Maßanzüge aus Metall EN Bespoke tailoring in metal

Systems from Kallfass in Klosterreichenbach and Wernigerode are in great demand all over the world, and order books are filled...

Kallfass is an enterprise from Wernigerode that constructs plant for sawmills all over the world. Targeted revenue for this year is 23 million EUR.

Kallfass GmbH – Maschinen plus Automation in Wernigerode has made its mark on the global market. Located in the Harz, the subsidiary of the parent company in the Black Forest community of Klosterreichenbach constructs special machinery for processing sawn timber. These plants are installed all over the world. The company aims to achieve a turnover of 23 million EUR for the first time this year. After delivering a completed plant, the production facility in the Stadtfeld industrial park can appear pretty manageable at first glance. Indeed, it is hard to imagine that plants often measuring 100 metres in length, 20 metres in width and 10 metres in height are manufactured here for use all over the world.

… Carefully packed, many plants have set out from Wernigerode on the journey to their new destination. Some made their way to Austria, while other machines were also delivered to Sweden. Specialists from Wernigerode were also responsible for constructing a plant in South Africa. Kallfass is not simply a hardware provider. It also takes care of on-site plant construction.

… All plants, including those already assembled, also need to be serviced at regular intervals. This machinery from the Harz is definitely not an off-the-peg solution. Each plant is, in its own way, a “Rolls Royce”, says Enrico Goldhahn (Operations Manager at Kallfass GmbH in Wernigerode). Each plant is completely unique, including those fully automated solutions which, in this age of Industry 4.0, the company finds itself increasingly constructing and installing. One merely needs to enter a code here, and the machines adapt and adjust to suit the respective product. “Sometimes we construct really large plants, and then – and only then – is the factory built to house them. We’re making, so to speak, bespoke suits in metal.

… We’ve made a point for years now of ensuring that we can always rely on a steady supply of young highly qualified talent”, explains Goldhahn, pointing out the training results of his apprentices. These are consistent in their excellence, so it comes as no surprise that the skills of Kallfass personnel and Kallfass plants made in Germany enjoy an excellent reputation all over the world.

… The export share is generally around 75 %. Solutions are realised for clients all around the globe, with customers in North and South America, France, Scotland, the Netherlands and even Australia.

… The next plants will be installed in Austria, Lithuania and Switzerland. A sorting machine here, a planing unit there, and a stacking line over there. And Russia is also a popular destination. It is an extremely significant market, a fact reflected in the order books. These are filled for the next 18 months with commissions.

Forecasts clearly indicate that future expansion can be expected at both the parent company in Klosterreichenbach in the Black Forest and the Wernigerode location in the Harz. In the Black Forest, the company has just grown through the acquisition of an additional facility. Consideration is also been given to expanding capacities in the Harz. Throughout Europe, the machine manufacturers from Kallfass are number two in their sector

 

Text Frank Drechsler, Harzer-Wirtschschaftsblatt September/Oktober 2019