Enjoy… the Company visits

Guided tour of Heimbs Kaffee coffee roastery

Where does the tempting smell of freshly roasted coffee come from, and how do the coffee beans get into the bag? Find out this and more on a guided tour through the Heimbs coffee roastery, which was founded in Braunschweig in 1880 and, as a successful manufacturer of coffee, is one of Braunschweig’s traditional companies.

The optimal utilisation of solar energy with sophisticated technology and minimal effort for the sake of the planet and people alike.

Solvis's history is quickly told. It starts in the early '80s. Just after the first oil crisis had been overcome, and as the "Nuclear Power? No Thanks" movement reached its peak, a highly motivated team of engineers with a distinct bias for perfection came together. They wanted to "exploit" the sun, not improve the world.

Even back then, every child knew that the sun was our planet's biggest source of energy. So we started with what were standard solar energy systems, and astonished the experts. In 1988, we produced the first thermal collector panels with a unique coating and significantly higher performance. After that, one innovation followed another, and the patents stacked up. Solvis products advanced to become energy-efficient champions and brought home one environmental prize after the other.

The Secret chambers of Jägermeister

A general spirit of optimism exists in 1878 as Wilhelm Mast founds a vinegar manufactory in his Lower Saxony home town of Wolfenbüttel. The company thrives and, when Curt Mast, the founder’s son, enters the business, a new direction manifests itself.

The young man proves to be extraordinarily talented in the preparation and mixture of herbal extracts. In 1934, after years of experimenting with different ingredients, Curt Mast develops the recipe for the unique, intensively tasting and unmistakable herbal liqueur – the birth of what later becomes a worldwide success: Jägermeister. Still today, more than 130 years after the founding of the company, family traditions live on because now, as it was then, Jägermeister is wholly owned by the Mast family.

Come and visit the Jägermeister headquarters in Wolfenbüttel and immerge into the making of the world famous Jägermeister. Experience a guided tour with our German or English speaking guides and listen with intent whilst we explain about our 56 different natural ingredients, and the production procedure.

Participants must be at least 18 years of age. Tours are free of charge and take approximately 90 minutes. We are looking forward to welcome you at Mast-Jägermeister SE or our exclusive Jägermeister Bar at the Presidential Gala Night!

Voith - Scharfenberg coupling

The Scharfenberg coupling has developed into one of the most important coupling systems in railway history since its invention and launch in 1903, and today is recognised internationally as a product and a company. More than 300,000 couplings have been delivered worldwide.

A main factor in achieving this leading international position is the intense further development and optimisation of our products. Our high quality standard is another factor of success. Almost all national railways in Europe and many high-speed and metro railways worldwide nowadays are equipped with Scharfenberg couplings.

Together with specialised manufacturers of shock-absorbing elements and electrical components, Voith Turbo Scharfenberg is developing into a system provider for the connection and collision protection of rail vehicles. Customer proximity and flexibility form the basis of our work and continually increase the technical level of our equipment.

BMA Group

Braunschweigische Maschinenbauanstalt AG (BMA), founded in Braunschweig, Germany, in 1853, delivers machinery and equipment for the industrial-scale processing of renewable raw materials in the strategic business fields "Sugar and Sweeteners" and "Biomass".

The company's service portfolio covers the development, design and manufacture of machinery and apparatus; the planning, installation and commissioning of complete processes; engineering and other consulting services, including after-sales service; and manufacture on the basis of the customer's own drawings.

Products delivered by BMA include extraction plants for sugar beet, diffusers for sugar cane, pulp presses, fluidised-bed steam dryers, evaporators, continuous and batch crystallisation plants, continuous and batch centrifugals, sugar drying and cooling plants, pumps, as well as equipment and services for the production of crystalline glucose, dextrose, and fructose.

BMA AG is the core of the BMA Group and is present around the globe with nine companies on four continents and more than 500 staff. Its export quota is about 90 %, and it is active in more than 80 countries.

MAN Group

The MAN Group is one of Europe’s leading industrial players in transport-related engineering, with revenue of approximately €14.7 billion in 2010.

As a supplier of trucks, buses, diesel engines, turbo-machinery, and special gear units, MAN employs approximately 47,700 people worldwide.

Its divisions hold leading positions in their respective markets. MAN SE, Munich, is listed in the Dax equity index, which comprises Germany’s thirty leading stock corporations. MAN looks back on over 250 years company history.

Salzgitter AG / Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH

Salzgitter AG ranks as one of Germany’s companies rooted in a long tradition. Our business activities are concentrated on steel and technology. Through its sustainable organic and external growth, our company has advanced to take its place as one of Europe’s leading steel and technology groups – with external sales of more than € 8 billion in 2010, a crude steel capacity of approximately 8 million tons and a workforce of around 23,000 employees. The primary objective of our company – now and in the future – is the preservation of our independence through profitability and growth.

Our Group comprises almost 200 domestic and international subsidiaries and holdings and is structured into the Steel, Trading, Tubes, Services and Technology divisions.

The share of Salzgitter AG is listed on the MDAX index of Deutsche Börse AG.

Salzgitter Flachstahl AG is the largest steel subsidiary of the Salzgitter Group. In 2010, more than 4,400 employees produced about 4.3 million tons of steel and generated a turnover of Euro 2.5 billion.

The most important customers for our flat-rolled products are cold rollers, vehicle manufacturers and their suppliers, manufacturers of both standard and large-diameter tubes, steel trading and the building industry.

Strube

Strube is a medium-sized independent family business specialising in plant breeding for the agriculture of tomorrow. Since 1877, it has been breeding and marketing competitive varieties of arable crops, specialising in sugar beet, cereals and sunflowers. Strube is one of the leading international breeders of sugar beet.

Strube realises the importance of a holistic, multidimensional view of seed. As well as constantly improving varietal performance through genetics, the company is also becoming increasingly involved in developing innovations in seed quality research, and in the production and preparation of seed. The Strube company also provides a comprehensive support service for the agricultural sector.Strube is part of a globally active network, and works closely together with universities, research institutions and interest groups in the international arena, taking on board the latest developments from the fields of business, industry, trade and politics. The company is active in over 35 countries and has over 170 varieties currently in seed production and sales through subsidiaries and partnerships.

Bretschneider

We invite you to visit our special printing plant during a guided tour. The guided company tour takes you through all areas of our plant. Experience how an “ordinary” print sheet turns into attractive packing, refined with gold foil or UV lacquer. Our dispatch & logistics department awaits you with an insight into the finishing of mailings, brochures and displays. Bretschneider covers an extensive portfolio of these services.

In paper and cardboard printing, Bretschneider as developer and manufacturer is specialised in implementing premium print products, print finishing, packaging, and displays and mailing products. The affiliated logistics center finishes, packs and sends out between 20,000 and 40,000 shipments a day.

Bretschneider was founded by Wiegand Richard Bretschneider in 1919 and has been part of the Braunschweig Streiff Group since 1987. Bretschneider currently has 340 employees.

Bühler

See for yourself what goes on behind the scenes and experience a guided tour through the Bühler factory in Braunschweig!

Most people are not even aware of how many times a day they encounter products to which Bühler has contributed. Buns in the morning? The ink on the newspaper? Perhaps a few noodles for lunch? The refreshing beer after work? Yes, a bit of Bühler is in all of these things – for Bühler is a specialist and technology partner for plant and equipment and related services for processing basic foods and manufacturing high-grade materials. The Group is a global market leader in the supply of flour production plants, pasta and chocolate production lines, animal feed manufacturing installations, and aluminium die casting systems.

With its expertise and over 150 years of experience, Bühler time and again rolls out unique and innovative solutions for its customers, helping them achieve success in the marketplace. Over the decades, Bühler has come to be acknowledged as a reliable partner, thanks to its distinct commitment to quality and its global presence. Bühler Group operates in over 140 countries, has a global payroll of 7,860, and generated sales revenues of CHF 1,907 million in fiscal 2010.

We are looking forward to welcoming you at Bühler Braunschweig !

Fürstenberg

FÜRSTENBERG is a porcelain manufacturer whose skilled craftsmanship has been honed through experience spanning over 260 years. The craftsmen at this traditional German firm are expert at continuously developing historical collections and creating contemporary product lines. They claim precision down to the smallest detail. What enables them to fulfil this claim is the fact that most of the porcelain manufactured at FÜRSTENBERG is still based on manual craft, supported by the very latest technical equipment to ensure creation of the finest quality porcelain objects.

At the porcelain manufacture, design meets unrivalled craft expertise, as it has done since the company's inception. Founded in 1747 by Duke Carl I von Braunschweig at the Fürstenberg hunting lodge, it is Germany's second oldest porcelain manufacturer. Today, the FÜRSTENBERG trademark, the blue "F" with a crown above it, is internationally recognised as a symbol of sophisticated porcelain artwork from Germany.

SCHIMMEL Piano manufacture Braunschweig

Braunschweig has strong associations with Henry the Lion, is the focal point of a widely varied academic and cultural landscape and also stands for Europe’s centre of piano manufacture. In the Schimmel workshop in Braunschweig, instruments of excellent quality are manufactured on the basis of consummate ability and passion. This is also where the most frequently played German-made grand and upright pianos are produced, as Schimmel has made the most substantial contribution to pianos made in Germany during its 125-year-old tradition. Braunschweig is also the home of our employees and their families. It is their artisan skills and attention to detail which have developed over the decades to form the foundations for the manufacture of state-of-the-art grand and upright pianos providing numerous years of pleasure in music-making. It is this close association with the location of Braunschweig and the guarantee that each individual instrument is created with the greatest care to the highest standards of craftsmanship which we are proudly documenting in our supplementary text “made in Braunschweig / Germany” on each instrument created by Schimmel.

Intel

Throughout the last 10 years, Intel Braunschweig grew into one of Intel’s major processor development sites in Europe. The activities in Braunschweig comprise research and development of microprocessor architecture and design with a special focus on bringing unprecedented levels of compute performance and energy efficiency to customers world-wide.

The team in Braunschweig is contributing to the development of Intel’s next generation microprocessors in leading 22nm process technology.

A visit to the Intel Braunschweig site is recommended in particular for people with a high interest in IT subjects.

Auerswald GmbH & Co.KG

Auerswald GmbH & Co. KG, based in Cremlingen, Lower Saxony, was founded on 1 March 1960. Initially, transformers and electromagnets were produced, followed by products for plastics technology later on. Since the middle of the 80s, the independent family company has concentrated on the production and marketing of compact and modular communications systems for ISDN, DSL, VoIP (internet phone service) and analogue telephone networks.

The product range covers smallest telephone systems with only four participants up to large professional systems with up to 120 participants.

In line with its telecommunications systems, Auerswald also provides cordless and non-cordless ISDN and IP system telephones with which a multitude of system functions can be carried out by simply pressing a button. And if you are looking for smart analogue DECT telephones or convenient desktop devices, you can choose from two different Auerswald telephones.

The extensive range is supplemented by a series of hands-free door phone systems, different modules and devices to expand functions and additional interesting accessories. With the latest member of the accessory family, the WG-640, Auerswald has placed a true multi-talent on the market. It can be used as a certified device to register temperatures, or to monitor, measure, record and report different events.

Auerswald produces exclusively in Cremlingen in Lower Saxony, Germany, where the company is based. The company’s target groups are small and medium-sized enterprises, offices, doctor’s surgeries, handicraft businesses, hotels, agencies as well as private households.

Nordzucker

The Nordzucker Group is Europe’s second biggest sugar producer with 18 production sites and refineries across Europe. The workforce of 3,500 across the Group is committed to delivering excellent products and services.

Nordzucker’s headquarters is situated in Braunschweig – close to four of our five production sites in Germany. During the excursion you will see our site in Nordstemmen. While meeting with one of our engineers, you will get an idea about the complexity in producing sugar from sugar beets. Furthermore, our expert will give you insight into the European and international sugar markets and our very specific structure of shareholding.

Siemens AG

Siemens AG at its Braunschweig location is engaged in the development and production of rail automation and railway signaling and safety systems. With about 2,800 staff, the Braunschweig location is the world’s largest rail automation location. Our product portfolio includes operations management systems and components for the monitoring, management and dispatching of safe, efficient mass transit and mainline rail transport. Integrated package solutions from consulting and planning through to commissioning, installation and maintenance are realized for railway operators throughout the world.

Braunschweiger Zeitung

With the Braunschweig Zeitung and the Harzkurier, we publish the leading regional daily newspapers in our region. Online portals, advertising papers, magazines, trade fairs and other multimedia activities round off our product profile. We reach more than 500,000 people from the region every day. With professionalism, excellent technical equipment and highly-motivated employees we work very closely with our clients’ needs to offer them a clear perspective every day: on the world, our region and the challenges of the future.

Coca-Cola Erfrischungsgetränke (CCE) AG

At a glance: Coca-Cola in Germany

• Responsibilities include product and packaging development and national strategic marketing
• Fully-owned subsidiary of The Coca-Cola Company (TCCC), Atlanta, USA
• Founded in 1930 in Essen
• Headquarters in Berlin since 1st July 2003
• Around 150 employees

Coca-Cola Erfrischungsgetränke (CCE) AG

• Core business: production/bottling and sales of alcohol-free beverages, service for trade and catering customers, sales promotion, sales-related marketing
• Portfolio of over 70 alcohol-free products in almost all alcohol-free categories: soft drinks, water, juices, juice spritzers, sports drinks, energy drinks, teas and hot drinks
• Wide range of packaging sizes from 0.2 litres for immediate consumption through to 2-litre family bottles
• Main brands: Coca-Cola, Coca-Cola Zero, Coca-Cola light, Fanta, Sprite, Bonaqa, Mezzo Mix, Powerade, Nestea, Fruitopia by Minute Maid, Lift, The Spirit of Georgia, Apollinaris, ViO
• Largest beverages company in Germany
• Over 10,000 employees
• Founded in Berlin in 1996
• Since 1st September 2007: unification of all German Coca-Cola concessions under the umbrella of CCE AG as a single bottling company based in Berlin
• Shareholders: 83% The Coca-Cola Company (via group companies), 17% widespread
• Sales volume 2010: 3.5 billion litres
• Per capita consumption of Coca-Cola products in Germany: approx. 42 litres
• Approx. 99% of the products are manufactured in Germany, around 90% of the production factors are sourced in Germany
• Around 400,000 trade and catering customers
• Truck fleet of around 1,000 vehicles

PTB – the National Metrology Institute of Germany

The Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt is the supreme authority for accurate and precise measurement in Germany: it is responsible for the realization and dissemination of the physical units; it is a metrological research institute and the service provider for science, society and the economy; and it is – far beyond national borders – one of the first addresses, at all, of metrology. Metrology – the scientific basis of measurement and of applications derived from it – is essential for our modern world. No scientific experiment, no industrial process and no trade of goods and merchandise can do without quantification, i. e. without measurement technology. Measurement technology and metrology – its scientific backbone – have today virtually become a matter of course. The mandate for a National Metrology Institute (NMI) – such as the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt – is to ensure a continuously functioning and, consequently, a reliable and progressive metrological infrastructure which meets both the highest requirements of science and high-technology industry and the marginal conditions of legal metrology in everyday life.

Sport Thieme GmbH

Sport-Thieme GmbH is among the leading sports materials suppliers for schools, authorities and clubs. The product range comprises more than 15,000 sports products. Besides traditional sports equipment, therapy and psychomotorics equipment are also part of the product range. For more than 60 years, Sport-Thieme has been developing and manufacturing sports equipment in Germany, exporting it worldwide. The company is represented in 11 European countries with individual catalogues. With its more than 240 employees, Sport-Thieme is one of the market leaders in the sector. Apart from the mail-order business, the company also offers all products and services online for private customers.

Volkswagen Werkstour

Tauchen Sie ein in die Welt der Automobilfertigung und erleben Sie, wie bei Volkswagen Das Auto entsteht. Mit unseren Werkführungen haben Sie einen direkten Einblick in die unterschiedlichsten Fertigungsschritte der Fahrzeugproduktion. Das Volkswagenwerk in Wolfsburg bietet Ihnen Einblicke und Erlebnisse, die Sie sicher nicht vergessen werden: Freuen Sie sich auf einen informativen Blick hinter die Kulissen und erleben Sie die Volkswagen Produktion hautnah bei einer Werktour.

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Postal Sorting Centre in Hanover in Pattensen on Ludwig-Erhard-Strasse: A business of superlatives

A business characterised by many superlatives can be found in Ludwig-Erhard-Strasse in the Pattensen industrial area in Hanover.

The Deutsche Post sorting centre is not only the largest employer in Pattensen; it is one of the largest in the region. An average of 1000 people have been working here since 1996 and more than half of these in the core of the sorting centre. Conscientious workers work in three shifts to ensure that up to 5 million letters a day are processed quickly and accurately so that they reach their addresses within one working day.

“Some people still think that the workers sort the mail by hand, but that changed long ago”, says Branch Manager Manfred Eisenträger. This task is now performed by hi-tech machines which amaze the layman and fascinate the engineer. Six of these integrated automated address-reading and video-coding machines scan each address, check whether the stamp value is correct, stamp the consignments and convey each letter to one of 720 sorting boxes as if by magic. Around 240,000 consignments can be processed an hour. The workers are primarily responsible for operating the different machines and monitoring processes. “There are of course still some workers who have to check certain consignments by hand because, for example, a machine cannot read a particular address properly”, says Manfred Eisenträger. However, that is only five percent of the total volume at most. Once the letters have been sorted, the vans are loaded and the consignments make their way out to every corner of Germany and the world. In 2010, a project was started to renew the machinery. The 15-year-old conveyor systems were replaced by new, hi-tech systems at a cost of around 10 million euros. This represents a great investment by the Deutsche Post in the Pattensen site, one of the largest sorting centres in Germany.

“The investment has more than paid off”, explains the Branch Manager. The new sorting equipment is faster, more reliable and more effective and is really cutting edge technology. The Hanover-Pattensen Sorting Centre covers the postal regions 30 and 31. Customers from these regions who put their letters and consignments into one of the 2,500 letter boxes or hand them in at one of the 310 post offices can be sure that it reaches its destination in Germany within 24 hours on working days. Once the mail reaches the sorting centre, the letters which were handed in within the greater Hanover area are first sorted and sent nationally and internationally. At 22pm, the machines are changed over to sorting the mail from the other 81 German sorting offices which is addressed to destinations in the greater Hanover area. A special machine sorts larger letters and the Deutsche Post is currently installing a second machine for such larger mail.1000 trucks reach the Pattensen distribution centre daily and everything runs like clockwork. These trucks connect Pattensen with Germany’s other sorting centres.

Around 2000 postmen and postwomen are out and about in the Hanover region delivering the mail to their customers. “Problems are seldom in the chain. They really only occur when there are roadworks which cause delays, but this can hardly be avoided”, explains Manfred Eisenträger. “Real” delays are really very rare.

Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research

Infectious diseases seemed to be eradicated in the middle of the 20th century. After the discovery of antibiotics it was thought that epidemics caused by bacteria were under control. This proved to be wrong: pathogens are beginning to resist antibiotics more and more. New pathogens are being discovered.

Infections continue to pose a significant medical problem. 17 million people die of infectious diseases worldwide every year. This represents one third of all casualties.

Diseases such as tuberculosis, which had been thought to be under control, are on the rise again. Many bacteria have become resistant to antibiotics. New infectious diseases such as AIDS, SARS or BSE have emerged. At the moment, the spreading of avian flu is at the forefront of news headlines. Many illnesses – including some forms of cancer – can be attributed to infections.

New medication and vaccines are urgently needed.

At the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research, scientists investigate the mechanisms of infectious diseases and protection against them. The results of the basic research are systematically developed with a view on medical application.

The scientific questions we deal with include:

• What turns bacteria or viruses into pathogens?
• Why are some people particularly sensitive and others resistant to infections?
• How can we intervene in infection processes?

To answer questions such as these, we investigate pathogens which are relevant from a medical point of view or which can be used as a model for the research on infections. Understanding these mechanisms will help combat infectious diseases with new medication and vaccines.

The Federal Republic of Germany and the federal state of Lower-Saxony are the responsible bodies of the Helmholtz Centre for Infection Research.