“Together #1” has been ASM’s motto for the merger of SIPLACE and DEK. It also underscored the company’s aim to become the market leader in SMT solutions. Based on the latest market data, ASM has now reached this goal, making this a good time to set new priorities to strengthen and expand its position with the start of the 2015 Productronica, the industry’s most important trade show, just around the corner. In its product development activities, the company is setting a clear course for the highly flexible electronics factory of the future under the slogan “Smart #1 SMT Factory”. Accordingly, this year’s Productronica will witness the rollout of many new, powerful solutions for printing and placement. Automation, process integration and flexible material logistics are other areas that will see plenty of innovative solutions. On the organizational level, CEO Günter Lauber is setting the course towards “smart” as well. His goal is to establish a “smart #1 organization” without the rigid structures of the past with an all-powerful headquarters and regional offices. The “smart” company will be consistently global and operate within an agile network structure with global functions and local responsibilities. The regional sales and service organizations will be realigned to make it easier for customers to get support and services for integrated solutions.
“We have reached our goal. After the merger of SIPLACE and DEK to form the SMT Solutions segment within ASMPT, we are now the world’s largest supplier of electronics manufacturing solutions, as indicated by our market analyses for late 2014/early 2015. We want to strengthen and expand this hard-earned position in the coming months,” said Günter Lauber, CEO of ASM SMT Solutions in advance of the Productronica trade show (Munich Trade Fair Center, Nov. 10-13, A3.377).
The company’s strategy for expanding its market leadership goes by the name “Smart #1 SMT Factory”. ASM SMT Solutions has aligned its product development activities under this motto and will present many products that can be linked to form integrated factory solutions that make electronics manufacturing sites all over the world more intelligent, flexible and efficient. In addition to advancing his company’s development and production activities, Lauber is also realigning its regional sales and service structure to make it easier for customers to get in touch with the right people and departments.
“Integrated solutions require comprehensive and integrated customer support. The need for services and consulting is huge in this field. Customers want to know how to best transform their sites into smart factories step-by-step. This is a challenge we gladly take on,” said Lauber about his company’s plans. “To do this, we are taking a fresh approach with the changes in our sales and service organizations. Customers should be able to talk with their respective contact person about all our hardware and software products and how to integrate them into comprehensive manufacturing solutions irrespective of their specific brands. Only by being in constant touch with their customers will our sales representatives know each customer’s current situation in this transformation so that they can work with them to develop an individual roadmap to the Smart #1SMT Factory.”
