In November and December last year 17 Chinese executives came to Mannheim under the Manager Training programme. During the third week of their stay, they were given a very special programme highlight: a company visit to Pilz GmbH & Co. KG in the town of Ostfildern. With 40 subsidiaries and branches spanning several continents, over 2,000 members of staff globally and more than EUR 288 million in turnover (2015), Pilz GmbH & Co. KG is one of the biggest players within the field of safety automation.
Upon their arrival, the Chinese visitors were given an overview of the vision and company concept by Sebastian Lüke, speaker for the Board of Management. The company – originally a glassworks – was founded in 1948 by Hermann Pilz and was, even before Siemens, the first to manufacture programmable logic controllers (PLCs). The 1980s saw the inclusion of safety switches. Today, Pilz also develops and produces sensors and actuators. The primary production facility is located in Ostfildern. To date, the company has been kept under family ownership. Pilz has been active in China for a number of years and has, since 2015, had a production facility located in Jintan. A flurry of business card exchanges and photos underscored the significant mutual interest in a professional exchange.
Investment activities in Research and Development play a key role at Pilz. The guests from China were impressed by the fact that approximately 20% of annual turnover is invested in Research and Development. Mr. Lüke provided an overview of the important developments at present, and presented a number of exhibit items. In future, Pilz would like to intensify its focus on camera systems, 3D systems and sensor technology.
The group was also given insight into the company’s HR management as part of an extended knowledge and skills transfer regarding management at German companies. In addition to a varied range of apprenticeship options, Pilz offers qualified applicants the possibility of undertaking their dual vocational training modules, for example, within Computer Sciences or Business Engineering areas. The company places significant value on international experience, even as part of apprenticeship and further professional training for its staff. This means, for example, that an international internship in Switzerland or France is a fixed component of an apprenticeship programme. Furthermore, Pilz also offers school pupils so-called work experience tours during their orientation phase. The “Girls’ Day” is just one of many opportunities to gain an early insight into day-to-day professional life within a company specialising in electronics and/or automation. In its turn, Pilz uses these work experience programmes as an employer marketing tool to pave the way for future recruitment efforts.
To round off the visit, the guests from China were given a tour of the new production facility in Ostfildern, which is the largest of the Pilz Group by surface area. The Chinese visitors displayed particular interest in discovering how Pilz manages high order volume. Subsequently, manager awareness was increased significantly regarding the need for developing talent within the business, and ensuring regular further training and staff motivation. The MP participants were given plenty of ideas for potential implementation within their own businesses.