Just now, a four-man team from RIVAL has travelled the long journey to Cuba to install new equipment and train the Cuban employees in using it. Soon to be 10 years ago, RIVAL delivered the first moulds to the Cuban customer, and recently the Cubans decided to extend the assortment with bigger moulds.

Back in 2010, RIVAL produced and installed 28 moulds with the size of Ø200 – Ø1000 mm at Ciego Plast, which is located in the middle of Cuba and about 400 km from the capital Havana. The moulds are applied at the company’s extrusion line, and they are easy to replace with the pipe tool, when the production changes from pipes to flanges.

Moulds and CNC-machine
“This time around, the customer has bought two Ø1200 mm moulds from us as well as our CNC-machine,” RIVAL’s owner Henrik Holvad says. “The mould solution is ideal to the production of flanges and spacers. It provides a more effective utilisation of their production machinery to a much lower price than the alternative, which would be to make a big investment in an injection moulding machine with instruments.”

With the newly installed CNC-machine, the customer can complete the moulded flanges in-house. Previously, they had to send all the components off-site, which caused many delays and erratic quality.

A strong team
RIVAL’s very experienced and long-time group manager, Torben Pedersen, went to Cuba with Martin Højvang Pedersen and apprentice Kristian Bilstrup from RIVAL to install the CNC-machine in the customer’s production area. However, the Cubans only speak Spanish, which none of the three guys can brag about. Therefore, Kathrine Nielsen went with the three guys to act as interpreter.

Torben, Martin and Kristian all contributed with their different skills, and they supplemented each other well. Torben has produced many moulds, and he knows everything there is to know about them and the CNC-machine. Martin used to be a tractor mechanic, and he knows how to solve many tasks with only a few resources. “Give the man a bended nail and some cable ties, and he can do everything,” Torben says. “However, despite the fact that we tried to predict potential complications before we left, we were aware that we would enter situations, in which we needed something, we couldn’t get. In those situations, Martin’s skills were indispensable. Kristian is always full of energy, and he solves the jobs, we give him, quickly and efficiently.”

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Indispensable interpreter
The 24-year-old student Kathrine joined the team and acted as interpreter. She speaks Spanish fluently as a result of having spent a year studying abroad in Chile. Torben told her, which technical terms, she needed to practice from home. Therefore, he introduced Kathrine to all the technical stuff at RIVAL, and she participated in the preliminary meetings with the Cubans during the sales process.

“Kathrine did an amazing job,” Torben says. “She successfully translated my explanations to the Cubans in Spanish as well as translating their questions to Danish.”

Education, installation and a goodbye to an old friend
Torben has spent many months in the moulds production, and he prepared the installation and education before he went to Cuba. At the same time, he had to prepare himself to saying good to the CNC-machine, he had “collaborated with” for many years at RIVAL.

“We have followed each other for many years, so it almost felt like saying goodbye to an old friend,” Torben says. “Therefore, it feels good that I went to Cuba to see its’ new home.”

A great experience
RIVAL’s 17-year-old apprentice Kristian had been looking forward to going to Cuba for many years. “Since the day Torben told me I was going to Cuba, I asked him every day, when we were going and if he was a hundred percent sure that I was going,” Kristian says.

“It was very cool to go to Cuba an experience how different their system is compared to ours,” Kristian says. “It doesn’t work well with my temper, because everything is going so slow and is not as effective compared to back home. However, it was very nice to experience the country, and I learned a lot from the many professional challenges, I had to solve. Also, we had a lot of fun in the group that went.”

We make a difference
The trip to Cuba was a great experience to the team, which has worked hard and for many hours, while they were gone, which the customer appreciated. “In this job, we could really make a difference to our customer due to our competencies, tools and machines,” Torben says. “The Cubans really wanted to learn from us, and they produce nice products despite the fact that their production is in no way comparable to ours. It was a big experience to see – yet it does feel good to be back in Denmark again.”

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Se flere nyheder

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Framework agreement with Svendborg Brakes on advanced serial production

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RIVAL has for several years had long-term framework agreements worth millions with Svendborg Brakes. It takes control of documentation and quality, which RIVAL can honor.

Supply Chain Supervisor John Helskov Hansen from Svendborg Brakes has known RIVAL for many years, and the company was one of the first that appeared on the retina when Svendborg Brakes had to find a new partner for long-term agreements on the production of particular Brake houses and brake calipers.

Control of the quality
Svendborg Brakes manufactures brake systems for wind, offshore, crane and mining industry. “For us it is crucial that there is control of the quality of the items we receive from our suppliers, since it also has great significance for our customers,” said John Helskov Hansen. “Here we have really good experience with RIVAL. Over the past few years we have been produced many topics with them, there has actually been something to postpone the quality. It is also our experience that the overall economy is sensible. The price will always be up for discussion, but we have a feeling that we get a really good value for money. ”

Cost Optimal production
Svendborg Brakes has concluded several framework agreements with RIVAL on the production of brake houses and brake calipers. “Prior to the agreements we have made several test series and has focused on documentation, certificates and measurement reports,” says sales manager Christian Aarup from RIVAL. “It is important for both the customer and us that all the preconditions are in place before we start the large serial productions. It provides the most secure quality and cost optimal production for the benefit of both parties.”

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Development of new surface
As a part of the collaboration, RIVAL has also been a sparring partner for Svendborg Brakes concerning the choice of a new surface for a stamp. “It is a great advantage for us that RIVAL also have the skills to be part of such a development,” says John Helskov Hansen. “In this way we can collect both development and production in one place, which facilitates the whole process for us.”

The RIVAL package
“In a task like this, we also focus on offering the customer the relevant parts of The RIVAL package,” says Christian Aarup. “We have in this case been very aware of that we add the customer the greatest value by thinking development, documentation, quality, delivery performance and price together into a package that exactly fits Svendborg Brakes.”

Continued cooperation
The incoming framework agreements between Svendborg Brakes and RIVAL runs according to plan. “When the agreements expire, we take them always under review, as our needs may have changed, and for example, be produced completely different topics,” says John Helskov Hansen. “However, I am convinced that we will continue to enter into agreements with RIVAL. We are very satisfied with their skills and the quality they provide. It is also a big plus that we know each other well and can always talk to us rightly about things. ”

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RIVAL moves even faster when required

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RIVAL moves even faster, when the customer requires it. This was recently the case with Grundfos, when an acute need arose to repair a tool in their die-casting.

Maintenance technician Jens Erik Lysdahl has collaborated with production technician Benny Sørensen and RIVAL for many years. “For us, RIVAL’s not just a subcontractor,” says Jens Erik Lysdahl. “They’re competent partners, and we want to continue to develop our collaboration with them. They know what’s required, for example when a tool in production breaks, and it costs many thousands of kroner in time, when a machine stands idle. The work needs to be done quickly, and there has to be close dialogue between us and RIVAL. The
people at RIVAL are good at doing both.”

Focus on the value chain
Pump manufacturer Grundfos is one of Denmark’s biggest companies, employing over 18,000 people around the world. At Grundfos, there is constant focus on optimizing the entire value chain, to make the company more and more attractive for customers. “This means that, among other things, we in the maintenance department get shorter and shorter delivery times for our services, since the production set-up may not stand idle for longer periods of time,” says Jens Erik Lysdahl. “To achieve the best solutions, both we and our partners have to be sharp every day.”

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Large components
Grundfos’ collaboration with RIVAL usually relates to the machining of large components. “One of the big advantages with collaborating with RIVAL, is that they have production equipment that can machine tool components that are up to three metres, without us having to take the tool apart,” says Jens Erik Lysdahl. “It saves us a lot of time before and after the machining.” Most recently, when Grundfos had an acute need for the repair of a tool for their die-casting, it was a terrific advantage that RIVAL could receive and machine the component in one piece. “RIVAL were finished with their part of the work within 24 hours, which meant we in the maintenance department could comply with our agreement with production at Grundfos despite the unforeseen problems,” says Jens Erik Lysdahl.

Fast response
As always, Benny Sørensen of RIVAL acted quickly after Jens Erik Lysdahl had called him on the phone. “I immediately contacted our production manager Heino Pedersen, to get confirmation that we could take in the component from Grundfos as soon as it reached RIVAL. The answer was the usual one – we could of course deal with it,” says Benny Sørensen. “It’s very reassuring to know that my colleagues in production are ready to step in, and that our internal planning is so good that we can immediately see how we can make space for the customer’s urgent tasks.

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Close Partnership with Grundfos

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RIVAL’s competencies in processing aluminium materials, creative mind-set, honest manner and practical experience have been major factors for the development, product maturing and introduction of Grundfos’ new pump production in Serbia.

The employees of RIVAL have worked closely together with Grundfos’ technology centre for a long period of time. The work concerns development and product maturing of a new pump house, which is going to be produced in Grundfos’ factory in Serbia and sold globally, particularly in USA. RIVAL has the responsibility for educating staff in Serbia and implementing the production. “We have decided to collaborate with RIVAL about this task because the company possess certain competencies, which we don’t do ourselves at Grundfos,” says technology expert Erik Jæger Thomsen from Grundfos.

“We have built a very close partnership in which both parts have listened to and learned from each other, which has been very valuable for the result.”

Complete trust
Grundfos trusted RIVAL during the working process and has known for certain that the job would be solved. “We knew from the start that RIVAL was in possession of the competencies, which we were looking for,” says Erik Jæger Thomsen.

“Their processing experience combined with their desire to enter into a joined development project are very unique factors. The foreman Glenn Scharling, in particular, has offered alternative ways to handle things, which has been valuable for the process. Glenn says things straight, which works very well in the daily collaboration.”

Furthermore, RIVAL generally works with the same programs and measuring equipment (the Zeiss measurement machine) as they do at Grundfos, which makes it easier to transfer things between the two companies. i

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Passing on knowledge and competencies
RIVAL has the full responsibility for introducing the machines, tools and programmes, which will be used in the Serbian production. During the process, the Serbs, who will be in charge of the pump production, have payed RIVAL a visit.

RIVAL’s employees have passed on knowledge to the Serbian staff. “In Serbia they are rather green in terms of this kind of production. Therefore, the knowledge transfer from employee to employee is important for their future work,” says Erik.

RIVAL’s staff participates at the actual introduction of the machines and production in Serbia. In September, the machine worker Frederik Petersen and either Glenn or sales director Christian Aarup travel to the factory outside Beograd and they stay for a couple of weeks.

Great satisfaction
“In every sense, we are very happy about the collaboration with RIVAL regarding this job. The company has been the partner and competency supplier, which we were looking for. In many ways, it has felt like, we have been a part of the same company,” says Erik. “The fact that RIVAL does not compromise on quality has been very important to us. We will definitely benefit from continuing the partnership with RIVAL in the future.”

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