It all started in a modest building at what is the most beautiful viewpoint high above Lake Constance. In 1946 the machine designer Ernst Herrmann set up a business for precision mechanics in Walzenhausen, in the Appenzell Canton of Switzerland.
Before undertaking his independent venture, Ernst Herrmann had gathered valuable experience in various firms, latterly in the former Dornier works in Altenrhein. He was not only an efficient toolmaker, but also a stickler for precision – new technologies and materials interested him and very early on he recognized that a great future was in store for plastic as a new material. He carried out experiments in the kitchen oven until he managed to produce the first useable stoppers. He soon decided to purchase the first injection-molding machine. That was the crucial turning point.
It was a great challenge to Ernst Herrmann to be able to manufacture the molds required for production. He was thus in a position to manufacture the plastic parts both to high quality standards and economically. By working hard, he succeded in extending the range on offer and building a steadily growing clientele. The business expanded its staff and its floor space. With each building stage, not only was the production area increased, but also the number of products, the customers and the turnover. One thing however remained constant: the growth curve continued upwards. At the same time its position as market leader could be increasingly consolidated.
Ernst Herrmann, with the constant support of his wife, Fanny Herrmann-Allemann, built up the business with focus. In 1976, Josef Mazzel became Managing Director. Solutions were worked out together with the owners – the Herrmanns, which facilitated further growth at the Walzenhausen site and which guaranteed the very highest quality.
Following the latest business expansion in 2000, with an investment volume of five million Swiss Francs, the firm is proving to be more brilliant and successful than ever. Thanks to the structural expansion which has optimized work processes, to the readiness for innovation and to the skilled and motivated staff Herrmann AG is very well prepared for the future.
Swift reaction to customer requirements
The options for packaging products are almost infinite. This also applies to stoppers – plastic
stoppers can be manufactured in virtually any shape or colour.
Safety standards and design demands require new molds to be devised. Although Herrmann AG manufactures more than 500
different stoppers, there is no standard range. This highlights one of the firm’s very great strengths, in being able to react quickly
to customer requirements.
Herrmann AG has become specialized in developing projects in co-operation with customers. Solutions are found for
even highly specialized customer requests.
Thanks to its own development department and tool manufacturing function, the company is in a position
to manufacture prototypes quickly.
This in turn is an important prerequisite for the flexibility and swift reponsiveness offered by the Herrmann
team. Within a very short period a full-size prototype is made available to the customer. Additional modifications can be made to the design.
If the customer is satisfied then the production tool is also built in-house based on the prototype. After this has been tested on the injection-molding
machine and the subsequent approval of the customer obtained, production can then proceed.
Committed to quality from A to Z
The highest, indeed the very highest, quality demands are placed on stoppers. The stringent hygiene regulations of the pharmaceutical and
food industry already prompted Herrmann AG years ago to introduce careful monitoring of operating processes.
In the knowledge that only comprehensive
quality assurance ensures consistent product quality, Herrmann AG sets high objectives regarding quality. The quality management system in
accordance with ISO 9001 forms the basis for achieving these objectives. A conversion to the new ISO 9001:2000 standard has already been
made and certification consistent with the ISO 13488:1996 standard has been achieved.
The products are tested continually and the measured values
logged during production using the latest measuring instruments and equipment.
The continuous improvement of existing products and the constant
optimization of the production processes are also part of the quality management function. “Quality is the prerequisite for the survival
of the company. We therefore attach the greatest importance not only to quality assurance, but also to improving and maintaining quality at
all levels”.
Modern machinery with automatic injection-molding machines of up to 200 tonnes clamping force
More than 500 million injection molded parts
are supplied by Walzenhausen each year. Approximately one third of them are exported and indeed, to all continents.
Up to 60 per cent of the
customers are from the pharmaceutical and medical sector. The remaining 40 per cent are distributed across the agrochemical, foods, detergents,
cleaning products, lubricants and cosmetics industries.
Screw caps, snap-on caps, stoppers, etc., are produced on the 38 automatic injection-molding
machines. They are used in diverse areas but with only one common factor – that they allow the individual containers to be sealed effectively
and opened easily.
The automatic machines with which they are manufactured have a mould clamping force of 60 to 200 tonnes. Using this immense
force, stoppers sometimes weighing less than one gram are manufactured with the highest precision.
The injection molding equipment is renewed
regularly and upgraded to the latest technological levels. The department operates over three shifts around the clock. Products for the pharmaceutical
sector are manufactured using laminar flow technology – so – called
semi-clean rooms. The assembly, bottling, fitting and bonding equipment in the preparation department also operate at the highest levels
of technology and has been extended considerably thanks to the new building constructed in 2000.
Production Programme
The services offered by the company, Herrmann AG, are:
. Problem-solving and customer support in the development of sealing systems from the original
idea to preparation for serial production.
. The manufacture of plastic stoppers and associated parts in the injection-molding process.
. The filling of screw-caps and stoppers with drying agents.
. Automatic assembly and fitting work.
. Manufacture of injection-molding tools for the company’s use.
High potential of economic growth
Plastic stoppers as caps for jars and tubes and as bottle tops, have been part of everyday life
for a long time. The need for plastic stoppers will increase in the coming years. “We see a large growth potential above all in the pharmaceutical and cosmetics sector”.
Herrmann
AG is one of the few highly specialized firms nowadays, which has the expertise required to be able to maintain its hold on this market worldwide.
The structural extension in 2000 laid the foundations for the future as it allowed further production equipment to be integrated.
At the same
time the ever more stringent requirements regarding hygiene can be increasingly accommodated. Thanks to the new equipment and the optimization
of processes, further increases in productivity will be possible.
The course is thereby clearly set. Herrmann AG will maintain its position
as the leading manufacturer of thermoplastic stoppers and will further consolidate its success.
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