Trade visitors showed great interest in the new modern booth design on the first day, as it now clearly shows the affiliation to the Jagenberg Group. Jagenberg subsidiary Lebbing automation & drives GmbH also presented its services and innovations in the group‘s new corporate design just a few booths away. Here not only the new look unites. Dr Stephan Witt, COO of the executive board of Jagenberg Holding, Oliver Conrad, sales director Kampf and Thomas Lebbing, managing director of Lebbing automation & drives GmbH, talk about the group‘s common goals.
ICE Europe daily: Dr Witt, which topics unite the subsidiaries of Jagenberg AG?
Dr. Stephan Witt: As a strategic element, we are of course united by the topic of web materials as our core business and expertise. Accordingly, we can exploit strong synergies here.
ICE Europe daily: What goals is the Jagenberg Group pursuing in the near future? Are there plans to integrate other companies into the Jagenberg Group?
S. Witt: We offer solutions for the processing of web materials – and we do so along the entire process chain with the respective individual companies. This connecting element is also laid down in our strategy. On the question of whether something else will be added here in the future: Yes, we want to strengthen ourselves specifically where we see a need for this.
ICE Europe daily: How did you involve the employees in the rebranding process?
S. Witt: Admittedly, it was a difficult process, because in the beginning there were also uncertainties and fears. We tried to involve the workforce in workshops and were open and honest in joint discussions. With our new claim and logos, we then moved closer and closer together. Today, we are characterised by good visibility both internally and externally.
ICE Europe daily: Mr Conrad, Atlas Converting joined the group at the end of 2020. What milestones have you already achieved?
Oliver Conrad: Very important for us is that we have achieved trust! We previously acted as competitors and then grew together as partners – at eye level. So initially it was important to make cooperation possible in the first place. We achieved this in interdisciplinary teams at workshop level, among other things. We came together at the end of 2020, and by 2021 we had already created our own portfolio for the Flexible Packaging area. In the course of this, we have always emphasised that Kampf and Atlas remain independent companies. At the same time, however, the portfolios have been combined today so that sales can offer customers from the Flexible Packaging segment a larger portfolio overall. In 2022, we will also transfer this strategy to the larger lines in the Flexible Films segment.
ICE Europe daily: What was the customer feedback on joining and merging the portfolio?
O. Conrad: The customer feedback was very positive throughout! There were definitely customers who represented both brands, which meant that the contact persons remained the same. This was linked to our promise of a joint service. Especially under lockdown conditions with limited travel options, this strategy has already proven its worth!
ICE Europe daily: What has changed for you personally as a result of the rebranding of the Jagenberg Group?
O. Conrad: Yes, a lot has changed! A process like this is not always easy. Our brands have always appeared very self-confident – Kampf, for example, in their typical shade of blue. As a result of the internal workshops and the common Jagenberg brand, which is now also communicated more strongly internally and has become more visible, the image has changed and the exchange has intensified. This is great fun!
ICE Europe daily: Mr Lebbing, what synergies do you draw from the growing proximity and intensification of cooperation with the other Jagenberg subsidiaries?
Thomas Lebbing: From my point of view, I can only confirm that cooperation is intensifying! We are now also centralising services – such as financial accounting and IT. We are forming overlapping teams, which also has a positive effect on the cost side. In addition, we can now source almost all the main components for our plants directly from the Group. We are more flexible, we all know each other – that is an invaluable advantage! It creates a very trusting cooperation.
ICE Europe daily: What changes have you personally experienced?
T. Lebbing: I feel a certain sense of optimism. Personally, I‘ve been with the Jagenberg Group for 14 years and I‘m pleased that we‘ve been able to expand our fields of activity. At last, we can now also supply complete plants – as turnkey systems! Previously, as you know, Lebbing supplied automation systems – together with machine builders.
ICE Europe daily: You and Guido Lebbing are managing directors of Lebbing automation & drives GmbH, and in the meantime you have taken over the task of managing the newly founded Jagenberg Converting Solutions together with Dr Stephan Witt. Which market with which services does this new company address?
T. Lebbing: As Dr Witt has already emphasised, we deal with web materials. This includes coating lines, laminating lines, slitting machines, printing lines, winders, etc. At JCS, on the one hand, we focus on the area of decor systems. These decors are printed on foil or paper and then coated. On the other hand, the second big market for us is the area of lithium-ion batteries. This is a huge market in which we can supply complete turnkey systems. We have a large team here in Hamburg with good engineers with whom we can tackle this topic.
Interview by: Deutscher Fachverlag GmbH / english.dfv.de / C2 Coating and Converting
Image source: Martin Hirschmann
