Listening to the market

 

KHS GmbH in an international, industry-leading manufacturer of filling and packaging equipment for the food and beverage industry, as well as non-food sectors. Today, this Germany-based company has production facilities in the U.S., Mexico, Brazil, India and China (in addition to Germany). We sat down with Prof. Dr. Johann Grabenweger, the Chief Sales Officer for KHS, to learn about how they conceive of and design their innovative products, how they have strategized their international expansion and how the company maintains its position as a leader in this industry.

GSC: KHS has proven itself to be a true innovator in the field of filling and packaging equipment in the food and beverage industry. Your products are highly versatile and customizeable, as demonstrated by your turnkey lines, which can be configured to accommodate several different types of beverages and multiple container types. What has the process of innovation been like when it comes to conceiving of, designing and ultimately selling products that can perform so many different functions? How do ideas become reality at KHS?

Prof. Dr. Johann Grabenweger: In the more than 145-year-history of KHS, our priority has always been to identify market and customer needs, but also to act as a kind of forward thinker in enterprise-driven innovations.

So a part of innovation at KHS comes first from our customers' corresponding complex needs and requirements in the context of a "market pull" (e.g., energy savings, product safety, level of automation, etc.). In this case, methods such as QFD and FMEA are used to identify and describe market requirements. From these demands, our engineers in the research and development departments develop the suitable concepts and products in collaboration with the respective product managers and according to a clearly defined stage gate development process.

Moreover, innovation management observes promising technologies and examines their relevance for future KHS products. To place these technologies as effectively as possible at KHS and successfully later in the market, innovation management works closely with the product strategy team.

 

GSC: KHS currently has production facilities in the U.S., Brazil, Mexico, India and China, giving your company a strong foothold on four different continents. How have you decided which markets to move into, in terms of what factors you have taken into consideration?

​Prof. Dr. Johann Grabenweger: With our international production network, we are in a position to always respond optimally to various regions' specific requirements. Our customers benefit particularly here from the short transport distances, the fast service and the adherence to KHS high quality standards in all plants.

The product portfolio of the individual factories is also always adapted to the local conditions and potential. Therefore we react, for example, with our factory in China to the continuously growing water market in Asia. For this purpose, the new EcoBloc series of machines is made specifically for regional needs in the PET sector in China.

 

GSC: What qualities of your products have made them so successful worldwide?

​Prof. Dr. Johann Grabenweger: The entire product portfolio of KHS has been developed in conjunction with customer requirements and thus it meets the needs of our industry. I think this plays a big part in the success of our products in the market.

Another point is certainly our products' and services' consistent adherence to the high quality standards of KHS. Plant availability, energy and media savings through fuel-efficient technologies, hygienic design and user-friendly systems play a major role. Performance and reliability are two areas where we excel again and again.

 

GSC: The realm of automation has seen significant changes and technological advances in the last two decades. How has your company worked to make sure its products remain state-of-the-art among such rapid changes? 

​Prof. Dr. Johann Grabenweger: We see the continuously advancing automation endeavors in the global market for filling and packaging machines as a constant challenge for our company. Listening to the market, we recognize trends early and continuously develop improvements to our products according to the prevailing market requirements.

 

GSC: Thank you, Prof. Dr. Grabenweger, for this Interview.

Further Information: www.khs.com