The interim manager was commissioned by the American parent company of a group of companies for medical aids to analyze the production structure in Europe. At the beginning of the mandate, the company had 15 production sites in Europe, from Sweden to Portugal. The main American shareholder was looking to reduce the number of plants by around 25 percent.
The client had built up the European health equipment business in the 1980s by acquiring industry leaders. Since then, the market players have reoriented themselves to meet the requirements for medical equipment. This new competition led to considerable pressure on quality and costs.
Analysis of the product portfolio and competencies at 15 locations
The interim manager began the mandate with a Europe-wide analysis of the product portfolio and competencies at the 15 plants. It became clear that many products could be produced more effectively and bundled in fewer plants - and also closer to the respective local markets.
In addition, the interim manager identified products for which outsourcing production to low-cost Asian countries could bring additional savings. As a result, 2 product lines were then outsourced to Asian suppliers.
Management teams at the European plants convinced of new structure
One of the particular challenges of the mandate was communication within the European organization. In intensive discussions at the sites, the interim manager was able to win over the majority of production managers and their management teams to the new structure. He then set about rebuilding and training the European teams. The interim manager also worked with product management and sales to adapt the marketing strategy to the changed situation in the respective markets. Additional external project managers were also deployed for this reorganization, which the interim CRO managed professionally.
23 product lines bundled in 11 plants - 4 locations closed
The interim mandate was successfully completed after 26 months. 23 product lines were consolidated into 11 plants. This meant that 4 plants could be closed - in a record time of just 18 months. All top performers were convinced of the new structure and remained loyal to the company.
The interim manager handed over a significantly more profitable plant structure to the new COO, whose tasks he had also taken over for a limited period of time following the unexpected departure of the old COO towards the end of the mandate.
