What is it about your work that you are most proud of? In this issue, we take a look at our production operations: we showcase projects and measures in which we learned from our mistakes, implemented new production steps, and promoted successful inter-location collaboration. These good examples are particularly likely to arise wherever people are ready and willing to take responsibility. They make plans and put these into practice, and when they encounter obstacles, they seek out dialogue with management and other locations.

The prerequisite for these successes is dealing openly with one another. And the basis for this are honest, in-depth conversations based on respect – between colleagues and with management. If we work as a team and keep focusing on our goals, and we take advantage of the expertise each of us has to offer, if we ask questions and actually understand why something isn’t working, we can really get good together. There are many areas where we already are.

In addition to numerous topics concerning our plants, about which you will find out more on the next pages, we are also making good progress with digitalization. Our article on Bardejov tool manufacturing facility reflects how years of sharing ideas and working together have driven them to strive for even greater achievements.

Our own desire to achieve lasting improvement also includes taking a closer look to see whether, after years of the pandemic, our strategy is still right for our company and our competitive environment. We have a new colleague, our new Strategy Officer Daniela Schlick, who has been hired for this very purpose. The fact that we also have great people working on every machine, people who see to it every day that these machines are working properly, and who know what to do whenever something goes wrong, will now be highlighted on a regular basis in our new “My machine and me” feature, which is found at the end of this issue.

At the end of the day, what can be done at every level to help our company? Putting into practice the things we have planned, and keeping the promises we have made. It goes without saying that things do not always go as planned. When that is the case, we have to be open and direct in tackling the problems, so that we can work together to improve and to find solutions.

Best regards,