SMS group wins competition “NRW – Wirtschaft im Wandel”

SMS group is award winner in the corporate competition “NRW - Wirtschaft im Wandel” (NRW – Economy on the Move). This makes SMS group rank among the outstanding eleven companies that, in an exemplary way, stand for the structural change of Germany’s federal state North Rhine-Westphalia towards a strong future business location.

SMS group is one of the world market leaders in machine and plant engineering for the metals industry. In 2021, the company will celebrate its 150th anniversary, and it has been family-owned, in the fourth generation now, since its foundation.   

Many of the present megatrends - from digitalization to mobility and further to urbanization and sustainability - largely depend on high performance metals. While technological requirements on material and its value chain are constantly rising, suppliers have to reduce their costs and their ecological footprint as well. These global challenges call for new approaches in the machine and plant engineering sector. SMS group provides key solutions for products, projects and processes that help its customers attain or expand a leading position whatever the metallurgical application may be.    

Tapping new business segments, product innovations and an unprecedented digitalization offensive, SMS group is pursuing a growth program to strengthen its leadership position in a sustainable manner. Highly innovative technical and digitalization services as well as patented plant technology are offered from one source. Thanks to integrated manufacturing facilities and the know-how of a systems supplier, SMS group is able to offer its customers solutions along the complete process chain.   

At the same time, SMS group is growing in fields beyond its domestic industry as it implements its New Horizon initiative. This initiative not only includes the development of innovative product and production solutions for the metal industry, but also applies tried and tested SMS solutions in all fields of business facing similar technological challenges. Hence, in many other sectors – from energy to port logistics - SMS group’s role is becoming increasingly significant as well.    

Burkhard Dahmen, CEO of SMS group GmbH, says: “During the 150 years of our history, our company has always been on the move. While we kept the focus on our customers and their interests, we continued to change - and optimize - the complete value chain. This willpower for constant improvement has not only been the basis of our success to date but will also be for the future. I would like to express my thanks to all employees, and I am very happy to have received this magnificent award due to their commitment.”   

About the competition In a region where smoking chimneys and grey miners‘ settlements once dominated the image of Germany’s economic core area, there has been developing for decades a modern and diversified economic location, with the long-lasting structural change requiring and promoting creative company strategies, the use of new technologies as well as dynamic adaptation of production conditions from companies in all sectors. This creativity is made transparent by the competition “NRW – Wirtschaft im Wandel” carried out by the initiative “Deutschland – Land der Ideen” (Germany – Land of Ideas), newspapers Rheinische Post and Bonner General-Anzeiger, and identifies best practices Partners of the competition, in addition to regional promoter Deutsche Bank, are auditing company PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC), organizational consultants Kienbaum and insurance company Zurich Versicherung.

Source and graphic: SMS group GmbH