21st century in containers technology ZPUH

21ST CENTURY IN CONTAINERS TECHNOLOGY

Celebrating, in 2012, its 25th anniversary, ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski is a very successful Polish company which leads the way in innovative solutions in container technology and manufacturing. This full of potential, highly competitive enterprise, cooperates with excellent international partners and every year manufactures thousands of containers made from the best steel. A significant number of products, which make up an offer of over 70 different models in more than 200 different types, reach the demanding Scandinavian markets. The company develops dynamically, thanks to which it continuously strengthens its leadership position. Piotr Sadowski writes.

Over the last few years ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski has been working on a serious strategic development of the company. “During 2010-11 we undertook a very large project, worth PLN 8.5 million, supported by dedicated European Union funds for activities 5.2.2, aimed at strengthening the competitiveness of the enterprise,” begins Janusz Kiedrowski, the ambitious founder and managing director of the company. “We built a brand new second production hall, which gives us a total manufacturing space of over 10,000 m2. Our factory is equipped with the most modern appliances, including automated robots for welding and cutting, which help us to produce even better, even more effectively and competitively. I am delighted to say that this development project was successfully accomplished and my enterprise secured a third place in the prestigious ‘Golden Hundred of Pomerania and Kujawy’ 2010 ranking, for companies which best used EU funds, taking into account the level of funding calculated per one employee.”

The strategic development of the company resulting from the above-described project has also contributed to further strengthening the market position of ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski, both in the country, as well as in the areas of international cooperation. Since 12 years the

enterprise carries out close and partnershiplike cooperation, both in terms of distribution, as well as designing and introducing innovative container solutions to the market, with a Swedish company ILAB Container. The Swedish partner distributes containers manufactured by the Polish producer across the whole of Scandinavia, and the cooperation gives the enterprise access to 60 per cent of the entire Scandinavian containers market.

“As an example, in 2009 we were exporting 4000 containers to Scandinavia every year,” explains the company’s owner. “Currently, after introducing the strategic vision of development, this figure rose to 7500 per annum. While in 2009 we were sending 12 transports per week, operated by our own fleet, today no less than 30 transports to Scandinavia leave our factory every week. However, ILAB Container is not only a distributor, but also a very important partner with whom we undertake new projects and introduce joint technological thoughts, and soon a joining of the capital of the two companies may be also possible. I also need to add that thanks to this outstanding cooperation we are a well-known brand on the Scandinavian market: we have excellent contacts and contracts there, such as those with, for example, STENA Company, for which we are the sole supplier of containers. It is also worth highlighting that, as part of its strategic development, ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski increased its employment to 340 staff, which is a major growth from the level of 220 employees in 2009. All of this allows us to continue developing, including further strengthening our position across Scandinavia and other markets, such as Germany.”

Cooperation with leading suppliers

In the process of manufacturing such a wide offer of innovative containers, used by numerous fully-satisfied clients in the country and abroad, ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski cooperates with very well-known suppliers of materials. These partners contribute to an ongoing strengthening of the image and innovative character of the company, which in turn translates into successes and business opportunities for all partners taking part in the cooperation. The best quality high grade steel is supplied by a renowned Swedish company SSAB (Hardox, Domex, Docol). In turn, anti-corrosive paints manufactured by the company TEKNOS have for many years been supplied by BAUSTOFF + METALL Color Sp. z o.o., while Nova Verta is a manufacturer of modern painting cabins installed in the factory’s production halls.

“Moreover, manufacturing is carried out using cutting plasma machinery from the Turkish company AIAN, whose Poland representative is Mr Łukasz Zawada, co-owner of the company AEP-POLSKA,” Mr Kiedrowski further explains. “Amongst the group of our leading suppliers we also cooperate with the company Pol-Sver Janusz Nagórka, the representative in Poland of many top manufacturers of appliances for plastic processing of steel sheets, including, amongst others, DURMA machinery from another Turkish company, DURMAZLAR. Thus our suppliers play a very important role in ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski maintaining the highest quality, innovation and competitiveness of containers manufactured by the company.”

Innovative and competitive products

Following the highly-successful introduction of the strategic vision of Mr Kiedrowski, the company is now equipped with some of the most impressive manufacturing appliances in its industrial sector. It is often confirmed by the very clients of ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski who visit the headquarters of the company. The enterprise uses the most advanced software solutions for creating 3D designs (such as Autodesk Inventor 11) in order to produce a wide range of innovative and competitive containers.

“In all of our processes, and of course in products, we focus on innovation,” explains Mr Kiedrowski. “As one of the leading manufacturers on the market we designed, together with our partner Swedish design bureau, the new LVF container, manufactured from

high-grade steel. The container is 30 per cent lighter than other products proposed by the market rivals, which results in savings, while its price compared to the cost of manufacturing is highly competitive. Thanks to this the container has already, in a short space of time, become one of the leading successes of the ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski Company, especially on the very important for the enterprise Scandinavian market.”

The LVF containers, regarded as flagship solutions of ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski, have capacity ranging from 15m3 to 40m3. They are used for the transportation of industrial and municipal waste and their innovation and competitiveness is the result of an advanced design that allows for transporting waste at high savings to the user, which reach annual amounts of €10,000 (according to official research). As part of their constructional solution, the LVF containers have a 3mm thick floor and 2mm thick side walls, which effectively reduces the unit weight and in the end improves the effectiveness and ecology: it is not a heavy container which is being transported, but a much higher amount of waste, and so the emission of pollution to the environment is also lower. It is also important to add that every LVF containers undergoes hydro-dynamic varnishing using an anti-corrosive paint, supplied by the company TEKNOS, available in any chosen colour from the RAL colour range. In addition, prior to painting, every container is first blasted, which results in the longest possible durability of the varnish cover.

Further development

In March 2012 the company ZPUH Janusz Kiedrowski celebrates its important jubilee, the before-mentioned 25 years of market operations. The company’s owner is currently introducing his son into the company, whose task will be the successive taking over of the responsibility associated with running this continuously developing, dynamic and ambitious business. “In 1998 I was starting from scratch, so it is particularly important for me to see that the hard work over the years has paid off,” says Mr Kiedrowski. “The company’s offer definitely meets all of the needs of our customers from Scandinavia and other European markets, as well as, of course, from Poland. The products also meet many stringent regulations relating to environmental protection, which is very important in Scandinavia, where the levels of ecological awareness and practices in waste management are particularly high.”

During 2010–11 the company underwent an impressive development of technology and personnel, when the level of employment, as earlier indicated, increased by 70 per cent. The manufacturer is currently capable of manufacturing over 10,000 containers every year, using more than 1400 tonnes of steel every month. “We are looking at the possibility of potential new agreements with companies in Germany and the Netherlands, which would require further continued development of our annual output capacity,” says Mr Kiedrowski. “We will continue strengthening our market position, focusing on technological improvements and introducing ever more effective planning in the company. Timely and high quality delivers will always be an important priority for us. All of this will require continuing hard work and, as it is always the case in business, a certain degree of luck.” n