Production at Torgelower Metallwaren. (Picture: Torgelower Metallwaren)
Flexibility is key
dated April 2009
These days, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania is better known for its tourism industry than for its industries. Yet the products manufactured by Torgelower Metallwaren GmbH are used throughout Europe and overseas. CargoLine partner Sander Spedition in Rostock is responsible for the rapid and flexible delivery of these products.
Good news is currently at a premium. And yet it is out there: in the small town of Torgelow on the shores of the Szczecin Lagoon in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania close to the border with Poland. This peaceful, secluded town with a population of 11,000 is home to Torgelower Metallwaren GmbH, which has been working away quietly, building its own success story since 1991. The contract manufacturer produces steel, stainless steel and aluminium parts for global companies such as ACO Group in Rendsburg, J. Eberspächer in Esslingen and Wolf Klimatechnik in Mainburg including brackets for vehicles, fastening elements for solar modules, accessories for wind turbines and gutters for the construction industry.
The company is not suffering from a lack of orders. "In the last few months, business has slowed down a little, but overall our order book is well-filled," explains the company's relieved Managing Director, Bernd Petzel. On the contrary, the company has just put its new production hall into operation. Altogether, it now has more than 3,000 square meters of production area at its disposal. The large number of orders the company was receiving made expansion a necessity. "Certainly our orders for the automobile industry have fallen," Petzel admits. "But on the other hand we offer such a wide range of products for a variety of industries, and especially for the rapidly growing green technology sector, that we can compensate for the decline in that area with expansion in others."
Entrepreneur overnight
Nobody could have predicted this success when the company was founded in 1991. Until then Torgelower Metallwaren had been part of the state holding company "Fortschritt Landmaschinen", VEB Sirokkogerätewerk Neubrandenburg, Plant Section Torgelow. The factory, whose heaters made history as park heating for the Trabant car, was considered uncompetitive after reunification. The Torgelow part of the state holding company was re-privatised, a step that resulted in new companies such as Torgelower Metallwaren and Eberspächer Heizgeräte Torgelow. Bernd Petzel has never had any second thoughts about his leap into cold water and has all but forgotten the difficult beginnings.
Initially, Petzel faced the competition with a team of eight employees; today the company has a staff of 50 and achieved sales of 5.1 million euros in 2008. Its customers are primarily based in Southern Germany and the state of Schleswig-Holstein; its steel and stainless steel products are also highly regarded in other European countries, especially France, the Netherlands and Austria. Overseas markets such as Brazil and the USA, where green technologies are in great demand, promise well for the future.
Flexibility above all
As well as its broad range of products and well-trained employees, Torgelower Metallwaren's greatest asset in surviving in this difficult competitive market has been its flexibility. "Processing steel and stainless steel has a long tradition in Torgelow. The state of Prussia established an ironworks here as early as 1753 after brown haematite was discovered in the area," says Petzel explaining the existence of a big metals industrie. Brown haematite is hardened sediments such as sand, clay or silt with a metal content of up to 45 percent. It lies close to the surface and used to be mined using pickaxes and spades.
"We decided at an early stage to specialise in small- and medium-scale series production. We can react very quickly, by which I mean between three and four weeks, to new production requirements or custom products – for standard products the response time can even be less than two weeks. That gives us a clear advantage over large companies," adds Petzel. The company also manufactures its own tools. Due to this extensive range of equipment it has a widely diversified base and can even satisfy unusual requests from its customers.
Service round-the-clock
Flexibility and speed are two of the characteristics the company also expects from its transport and logistics provider. "With our backs to the border and all of Germany stretching out in front of us – our freight forwarder has to compensate for the difficulties of our location," says Petzel. This disadvantage poses no difficulties for Sander Spedition from Rostock. Its trucks arrive every day in Torgelow to pick up products and feed them into the pan-European CargoLine general cargo network. Sander handles overseas orders through its CargoLine partner Bursped in Hamburg. Collections take place round-the-clock fitting in with the production schedule of a three-shift operation. An hour before collection, Sander often does not know what quantities the customers of Torgelower Metallwaren have ordered or which destinations have to be served. This demands a high degree of flexibility from the freight forwarder, which also handles the empties.
Bernd Petzel and Frank-Jörg Lewerenz, Sales Manager at Sander Spedition, have been working together for years. "People from Mecklenburg are typical Northern Germans: they express themselves sparingly at first and are somewhat distant to strangers – but are intensely loyal once they come to know you," smiles Lewerenz. The close relationship has certainly been cemented by the uncomplicated way the team at Sander Spedition responds to tricky situations. "Two years ago, Torgelower Metallwaren had an urgent special order for a construction site in Bavaria. However, there was a mistake in delivery address we had been given so the metal parts had been delivered to the wrong site just before building was due to begin. We moved heaven and earth to locate the missing parts and get them to the right construction site within just a few hours," remembers Lewerenz.
Big plans
In 2009, the contract manufacturer intends to concentrate more closely on the green technology sector and further increase its share of the global market. So it is fitting that since August 2008, Sander Spedition has also been environmentally certified as a member of the CargoLine alliance in accordance with DIN EN ISO 14001. Two new services have recently been introduced which also benefit customers of Torgelower Metallwaren in the European market: NightLineFix, delivery on a precise day to a location specified by the customer, and NightLineEurope NextDay – for overnight delivery of consignments to many of Europe's regions and industrial centres.
"Sander Spedition is a medium-sized company and as uncomplicated as we are. It is a dependable partner with whom we can work together constructively," concludes Petzel. The two companies are currently considering how they can extend their partnership from pure distribution to pan-European procurement.
Torgelower Metallwaren GmbH
Founded in 1991, the contract manufacturer of mountings, anchoring clips, gutters and more from steel, stainless steel and aluminium has achieved growth rates of between five and ten percent each year of its existence. It supplies industries such as civil engineering, air conditioning technology and the automotive sector as well as manufacturers of biogas, solar and wind power plants. In 2008, its 50 employees achieved sales of € 5.1 million. www.torgelower-metallwaren.de
Hans Sander GmbH & Co. KG
The most northeasterly national CargoLine partner operates a three-shift general cargo handling, procurement and distribution service. It guarantees delivery in Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania and Northern Brandenburg within 12-24 hours and throughout Europe within 24-96 hours. 36 employees operate the 4,400 square metres warehouse and cargo handling area. The owner-operated company is certified in accordance with DIN EN ISO 9001:2000 including HACCP concept and is also 14001 certified. The company is additionally preparing for s.a.f.e. certification, which will be completed by the end of the year. www.sandersped.de
