Lift Report

The words of Albert Schenk, Chairman of the VDMA Lifts and Escalators trade association and managing shareholder of OSMA Lifts in his welcome speech in the hotel conference room.

Most of the participants in the event had arrived in the foyer of the Novotel at the Messe Munich between 15.00 and 16.00 on 25th June. Lively discussions between individual guests or groups started up as soon as the delegates were received by the Meiller Managing Director Wolfgang Nothaft and his team.

  

After this initial contact phase the guests were divided up between two coaches and driven to the venue for the first point on the event’s (cultural) programme: the Ayinger Brewery in the rural setting of Upper Bavaria which unfortunately began in pouring rain. A little later however the sky cleared and turned into the white and blue national colours of Bavaria.

What could be more fitting for a traditional Munich-based company like Meiller than to educate its guests about Bavarian beer culture and the art of brewing? The privately-owned traditional Bavarian brewery in Aying, South East of Munich, is an ideal example of this. Daily guided tours of the brewery are a regular part of the programme, with professional and impressive organization. In addition to the history of beer brewing visitors learn about the brewing process from raw materials through to the end product along an exciting journey of discovery which ends at the storage tank with unfiltered Jahrhundertbier (pale lager).

Any of the visitors who had expected a brewery to be a tranquil business operation was surprised and impressed: the privately-owned company, one of the few German breweries still not integrated into the international drinks corporations, looks like a high-tech forge with state-ofthe- art, automated production facilities. A properly functioning system of controls and quality management ensures consistent product quality. Furthermore, in the event of breakdowns in the brewing process a master brewer is available on call 24/7 at the end of a mobile phone.

During the impressive guided tour of the plant itself the visitors enjoyed an initial sampling of the freshlybrewed ‘amber nectar’ from a tap. After a fascinating 3D fi lm show the tour ended in the brewery’s bar where a Bavarian snack awaited the visitors. “It’s a long time since I have enjoyed such a wonderful guided tour through a brewery” said Albert Schenk.

Back in the conference hotel, the Chairman of VDMA, Albert Schenk, extended the greetings of the Lifts and Escalators trade association and thanked the firm of Meiller for organizing the event.

Meiller Managing Director Wolfgang Nothaft then presented a brief profile of the Meiller Group: Since 2000 Meiller Aufzugtüren GmbH has been an independent subsidiary of F.X. MEILLER KG which had taken over the lift doors business from the former company Rathgeber in 1987. It has been manufacturing components for more than 50 years. There are currently 120 employees at Meiller producing around 25,000 lift doors each year, approx. 5,000 of these being glass doors. The annual turnover is 30 million Euros, with manufacturing being carried out exclusively in Munich.

The Meiller Group, together with F.X. Meiller Fahrzeug- und Maschinenbau GmbH & Co KG, is a global market leader in the manufacture of tipper trucks. In 2007 the family-owned company, which was founded in 1850, generated sales of 330 million Euros with 1800 employees at 9 production sites. In the same year 16,000 units were delivered, with over 400 service workshops worldwide providing sales support. An aerial photo of the company’s site with a factory covering an area of 250,000 m2 also clearly illustrates the impressive size of the Meiller location in Munich.

Wolfgang Nothaft then dealt briefly with the Meiller products: the company supplies lift doors for glass lifts and special systems, manufactures vandal-proof lift doors for the railways and other public areas, as well as solid doors for (heavy) goods lifts. Meiller also supplies a range of inner car doors and revolving doors and offers tried and tested solutions for upgrading and conversion work.

Since a guided tour of the Meiller plant was part of the agenda for the next day Mr. Nothaft refrained from giving further detailed presentations of the company’s products. With a glance at the “infamous” spindle drive from 1987 and photos of revolving doors and sliding doors from the 50s, he moved on to an interesting journey through the history of the Rathgeber company over the previous century and the century before. For example, amongst other things, Rathgeber was a manufacturer of lifts for approx. 30 years. This area of the company was sold off in 1981 to the firm of Flohr-Otis.

Today, it is a little known fact that Rathgeber used to have a huge product range. For example, after the war and up to the 90s it manufactured railcars in large quantities and supplied them all over the world as far afield as South Africa. During that same period Rathgeber also manufactured trams and later underground trains, railcars, coaches and coach trailers, purification plants, bakery machines and much more. The company was also a key supplier to the major industrial concerns in Munich at that time, e.g. MAN, Krauss Maffei, Knorr as well as Meiller. However, Rathgeber had already been active as an innovative company between the world wars. For example, old archive records show that as early as the 20s it had built railcars with great style, amongst others for the legendary Orient Express.

The big sensation however was back in 1895, the first electric tram developed by Rathgeber and operated in Munich. If we look back even further we can see the full development of the company:

The invention of the railway in the first half of the 19th century provided the impetus for the company’s founder Josef Rathgeber. During the course of this development Rathgeber became one of the pioneers of railway history with the production of railcars. The first railcar factory was built in 1852 near to Munich’s Central Railway Station. When the company outgrew the site Rathgeber built a plant for the mass production of railcars 50 years later in Munich-Moosach in what was at that time a state-of-the-art factory. Many of the historic halls and tens of kilometres of track, some of which has now been concreted over, bear witness to this period of early industrialization in Germany. This factory is the site of the current Meiller Group.

Because of the enormous amount of capital required to build this plant Rathgeber became a limited company whose shares were gradually acquired over the years by the major client Meiller, leading to the takeover of Rathgeber by Meiller around 100 years after the company was founded. In 1956 Meiller became the majority shareholder and in 1970 held 98 percent of the shares. At that time Meiller already accounted for 62 percent of Rathgeber’s manufacturing output. 10 years later 80 percent of Rathgeber’s production went to Meiller and in 1987 this led to the official takeover.

Wolfgang Nothaft, who is the head of the current modern company Meiller Aufzugtüren GmbH, draws the following conclusion from the history of the Rathgeber company: following the expansion of Rathgeber’s core business, driven by engineering sensations and innovations from the founder’s period, the product range was continually further diversified. No doubt many of these products were also successful but there is no evidence of how long-term this success was. When looked at from the viewpoint of a modern professional project and cost management system many of these products would undoubtedly not have been considered suitable for the market. Another factor was the increasing dependency upon one major client who was simultaneously the majority shareholder – in this case Meiller. As a result, the firm of Rathgeber gradually lost its independence and decision-making capability. Wolfgang Nothaft summarises the situation:

“In the beginning the company had a clear vision, clear objectives and a corresponding focus – that was what made it very successful. However, the diversification which started in the 50s showed how inconsistency and the lack of sustainability can consume a company’s assets. Because of its simultaneous presence in numerous different markets, in the final analysis there was a lack of any actual closeness to the market which is needed in order to identify changes and to respond and act accordingly. To put it another way: it was already riding a dead horse.”

That was the title of a stirring and, at the same time, an entertaining speech which then followed the presentation by Wolfgang Nothaft. The guest speaker was the business consulting trainer Daniela A. Ben Said, winner of the 2008 Coaching Award and author of three books.

Wolfgang Nothaft`s analysis of Rathgeber’s development had highlighted above all the business management aspect. By contrast, the so-called “impetus presentation” by Daniela A. Ben Said was now aimed at all those people who make a contribution to a company’s success either in a senior position or in other task areas and who in the process also seek personal success. After demonstrating how to “get past the first impression” using her own example, she formulated the strategies for success.

First of all she explained how different people can define success, from the pure career-based approach through to the tranquil, relaxed lifestyle. As a recommendation for long term success Daniela A. Ben Said explained her own motto: Satisfaction – in my career, my leisure time and my family.

In her digression via the world of behavioural psychology Mrs. Ben Said draws a distinction between e.g. types of decision- makers into hesitant “yes-butters” and pragmatic “why-notters”. With the help of a little role playing and tasks she actively included the audience in her presentations. Using contemplative quotations from the Orient together with humorous anecdotes from personal and professional everyday life she flavoured her presentation with lively mimicking and gesticulation. The guests heard for example that plenty of laughter also formed part of her success and that although positive thinking is not a panacea it is in every case however better than the individual allowing him/herself to be drawn into a negative spiral. The seminar also taught the guests how to learn, to talk to yourself or to develop a serene approach.

The central message of the lecture was that successful people also make better problem solvers. In this context the guest speaker presented a number of tried and tested strategies for solving problems: from the analysis of the problem, to finding the solution and finally to the active implementation of the solution. In this context she also gave a number of examples that relate to the lift sector.

Finally, Daniela A. Ben Said also clearly set out what for management personnel today in particular is a vital “must have”: motivated employees. After all, even the best product and the best service still has to be sold. Periods of crisis in particular, when there is the threat of short-time working and loss of orders, are ideal times for providing employee training. In this way these solution-orientated managers are sending out a signal to the employees, the clients and the market: “The time is now!” Unfortunately however it is these very “soft factors” that are often ignored by a company’s management in difficult times.

This led to the highlight of the seminar, the live “appearance” of a pony in the conference room. Daniela A. Ben Said had brought with her one of the animals from her “team of horses” which she uses to conduct “horse coaching” seminars for managers. The guests were delighted when the pony was led into the hall by a little girl.

“Horses do not allow themselves to be impressed by eloquent rhetoric, a winning smile or elegant clothing. They are all the more receptive for signals to which we as humans react unconsciously and intuitively. In addition: horses do not allow themselves to be simply led because someone calls him/herself the ‘boss’. They want to be valued and guided in a way that makes them feel motivated. Just like the employees in a team”, said Daniela A. Ben Said.

Her presentation, which was characterized not only by her strong personality and dynamic but in particular by humour as well, was guaranteed to hold the attention of the participants at the Conference of Southern German Lift Manufacturers right to the close. At the end of her seminar she was delighted to receive a lengthy applause and a beautiful bouquet of flowers.

Following the interesting speeches the guests retired to the hotel’s restaurant for a joint evening meal. This end to the first of the two days of the conference was characterized by lively discussion: some of the participants talked about the events of the afternoon whilst others quite naturally discussed topics relating to lifts. New contacts were forged and old ones intensified. The discussions continued unabated into the night in the hotel’s bar.

On the second day of the Conference of Southern German Lift Manufacturers most of the participants joined the scheduled tour of the Meiller plant in the morning. Divided up into three groups the guests received a guided tour of the extensive plant by Meiller employees.

At the start of the tour Plant Manager Klaus Schafranietz informed the visitors about the planned structural changes in the Meiller plant. For example, some parts of the 250,000 m2 site dating from the Rathgeber era are being demolished. On the remainder of the site the work processes of the separate companies Meiller Kipper KG and Meiller Aufzugtüren GmbH will be restructured on a more efficient basis through the construction of new buildings and conversion of existing ones. There is currently an underground railway station in front of the Meiller plant. Incorporated into an overall urban development concept, the Meiller site will in future be surrounded by residential and office buildings and interspersed with green areas.

The guests were then gradually acquainted in more detail with all the production processes for the manufacture of high quality lift doors. They were shown which materials are used and given details on the design elements and door components. In particular, the benefit of the design features for use in practice was also presented by Thomas E. Lernet, the Technical Director at Meiller, in an illustrative way with the help of demonstration objects. No question from the interested participants during the guided tour of the plant went unanswered.

The main purpose of the tour of the Meiller production premises was to provide a comprehensible presentation of the special quality features which Meiller claims to offer. In this context the focus was on the production of steel plate doors. It was stressed that each door is manufactured on an order-related basis – it is almost impossible to imagine a more client-specific individual setup. Eight employees are engaged purely in the Design Department.

As the centrepiece for the efficient manufacture of steel plate doors the visitors were impressed with the fully automated bending centre for steel plate doors with the linked pressing-cutting centre: both with the size of the plant as well as the performance of the automated steel plate processing. From steel plate stored in a high bay shelving warehouse the plant produces the finished-cut component in a reproducible high standard of quality on one production line. There are essentially no subsequent steps in the work process. As a result, there are fewer welding processes e.g. spot or projection welding. By reducing the level of toxic welding gases Meiller is making a sustainable contribution towards environmental protection.

Most of the door components are manufactured out of zinc coated steel plate. Black plate which is subsequently primed is also still used for a few designs of heavy industrial doors. 90 percent of all doors are manufactured using double-wall door panels in accordance with DIN 18 091. In view of the ever increasing level of vandalism to lifts these door panels in reinforced versions also comply with the dynamic impact testing in accordance with DIN EN 81-71 Category 1 or 2.

Doors manufactured in accordance with EN 81-58 at Meiller are also double panel. Manufacturing a double wall door panel in accordance with DIN EN 82-58 as a standard product posed a major challenge for Meiller. Mr. Lernet demonstrated Meiller’s claim to quality on various individual components of a lift door in addition to their manufacture: e.g. a semi-automated machine was specially designed and built for this area of use for the commercial processing of tracks rolled out of 4 mm steel plate. With the machines previously used for this purpose many of the parameters still had to be entered manually. This is now only used as a substitute machine for emergency situations. The material for one single track often weights the same as an entire door from low cost providers.

The door panel guide on heavy, solid stainless steel thresholds which the visitors were shown and which are important in particular for industrial use, can also be changed quickly and easily without the need for dismantling the door panel.

“Malicious voices claimed that we could never build aircraft, just tanks”, said Thomas Lernet smiling.

Visitors were shown presses for trailers and various components and were given a demonstration of the separate special system for manufacturing and edging the double thickness door panel. The visitors were also interested in individual areas which involved manual work, e.g. for welding narrow doors, for tools used in deburring and special clamps for “exotic products”. They observed Meiller fi tters assembling doors on workplace devices which can rotate through 90 degrees and watched how door panels were cladded and adhered together across their entire surface manually. They learned about the technique of mechanical “adjustment” in the manufacture of trailers or heard how it is more economic to manufacture frames completely from stainless steel, uncladded. The despatch and packaging of the doors was another item on the agenda: as a result of the trackability required by DIN ISO certification each door panel is given a stamp. All products are dispatched in solid wooden packaging. One item of particular interest: shock indicators attached to the wooden crates have proven ideal when despatching glass doors.

During the brief tour through the dispatch warehouse where, in addition to the various elevator slidingdoors ready for despatch, there were also car inner doors in the form of roller shutters and revolving doors in accordance with DIN EN 81-58, Thomas Lernet gave a brief description of the fire-resistance of lift doors. An individual fire resistance test under DIN EN 81-58 – a vital requirement if the doors are to be installed in numerous different European countries – costs around 12,000 to 13,000 Euros. For example, for fire department lifts in particular, the company offers fire resistance tested door panels with display opening, a requirement not explicitly demanded by the Model High-Rise Directive. Apart from the fi re resistance the torsion resistance is clearly better on the fire tested, doublethickness door panel.

The participants in the guided tour were then given a presentation of a few more Meiller products, some of which are innovations:

There was a great deal of interest shown in the new and unique car inner door concept which goes by the name of PREMIUS® and had already been type-tested. This is a lifting gate that can be raised or lowered as required. A gap of 30-35 mm between car and shaft door threshold is sufficient to enable the lifting gate to guarantee reliable closing of the car along its entire surface area.

In addition to a new revolving door for the home lift area, the visitors also saw the NOVA-C45 doors, just 80 mm deep, used for upgrading lifts, as well as the OPTILIGHT® glass portal with red-green illuminated signalling LEDs in the door panels or edges, always a fascinating sight.

At the end of the guided tour the guests then spent some time at the so-called Council Door for the British market: a double-thickness sandwich design 2 mm thick as a single panel door that meets the requirements for dynamic impact testing in accordance with DIN EN 81-71 Cat. 2 and which remains fully operational after repeated dynamic impact testing at a drop height of 1400 mm. The British have recognized that it is more economic right from the start to install better, high quality vandal resistant lift doors in buildings in urban areas of social deprivation.

Following the guided tour of the plant at Meiller the Conference of Southern German Lift Manufacturers came to an end in a convivial atmosphere. In Meiller`s Ratsstüberl (bar) a Bavarian white sausage snack awaited the guests before they took their leave following this eventful gathering.

A snapshot of the economic outlook shows that the economic crisis has not yet fully reached the German lift sector in particular. Many companies are still processing previous order backlogs. At this point in time no-one is venturing to give any predictions when we see how quickly even successful sectors have suffered levels of upheaval previously unimaginable. There are however some brighter signs on the horizon. The hope remains that in the end the lift sector will not be affected by more significant falls.

As emphasised by the Chairman of the VDMA Trade Association, Albert Schenk, it is important in any event, particularly in these times, for the sector to present a confident appearance and to have a properly functioning system of communication.

This latest Conference of Southern German Lift Manufacturers is in any event likely to have made a contribution towards this aim – thanks to the diverse structure of the programme in conjunction with numerous incentives for giving leadership to companies and employees, supplemented by technical information. Above all – and according to Daniela A. Ben Said an important factor for successful people acting with responsibility – it was fun.