“We need every woman and man”

As Bauerfeind’s Chief Technical Officer, Katharina Dietrich has been responsible for Production and Logistics as well as for Research & Development since Fall 2022. “Seamless” spoke to the 52-year-old about current topics and decisions for the future.

Ms Dietrich, Production and Logistics are figuratively bursting “at the seams”. So now the question is how can this demand for our products be met efficiently in the future? What is your approach to this situation?

I’m aware that we’re currently asking a lot of our employees. They work additional shifts to process orders and refill the warehouses. I’m following a two-pronged approach to find future solutions: on the one hand, we’re checking what we can improve internally. The buzz word is Lean Management. This includes efficient work and optimized processes in our entire supply chain.

Do you have any examples?

Sure. We’re introducing a route train in Zeulenroda. It transports materials and goods quickly, safely, and more efficiently than before. We’re also trying to work out how to streamline delivery to Production. The idea is to provide required materials according to a plan, i.e. cyclically, rather than on demand so this process isn’t interrupted. There are also some opportunities that can reduce the lead times from knitting to packaging of our products. We’re talking by up to 20%! That’s the results from a workshop where we improved the process for the Sports Knee Support. Implementation starts in January. I believe there’s even more potential for internal optimization.

Do you think that’ll be enough to cover all demand in the future?

Not in the long run. That’s why we need the second approach. That deals with the following question: how can we develop our three production sites in Germany? In addition to medical products, our range includes the b:joynz line and our Sports products. The plan is to primarily manufacture medical products in Zeulenroda, Remscheid, and Gera because that’s what our knowledge and technical expertise is all about. For products that are less sophisticated technologically speaking, we can look for strategic production partners in the long term, thus relieving our teams. We’re just starting our research, nothing has been decided yet. One thing is for sure: we need capacities in Germany to manufacture medical products. We need every woman and man!