From Wain to the World

Wain. If you visit the Swabian village Wain with its beautiful castle, surrounded by forests, you will probably see the company häwa. The large production halls and warehouses in the industrial area can be clearly seen and many people, living in Wain, also work there. "We attach great importance to regionality", says managing director Arno Müller, "a lot of our employees have been working in our company for many years and have contributed to our great success”. The staff comprises more than 450 people at three locations in South Germany, which manufacture about 70,000 large control cabinets per year. About 250 employees are currently working at the headquarter in Wain.

At the beginning of 2020, Arno Müller was still optimistic but with Corona, things have developed quite different than expected. Of course, häwa is also affected by the economic impact of Corona, but they used the time to develop a marketing strategy for the innovative and patented X-frame machine rack system. Since September, a show truck has been travelling from Wain through Germany, Austria and Switzerland to present the X-frame machine rack - one of the company's bestsellers - directly to customers on site. "Since our most important trade fairs were cancelled or will only take place on a smaller scale", stated Müller, "we had to develop a new sales concept".

Ideas are the core business of häwa – according to the company’s philosophy "Living ideas". Most of our products are customized solutions to meet the specific requirements which are planned, designed and manufactured in close cooperation with the customer. In the manufacturing process, the company focuses on consistent environmental protection: The roofs of the company buildings in Wain are equipped with solar collectors and in spring a team of four trainees researched further energy-saving possibilities. The result of these "energy scouts" has convinced the management and currently all neon tubes and light bulbs are being replaced by LED lights.

"The location Wain offers great advantages", says Arno Müller, "because the Swabian virtues such as diligence, tinkering and inventiveness have always prevailed here". This is exactly what makes the "Made in Germany" trademark so valuable for him. häwa customers appreciate not only the reliability, but also the high quality of the products which are produced here in the area between Ulm and Allgäu. häwa has always looked beyond its own nose in its more than 100-year old company history: Today the medium-sized company has sales offices in many European countries and even in the USA. Every week at least one complete shipping container filled with control cabinets and enclosures made of sheet steel, stainless steel and aluminum leaves the village in the German region Oberwaben to begin its journey across the Atlantic. Arno Müller considers häwa well prepared for the future: "The requirement for flexible and modular solutions is unlimited. While Corona may result in a decline in some industrial sectors, the demand is growing in other fields", since control cabinets, enclosures and machine racks are needed everywhere. They are the so-called casing for the brain of an industrial plant, i.e. for sensitive computers, measuring and control technology. If required, this enclosure can be air-conditioned, completely illuminated or designed to ensure that liquids and cleaning agents can drain off easily. Today, the X-frame machine rack is already used wherever robots and lasers are in operation. Arno Müller is convinced, that this industry will become more and more important in the future. Do you think that you are an encourager? "I am a person who bravely steps forward and if I can inspire and motivate others, then I'm sure, that I'm a real encourager."