RAMPF Tooling GmbH & Co. KG Semi-finished products, products for models, molds, tools
and large volume castings.

RAMPF Group welcomes Britta Heidemann to the “red couch”

Innovation through communication

What is the key to success? How does a sportswoman become champion of Germany and Europe and an Olympic gold medallist in épée fencing in just a few short years? On 7 November 2011, the RAMPF Group, a specialist in the field of casting resins and specialized mechanical engineering, welcomed Britta Heidemann to the “Innovation stars on the red couch” discussion platform. She told staff at this family-run SME about her life as a champion fencer and shared her recipe for success.

For the second time, RAMPF devoted an afternoon to “Innovation stars on the red couch”, a discussion platform launched by the RAMPF Group in spring last year. For the last two years, RAMPF Giessharze, RAMPF Tooling and RAMPF Holding have been actively implementing an intensive innovation management programme in Grafenberg, the home of the RAMPF Group, in response to the economic crisis. As part of this innovation management programme, RAMPF is encouraging its staff to share ideas both amongst themselves and with others. One of these initiatives is the “Innovation stars on the red couch” event where an “innovation star” shares the secrets of their success. On 7 November 2011, 2011 German champion, 2009 European champion and 2008 Olympic gold medallist in épée fencing Britta Heidemann joined RAMPF on the red couch. Michael Rampf, CEO of RAMPF Holding, welcomed around 80 staff to the event. The discussion about Heidemann’s professional accomplishments, fencing strategies and innovative spirit in a niche sport such as fencing was led by Prof. Frank Dievernich, professor of business management at Bern University of Applied Sciences. Dievernich has provided expert support for the RAMPF innovation campaign from the outset. “Our aim is to bring together employees outside of their everyday working environment and encourage them to talk to each other and share ideas. Communication is an important component for the development of innovation”, explains Michael Rampf. Heidemann also believes that, when employees are given sufficient scope, new and different skills and abilities often come to light that have gone unnoticed until then.

New dialogue with courageous role models

In the presence of staff from various departments of synthetic resin specialist RAMPF Giessharze and RAMPF Tooling, one of the leading development partners for modelling and mould engineering, Britta Heidemann explained what fencing can teach them for their life and career. With fencing, she is constantly having to adjust to new conditions and challenge her limits. For Heidemann, success means harnessing her full potential. Her visit was a real treat for RAMPF employees. Normally, they all work in the development, production or sale of reactive synthetic resins and materials for modelling and mould engineering, including Thomas Magg. As head of procurement at RAMPF Holding, he is responsible for ordering raw materials for the two-component systems of RAMPF Giessharze and RAMPF Tooling, which are then processed to make various products, ranging from casting materials for electronics to modelling materials for the wind power industry. “The atmosphere was great. I really enjoy this type of event outside work, as I like getting to know new areas and new people. I almost always take something away with me that I then integrate into the way I think and act”, explains Magg.

“Sound of RAMPF” workshop

The RAMPF Group’s versatile Innovation Centre, built in 2008, serves as a venue for this type of discussion event as well as for specialist symposia, technology days and management training. The new plant, which is used by RAMPF Giessharze and RAMPF Tooling, has a total usable area of 5,520 m². The proportions of the laboratory and application engineering areas are particularly generous to ensure sufficient space for new product developments and realistic application tests. The “Innovation stars on the red couch” discussion platform, which is held there twice a year, offers guests and staff the opportunity to present and discover new approaches – for instance, for addressing customers and for ideas management. Guests invited to the red couch have broken new ground with courageous innovations. The first guest, Peter Philippe Weiss, received the international red dot design award in 2009 for his inventive talent in the field of music and sound. Weiss demonstrated the effects that can be achieved with sound and took employees from various departments of the RAMPF Group on an acoustic journey. The subsequent “Sound of RAMPF” workshop explored the sounds made by the group’s plastics and systems. Equipped with a microphone, staff gained a different perspective of their company by searching for different sounds and noises typically associated with the company and then drafting a scenario for the current corporate culture. Grafenberg, 35 km south of Stuttgart at the foot of the Swabian Alps, provided the backdrop for the employees’ own sound research. However, unlike other corporate sounds, the musical inspiration for what would later become the “Sound of RAMPF” was produced in the synthetic resin specialist’s very own production halls and not in a studio, as is usually the case. “It’s not that we need a RAMPF sound, it’s just that we take a multi-pronged approach to our innovation process”, explains Rampf. The new RAMPF sound will be premièred at the Group’s year-end party on 19 November 2011.

Read more:

 i: Link: Südwestpresse: "Die ganze Welt ist eine Fechtbühne", 9.11.2011
   Link: Reutlinger Generalanzeiger: "Durchs Leben fechten wir uns alle", 9.11.2011 
   Link: Stuttgarter Zeitung: "Fragen Sie Britta Heidemann", 10.11.2011

  

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