DESMA celebrates 50 fruitful years

More than 550 guests attended the celebrations of DESMA in Fridingen on 24 July 2015 to mark the 50th anniversary of the company. The guest included honorary guests from business, politics and academia, customers, suppliers, retirees and partners in addition to the staff and delegations of the four subsidiaries from a total of 16 nations that have accompanied DESMA during this half of a century and assisted its progress.
 
Managing Director Martin Schürmann welcomed the Finance and Economy Minister of the State of Baden Württemberg, Dr. Nils Schmid, the District Administrator of the administrative district Tuttlingen, Stefan Bär, the Mayor of Fridinger, Stefan Waizenegger, the members of the federal and state parliament Volker Kauder and Guido Wolf and the representatives of the owner, Salzgitter AG, represented by Messrs Professor Fuhrmann, Kieckbusch and Professor Niemeyer. On behalf of the employees of DESMAN, Mr. Schürmann thanked all business partners for the many years of loyalty and the good cooperation. Special thanks were addressed to the customers: “We are particularly proud of you, because over the years we were able to play our part in ensuring that you have grown with us above the industry average.” Further thanks went to the institutes of higher education, colleges and universities, the professional and business organisations and service providers in their role as a strong partner for new developments, education and training. High praises were also addressed to the members of the press, who have accompanied DESMA for decades.     

Impressive Polaroid pictures and video animations documented that more than 500 people stand behind the company’s success story with ideas, talent and unique personalities. The strong DESMA team was impressively presented with its tight international network and its strong team spirit.

This was followed by a speech of Dr. Nils Schmid: “Innovative technologies, a medium-sized industrial landscape and well-trained professionals have helped make the business location Baden-Württemberg achieve top national and international rankings. Advanced technologies for material and energy-efficient production processes have helped DESMA develop into a global leader among the manufacturers of injection moulding machines and production solutions for the rubber and silicone industry.” District Administrator Bär then spoke about the role of DESMA as one of the Hidden Champions that enabled the region’s success. Today, the administrative district of Tuttlingen is among the ten most successful economic regions in Germany. The Mayor of Fridinger, Mr. Waizenegger, then named the yet unnamed access road to DESMA in “Walter-Schatz-Straße” - after the founding director and first Managing Director of DESMA who died last year - attended by his daughter, Regina Verheyen. Another moving moment on this day of great emotion. Just as touching was the reunion with five of the very first employees that proudly took the stage to symbolically receive the DESMA anniversary ribbon “Chronicle 1965-2015” on behalf of all employees from the Managing Directors Schürmann and Zebedin. 

A quick two-minute interview followed the speeches with partners from universities and associations. These were moderated by Managing Director Dr. Harald Zebedin and included expert statements about future visions.

Factory tour and discussions
The factory tours started after a light lunch including refreshments from the Italian ice-cream cart. Various information points presented topics such as Industry 4.0, modern labour landscape, the latest in manufacturing technologies and innovations in mould design and construction. This provided guests with valuable suggestions for the current and future challenges.

A ship cruise on Lake Constance from the city of Bodman to the city of Constance provided the guests with an opportunity to recap the eventful day, accompanied by music and a barbecue buffet and to end the evening with a relaxed get-together.  

The next day saw the second round of celebrations in Fridingen. For DESMA wouldn’t be DESMA, if there wasn’t a special Thank You for all employees. It was party time in the marquee on the premises. The live music band quickly filled the dance floor after a common meal. However, the absolute highlight of this staff event was the firework display secretly planned by management.  

IMG_0623 – caption: The event also has several discussions on various topics including Industry 4.0 and use of latest technologies.

For DESMA, the celebration has been meaningful given the highly competitive industry. Its growth has been substantial, from 1965 when it first started its business operations with 7 employees occupying an area of 200 sq.m. in Fridingen to the present more than 500 employees who meet the requirements of the rubber and silicone processing industry by using a production area of around 30,000 sq.m. at 5 production locations embedded in a network of 35 sales and service stations.

The company has been well-known for its premium system solutions for industries. DESMA produces turnkey, resource-friendly system solutions for the production of technical rubber and siliconemoulded parts. With innovative technologies and comprehensive services, it meets the needs of the elastomer processing industry. DESMA machines manufacture products used in automobiles, ships, power plants and medical and household sectors.  

For instance, DESMA’s ZO machine series is a universal machine with a clamping force range of up to 2,500 kN. The especially successful small machine D 968.100 ZO (S1) has a clamping force of 1,000 kN and is fitted with all components of a big machine. With 1,600 kN the vertical machine D 968.160 ZO (S1) is ideally suited for medium quantities. The DESMA vertical machine D 968.250 ZO (S1) with a clamping force of 2,500 kN has been the best-seller in the standard machine series ZO for many years. Another machine, is the SEALMASTER S3 series that’s easy to maintain, and with generously dimensioned doors providing optimum access to all machine components. The sturdy design with maximum bending stability guarantees a uniformly perfect product quality.  Apart from the FIFO-Advanced feature, the SEALMASTER S3 series also provides innovative DESMA technologies such as PlastControl, ActiveFeed and QuickLock.