trailer world issue One 2009

Issue One 2009 19 ﬂuence on the corresponding fas- tening and superstructure technol- ogy when ordering new vehicles. How do you address both these dif- ferent target groups? Our membership of the BPW group helps here. Together with BPW partners, we visit forward- ing agents, hold BPW partner days at our site in Ennepetal and organise joint symposiums with Dekra on various topics, including the important subject of loading security. During these events we particularly try to ﬁnd out what our end customers want, being close to practice is here very im- portant for us. Our products must be able to do one thing in particu- lar: work in the long term. You have been a member of the BPW company group since 1993 but operate, nevertheless, very in- dependently on the market. This is a great beneﬁt for us. BPW is very established in the market and supplies all the well known trailer manufacturers. We can use the synergies which this brings, for example the Europe- wide sales network and jointly de- veloped market strategies. Pillars, fasteners and hinges – that sounds like “old economy.” Is there actually any improvement poten- tial in the products? We are continuously develo- ping all products further, even if these are already very good, and we think they are. In this we use high tech procedures which have nothing in common with the “old economy” which you mention. We are one of the few manufac- turers in this sector who is able to manufacture 3D prototypes. In doing so we get our custom- ers strongly involved in the de- velopment phase, already from the start. The result is then not only sketches but components which correspond exactly to the series products later on and with which new function processes can be tested. We are currently working on the use of alterna- tive working materials – I don’t want to say more on this at the moment. (bo) Photos:Stürtz,Hestal »We strongly involve our customers in the development phase.« Info Further information about Hestal can be found at www.hestal.com Proﬁle Dirk Miesen, born 1965, has been managing director of Hestal since 2004 and pre- viously worked, for several years, as technical managing director of a mid-sized firm. Mr. Miesen is married and has two children, he lives in Bochum. Company proﬁle F. Hesterberg & Söhne GmbH & Co. KG Hestal can look back on more than 225 years experi- ence in the manufacture and trading of steel products. In 1960 the company started out in fastening technology and, since then, the Hestal brand name, which derives from the first syllable of the company founder and the last syllable of the company headquarters in Ennepetal, has been known and repre- sented on the most impor- tant markets for commercial vehicles. Hestal employs 120 employees, 10 per cent of which are trainees. Interview

trailer world issue One 2009

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