Aziz Simsek is not easily bowled over. The 41-year-old first entered the boxing ring at the age of 30 and quickly gained ground: he won 15 of 16 fights, 12 of which with knock­outs. He has no need to floor anyone during his working day, but does have to survive a number of rounds: meet­ings, discus­sions with staff members, plan­ning sessions, and moun­tains of paper. The opening of a new plant demands disci­pline. Partic­u­larly when it does not simply involve an extended work­bench, at which unskilled workers tighten screws for low pay. “We are just as excel­lently posi­tioned here as in Laupheim: produc­tion, finance depart­ment, purchasing, and our own IT, just some­what smaller”, says the new Managing Director of Uhlmann Poland.

Many compa­nies set up plants abroad because they want to be cheap. We want an engi­neering site that is second to none.

Smaller, but impres­sive. Alone opti­cally, the plant is an eye-catcher with its white shiny floor, but more outstanding is its tech­no­log­ical stan­dard: brand-new machines, smart­phones that operate doors and printers, and the SAP version of tomorrow. “Many compa­nies set up plants abroad because they want to be cheap. We want an engi­neering site that is second to none”, explains Simsek, who has been working for Uhlmann since 2013 and has already estab­lished a plant for Uhlmann in China.

Do it your­self

Uhlmann Polska should help the Group to attain a funda­mental asset: inde­pen­dence. “At present, we purchase prac­ti­cally the same amount exter­nally as we produce in Laupheim. That leads to draw­backs with regard to delivery times, as well as price and capacity plan­ning”, states Simsek. It is much less compli­cated and more flex­ible when mechan­ical parts are produced within the Uhlmann Group.

Against this back­ground, Aziz Simsek began to scour Europe last year in search of an optimum site. In Wrocław, it was not only the atmos­phere that fitted the bill. All other rele­vant aspects, such as the distance from Laupheim (a loaded truck that sets off in the morning can easily reach the plant by the evening), the infra­struc­ture, and the skilled workers avail­able on the job market.

Ahead of its time

Over 50 new colleagues now work in Wrocław, found through adver­tise­ments and with the help of local talent scouts. Several of them were already in Laupheim in order to gain the neces­sary know-how for their jobs and, vice versa, to enable them to give Laupheim more specific produc­tion support in the future.

Simsek busies himself with the entire work­force every day: “The atmos­phere in the plant is very familiar and friendly”, says the Managing Director. Regis­tered in Poland since May, he has already learned some Polish. Born in the state of Hesse, but raised near Laupheim, Simsek is not one to waste time. The orig­inal plan for the plant was to produce its first part in July 2020. The month of July was achieved, but in 2019. Cake and pret­zels were served to cele­brate.

The plant is mean­while oper­ating in two shifts – and Aziz Simsek continues to run at full speed. Fortu­nately for him, the studio he visits for a round of boxing after finishing work at around 9:30 pm is open 24 hours a day.