Christian Wukonig
Manager Product Architecture and Engineering Systems at PlastiVation
”Injection molding machines for the plastics industry are extremely diverse products. We wanted a single source of truth.“
PlastiVation Plans and Designs Product Lifecycle Management With valantic’s Help
PlastiVation helps companies that produce plastics to do so intelligently, digitally and highly efficiently. To achieve this, the German mechanical engineering startup, headquartered in Munich, has established a business model which is unique for the plastics industry and based on two pillars: A sales agency combined with mechanical engineering.
As a sales agency, the startup distributes the ‘NEO series’ injection molding machines of China-based Tederic in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. These machines are used in numerous areas, such as in the automotive, packaging, medical, logistics and construction industries, as well as for the production of household and consumer goods.
PlastiVation is also developing its own injection molding machine, intended to become the most powerful machine on the market for any given application. Its name: Hurricane.
Christian Wukonig
Manager Product Architecture and Engineering Systems at PlastiVation
”Injection molding machines for the plastics industry are extremely diverse products. We wanted a single source of truth.“
PlastiVation Machinery GmbH was founded by Bengt Schmidt in Munich (Germany) in 2021. For more than 20 years, the entrepreneur and businessman held numerous management positions at an international industry and technology leader in the plastics and rubber industry. The start-up’s business model is unique for the industry and is based on two pillars: A sales agency combined with mechanical engineering. As the exclusive agent for Germany, PlastiVation’s strong and experienced team of experts distributes the Tederic NEO series injection molding machines, while also offering comprehensive servicing and application support. At the same time, the company is pursuing the ambitious goal of developing its own series of injection molding machines in the coming years: The ‘Hurricane’ will be the most powerful machine on the market for any given application. All this supports the company’s vision: To shape the plastics production industry digitally and electrically with a unique business model.
Injection molding machines for the plastics industry are extremely diverse, and come in all shapes and sizes. Their configuration, bills of materials, internal processes, assembly and servicing also differ depending on the customer and how the machines are deployed. For this reason, PlastiVation set itself a dedicated goal very early on in the development of its own injection molding machine, namely: to improve transparency across the entire engineering process through a “single source of truth” such as that inherent in a product lifecycle management (PLM) system.
The PLM, planned as the heart of the development project, will engender extensive competitive advantages such as transparency, as well as time and cost advantages. Additionally to this, PlastiVation´s cooperation with its Chinese industrialization partner, Tederic, should be guaranteed at all times.
The PLM specialists at valantic shared their expertise and proficiencies in a workshop. Within the industry, valantic is regarded as an impartial, vendoragnostic PLM consultant with a high degree of solution expertise. The aim of the workshop was to provide for clarity and to identify solutions most in tune with PlastiVation’s needs and processes.
Needs and goals identified in the workshop:
Bengt Schmidt
CEO and founder of PlastiVation
”The Hurricane will be the most powerful injection molding machine on the market for any given application.“
BOM (bill of materials) management
Revisioning / version management
Standard and purchased parts library
Configuration management (engineering)
Neutral data management including cost-neutral access for suppliers
eCAD integration
Integration of external engineering tools
ERP system interface
German engineering startup, PlastiVation, with headquarters in Munich, set out to do nothing less than revolutionize the plastics industry. This is already reflected in the company’s name: The “V” stands for vision, while the full name, “Plasti” + “Vation”, is coined from “Plastics” and “Innovation”. Founded in 2021 by entrepreneur and recognized industry expert Bengt Schmidt, PlastiVation stands out for its unique business model: A sales agency combined with mechanical engineering.
As a sales agency, PlastiVation distributes the NEO series injection molding machines of China-based Tederic Machinery Ltd. in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. Since its formation in Hangzhou in 2003, Tederic has become one of China’s three leading manufacturers of injection molding machines in recent years. Its machines stand out for their exceptional flexibility, process stability, reliability and cost-effectiveness. “Our partnership with Tederic is built on a solid foundation, as is our cooperation with strategic partners, for example in the areas of service and mechanical engineering peripherals,” stresses PlastiVation CEO and founder Bengt Schmidt.
At the same time, PlastiVation is also developing an injection molding machine of its own: the Hurricane. “This will be the most powerful mach ine on the market for any given application – a machine which will help companies in the plastics industry to manage their products intelligently, digitally and highly efficiently,” promises Schmidt.
Injection molding machines are extremely diverse, and come in all shapes and sizes. Their bills of materials, configuration, internal processes, assembly and servicing also differ depending on how they are deployed. PlastiVation was thus looking for a solution that would provide greater transpar ency across the entire engineering process. “We wanted a single source of truth that would also handle data management for our engineers. Injection molding machines are multi-purpose products. For transparency reasons and overview, it is vital that we can always reconstruct the configuration of any custom-made machine, along with its installed components and variants – from engineering and assembly to service,” explains Christian Wukonig, Manager Product Architecture and Engineering Systems at PlastiVation.
Within the industry, valantic is regarded as a product- and vendor-agnostic consultant. In a workshop, valantic PLM’s consultants and worked alongside PlastiVation´s PLM experts to discuss solutions and explore courses of action that would offer PlastiVation the greatest value add.
“During our workshops, we examine several dozen topical areas for feasibility and practicability,” explains Christoph Dengler, Operations Manager at valantic. “The PlastiVation workshop was very constructive and great fun because it brought people together who were already very knowledgeable in this field and were able to exchange experiences. At the end of a workshop, we make recommendations and suggest courses of actions,” he continues.
By the end of the workshop with valantic, PlastiVation had gained greater insight into the must-haves of a product lifecycle management (PLM) system and its needs and goals. “Some of PlastiVation’s colleagues feared they’d be letting a monster into their company with a PLM system. We were able to dispel these fears,” Dengler recounts with a smile.
A PLM system increases transparency and efficiency across the entire production process, slashes time and costs, and enhances competitiveness. As a single source of truth, it is the centerpiece in the manufacturing sector. “Experience shows that a PLM project usually takes around three to five years on average. I recommend that every company get to grips with the design and introduction as early as possible. The sooner they do this, the sooner the achievable benefits and competitive advantages can be realized,” stresses Christoph Dengler, PLM expert and Operations Manager at valantic.
Read in our case study how PlastiVation plans and designs Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) with valantic´s help.
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Shahin Khazanbeik
Senior Vice President
valantic Supply Chain Excellence GmbH
