resources into production circulation.
