SIEGENIA and hewe celebrate 50 years of partnership
Trusting cooperation on an equal footing
Everything began with the conversion of their production to PVC windows: hewe-fensterbau GmbH from Diemelstadt is celebrating the 50 years of partnership with SIEGENIA. Wolfgang Wetekam, Commercial Manager, knows the value of this: "The long-term cooperation has created a basis of mutual giving and taking. We treasure what binds us together, we communicate openly and rely on short routes. This is what is essential for us at hewe."
Such good cooperation is not taken for granted by Rainer Duguid, Regional Sales Manager at SIEGENIA, either: "A friendly relationship has developed over the years due to our close connection throughout five decades. It is shaped by mutual trust, interaction as equals and an open, honest treatment of each other with the aim to find good solutions for both sides.
Convinced by the performance capability and quality
1972 marked the beginning of the cooperation. After the reorientation of their production from timber to PVC windows, the company hewe, that was originally founded as a carpenter's workshop, initially produced windows with surface-mounted hardware. When SIEGENIA launched the FAVORIT turn-and-tilt hardware in 1972, its first concealed one-handed hardware, hewe was one of the first window producers who converted their production. "The great potential of this solution convinced us. The decisive factor was also the selection of a partner who could deliver quality 'Made in Germany'. That has not changed to the present day", reported Heinz Michael Wetekam, Technical Manager at hewe. hewe also proved its pioneering spirit in 1974, as the company – extremely early for PVC lift and slide elements – changed over its production to the innovative technology of the PORTAL HS.
Wolfgang Wetekam is impressed by the continuing readiness of SIEGENIA to develop customer-initiated innovations for new market requirements. "When the demand for burglar-resistant windows rose in the nineties, the striker plates used were very big in our view and technically complicated in production with their four screw points. For this reason, we suggested the introduction of a more compact, economical variant." The result was a 56 mm short striker plate with anti-lift protection-compatible rear grip, developed in close dialogue. The ES striker plate is not only distinguished by its enhanced burglar resistance. It can also be easily integrated into existing processes due to its identical component length to the standard striker plates. Another plus: as the first manufacturer, hewe had the possibility to integrate its own company logo.
The complete hardware portfolio in use
Positive experiences with the products and the strong basis of trust have led to the introduction of further SIEGENIA solutions over the years. In 2010 hewe converted its window production to TITAN AF. Promising for the company was the option of flexible integration in existing production processes, the reduction of the assembly time and new arguments for end-user consultations. Wolfgang Wetekam is also very satisfied with the multi-functional corner launched in 2010, the corner drive from SIEGENIA, the sash lifter, mishandling device, tilt lock and window lock combined in one single component. The benefits of the comfort mushroom cam with its independent, continuous height adjustment to compensate airgap tolerances and its smooth running up to the highest security classes have been utilised by hewe for many years.
The conversion of their door production to KFV locking technology in 2014 was one of the most recent milestones in this very successful cooperation. Moreover, in close collaboration with SIEGENIA, hewe created a sample for integration in RC2-certified entrance doors in the system handbook from SIEGENIA in 2017.
