Interview to Kai Roegele, technical director of the Helmut Roegele Corporation

Are selling out of Spain, a lot in England, now in the Lebanon. We have projects in Brazil and Guatemala, but Spain is very unemployed, have some that another project, but no with the weight that have in other countries.

Begin in 2007. One or two years before already had foreseen to do something in Asia. It was when we saw him the ears to the crisis, that proposed us begin with our idea, and went in 2007. We take year and half in developing it everything. At the beginning of 2008 wine the first machine that, in fact, remained in Spain. Begin then with the PET recycled. Here it is where now see that the market is quite advanced, because there are countries where there are subventions for recycling. Although Kentya covers a lot of more things, the truth is that it is going us well in this sector and in this are putting now our efforts.

The electrical part-electronic and the planes do here, in our company in Barcelona. The software also does here. And what does in Asia is the assembling and all the mechanised. We send the planes to China and our partner builds in function of these. Once all fact, travel to China and do the acceptance. From there, the team goes directly to the customer.

By the hand of work, that is very economic. We have there a partner with which are very well. We go in in his factory as if it was ours. We have it perfect.

Is very complicated. But we have had the luck that, inside the complicated, have a very strong support of what is the proprietary family of this company. I think that we have had an incredible luck. It is complicated because do not leave to go in in his companies. They are very his and have a lot of eagerness to copy.

Gives us the same, that copy what want. They also do extruders, but for another market. Our extruders of APET have a price, because they are CE, because have components CE. The quality is different. Have arrived to a quite good agreement.

In a lot of countries is not necessary that have of machines CE, but there are companies that want them just in case a day send them to another his company that yes is in some country of the CE; and they know that the price is different. We have arrived to an agreement, thing that is very complicated in China.

The philosophy of Kentya is the ‘low cost', that is to say, our market is not a multinational, neither our competition the German. I do not go to compete, because the German machinery is better and, therefore, voucher tantísimo more. We have looked for that the machine was competitive, that can go in in small companies and that all his components can buy in the ironingingmongery. That is to say, we happen of the Chinese machines to the manufactured in China, but European.

If you buys a Chinese machine and breaks something, as it has broken you and you will not know where buy it, more than in China. We do that all what place inside the system was CE and that can buy here.

Think that I have not sold any spare still. When we did the project, already knew that the spare parts did not go to be a business, because it was the form that ours machines differentiated of the rest of Asian machines. First, because it is our know-how and our engineering; and, second, because the components are not Chinese, less the essential, that is the ironinging and four things more. All the electronic is European.

The concept is that we take advantage of the hand of work to the maximum and, obviously, have to put a slat. Take a machine and load it of sophisticated electronics equipment dealers equipment dealers do not go it to do. We go us to remain in a simple machine, with electronic part, and until here. We do not go to develop it so that all was totally automatic, because then already approach in price to the hard and raw competition. We try always be, like minimum, in the half of the price of the competition.

So that it was do an idea, if the multinationals buy machines that do a tonne and average by hour, my margin is in a tonne. I do not go up more because, if to arrive to this tonne and half have to devote a lot of effort in the interior of the machine, then the price escapes again…

The market is for people that has 3 or 4 machines of termoconformado and do not want to buy the plate was, but it pose install one of these machines to start with to work.

This company has almost ten machines, is big, but is not a big multinational. That is the difference. It said me that in a year would have the machine paid.

Ours machines can process all type of materials. Now impera the PET recycled. The PET virgin is a very expensive material. 3 or 4 years backwards said that the PET recycled it was necessary to treat it before with special equipment, of crystallisation and deshumidificación. All this goes up a lot the price. We pursue the road to develop a machine that did not need previously of these equipment. The first proofs, in November of 2009, were acceptable and begin to work in this line. Nowadays already there are more marks that also can it do.

The customer buys the PET recycled, in take out of retales of termoconformado or of bottles of water or of what was, or of preformas. The material goes to our main machine, that is of double husillo. It heats and mix; with three systems of empty extract the humidity; afterwards it happens to the cabezal, by the calandra, goes to the warehouse and does the bobinado of the film. There are machines coextrusoras, that allow to add another type of materials, as, for example, material barrier for trays of feeding. They are complex installations that now are selling with quite a lot of success.

Claro, do not have to forget that we are representatives of Illig, that is number 1 of termoconformado. It is where began everything. Have an immense wallet of customers. The thing is that the customer of termoconformado is used to to be a bit reacio to the extrusion. On the other hand, what said, try to do a machine that was simple, very little sophisticated, but that work, just the contrary of the last European machines, that are quite complex. It is here where want to go in with our machines.

Have machines that work with PP (polipropileno), PS (poliestireno), ABS (acrilonitrilo-butadieno-estireno)… but already are different machines. They are extruders but are not conceived for recycled, although they are Kentya. We have also of granceadoras Kentya, equipment to do profiles…

Is our bet, by the fact that a lot of countries give a lot of eases to buy machinery that serves to work with materials recycled.

Here what does fault is to have a coextrusora to plant him a material that do of barrier. The thing is that each country has different requirements. The last machine that have planted has been in Lebanon and here the laws are different.

What more do is plate, that goes to companies of termoconformado. What has not fallen is the sector of the feeding. The trays follow being here. A lot of companies go on doing trays, for salads, meats…

The others sectors have fallen a lot, because they are tied to the car. For example, the ironingings for protection, are very tied to this sector. The one of the car does not finish to go well of the all and, especially, in Spain.

Further of the small machines, that there is delivered in Spain, or have gone for France, the first a bit big installation to do film of polipropileno went to England in 2010. This same customer was to the that speak him on the proofs that were doing in China with PET recycled. In fact it was so happy with the first machine that had, that asked us one for APET, and now is expecting the second.

Another line of APET is in Beirut, in a company that calls GPI.  Like curious case, our  representative in England that has bought a line for his own use.

Now in England there are a lot of eases. The greater part of requests that have, or are of Sudamérica, or of Extreme Orient.

Brazil is in peak, as well as Colombia. They are emergent markets in this type of machinery, although up to now they had preferred secondhand machinery.

The case is that all have had to go down the prices and are more competitive. So, instead of buying an extruder of second or fourth hand, prefer us, since a review is very costly: if the cylinder or the husillos are  in bad state, quickly will pay 80% of what can cost a new ours machine. This is a bit the game.

Sudamérica Has it a poquitín more difficult, but is that the components of our machines are of multinationals like Siemens, ABB… and is rare that do not find any of the components of our machines in any country of the world.

No. I personally carry in fairs from 25 years ago. In the years 80 was different. It did business. All the world went to eat, even my father went with the customers to the beach of Castelldefels… was a different environingingment. Now the fairs are quite sad… It Is necessary to launch the fairs with other appeals.

Is the biggest fair that there is all over the world. The experience there was very good when we were in 2010. It can be that we expose again a machine.