LNS America

Source: Manufacturing Digital

Date :08/05/2008 06:04:21

As companies and industries struggle with the economic recession the whole world over, there is one that is looking at the challenges in a different light

Written by Gary Chambers and Produced by Kristin Hurley

Since becoming CEO at LNS America in August 2005, Tom Boehmer has set about getting the very best out of the company and making it as efficient as possible – something that proves ever more important in the current economic climate. With the weakened dollar and increasingly competitive US market, Boehmer has sensed an opportunity for the market leading firm to further stamp its authority on national and international industry.

LNS America finds its roots in Switzerland 35 years ago, when its then-fledgling parent started selling bar feeds to local companies. The US branch was established in 1984 with a facility in Cincinnati, whereupon the company set about expanding its global coverage. Today, the business has expanded to become an international brand with a commanding presence in countries across three continents.

‘One Stop Shop’

A real turnaround for LNS came in early 2002 with the acquisition of the Turbo Systems Inc. conveyor group, the first non-organic growth addition for LNS outside of bar-feeding technologies. This was a major point in the timeline of the company, as it allowed for product diversification and the development of its ‘One Stop Shop’.

And therein, believes Boehmer, is the key to its success: “We have the broadest range of product of our competitor base. We have developed and implemented the ‘One Stop Shop.’”

The company now offers an impressive array of machine tool solutions, especially to the North American market – far beyond just bar feeds. This was led from the US and has changed the core of the company to a ‘One Stop Shop’ for machine tool accessories and solutions. “Some companies offer barfeeding, chip and coolant management, or another areas in machine tools” added Boehmer, “but we focus on all these areas.”

There can be no denying that this diversification has yielded extremely positive results, but the last twelve months have thrown up a whole host of problems. The credit crunch, a weakened dollar, economic recession - these have all have sucked the life out of industry on a global level; so, can LNS really still expect to grow? Boehmer certainly thinks so.

“The current economic climate is uncertain; there are a lot of question marks over the immediate future of the industry, but we feel well positioned to advance,” he says. “The outlook is extremely positive. LNS can go as far as we want – the only limitation for the company is ourselves.”

Challenges ahead

Even with such optimism, it cannot be denied that challenges lie in wait. But they are challenges that Boehmer embraces - the weakened currency, it would seem, has presented LNS with a tremendous opportunity: “This is having a positive impact on the US manufacturing base,” he says, “and has helped us in increasing sales, even in the general economic slowdown.”

Boehmer is, however, not completely oblivious to the prevalent complications: “We do import some of our products from our parent company and this has put further pressure on our margins,” he admits. “For us it is a double-edged sword. That second edge is causing us to evaluate some of our production philosophy - but that itself may open doors to more products produced in the US for our group.”

For Boehmer, overcoming these issues and moving forward is all about people; he has created a people-centric environment at the company, ensuring quality from the ground up.

“It all starts with the people and building a culture of a high performing team,” he explains. “That culture is built around our customers and the team. We have invested in more and more training in the past couple of years - our employees care about what we do and are proud members of our team.

“Knowing our customers’ needs and aligning with them is also a key strategy and crucial to our success; we have aligned our business strategy with the needs of our core customers and industry trends.”

So where are the real challenges? On a global level, the massive industrial and economic boom in the Asian market – especially China – has changed the shape of business in the region. “Globalization has led to more and more low cost competition in Asia,” observes Boehmer. This has driven core business interests back across the Pacific Ocean to the US. “Right now, increasing labor costs have made the U.S. the most lucrative market,” he points out.

That’s not to suggest that the Asian market no longer presents any opportunities for the machine tool provider. There are still untapped markets – pockets of economic possibility – in the region that remain important parts of the company’s future. “The key focus is on taking the business model that is in operation in the US and expanding it into emerging markets – particularly India.”

Another unexpected challenge has arisen due to the company’s hard-earned success, in the shape of research and development partnerships. “As market leader, we are often approached by technology developers to test new technologies,” says Boehmer. This presents LNS with a fantastic opportunity to stay ahead of the competition, as he is quick to acknowledge, but it also presents some unique complications. “Simplicity is always the key, so the development of new technologies can sometimes be counterproductive.” Nevertheless, LNS is unlikely to relinquish its position in a hurry.

Future trends

Looking ahead, Boehmer sees the manufacturing industry being driven by rapidly accelerating technologies – and this seems to suit LNS down to the ground. “The industry is trending towards more automation,” he said. “We are leading the field of accessories in easy connection of peripheral equipment and maximizing uptime for our customers.

“Customer service will continue to be in the forefront and we have deployed 24/7 strategies for technical support. More and more, application experience in how to make all this stuff work is becoming harder to find. We are positioning ourselves and developing our team to be the partner our customers ask for in part processing and development.”

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