Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery continues to invest in its German sites, expanding and modernizing its training center and breaking ground on a new 1,600-square-meter warehouse, both in Schwaig.
The company needed the work to update existing needs and add potential for future growth CEO Gerd Liebig said.
The lightweight structure at the site was designed with future plant expansions in mind. The layout features a central collection point for production waste to make sorting, disposal and recycling more efficient.
The location of the new manufacturing hall will also enable a direct material flow from its arrival to production, increasing production efficiency and throughput times, as well as speeding up delivery times, Liebig noted.
The training center in Schwaig has also been completely revamped. Capacity for customer training has been doubled and the new training rooms, equipped with the latest media technology to enable course participants from all over the world to participate, are directly connected to the applications technology department.
The company’s training team has been expanded to eight team members, who provide training in machine technology, application technology and robotics.
"We can now tailor the training courses to suit individual needs,” said Liebig.
"Thanks to modern media technology, we now offer efficient online training which reduces the time people need to allocate to professional skills development and performing practical exercises," Thorsten Thümen, senior director of technology, said.
Since 2016, after consolidating the Wiehe and Schwaig sites in Germany. a move which boosted the company’s flexibility and allowed both plants to focus on their core competencies, Sumitomo (SHI) Demag Plastics Machinery has stepped up its growth strategy at both sites with investments in moderniztion of almost 20 million euros ($22.3 million).