Ms. Magerl-Studer, at the Forum for Swiss Foreign Trade on 21 April you will be speaking about your experiences in driving the digital transformation forward in your own company.
How vital is the fourth industrial revolution for your company?
As a small family cosmetics manufacturer with limited financial resources, it is of great importance for us that we have already gotten on the Industry 4.0 bandwagon.
What measures are you implementing to get your company ready for Industry 4.0?
In a first step, we have integrated all scales in the process, so we can now monitor any commodity from receipt of goods to bottling.
Keyword competitiveness: How can export-driven Swiss SMEs also benefit from the latest automation trends such as the Internet of Things?
The better we know our customers, the better we can prepare customized offers and react quickly to changing requirements.
How would you assess the export year 2015, which was of course affected by the Swiss franc shock?
If the export share is as high as it is in our family company, such a dramatic change in currency will lead to many immediate internal and external measures. We have done our homework and are optimistic about the future again.
What do you expect for your company in the export year 2016, which is still young, but will surely be demanding again?
Further price adjustments and continued flexibility – but also great opportunities to open up new markets.
This interview was published on 23 March 2016 in a supplement to Handelszeitung.
