Cycling for the community: stoba is committed to the climate and children

This month, some employees at stoba pedaled hard – and all for a good cause! Two cycling highlights took place in June and July: city cycling and the Tour Ginkgo.

From June 15 to July 5, 21 stoba employees cycled in three teams for our locations in Backnang, Weinstadt and Memmingen. Together they covered an impressive 5,550 kilometers. That’s an impressive 264 kilometers per person in just 21 days! We are extremely proud of our dedicated cyclists and their valuable contribution to promoting cycling, protecting the climate and improving the quality of life in our communities.

For eleven years now, we have been a partner of Tour Ginkgo, which collects donations for seriously ill children every year through a bicycle tour in southern Germany. Together with other companies and committed partners, our CEO Christoph Bode therefore took to the pedals on behalf of stoba and cycled through the picturesque landscapes of the Black Forest-Baar district. This year’s goal: to collect donations for the Katharinenhöhe rehabilitation clinic in Schönwald in the Black Forest.

It’s always better together – stoba x Beckhoff

In our latest TecStory, we describe the great cooperation between stoba and Beckhoff.

Especially in the area of series production, the shortest possible inspection times are important, even for different components. stoba achieves this with the InspectorONE visual inspection system – based on deep learning and with the XPlanar planar motor system from Beckhoff as the conveyor system core. This enables the shortest possible cycle times to be achieved when inspecting components. In the last project implemented, for example, high-pressure injection valves from a well-known automotive supplier. Around 6 million parts per year can be tested in just 3 seconds in three-shift operation. XPlanar enables a short cycle time that would be difficult to achieve even with a rotary indexer. It is also an extremely flexible and customizable transport system. What’s more, the floating movers are wear- and abrasion-free conveyor technology and can therefore also be used in clean rooms. Read more about InspectorOne and our cooperation with Beckhoff from page 30: https://www.beckhoff.com/media/downloads/information-media/pc-control/pcc_0223_d.pdf

Careers at stoba Precision Technology in Backnang: creative drive welcome

Michael Fesenbeck joined stoba in 2011 as an apprentice machine operator. Today, he is the head of a team of 23 people. His development shows: If you want to develop, grow and help shape the company, stoba gives you the chance to do just that. In this interview, Michael Fesenbeck gave us an insight into his experiences at the company: first an apprenticeship as a machine operator, then on to become a cutting machine operator and finally a permanent position in production. This meant that Michael Fesenbeck had already passed through several stages at stoba. However, when short-time working began with the coronavirus lockdown in 2020, it was clear to him that he couldn’t stop there. “That’s why I decided to take a weekend course on my own to become a master craftsman,” says the 29-year-old. “I regularly spent my Saturdays, Sundays and public holidays at school until I completed the course at the end of 2021.” A decision that required a lot of commitment and motivation in addition to working at stoba in a 3-shift model, but was more than worth it in the end: “A position as head of department was advertised internally in January 2022 and I applied for it straight away,” says Michael Fesenbeck. And with success: since the end of last year, he has been responsible for a team of 23 in his new position. He had no experience as a manager before then. “But I know the other side and know what I expected and wanted from my manager back then. I can therefore put myself in my people’s shoes very well and am aware of what they do every day,” he explains.

Working at stoba Customized Machinery in Memmingen: Flexibility and team spirit

“We are looking for people who enjoy their work and have fun with the product. Who simply really want to!” These are the most important qualities that Ulrich Schwerin, Head of Human Resources at stoba Customized Machinery in Memmingen, mentions when asked about the desired qualifications of potential applicants.He is currently looking for new colleagues for the Memmingen site in a wide variety of areas – and attaches great importance to ensuring that they really fit in with the company and the existing team.

As a leading expert in the development and production of electrochemical (ECM), precision electrochemical (PECM) and laser machining processes, working with innovative technologies is part of everyday life at stoba Customized Machinery. In addition, the work there is characterized above all by solidarity, cooperation and trust. This is reflected in the high level of flexibility that employees have in their day-to-day work. “You have a lot of freedom in your work here – in thinking, being creative and, if necessary, also in organizing your working hours,” reports Cigdem Karabulut, warehouse logistics specialist at stoba Customized Machinery. “Such freedom is based on the fact that we always coordinate well and support each other. I really appreciate that.” Another reason why the work is still exciting for her even after twelve years: the opportunity to gain insights into other areas. “I can always look over the shoulders of colleagues from other departments and exchange ideas with them,” she reports. “You learn something new every day and it never gets boring.”

Into the new year together with fresh energy.

We would like to thank you, all our customers, partners and employees, for your cooperation and the trust you have placed in us over the past year. A year in which we were able to meet new challenges through intensive exchange, flexibility and solidarity. Let us build on this in the new year. We look forward to 2023 with confidence and courage, because a new year also means many new encounters and personal discussions in which we develop forward-looking ideas and innovations together with you. With this in mind, we wish you a happy and relaxing holiday season.

Strong department with strong trainees – IHK recognizes training achievements at stoba

Finding a suitable training company is not an easy task for many young people. This is mainly because they often lack insight into the company and find it difficult to assess what to expect. At stoba, great importance is therefore attached to getting to know the applicants well during the application process and giving them as clear a picture as possible of the company, its culture and the training process. The fact that this approach works is demonstrated by the performance of our trainees, among other things:For the second year in a row, they have achieved such good grades in their final exams at the Backnang site that the IHK Region Stuttgart has presented stoba with a certificate for particularly good training performance in the technical/industrial sector. The certificate reads: “Trainees from your company have completed their training particularly successfully and achieved excellent results in this year’s IHK final exams in the summer term 2022. […] These achievements would not have been possible without a high level of commitment and good cooperation between all those involved in the training.” This result is a particular success, especially in view of the fact that the majority of this year’s training period took place during the coronavirus pandemic. “We offer our trainees project-based training throughout, in which they can independently plan and practically implement a holistic production process and check its quality,” says Markus Gebhardt, Head of Training at stoba in Backnang. “We have done this to the best of our ability, even under the special conditions of the last two years, and are delighted that the work has paid off.”

TechStories made by stoba: RespONEsability – on the way to CO2-neutral production

CO2-neutral production – no easy undertaking for a production facility that, like stoba, operates with up to 7,000 kW of electricity per hour at peak times. At the same time, it is precisely this high energy requirement that makes industry responsible for using more environmentally friendly ways of generating energy. The issues ofCO2 emissions and energy generation are not only an increasing financial burden – customers, suppliers and society are now also demanding that their business partners act in an environmentally conscious manner and make an active contribution to climate protection. Based on these developments, stoba is now working on precisely this in a joint project with Siemens – and could thus not only have achieved the step towardsCO2 neutrality by 2030, but also supply charging stations for electric vehicles through its own sustainable energy generation. The corresponding concept was developed jointly, and stoba is relying on Siemens’ expertise and experience to implementit. The joint project was launched back in 2019 – ideas were developed on what the path to emission-free production could look like. The result: the generation and use of electricity in particular and the switch from fossil fuels to renewable energies offer great potential. Now, at the beginning of 2022, the first of two project steps is already being implemented, with work initially focusing on a more flexible power supply. In particular, the way in which energy resources are accessed is changing, explains Christian Vockel, head of the department responsible for energy and environmental management: “We have two company-owned power plants that run on natural gas and until recently generated electricity and hot water under continuous load. We now try to only activate them in a very targeted manner, i.e. whenever there is a short-term increase in energy demand.” This process, known as “peak shaving”, means that the previous natural gas consumption at the site can be reduced by around 50 percent in a short space of time. In addition, a battery storage system will be installed in which up to 500kW can be temporarily stored. “This will enable us to balance out our consumption peaks even better,” says Arne Bihler from Energy and Environmental Management. Another important role is played by a new control system that can track current developments on the energy market and react to them. For example, if there is too much energy at the site, it is fed into the general power grid – if there is too little, electricity is supplied that is not needed elsewhere. In addition, electricity consumption can be reduced in the event of bottlenecks by switching off individual systems at short notice. In this way, stoba helps to keep the entire grid in balance.

InspectorONE nominated for Best of Industry Award 2022

The InspectorONE from stoba takes visual component inspection to a new level: fully automatic and equipped with deep learning software, it not only detects the smallest defects in a wide variety of workpieces, it also learns to predict them. With this innovation, we enable our customers to reduce reject quantities and increase product quality at the same time. stoba has now been nominated for the Best of Industry Award 2022 in the measuring and testing technology category with the InspectorONE. You decide who the award ultimately goes to: you can vote for your favorite at Best of Industry Award 2022(vogel.de) until 31.10.2022.Would you like to know more about InspectorONE and its use? Read our TechStory!

Outstandingly innovative – stoba receives the 3rd TOP100 Award in a row

On June 24, the two Managing Directors Gerhard Firlbeck (COO of the stoba Group) and Christian Peschke (Managing Director of stoba Precision Technology in Backnang) once again received the TOP100 Award for outstanding innovative strength. The award ceremony by science journalist Ranga Yogeshwar took place in Frankfurt and was hosted by long-time TV presenter Linda Zervakis. Following the 2020 and 2021 awards, this makes stoba one of the 100 most innovative SMEs in Germany for the third time in a row – a great success.In this interview, Managing Director Gerhard Firlbeck explains how he perceived the event and what he thinks makes stoba so innovative.Mr Firlbeck, three TOP100 awards in a row – what is the decisive factor that has enabled stoba to achieve this? Innovation is something that is in stoba’s DNA. For several decades now, we have made it our mission to do pioneering work and develop technologies that really bring progress. Our principle is to always think one step ahead and to continuously improve. The basis for this is, on the one hand, our committed employees and their high level of expertise. On the other hand, we work together with our customers on innovations in the early stages of development in order to bring successful products to the market.Actually implementing innovative ideas is a crucial sticking point in many companies. Inyour opinion, whatdoes it take? This is probably a little different in every company. At stoba, we have the great advantage of having three specialist departments at a total of seven locations worldwide, whose expertise we combine under one roof.

Career start with prospects: talents@stoba supports trainees with particularly good performance

Every year, new, motivated trainees start their careers at stoba. They are an essential part of stoba’s future-oriented approach, which follows the motto “Committed to progress”. The main aim is to develop our own highly competent specialists who have long-term prospects at stoba. In Backnang, particularly good performance in training is therefore also particularly encouraged:As part of the talents@stoba program introduced in 2015, the idea of the support program is to introduce young people in a structured and strategic way to specific tasks that they can later take on at stoba. “To this end, we usually nominate one or two people from each year group who stand out due to their very good grades and their personal appearance,” explains Roland Gaus, Head of Human Resources at the stoba site in Backnang. The respective trainees then receive various offers, for example for stays abroad, further training and permanent employment contracts.

What distinguishes the talent program from those of other companies is the point in time at which the trainees are guaranteed the funding: “We accept some trainees into the program after their first year of training,” says Roland Gaus. “So if they want to get involved, they already know after the first third of their training what position they can expect at stoba in the long term.” Depending on their performance and the assessment of the training team, the young talents are assigned to one of three levels, which are associated with different support measures. Level 1, for example, includes training in specialist areas such as turning or special processes as well as targeted training for the relevant machines. In the second level, additional training courses (paid for by stoba) are offered in the areas of programming and set-up, as well as funding for the master craftsman evening school. This is followed by a stay abroad at one of stoba’s locations worldwide, also financed by stoba. In the third and highest level, the young skilled workers benefit from even more extensive internal further training and the financing of the evening school for technicians or a course of study. This is also followed by an assignment of several months at a stoba location abroad.

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