Press

22.06.2010 - Wedemark

Production and Technology Centre gives Sennheiser the technical edge (copy)

With its new Production and Technology Centre, audio specialist Sennheiser has completed the largest construction project in the company‘s history. The company headquarters in Wennebostel is now home to one of the most modern assembly plants in Northern Germany.

Audio specialist Sennheiser invested around 15 million euros in the new Production and Technology Centre On 24th November 2008 the first spadeful of earth was dug by Prof. Dr. Jörg Sennheiser, Chairman of the Supervisory Board. Some 14 months later assembly began in the new Production and Technology Centre Production in the new building – all work processes and material flows are organised and optimised in line with the latest findings on workplace layout and workflow organisation

Audio specialist Sennheiser has spent around 15 million euros on the new Production and Technology Centre, not including the costs involved in moving production from Burgdorf and transferring the engineering department. As part of the construction of the new building, all manufacturing processes were reorganised to create increased efficiency for the future. “The meticulous planning and the intensive consultation process with ergonomists and manufacturing experts has paid off”, concluded Volker Bartels, President of Manufacturing and Logistics. “From the beginning of this year our production and engineering staff have been working in a superbly well-organised and motivating environment.” Since that time, Sennheiser has been enjoying the benefits of a highly modern production system concentrated on one site with optimum material flows and work processes. From test pit to high-tech production – a review Once the geological test pits had been completed, the first symbolic spade-full of earth was dug on 24th November 2008 in an official opening ceremony marking the start of construction on the new Production and Technology Centre. The topping-out ceremony was celebrated on 18th May 2009 and the building was completed at the end of 2009. The move from Burgdorf to Wennebostel took eight weeks, which involved moving 230 machines, the heaviest of which weighed around 10 tons. Two pick-and-place machines for electronics production were lifted into the building by crane through an opening in the roof. The new Production and Technology Centre was built right next to the existing production building and the two sites linked together. The technical edge in products and production processes “We have to ensure that our processes are flexible enough to adapt to changing market demands. That’s why one of our key priorities was the versatility of the building”, explained Volker Bartels. This has been achieved

– the building covers around 4,200 square metres; the two floors, complete with two galleries, provide ample space with a total of 13,500 square metres. The structure has a vast span width and there is plenty of space between floors. The work stations can be rearranged as necessary to cope with periods of high demand. 
       
 
The new Production and Technology Centre houses mechanical manufacturing, production equipment construction, assembly stations, manual assembly, test areas and offices. Around 440 people are working here. The building also has a production technology lab, where the engineering and production departments work closely together to develop, test and optimise work stations, machinery and inspection equipment. “By building this Production and Technology Centre at our German headquarters we have invested in the future”, said Volker Bartels. “We will be able to use it to further increase our technical edge when it comes to advances in products and product processes.”
   
  

The Sennheiser Group, with its headquarters in Wedemark near Hanover, Germany, is one of the world’s leading manufacturers of microphones, headphones and wireless transmission systems. The family-owned company, which was established in 1945, recorded sales of around €390 million in 2009. Sennheiser employs more than 2,100 people worldwide, and has manufacturing plants in Germany, Ireland and the USA. The company is represented worldwide by subsidiaries in France, Great Britain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Germany, Denmark (Nordic), Russia, Hong Kong, India, Singapore, Japan, China, Canada, Mexico and the USA, as well as by long-term trading partners in many other countries. Also part of the Sennheiser Group are Georg Neumann GmbH, Berlin (studio microphones and monitor loudspeakers), and the joint venture Sennheiser Communications A/S (headsets for PCs, offices and call centres).
  
   
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press_release_220610_en.zip (3,0 MB)
     

You can find all the latest information on Sennheiser by visiting our website at www.sennheiser.com, or by contacting:

       
Sennheiser electronic GmbH & Co. KG
Pressereferat • Edelgard Marquardt
Am Labor 1 • 30900 Wedemark
Fon: +49 (5130) 600-329
Fax: +49 (5130) 600-295
e-Mail: edelgard.marquardt@sennheiser.com