150 years of Ferdinand Gross INSIGHT
On 17th November 1864 Ferdinand Gross opened his
hardware dealership for screws, forged iron fittings, cabinetry, and carriage maker articles in Stuttgart, Germany. Could he have envisioned that the company would celebrate its 150th
anniversary in 2014?
70 million euros, and still be family owned by the fifth generation. Right from the start, it was the ability to listen, to take the
T
worries and hardships of the customers seriously and jointly develop customised solutions that earned the hardware store its good reputation. To this day, the motto ‘all actions focus on the customer’ is an integral part of the company philosophy. In the 1920s, the consequences of World War I could be felt in all of Europe; the political and economic situation was torn. Emil Gross steered his father’s company safely through the uncertainties of the post-war years. The careful businessman had a good understanding of the demands of his customers and constantly expanded the product range. He could also rely on the unfailing loyalty of his employees – which ultimately saved the company from bankruptcy. During World War II, screw specialist Ferdinand Gross finally
hit rock bottom. However, Franz Hering, Emil Gross’ son-in-law, braved ahead and quickly obtained the permission to resume business. He maneuvered the company safely through the difficult post-war years and took the business to new heights. The trading area was constantly expanded and a growing number of orders were the reward. Franz Hering also had a sense for new trends – the company grew consistently and celebrated its 100 year anniversary in 1964. The two brothers Günther and Dieter Hering were the fourth generation to manage the company in the 1970s and could not
he story of Ferdinand Gross impressively proves that a small one-man-operation can turn into a prosperous mid-sized company with approximately 250 employees, subsidiaries all over Europe, annual sales of well over
find suitable space for expansion in downtown Stuttgart. They decided to move outside the city gates – to Leinfelden, right next to the freeway and the airport. The new company headquarters were established and planned with enough foresight to allow the necessary expansions without problems to this day. In 1995, Gerald Hering, the son of Dieter Hering, took the reins
and became sole managing director. He positioned the traditional company even more clearly as a reliable service provider in the industry for all of Europe. The path to that goal was through C-parts management, which was introduced by Gerald Hering in 1995 and today makes up a major portion of sales under the name of ‘Ferdinand Gross Kanban’. In 2001 Thomas Erb, who was another believer in the Kanban concept, joined as an authorised signatory for the area of sales and marketing. The strategy of the successful duo worked out. In 2002, Ferdinand Gross already had 400 Kanban customers and centered its subsidiaries in the east at the expanded Dresden branch. One year later, the company finally crossed the German border and established another subsidiary in the Austrian city of Linz. The 140 year anniversary of Ferdinand Gross in 2004 confirmed its successful journey from simple hardware store to specialised service partner of the industry. The constant advancement of the C-parts management and
Ferdinand Gross introduced its Kanban service in 1995
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the growing customer base took the company to its limits. The warehouse logistics were quickly highlighted as the bottleneck. Gerald Hering and Thomas Erb, by then appointed managing directors, decided on the “project of the century” – the complete modernisation of logistics and organisation – without stopping operation. The project was a success – not least thanks to the strong support of the employees who were working at a construction site for months. The conversion was an essential factor in raising the company’s productivity. But anyone dealing so intensively with C-parts day after day will ultimately be faced with the question: “How can I do an even better job?” Ferdinand Gross’ answer is FALCON – a revolutionary browser-based software that visualises all Kanban storage locations of a customer and immediately knows which product can be located in which box. Ferdinand Gross continues to grow, with the affiliates in Hungary and Poland expanding and even the Dresden subsidiary moving to bigger premises. The course is set and the company is all geared up for the future. One thing that is for certain – Ferdinand Gross will stay in the family.
www.schrauben-gross.com Fastener + Fixing Magazine • Issue 89 September 2014
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