Oberschleissheim, March 21, 2016 – “Inspired by Tradition–Built for Innovation”, this is how Schreiner ProTech, a business unit of family-owned Schreiner Group based in Munich, Germany, billed the grand opening of its new production site in China. More than 100 guests attended the ceremony celebrating the launch of the manufacturing facility in Fengpu, in the Fengxian District south of Shanghai. Customers from the automotive industry are among the business unit’s key accounts. To ensure optimum supply of functional components and labels to their manufacturing plants at the level of quality customers expect, Schreiner ProTech now launched its own production operation, five years after having opened a sales office in Shanghai.
High standards and quality are the hallmarks of Schreiner ProTech’s solutions, as more than 100 guests attending the grand opening had the opportunity to see for themselves. During a plant tour, they were provided with a wealth of information about the production of the functional components and labels, the high-tech machines, the state-of-the-art air conditioning system ensuring constant indoor climatic conditions, and the certifications awarded to the operation. A supporting program featuring Bavarian and Chinese traditions complemented the event.
Top Quality of Processes and Equipment Confirmed
The production of pressure compensation seals (PCS) on a precision die cutting and laminating line, and a fully automatic, camera-controlled converting machine had already been launched at the end of October 2015–initially serving customers from the solar industry. “We attach utmost importance to our Chinese plant conforming to the same standards and high level of our German operation. We work with identical high-tech machines and apply the same quality standards to employees, processes and results,” Roland Schreiner, Schreiner Group’s CEO, said at the traditional grand opening event.
Since the beginning of 2016, the exacting requirements of EN ISO 9001 and ISO/TS 16949 have been implemented as well, and reviewed by internal and external audits. “Now that the top quality of our processes and machines has been officially confirmed, initial production orders from automotive customers are being added to our operation,” says Thomas Köberlein, President of Schreiner ProTech. They include watertight, breathable pressure compensation seals, airbag covers, inflatable curtain tapes and various high-end labels.
From East to West: “Schuhplattler” Meets Lion Eye
Two different worlds meet whenever German companies expand their operations to the Far East. Schreiner Group’s supporting program for the grand opening event took its cue from both of these worlds. Local Bavarian traditions such as folk music and a “Schuhplattler” dance reminded guests of the place that is home to Schreiner Group, while the joint painting of a lion eye was meant to secure fortune for the new production site. At the buffet, guests had the choice between Bavarian and Chinese culinary fare.
New Production Intensifies Cooperation for Local Market
Due to the sales activities and a sales office, Munich and Shanghai have been enjoying close business relations for a long time, in spite of the 8,000-kilometer distance. Thomas Köberlein emphasizes that manufacturing marked an important next step: “As a supplier, we are an attractive partner for our customers in China if we produce for the local market there as well. As a result, we offer them higher assurance of supply to their Chinese production sites and support the success of their internationalization by being present in the local marketplace.”
