Wittenstein North America welcomes Lars Aldinger to the United States, as he begins a new role as vice president of production, after serving as director of technology development at Wittenstein AG in Switzerland. Aldinger will be responsible for all supply chain activities within the Wittenstein group in North America, including machining, assembly, purchasing, logistics, quality assurance and repair/maintenance service.

Aldinger’s primary objective is to transform U.S. manufacturing operations into a more flexible and faster responding partner to meet customers’ demands. This has been a main objective for Wittenstein North America for some time. For example, the company has recently announced five-day shipments for Wittenstein alpha LP Gearheads.

The new VP of production has a strategy to accomplish this goal, which includes:

1.Adopting the new manufacturing concepts recently implemented in the innovation factory in Harthausen, Germany, and in Wittenstein’s urban production facility in Fellbach, Germany, where the company has a leading role in the “Industry 4.0” research framework to support innovation in the production environment. “My intent is to identify and implement a new production concept that meets the challenges of the local market,” says Aldinger.

2.Expanding U.S. manufacturing operations to increase production in the U.S. market.

3.Engage with key U.S. scientific institutions, industry networks and universities related to manufacturing technologies and processes, in order to enhance relationships, grow company resources and support Wittenstein initiatives using new innovative manufacturing concepts.

Peter Riehle, president and CEO of Wittenstein North America, states “The role of Wittenstein as an innovation leader has been strengthened in recent years by new organizational concepts and innovative management methods, especially in the area of production technologies. Dr. Aldinger’s experience in this area will allow him to combine our existing expertise on the product side with this new approach on the production side. As a result, we will be in an excellent position to meet the market demands of the future.”

Aldinger has worked with Wittenstein in various positions. At Wittenstein AG, Grüsch, Switzerland, he was responsible for the ramp-up and technical processes of the company’s rack factory. In addition, he was part of a new department at the company headquarters in Harthausen, Germany, which conducts research on new production tech-nologies and prepares implementation programs for the use in Wittenstein plants. Prior to Wittenstein, Aldinger worked at Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Engineering and Automation IPA in Stuttgart as a consultant in advanced Industrial Engineering. During that time he also became a doctor of engineering. He also holds a degree in mechanical engineering. Aldinger has moved to the U.S. with his wife, Anna-Katharina Wittenstein, who also works for Wittenstein North America, and their two children.