The machinery manufacturer is increasingly becoming a solutions provider and convinces with innovation
Meiko Maschinenbau GmbH & Co. KG just keeps on growing. With a turnover of 301 million Euros, the Meiko Group grew by almost ten percent in 2015 in comparison to 2014 (274 million Euro turnover). The continuing growth over years validates the management's strategy, which consistently relies on exports, innovation and development of the machinery manufacturing company into a solutions provider and service partner.
Although the number of subsidiaries worldwide remained the same in 2015 at 24, the individual sites were consolidated and extra staff were taken on in places. "In 2015, we created structures in order to offer our customers around the world a full presence, in advice but also in service," explains Meiko Managing Director Dr.-Ing. Stefan Scheringer. The company employs 2160 people worldwide.
With the introduction of the UPster machine series, the company opened up additional customer potential in 2015: all those in the hospitality and restaurant industry, catering or retirement homes who want the quality of a premium manufacturer at a newcomer-friendly price. "People really aspire to have 'quality made by Meiko', and now we can offer them our UPster range of machines which are based on almost 90 years of innovation leadership, top-notch technology, and global experience in the industry – and all at a price which is affordable for start-ups as well as for industry specialists who are keen to try out new things," says Managing Director Dr. Ing. Stefan Scheringer. That’s why the UPster rack type machines received a Top Hotel Star Award in the "Flexibility" category.
An array of other prizes confirm to the Offenburg-based machinery manufacturer that it is on the right path with its innovations: the WasteStar CC food waste disposal system received the Future Award at the leading trade show in the industry, Internorga. The American "National Restaurant Association" honoured the Meiko GreenEye technology® with the "Kitchen Innovations Award 2016" and the German Professional Association for Gastronomy and Industrial Kitchen Equipment (GGKA) chose Meiko as a "Super Partner for Specialised Trade". "These prizes prove that we deliver more than warewashing technology. In truth we are an important provider in ensuring that our customers are able to model their processes optimally – and we nevertheless remain a partner which listens, thinks with companies and supplies not only the appropriate product but also the associated services," says Scheringer.
In the field of cleaning and disinfection technology, reference projects around the world such as the fitting of the care work rooms at the Sultanate of Brunei Cancer Centre, at the Hamburg-Eppendorf university hospital or in one of the most advanced hospitals in the Netherlands, the Maasstad Hospital in Rotterdam stand for the continuing trust which hygiene specialists around the world place in the cleaning and disinfection technology. "Disposable products are trying to elbow their way in here, but one study after another proves that reusable solutions in the field of patient dishes are unrivalled with regard to economy and ecology," says Stefan Scheringer.
The technology, still in its infancy, for the mechanical preparation of breathing masks for fire services and industrial enterprises, with which Meiko holds a "missing link" ready for respiratory protection workshops, not only recorded a double-digit increase in turnover, it also stands ready for market entry in Australia: "Over the last year, we have successfully begun market development in Switzerland and are delighted with some fantastic reference projects which are already attaining mass appeal. These include the joint venture between the fire service in Bramsche and the waste disposal company Remondis, for example, or the fitting of the entirety of the listed company Aurubis's respiratory protection workshop at their Hamburg site," says Stefan Scheringer.