Hamburg, 7 July 2015. For Andreas Pfannenberg, the small and medium-sized companies’ secret of success lies in a sustainable culture of innovation. The entrepreneur runs a global family business for electro-technology in second generation. Pfannenberg was named Hamburg’s Family Business of the year by the association “The Family Business Owners” for consistent orientation to continuous further development of his company by innovative solutions. The institution which was founded in 1949, represents the economic interests of 180,000 family businesses with eight million employees in Germany. Hamburg’s mayor, Olaf Scholz presented Andreas Pfannenberg with the “Schalthebel der Wirtschaft” (“Lever of the Economy”) award at a gala event on 6 July 2015. Scholz praised Pfannenberg as a literal shining example: “Rooted in our region Hamburg, manufacturing worldwide!”
Becoming a Hidden Champion with culture of innovation
The statement of the jury says Pfannenberg’s “highly innovative range of services for engineers” is absolutely “prototypical for the German small and medium-sized business segment with its Hidden Champions”. Founded in 1954, Pfannenberg GmbH has worked to achieve a leading position in their special markets of electro-technology and thermal management. With courage, modernity and vision, the management board has anchored an “electrifying” capacity for action within the company and has established an excellent culture of innovation, the jury statement continues. Andreas Pfannenberg confirms: “We generate about 40 per cent of our turnover with products that are younger than four years old”.
Sharing Competence as a basis for culture of innovation
Pfannenberg has its own research and development department at each of its four production locations (Hamburg, China, USA, Italy). An important principle is that of “Sharing Competence”. Suppliers and customers are included in the innovative planning by means of workshops. “Through this cooperation we consciously reveal part of our company-internal knowhow,” explains Andreas Pfannenberg: “But in that way we are able to develop products and solutions which the market really demands and which optimally exploit the technological possibilities.”
Foreseeing Industry Trends and taking action together
According to Pfannenberg’s beliefs, the future belongs to devices that are intelligent and connected, that communicate with each other and with the user. That’s why he commits himself to the topic Industry 4.0 beyond the borders of his own company. As speaker for the digital platform Industrie 4.0 in Hamburg, he brings the companies and politics in the region together in designing and planning the topic future. In his speech, Andreas Pfannenberg thanks his 450 employees for their performance, their commitment and their identification with the company, “without which the success would not be possible.”
Note: You can find out how Pfannenberg, the medium-sized specialist for thermal management and signaling technology, is preparing the generation change and thereby setting the course for further expansion in the interview with Andreas Pfannenberg, Chairman of the Board in the attached PDF.
