The MANN+HUMMEL Group has presented the Global Supplier Award to 8 suppliers. In this way for the fifth time the filtration specialist acknowledged the excellent services provided by its partners and suppliers. For the third time this year a supplier was awarded a prize for innovative capability. MANN+HUMMEL presented the coveted awards in the presence of more than 100 representatives from the supplier industry.
The partners and suppliers are essential for the success of MANN + HUMMEL, the filtration specialist with global operations. The ever higher requirements of customers in the automotive industry demand consistent quality improvements and greater flexibility of all those involved in the value chain. Given the growth targets of the company, the strategic importance of purchasing and the development of suppliers is increasing.
The motto of this year’s award ceremony in the Technology Center in Ludwigsburg was “Intelligently connected – ready. set. go.” Manfred Wolf, supervisory board member at MANN+HUMMEL emphasized the special importance of the networked cooperation between the company and its suppliers. “The speed of change in an increasingly networked world requires strong partnerships. Consistent customer orientation is also one of the few means which enables us to differentiate ourselves from the competition in a saturated market. MANN+HUMMEL wants to meet these challenges together with its suppliers.”
In his speech, Hanno Höhn, responsible worldwide for purchasing at MANN+HUMMEL, explained: “We feel committed to our customers and our good reputation. This award was initiated to recognize excellent performance and also to serve as an incentive for our suppliers to help us together achieve a decisive competitive advantage in future through performance and innovation”. In order to meet the forthcoming transformation, the company is continuing to invest strongly in new technology and markets, is pushing innovative purchasing and supply chain strategies and regularly provides further training for its employees in this area. “Hierarchical value chains have developed to become value chain networks. In future we must be more flexible and react more quickly to the market and customer requirements. That will only work if all the partners are networked intelligently and thanks to automated processes are able to work closely together,” explains Höhn.
MANN+HUMMEL already has decades of experience working together with numerous partners. Two of the companies honored have received awards on more than one occasion.
The eight “Best of the best” of 61 assessed top suppliers from 16 countries are:
- Uchiyama Manufacturing Corp.
- Smurfit Kappa GmbH
- TK Group International Ltd
- Eltek S.p.A.
- IDEAL TRIDON
- Schröder + Heidler GmbH
- BASF – Performance Materials
- The innovation award goes to WestRock for an innovative and variable packaging design which enables continuous networking and real-time tracking
For some time now the suppliers of MANN+HUMMEL have ceased to be suppliers of just parts. They are also innovation and development partners who contribute towards the competitiveness of both companies. At the present time the purchasing volume of the company group is roughly 60% of total sales revenue. Components and materials for filter systems and elements are primarily purchased.
MANN+HUMMEL plans further growth and an increase in sales in the next years. The regions with strong growth continue to be China and the USA. Reliable partners are crucial for this growth. The standards defined by MANN+HUMMEL and its customers are demanding and require a high level of professionalism in terms of the supply chain and project management, uncompromising quality, cooperation in the areas of innovation and sustainability and an international presence and excellent flexibility.
