20.09.2010
ZARGES – An edge for individual components from a system supplier

ZARGES – An edge for individual components from a system supplier

"Total cost of ownership" –cost analysis in other industries is no longer conceivable without this concept, and it is also becoming increasingly important in the international wind power industry. With employees from other industries, the core competences are being reconsidered and reassessed, and purchasing strategies are being altered.

Bernd Göpfert, CEO of the Wind Division at Zarges, knows what he is talking about when he sums up the roller coaster ride over the previous 18 months. "While in 2009 many wind turbine manufacturers were still able to live on full order books and projects which had not yet been completed, 2010 began relatively cautiously and the turnover of many manufacturers have fallen off significantly this year, including among suppliers."

The global economic crisis did not really reach the wind market until 2010. The sellers’ market has converted to a buyers’ market and "that will most likely remain so, even though the market has since noticeably recovered. Built-up capacities everywhere are now not only resulting in excess capacities, but also a price war at all levels," expects Göpfert as the head of a supplier of the key components for tower internal fittings which is well established internationally with manufacturing in the USA.

From a supplier’s point of year, a very heterogeneous picture of wind power plant manufacturers has resulted in the past years. While some manufacturers have purchased component by component, others have decided to procure systems. Zarges has always known how to adapt to these different requirements "because we have always wanted to serve the entire market and have done so despite our conviction that supplying entire systems is the only way to a cost-effective and yet high-quality solution," said Göpfert, who is convinced of the correctness of this approach.

This is also being confirmed by the OEM more and more. Göpfert evaluates the Zarges market development strategy positively, explaining that delivery from a single source such as ZARGES offers has found favor among many wind turbine manufacturers. "This is due to the fact that we accompany the wind power plant manufacturers" completely in the further industrialization. Industrialization means: Take 6,000 parts and make it into 2,000 parts like in a Zarges complete system and evaluate cost and time expenditure for all value-added steps.

Zarges is well positioned in this field and impresses with its integrated approach as a system provider. "Only those who consider the tower internal fittings as a big picture can reap the benefits of the industrialization process," as Göpfert analyzed the current situation. The costs along the entire value creation chain must play a role in development. Those who combine the process owners for purchasing, production, logistics, installation, quality and engineering together in a development team can merge cost advantages of serial production with project and process safety. "The costs for the tower fittings are significantly lowered in workshops held with our OEM customers and tower constructors."

With this procedure, not only the respective financial and structural objectives can be realized, however, but also the goals in the production and installation of individual components which Zarges of course also offers. "Our long-term experience as a market leader in the B2B field was able to be expanded primarily by the fact that we also strived to be the cost leader for each individual component," explained Bernd Göpfert.

For this reason, ZARGES also offers the customers in the wind industry not only components related to tower construction, but also a wide variety of individual components for nacelle, rotor blades and offshore platforms. "The automotive industry was the inspiration for our contemplations because it uses system suppliers for procuring but also continuously reviews the performance of the suppliers when comparing individual components."

Contact data:

Bernd Göpfert:

bernd.goepfert(at)zarges.de
tel. 0881/ 687 - 202

Die Zarges Aluminium Systeme GmbH
Tower fixtures from a single source
With ZARGES Aluminium Systeme as a partner/supplier, a unique system supplier is at your side as a general contractor and consultant who projects tower fittings or further develops existing ones with customers of all components at a high technical level in accordance with DIN and EN standards. ZARGES Aluminium Systeme manufactures all mechanical fixtures itself and can install these completely in the wind power tower upon request.