Your career began in the waste management industry. What fascinated you about it?

"As part of my doctorate, I worked on the recycling of plastics. I was fascinated by the many facets of the recycling industry, and I still am today. That's why I've remained loyal to the waste management industry. My career began in the early 1990s at RWE Umwelt. The waste management industry was just emerging in Germany. People became aware that waste was a burden on the future and that more sustainable solutions than landfills had to be found. A lot happened socially, economically, politically and legally during that time. Many technical solutions were tried out – sometimes with great, sometimes with modest success. Not all companies survived this phase. Among other things, I have been heavily involved in the reorganisation and restructuring of investment companies in the waste disposal sector. In the process, I gained a lot of valuable experience."

How did you come into contact with Doppstadt? 

"I joined Remondis in the mid-2000s and was responsible for various waste disposal companies. In 2007, I was working as a managing director in Olpe, Germany. Doppstadt had supplied a plant for this company that unfortunately did not meet expectations at first. To be honest, there were some pretty heated discussions at the time – but with a successful outcome. The plant was back on track and I received a surprise call from Mrs. Hedwig Doppstadt. She asked me to join the Doppstadt family holding company as managing director. It was an exciting challenge for me: I wanted to return to mechanical engineering and Doppstadt was and still is a very innovative and versatile company that had good solutions and an excellent reputation in the industry – and of course still does today." 

How did your role at Doppstadt develop? 

"I was the first external managing director at the Doppstadt family holding company. My primary task was to restructure the group and give it new functions and responsibilities. I joined Doppstadt at a time of change. The first generation wanted to increasingly step back and hand the company over to Ferdinand Doppstadt. Organising the generational change was my second task. It was a very intense time that required a lot of communication – including within the family. There were various positions that I brought together as managing director of the holding company. Looking back, I have to say that the generational change went very smoothly and without any major incidents. Everyone pulled together."

What makes working with the Doppstadt family special?

"I always worked very closely with the family – at the beginning, especially with Mrs. Doppstadt. At first, she found it difficult to disclose every little detail about the company to me. Doppstadt was run directly by family members for over four decades. It is completely understandable that bringing in an ‛outside manager’ was not easy for them. I am very grateful to her for placing so much trust in me. She was very understanding, had a big heart, always stood up for the needs of the workforce – and yet she was absolutely consistent in her decisions. Her office was open to everyone. She was there every day."

What impact did the generational change have?

The generational change was a multi-stage, long-term process. Together, we developed significant solutions and made many important decisions. In 2013, Ferdinand Doppstadt became the majority shareholder of the family holding company. At the same time, there were radical changes in the management of the Doppstadt holdings, including the departure of the management board at our production site in Calbe. At that time, there was still a strict separation between our sites in Velbert and Calbe. The old shareholders wanted it that way. Ferdinand Doppstadt and I wanted to take a different path: We have established a One Doppstadt strategy with a higher-level management for both locations.”

What differences do you see between the locations?

"First and foremost, it's the fundamentally different tasks. The focus in Calbe was and is on the efficient production of machines with the necessary services. Velbert and Wülfrath were geared towards sales and after-sales tasks. It was always a challenge for the management to foster mutual understanding and promote constructive cooperation between the locations. With our holistic strategy, we have standardised many processes and structures across the company. I have always been impressed by the strong brand identification of our employees at all sites. Our locations are united by their strong innovative power and their great passion for technology. Our employees work tirelessly to offer our customers optimal solutions – for their individual needs and challenges, for the future."

How has Doppstadt changed in recent years?

"As part of the generational change, we have established a large number of innovative solutions on the market and greatly expanded our portfolio. At the same time, the family holding company has made a number of important acquisitions, particularly in the areas of water technology, gravel and sand. In order to optimally promote these investments, we introduced a new multi-brand strategy for the Doppstadt Group in 2018. We have united all companies outside the recycling technology sector under the umbrella of the newly named LIG GmbH. The Doppstadt brand focuses exclusively on mobile solutions and services for the waste disposal and recycling industry. We took a big risk. From today's perspective, however, I can say with 100 per cent certainty that we made the right decision. This also applies to our partnership with Custos Vermögensverwaltungs GmbH for the RBG and the Doppstadt brand. Custos' long-term investments enable us to strategically develop the Doppstadt brand and RBG."

The coronavirus pandemic and numerous international crises have caused the overall economic situation to deteriorate. How did you mitigate the negative consequences?

"The pandemic was a difficult time for all of us – employees, managing directors and shareholders. But we emerged from the crisis stronger than ever. The entire workforce stuck together, supported each other and worked together with combined forces. After the coronavirus, we experienced a strong catch-up effect. In the spring of 2023, we produced 48 machines in Calbe in one month – an absolute record. In the summer of 2023, the weak global economy and high inflation caught up with us. During this time, we had to make difficult but necessary decisions to maintain Doppstadt's economic stability. It was with a heavy heart that we parted ways with our prefabrication facility in Calbe. We fought for many years to optimise and keep it, but ultimately had to conclude that we unfortunately were no longer competitive in Germany with our production volumes and diversity. We are now seeing clear signs of recovery. The transformation process we initiated has contributed significantly to stabilising the company."

What are Doppstadt's plans and visions?

“Doppstadt has enormous potential for growth – both nationally and internationally. With Custos as a strong partner, we are currently focusing on the internationalisation of the group. In the future, Doppstadt will continue to globalise and increase regional manufacturing. We are currently examining the possibility of building machines for the American market in the USA. We are also pursuing a strategy of local manufacturing for Asia.”

What are your plans for the future?

"I am currently represented on three management boards – at LIG, RBG and Doppstadt Beteiligungs GmbH (DBG). In consultation with the shareholders, I will be stepping down from DBG at the end of 2025. We have found a very experienced successor in Dr. Philipp Nellessen. He is an expert in the strategic development and reorientation of companies and has many years of successful experience in senior positions at international level. His diverse experience is very valuable to the Doppstadt Group. It is very important to me to support Dr. Nellessen as best I can and to help him settle in. As with the generational change within the Doppstadt family, my top priority is to organise the transition as structured and sensibly as possible. Now, I will concentrate on my tasks at LIG and RBG. But here too, I will be accompanying the changes and generational transition in the near future. I believe we have laid many crucial foundations for the positive development of Doppstadt. With passion, innovative strength and the courage to change, as I have come to know Doppstadt, the brand will continue to develop positively in the future."