Pip:
Among other things, you're a Kostad veteran - how long have you been with the company now, and how did you get involved with Kostad back then?

Dietmar:
It's eight years in July '22, which is easy for me to remember because my daughter was born in August. She was also the reason why, after 10 years of assembly in industrial plant construction, I was looking for something nearby and became aware of the company through a mutual friend of GKJ.

The construction of control cabinets is an important pillar of our company - what tasks do control cabinets have to fulfill and where are they used?

The main task is the controlled and, as far as possible, fail-safe distribution of power while at the same time maintaining the required shutdown conditions. In the case of control system construction, the provision of programmable controllers, sensor technology and required extra-low voltages is also added. Our systems are used in special machine construction, in commercial and industrial production plants, in residential construction as well as in emergency power systems and basically everywhere where electrotechnical components have to be protected from their environment.

How many components can be installed in a control cabinet?

Depending on the project, this can be a handful to several hundred. We have not set ourselves a limit here.

How would you describe the collegial relationship with us?

I would describe them as friendly and solution-oriented. Which can only be the case in busy times, which we always have.

There are many steps from planning to quotation to production - what does your project planning look like in detail?

After a customer enquiry in the office or directly with me, the most important key data and special requests are discussed with the customer. Depending on the scope, a calculation or a draft is made with a CAD system. This usually shows how much larger the distributor will be in order to fulfil all wishes. We are also very flexible when it comes to the manufacturers of the components used. We are currently switching to a high-quality CAD system, where detailed planning in 3D is possible. In future, the customer will be able to view his plant as a "digital twin" in advance and incorporate any changes directly before production. As soon as everything has been clarified, the cabinet moves to CNC machining, the wires are partly prefabricated and the cabinet is assembled in the workshop. Documentation, commissioning or assembly at the customer's are the final steps.

How many projects have you been able to implement in your career at Kostad?

There have already been a few in special machine construction, many in "conventional" control cabinet construction and hundreds in petrol station construction. But it is always a great feeling when a system leaves our factory - no matter what size.

Pip:
Electric or combustion engine?

Dietmar:
Verbrenner

Acceleration or comfort?

Comfort

Maximum speed or distance?

Distance

Opel or Hyundai?

My first car was an Opel Ascona built in '85, which was a really robust car. Unfortunately, nobody builds them any more.