Interview with Jacek Oberem (on the right) and Przemyslaw DegĂłrski from WObit

Przemyslaw DegĂłrski: If it's about production, it would have to start with the research and development department, because it creates new products and systems for customers . His employees now have access to new rooms that enable assembly of prototype devices and testing.

The laboratory is well-equipped with measuring and testing apparatus, including also specialized devices enabling measurement of disturbances that enable us to perform on-site tests of pre-compliance. In the design process, we use some CAD / CAM software that allows you to do simulations and create systems - from virtual projects to real ones.

Department of Research and Development was equipped, among others, in the printer, three-dimensional, calibrated coordinate machine and calibration devices that allow for precise measurements and prototyping.

So what are your current production capabilities?

PD: A large part of the investment was the creation of a machine park, including fiber lasers, numeric machine tools, edge and hydraulic presses, grinders, cut-off machines and surface mount machines. It allows us both to produce mechanical elements, as well as electronic systems that we used to manufacture earlier or outsourced, or we did them in the case of small series. Now most of them are done automatically, which definitely increased reproducibility and quality. We also care about the last one by streamlining production planning and product inspection process before delivery to the customer.

An additional benefit of owned machines, in addition to the possibility of manufacturing in longer series, is also production for warehouse. Creating a proper buffer was very important to us, because recently we had more questions than we were able to serve. Recipients sometimes have to wait for our products, which affected the company's image. Therefore, the automation of the production itself was crucial.

Czy można powiedzieć, że wraz ze zmianą lokalową znaleźliście się jednocześnie w docelowym miejscu rozwoju firmy, które dawniej wyznaczył jej założyciel, Witold Ober? Innymi słowy - czy staliście się dostawcą kompletnych rozwiązań mechatronicznych?

JO: Judge, yes - in any case, we have significantly approached this goal. In the past, we did not have the right technical or space facilities to implement this vision. Now this is already possible thanks to the EU project "Increase of technological and product innovativeness of the company WObit in the field of automation and robotics", implemented within the framework of Measure 4.4. New investments with high innovation potential from the Operational Program Innovative Economy for the years 2007-2013.

Previous years were definitely needed to properly prepare for the possibilities we have now gained. We used them both to expand the range of sales with new technologies, as well as to develop our own devices and systems. Thanks to this, visitors to our booth at trade fairs were able to familiarize themselves with the latest in our offer. For example, two years ago they were linear axes, while during last year's fair a complete SCARA robot.

During this time, you have also succeeded in expanding and completing the offer so that you can create a complete system. The second issue is whether it will be a dedicated or standardized application, just like the robot mentioned above. WObit is an experienced partner for clients, we are able to offer them solutions to specific problems - in particular related to more complex, complex systems.

Which ones?

PD: Niedawno wykonaliśmy aplikację związaną z doborem kompletnego systemu napędowego do obrabiarek do drewna dla jednego z producentów maszyn. W tym przypadku konieczne było precyzyjne sterowanie, aby wykonywały odpowiedni rozkrój. W projekcie wykorzystaliśmy silniki serwo, nasze panele operatorskie, stworzyliśmy też oprogramowanie. Jeżeli zaś chodzi o klientów końcowych, to na przykład stworzyliśmy kompletny system skanujący uszczelki. W jego przypadku na manipulatorze XY zamontowana jest głowica skanera, która w lot dokonuje pomiarów z określoną precyzją. W tym projekcie zintegrowaliśmy napędy, moduł liniowy, a także skaner laserowy i układ pomiarowy. Wdrożenie obejmowało też wykonanie dedykowanego oprogramowania, związanego z wykonywanymi pomiarami.

JO: The word - the key that best describes this type of project is the "solution". From the customer's perspective, the most important thing is the possibility to offer us solutions to his technical problem - be it in the area of â??â??automation, mechatronics or, for example, robotics. This is, of course, not only about the sale of individual components matched to the client's application, but also from a complete solution.

Is getting involved in such orders is also a way to grow your business? What is the scale of this activity in relation to distribution?

PD: Distribution of products is characterized by less involvement of knowledge and experience of a team of specialists than the implementation and creation of complete systems. In the case of the latter, there is added value in the form of the project and our know-how. Therefore, we consider the best type of business where we can offer the recipient more than the products themselves or the use of cross-selling, by offering the system.

Jeżeli dotyczy to klienta detalicznego, to zwykle zainteresowany jest zamówieniem jednorazowym i wtedy tworzymy aplikację pod jego konkretne wymogi. Jeżeli natomiast mówimy o odbiorcy OEM, to może on szukać zarówno samych produktów, jak też większych rozwiązań. W każdym z przypadków zapewniamy odpowiednie wsparcie techniczne. Od początku istnienia zależy nam na byciu firmą, która przekazuje wiedzę i wręcz się nią dzieli, a nie tylko odsprzedaje produkty.

The share of solutions dedicated to total turnover is increased. By perceiving this percentage, you can say that our production gives us about 15% of turnover, while applications - a few percent. This is not much, it could have been published, although the application was old enough that it was even difficult to present it in a reliable percentage form.

Was the development of the offer related to complete systems also a way to escape from competing for price? How many applications you create are repetitive?

PD: Certain systems, although designed for specific orders, are repeatable. For example, I could include a rotary table, for example, which we used in many different projects. Similarly with the scanner, we also made pan & tilt devices for carrying cameras and lasers - they are all mechatronic systems that can be used many times, adjusting the parameters to the customer's requirements each time.

JO: Oferowanie rozwiązań zdecydowanie jest sposobem na ucieczkę od argumentu najniższej ceny. W tym pomaga nam również rozwijanie własnych produktów, czego dobrym przykładem jest technika liniowa. Postanowiliśmy wybiec w przód, oferując m.in. inny rodzaj wyrobów z zakresu techniki liniowej - komplementarny do dotychczasowej oferty, a w określonych zastosowaniach wręcz lepszy. Zostawiając w tyle "czerwony ocean" konkurencji, przełożyliśmy nasze siły z walki cenowej na znalezienie ciekawszej alternatywy dla samych klientów. Powyższą strategię realizujemy w wielu innych obszarach. Chcemy oferować ciekawe, nieraz nietypowe produkty, a jednocześnie iść z nurtem i potrzebami rynku.

What other pro-development activities are you taking?

JO: We have increased the direct presence of our employees at our clients, thanks to which we are closer to their production and development needs. The newly created company building also houses a conference room and two training rooms, equipped with mobile furniture and full multimedia support. The trainings we conduct for our clients and distributors have been highly appreciated by the participants.

Modern rooms also facilitate internal meetings during which our employees train, meetings with our suppliers who are accustomed to modern technologies. On the other hand, during exhibition events, we try to provide our clients with new products, not only in the form of new products introduced to the offer, but also new solutions, all applications.

The movable, interesting demos of the fair, illustrating the possibilities of automation and robotics are becoming increasingly frequent. The client can count on a meeting with our specialists, substantive and technical conversation and receive a proposal for a complete solution - this was the case, among others during the last edition of the Automaticon fair in Warsaw and the Innovation-Technologies-Machines fair in PoznaĹ?.

The password "products" has appeared many times. What new offer do you offer?

PD: I would point here to new drivers for stepper motors and DCs as well as measurement modules. However, while the latter are part of our many years of development and are subsequent versions of those already offered, in the future we want to concentrate more on the mechatronic and robotic fields.

At last year's Automaticon and ITM fairs, we showed the prototype of the SCARA robot we developed, which goes into the production phase. The current version differs from the one presented with both improved design and the possibility of selecting drives - stepper motors or servo. You can also use different types of gears that change precision and speed of operation. The customer will then be able to configure his robot - choose a faster and cheaper version or a slower one and… yet taĹĄÄ?szÄ?.

JO: Uważam, że z oferowanym produktem nie wchodzimy w obszar konkurencyjny w stosunku do firm takich jak Mitsubishi czy EPSON, które od lat oferują roboty przemysłowe. Nasz produkt to zupełnie inny rząd cenowy, ale też inne parametry. Dla wielu klientów te ostatnie mogą być jednak w zupełności wystarczające, natomiast cena będzie decydującym argumentem. Jest ona wprawdzie podobna do konkurencyjnych, jeżeli chodzi o liczby bezwzględne, natomiast wyraża się w złotówkach, a nie w euro. Dodam, że w pierwszych miesiącach po prezentacji udało się nam zainteresować robotem już kilka firm.

Jeżeli chodzi o robotykę, to zawsze byliście obecni na różnych imprezach studenckich z nią związanych. Jak wygląda obecnie ta aktywność i generalnie obecność firmy WObit na uczelniach wyższych?

JO: The need to focus on professional clients did not mean that we would give up acting at universities. We create places for apprentices, we teach at technical universities, we support youth from secondary schools, we cooperate with students, Wroclaw's SCORPIO scientific club or, for example, an educational company operating in the RoboNET company. However, we actually reduced our participation in events such as robotics.

We focused on the industry, because we simply had to concentrate on something to finance the construction, equipment of the company and implement the co-financed project. For these reasons, in the case of fairs in the nearest future, we will be mainly where it is indispensable - ie at the largest trade exhibitions.

I would like to add that the reason for some of the changes were also factors independent of us, because such, among others, was the decision of organizers of PoznaĹ? fairs about the completion of the Automa exhibition.

We did not talk much about employees of WObit, and it really depends on them the functioning and future of the company. How did the discussed changes affect your cadre?

JO: WObit is an enterprise that combines distribution, design, production and integration activities, but remains primarily a solid engineering company. This is the great merit of our co-workers, from whom everything really begins and without them the construction of a new headquarters would not make sense.

WObit to firma rodzinna, jej kultura organizacyjna i wartości jakie może zaoferować ona swoim pracownikom, to coraz częściej doceniane przez osoby poszukujące pracy kryteria wyboru pracodawcy. Stawiamy na bezpieczeństwo i stabilność zatrudnienia, poszanowanie zasad współżycia społecznego, dobrą komunikację i współpracę, które sprzyjają lepszemu rozwojowi. Wierzymy, że dobra atmosfera współpracy daje możliwość pełniejszego wykorzystania zdolności i możliwości wszystkich pracujących, zarówno dla dobra firmy, jak i dla osobistego rozwoju pracownika. Stanowimy świetny zespół, a połączenie dwóch oddziałów firmy wpłynęło na lepsze, bliższe relacje i integrację oraz szybszą i efektywniejszą komunikację.

WObit from the beginning of the activity was focused on the person. We invested in employees, we gave them the possibility to develop the wings, acquire knowledge and experience. Constant improvement, broadening one's knowledge and skills, and learning are necessary, because there are no shortcuts. Older employees, thanks to the company's new possibilities, gained new possibilities for personal development. We also care about the development of new employees, among others through their collaboration in projects that provides them with rapid experience acquisition.

Honesty in business, healthy relationships with competitors are obvious to employees of the company, causing professional and private contacts with WObit to bring benefits and pride to clients, employees and cooperators.

For us, the team of people counts first and the new headquarters gives us the opportunity to implement tomorrow's technologies and deliver to the market the most modern solutions in the field of measurements, drives, robotics and mechatronics.

Dziękuję za  rozmowę. Zbigniew Piątek

źródło: www.automatykab2b.pl

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