For more than 40 years, the brothers Hubert and Berndt Heller managed Gebr. Heller Maschinenfabrik GmbH, initiating the company’s internationalisation and numerous product developments. On the occasion of the company’s 125th anniversary, they look back at the past and also venture a look into the future development of the company.
TEXT Helmut Angeli PHOTOS Tina Trumpp
Mr Hubert Heller, you took on leadership of the company following the death of your father when you were barely over 20. How well were you prepared for this task at the time?
H. Heller: Our father suffered from a serious heart condition and knew he would not live much longer. Therefore, he prepared me for what was to come as well as he could, teaching me everything he thought was important. He discussed all the technical development goals with me, but most of all, he pointed out the significance of our staff to me. Following his death, I first completed my studies and spent a few months in England to improve my language skills. Subsequently, I joined the company and did my duty.
You say ‘duty’. As a young man, wouldn’t you have liked to see more of the world first, discovering new horizons or foreign cultures?
H. Heller: It simply wasn’t an option. And I saw plenty of the world later on throughout my professional life …
… but only in the context of your work …
H. Heller: … that doesn’t mean that I didn’t take the time to take in all the beautiful things on my travels. I can quite rightly say that I haven’t missed anything in this regard.
You, Mr Berndt Heller, still went to grammar school at the time and surely could have pursued other professional goals. Did you really want to study engineering?
B. Heller: Yes, absolutely. From my earliest youth, I wanted to be like my father. I never had any desire to become anything else.
So being a fireman or a train driver was never your wish?
B. Heller: No, never. My dream job was to be an engineer and I was lucky to be able to go to university in Aachen after graduating from school. After obtaining my degree, I joined the company, working in various departments for a year before being appointed to the management.
How would you describe the company HELLER at that time?
B. Heller: It was a medium-sized company employing approx. 1,600 staff, with transferlines being the mainstay of sales. In terms of products, we still manufactured electro-hydraulical controlled longitudinal and production milling machines at the time, but also one machining centre model. Without a question, HELLER was the absolute technology leader in terms of electro-hydraulical controls at the time. Much of the experience gained in this field was later incorporated into the development of our own CNC.
H. Heller: At the time, our father had already realised that electro-hydraulics was a useful control technology and had therefore promoted its development. He also coined the phrase: “The nervous system is electric, the muscle hydraulic.”
However, this changed very much in the following years.
B. Heller: Not immediately, but we soon directed our development efforts towards series machines. With the PF series, an entirely new kind of travelling column machine, we partly achieved this goal. The BEA 1 was the first real series machine we launched into the market. We sold more than 100 machines of that type per year. Despite this, transferlines were still the number one revenue contributors.
H. Heller: The development of the BEA 1 coincided with the customers’ demands for increased flexibility. At the time, we made the first steps towards increasing the flexibility of the transferlines by using standardised interfaces and then also began offering flexible manufacturing lines consisting of linked machining centres.
Would you say that the development of machining centres was also part of your efforts to reduce the company’s dependency on the automotive industry?
H. Heller: Of course. However, this point is often misinterpreted. We have very good relationships with our customers from the automotive industry and it was not about cutting our ties with the ‘overly powerful’ car industry. Rather, our goal was to become more independent of the investment cycles in these sectors and to expand our customer base.
Was this the period when HELLER developed the uniPro CNC control?
B. Heller: Not only did we have the CNC, but also our own in-house developed programmable logic controller (PLC) and drives. The uniPro control ranked among the top controls of the time as far as performance was concerned. At the same time, we were able to adapt the control algorithms to our machine concept, making the machine and the control work in perfect harmony.
Despite this, the development of the uniPro control was discontinued.
B. Heller: It was only logical. Our customers wanted to focus on as few control suppliers as possible and, at the same time, internationalisation of our business made the use of controls known throughout the world inevitable.
So there were no technical reasons for abandoning in-house development of controls.
B. Heller: By no means. Until today, I would say that the uniPro control ranked among the top CNC controls available at the time as far as performance is concerned. This can also be seen from the fact that Siemens was keen to integrate some of our features and software developments into their own CNC.
You mentioned internationalisation. Was this development also pushed ahead by your customers?
H. Heller: Yes, absolutely. Let’s take Brazil, for example: many German automotive manufacturers had established production facilities in the country and encouraged their suppliers to do the same. Among other factors were the import duties on machine tools of more than 30 percent. The crucial factor for us, however, was service quality and having a local presence. Another example is the UK: at the time, the automotive industry in the country was strong. So we decided to establish an efficient service location there as a first step and then to also build production facilities going forward.
It’s a known fact that the machine tool sector relies on qualified professionals. Probably these were not so easy to come by in Brazil. Where did you find skilled staff?
H. Heller: At the beginning, we mainly looked for people of German origin, also to help with the language barrier. We provided them with in-depth training here in Nürtingen before they returned to Brazil to provide training for other staff. Today, we have a highly skilled team of staff there doing an excellent job.
B. Heller: Although we should not forget to mention that we had an interesting constellation in Brazil in the early years with three sales and assembly companies – namely HELLER, Index and Pfauter – sharing the mechanical manufacturing facilities. None of us would have been able to afford such a well-equipped manufacturing plant. Unfortunately, it was disbanded in the further course, but we used the mechanical manufacturing as a nucleus for our plant in Brazil which we expanded later. At its peak, up to 120 machines were produced there every year.
A volume that is probably far from today’s production numbers …
B. Heller: … not necessarily. Currently, the production volume should be at around 100 centres.
Basically, the cooperation of three German machine tool manufacturers was a fascinating idea. Why didn’t it work out?
H. Heller: The reason was the limited capacity of mechanical manufacturing. When there was an economic boom, we did not have the capacities to meet the demand, and when the demand situation differed from company to company, one was keen to expand the facilities, whilst the others were not. Therefore, the three of us mutually agreed that we would take over the joint manufacturing facilities, operating them alone.
Are the machines produced in Brazil only intended for the South American market?
H. Heller: At HELLER, we have a motto: “Not made in Germany or made in Brazil, but made by HELLER.” The centres manufactured at the site are produced for the world market.
In HELLER quality?
B. Heller: These machines are subject to and meet the same quality standards as machines produced in Nürtingen. Here and there, the components are machined in an air-conditioned environment on advanced large machining centres. There is no difference. This is also reflected in the fact that the columns and beds for specific machine sizes used throughout the entire HELLER Group are supplied from Brazil. A company like ours simply cannot afford to produce different qualities. This applies without limitation for all our plants, whether in Brazil, the UK, the US, China or Germany.
Talking about the UK. Will the forthcoming Brexit have an influence on the business activities of the HELLER location in the UK?
B. Heller: This question cannot be reliably answered in detail at this point. Basically, we see no major drawbacks for us. Our facilities in Redditch are a pure assembly plant, importing all major components and exporting a large part of the finished machines. Based on this roll-back procedure, we do not consider potential tariffs the decisive factor and as a machine tool manufacturer can therefore take a fairly relaxed view on the impact of Brexit.
Are you similarly confident about potential obstructions resulting from the US trade policies suggested by President Trump?
H. Heller: With our local presence we are well set up in the US, yet what is important is not to underestimate the influence of the American industry. The majority of the relevant supplier companies are located in Mexico. So, complicating the delivery situation through tariffs and restrictions cannot be in the interest of the North American automotive industry. Moreover, this is not a situation we can influence in any way.
The company’s commitment in China with local production facilities must have been based on similar considerations.
H. Heller: That’s correct. With the difference that all equipment providers in the country are encouraged to procure many of the required accessories, such as conveyors, on the local market.
What are the effects of this internationalisation on the Nürtingen location? Will the parent company lose in significance as a result?
B. Heller: The Nürtingen headquarters is and will remain the centre of all activities of HELLER. This is where our central development unit is located and where all relevant decisions are made in the end. The entire group operates like a network with one location helping the other. Nürtingen continues to play a special role in this.
So far, we only spoke about management decisions taken by
the brothers Hubert and Berndt which had a positive impact on
the company. Were there any decisions that proved to be a misjudgement later?
B. Heller: We were both involved in the leadership of the company for several decades. Therefore, it would be presumptuous to assume that all the decisions we made were right. Misjudging a situation is human. What is crucial is to correct a mistake as quickly as possible and in a sustainable manner.
Can you give us an example?
B. Heller: It was incomprehensible to me that we were successfully building horizontal machining centres but had no vertical machining centres in our portfolio. So we began developing a vertical machining centre in HELLER quality. Although we approached this task with verve and, in my opinion, much know-how, we found that the given budget wouldn’t be sufficient by far. Therefore, we stopped the development and didn’t even build a prototype.
The question that arises is how did you make such significant decisions? With two Managing Directors, there is no majority vote. Consequently, everything has to be agreed by consensus.
B. Heller: That’s correct and it’s a good thing. Principally, we discussed all important decisions in detail, always looking for and finding solutions that would advance the company’s goals. At the same time, we both focused on different key areas. Whilst my brother concentrated on customer relations and association activities, I focused on development, design and production.
H. Heller: We used to put it this way: Berndt is the interior minister, and I am the foreign minister.
With the exception of the example in Brazil, cooperations with other manufacturers have never really been a goal of HELLER. Is there any particular reason for that?
H. Heller: What advantages would that have given us? Growth makes good sense when it is based on your own efforts. Buying other companies is not really a solution in this regard. And solely increasing the company’s size was never our goal.
The machine tool as the final product is only one side of the coin.
As a manufacturer you also have to ensure that they run without interruption …
H. Heller: HELLER is the right place for this. Efficient service is indispensable. Our father used to say: “We do not sell machines, we well production.” In other words: once sold, the machines have to keep running and be productive.
B. Heller: … and I believe that we can unreservedly say that HELLER is among the very best in the industry as far as service is concerned.
How do you determine this?
B. Heller: We have always attached great importance to providing our service staff with the best possible training and also placed a great emphasis on the serviceability of all components when designing the machines, as for example with the HELLER zero-spindle system. With most of our competitors, the replacement of a motor spindle takes between four to eight hours, whereas on the HELLER machine, the same task can be completed in less than 30 minutes.
You both withdrew from operative business relatively early. Especially in family businesses that is not always the case. Were there any specific reasons for this?
H. Heller: I wouldn’t say that we withdrew ‘early’. In the partnership agreement we both determined that each of us would withdraw from the operational management level at the age of 63. The goal was to prevent the possibility of new ideas and concepts being blocked over an extended period.
When Mr Winkler and Mr Maier took over management, the company was not managed by any members of the family for the first time in its history. Why actually?
B. Heller: The next generation of the family pursues different goals. It was simply a fact we had to account for.
H. Heller: With the two gentlemen we are lucky to have two personalities who think and act the same way as family members. It couldn’t have turned out any better.
However, that doesn’t mean that there will never be another Heller family member at the head of the company again …
B. Heller: … of course not. At the moment, it’s not on the agenda, simply because the potential candidates are still too young.
Do you, as an associate or chairman, still have an influence on the company’s day-to-day business?
H. Heller: No.
B. Heller: Only within the scope of my supervisory board mandate.
And this takes us to the present time. There is a lot of talk at the moment about a radical change in the machine tool sector in connection with Industry 4.0. Do you share this view?
B. Heller: Let me just say a few words about Industry 4.0. There is no truly generally accepted explanation or even definition of this term and what it means exactly. Everyone seems to have a different idea about it. In terms of the machine tool, I do not see these drastic changes. I rather see it as a continuous development towards complete machining centres, a trend that has already been around for quite a while, of course. Today, customers want the machine to produce finished parts and it is our task to ensure this is possible with our systems.
H. Heller: After all, the fact that it will be possible to acquire an increasing amount of data in the future has no impact on the concept of the machine. And, allow me to raise the question: what are we going to do with the masses of data? Who will process them and who will draw the right conclusions? What we should ask ourselves is how great will be the effort involved and how great the resulting benefit. Above all, every future machine concept will be tailored to our customers’ needs. The customer decides what he wants – no one else.
How do you feel about the integration of additive processes into modern machine tools?
B. Heller: HELLER is synonymous with highly productive machine technology. Therefore, I doubt if it makes sense to integrate such time-consuming machining options. To me, it seems much more logic to incorporate these machining systems into superordinate systems as we did with our CBC machine.
As a company working mainly with the automotive industry, you would expect HELLER to keep an eagle eye on the advance of e-mobility. Do you see dark clouds gathering on the horizon?
B. Heller: Again, we should take a more differentiated look at the situation. Combustion engines will continue to be the predominant drive concept for many years to come. Should hybrid vehicles establish themselves successfully in the market, not much is going to change
for us as an equipment supplier. Before electric cars can become established on a large scale, the relevant infrastructure has to be in place. We still have a long way to go to achieve this. Moreover, the overall ecobalance of electric cars is by far not as positive as often publicised.
Would you like to have operational responsibility today?
H. Heller: Yes – but with the restriction that I would have to be younger and healthier.
B. Heller: Not really. I was responsible for the employees and the company for almost 40 years and that should be enough.
