FANUC Germany introduces new Management Team

October 2016

Three at the Helm

FANUC Germany introduces new Management Team

Neuhausen – Effective November 1, FANUC Germany operates under new management structure. The appointed managing directors are Ralf Winkelmann as the Managing Director for Sales and Matthias Fritz as the Managing Director for Technology. The CEO is Shinichi Tanzawa.

Ralf Winkelmann, who has been working at the company for 13 years, head of the Automotive Center of the German limited ("GmbH") in Neuhausen since April 1, 2015 and at the same time Head of Sales, was also responsible for Robotics. Thus, he has a solid background in both industries - automotive business and general industry, which ideally suits his new position.

Winkelmann sees the success formula for the company's further expansion in consistent implementation of the "One FANUC" strategy.

Since October 2011, Matthias Fritz has been the Technical Director of FANUC Germany and responsible for the "Technical Sales Support" division. He built this division into a strong team, meanwhile made up of 90 employees. TSS already ensures close contact between engineering and sales by virtue of its mission – providing sales support in technical questions. The appointment of Matthias Fritz underscores the inter-divisional cooperation of the specialists from the individual teams. Fritz: "It is particularly important for me to develop a common understanding within the team and towards the outside, so that as a unified FANUC Team, we will ultimately live up to our customer requirements."

Ralf Winkelmann and Matthias Fritz, in cooperation with Shinichi Tanzawa, will be running day-to-day operations of the company, which across all three business divisions boosted sales growth last year by 18 percent to EUR 212 million. In total, the company currently employs some 300 people, including trainees in commercial and technical careers.

Shinichi Tanzawa will assume the position of CEO alongside his duties as President and CEO of FANUC Europe. The fact that the European President of FANUC is actively involved in a subsidiary aligns with a strong tradition in the company, safeguarding the continuity of activities and a seamless transition.