IMTS 2002: Bosch Rexroth launching Service Automation division in U.S.

Chicago, IL— Bosch Rexroth Corp. (Hoffman Estates, IL) announced Sept. 4 at IMTS 2002 that it is forming a new Service Automation division to unite customer service and training activities for all of Bosch Rexroth’s factory automation technologies. The division, Bosch Rexroth Service Automation, will unify U.S.-based field service and training for end-users and OEM customers in factory automation.

The new division is being formed now and will start operating in January 2003. Gary Blankemeyer, a Bosch Rexroth vp and business analyst with experience in pneumatics, linear motion technologies and in the machine tool industry, has been named vp and gm of the new division.

Bosch Rexroth Service Automation currently has a staff of 130 engineers and technicians located throughout the U.S. However, that number is expected to increase as the division implements its services and expands its customer base.

Presently, customers requiring service support can call Bosch Rexroth’s 24-hour service hotline at 1-800-REXROTH. This hotline serves as one point of contact for all service-related issues, and will continue in that role under the new Service Automation division.

“This is a logical and essential extension of our `Drive & Control’ strategy,’ ” says Robert Rickert, Bosch Rexroth’s president and ceo. “As we complete the integration of Bosch Automation and Rexroth, we will have a uniform approach to customers in the area of service, covering the complete lifecycle of our products and systems. I’m delighted to have Gary step up to this assignment. His excellent work on post-merger integration issues over the past year gives him precisely the perspective we need in Service Automation.”

Mr. Blankemeyer says the new division will be modeled after the Service Automation division, already established in Europe by Bosch Rexroth AG (Lohr, Germany). The U.S. version will integrate service for four existing divisions: Industrial Hydraulics; Electric Drives and Controls; Linear Motion and Assembly Technologies; and Pneumatics. He adds that Service Automation’s services will include:

• customer help desk with on-call services, help and information, the service hotline and other “teleservices;”

• field services, including system installation, commissioning, maintenance, optimization, fault diagnosis and elimination;

• repair service with repairs certified to ISO 9001, use of genuine Bosch Rexroth parts, and warranty services, all with fast reaction time;

• spare parts supply consisting of genuine spare parts with guaranteed quality and rapid delivery, as well as parts-management contracts;

• retrofit and modernization, which has solutions to meet specific customer needs, including environmental and safety compliance and productivity and machine-availability upgrades, all with engineering support; and

• training with seminars and workshops, teaching and training materials, training systems up to mechatronics, and e-learning programs.

“Service Automation is proof positive of our `Drive & Control’ strategy,” adds Mr. Blankemeyer. “We will operate as a complete entity across all the automation businesses, as an integrated operation rather than autonomous divisions. Our goal is that, in time, customers will think of us for all their drive and control service needs.”

Bosch Rexroth is the result of a merger of Bosch Automation Technology and Rexroth, and is wholly owned subsidiary of Robert Bosch GmbH. In 2001, the two companies had total revenues of approximately $3.42 billion and a worldwide total of about 26,000 employees.

Control Engineering Daily News Desk
Jim Montague, news editor
jmontague@reedbusiness.com

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