Two more virtual tours of Freudenberg Sealing Technologies (FST) production sites in Germany – at Reichelsheim and Schwalmstadt – were developed this year under the direction of the Industrial Services Division (ISD). Launched in 2020, the series offers customers, distributors and employees unique insights into the development of high-performance materials and seals.
Many people are familiar with “action cams” used to record mountain biking or climbing. They are often used to film extreme sports, experiences, and events, sometimes in dangerous circumstances. With their help, fast, abrupt movements turn out to be smooth and razor-sharp. Viewers are close to the action and feel as though they are part of it.
It is no different for those who take an FST virtual tour to learn how Simmerrings®, diaphragms and fluid seals are made. Their sealing technology “action scenes” employ modern camera technologies like those used in extreme sports – fortunately, completely without the hazards. They are especially used in close-ups of machinery in the thick of the action.
Lars Haug
Global Marketing Director
Freudenberg Industrial Services
This year, the ISD marketing team extended its virtual tour series on FST capabilities and production facilities to the Reichelsheim and Schwalmstadt plants. The series began amid the pandemic in 2020. Lars Haug, Global Marketing Director, Freudenberg Industrial Services, spelled out the basic principle of the tours: “Step-by-step, we show the path from individual components to the final product and make the manufacturing process accessible.”
Gray Boxes As A Common Thread
One of the first tours was devoted – almost in advance – to material production in the mixing plant. It was created in the years prior to the series. Forming a common thread, the virtual tours of the individual production facilities build on the early tour. In each case, the gray material boxes of the mixing plant build a bridge cinematically from the production of materials to their processing in manufacturing facilities. All the tours can be taken individually – and separately from one another. Even on their own, visitors can embark on a completely individual journey of discovery on each tour. They can interactively navigate through the content that interests them the most, based on their personal preferences.
In each case, explanatory texts and thumbnails offer behind-the-scenes access to individual manufacturing areas or specific production steps. Drone photos and 360-degree panoramas provide overviews and offer exclusive access from entirely new angles: With one click on the pulsating dot, you find yourself in the middle of the shop floor – rotating, turning, zooming in, and with another click, you “enter” the next production area. On the screen, this is not difficult at all. Videos, three-dimensional animation, graphics and links highlight or deepen the level of detail.
The benefits of the virtual tours are many. Customers, distributors, and employees can use them to gather information. In sales, the virtual tours – or parts of them – can be used for sales discussions, presentations and trade fair appearances. There are off-line versions available for these purposes. New employees can also use the tours to learn about their site or look over the horizon at other product groups. To that end, the virtual tours were recently posted on LMS, the FST Academy’s learning platform.
So far, there are virtual tours of the Industrial Services Division (ISD) test facility for the process industry, Freudenberg Xpress®, the mixing facility, Simmerring® production in Opatovice, and on various Special Sealings operations, including those involving diaphragms in Reichelsheim and fluid technology in Schwalmstadt. Interested persons can access the tour of their choice via the FST website.
The ISD marketing team plans to feature more production facilities based on its tried-and-tested model, which has been refined from episode to episode. Heavy Industry applications at the Hamburg site have been selected as the scene of the next virtual tour in 2024.
