Entrepreneurial Spirit

I thrive on the challenge of building a successful business from scratch, says Henk Schaake, Managing Director, Turck Singapore. And he has done just that with the regional division of the German sensor and connectivity products supplier

BG: How long has Turck been active in Southeast Asia?

HS: We put the regional office in Singapore into operation in January 2006 with just one person – me. It was my responsibility to set up the organization and get the business going. Now, we have a permanent staff of 12 people in Singapore, a network of regional distributors, good brand awareness, and a sales revenue that is right on track with our forecasts.

BG: You were already with Turck before assuming this role?

HS: Yes, in fact I started working for Turck back in 1991, in Holland. Then in 1996, I moved to the headquarters in Germany for a role in fieldbus marketing, which was when I first came to Singapore as we entered into global agreement to supply Emerson Process Management with Foundation Fieldbus connectivity products.

After moving to the Dutch company Enraf in 2000, where I was involved in product marketing and business development for the LNG business, and which again required extensive travel to Asia, I returned to work for Turck in 2005.

After a very successful expansion to China in the mid-90s, Turck was looking to build its business in other regions of the world and that’s when the management of the company discussed the Southeast Asia opportunity with me, and it was something I was very keen to take on.

BG: How do you approach the industrial automation market in the region?

HS: We initially identified the three primary markets of Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand, and worked to establish a Turck presence there. Now we are also focusing on Indonesia, Vietnam and other areas, which have a lot of potential and to which I personally having been paying a lot of attention recently.

We are fortunate in that, unlike certain vendors, Turck has a product range that is applicable to both factory and process automation and spans almost all industries – oil & gas, petrochemicals, mining, wastewater, food & beverage, automotive, electronics, etc. So we are able to cope with sectoral slowdowns.

We do recognize that factory automation and process automation require different business approaches. Process automation is very project driven and requires close cooperation with the DCS vendors; factory automation is a lot more pure product sales directly to end users and also smaller volumes.

BG: Was it a challenge to set up a Southeast Asia distributor network?

HS: Yes, challenging, but also very interesting. If you have a direct sales office then you can push products focusing on the technology, because you have a lot of experts that know the products and the applications. But for independent sales channels you have to give a very strong and clear message that articulates how your products provide benefits for end users. And so that is why we have invested heavily in product marketing to develop our regional messages.

Currently, we have 11 distributors and are looking to grow that number. The fact that Turck products go across industries is attractive for distributors as it provides a potential for them entering new sectors and even sell other, non-Turck equipment.

BG: What is Turck’s competitive positioning?

HS: We offer smart, innovative products with the latest technology that help our customers optimize their operations. We are not a pure price fighter; that is not our strategy. All the core Turck technology is developed in Germany, which I believe is something to be proud of because German engineering is still closely associated with quality and innovation.

BG: Can you give examples of such innovation?

HS: Take our new Interface Module Cartridge (IMC). This allows the intrinsic safety barrier to be moved from the mounting cabinet directly to the field, which facilitates decentralization of the installation and cost savings for the customer from simplified wiring.

We are also seeing a lot of interest from the market in the new Foundation Fieldbus Diagnostic Power Conditioner (DPC) System. This can detect subtle changes within individual fieldbus physical layer segments, and with the corresponding alarms, plant downtime caused by fieldbus communication disruptions can be avoided.

BG: You were recently elected as Vice President of the FDT Marketing Society Singapore. What do you hope to achieve in this position?

HS: The Society has a clear role – to create an understanding of what FDT (Field Device Tool) technology is all about. There is a lot of confusion out in the regional user community about FDT, and I still have a lot of people coming up to me and asking whether it’s another fieldbus!

We need to clarify that FDT is a standardized communication interface between field equipment and systems, not a communication medium, and that it is network independent – it can work with any fieldbus. FDT allows any device to be assessed from any host through any protocol. That part is still not entirely clear.

A number of end-user seminars are planned for Malaysia, Thailand, and Indonesia this year, and we will also have a stand at the OSEA show in December in Singapore.

BG: And you are also President of the Profibus Association South East Asia …

HS: Yes, I will for sure hold that position until the AGM later this year. This regional association has been very successful over the last few years in raising the profile of Profibus through extensive roadshows and exhibition presence, and it now has over 70 regional supplier and end-user members. I also see a lot smarter questions coming from the audiences, which shows that the level of understanding about the network is much greater than it was just a few years ago.

The other important thing to say is that the success of an association like this lies in having 100 percent vendor neutrality. If it only exists for the benefit of one or two members then you will quickly lose the commitment of the others. For example, Turck assuming the presidency and Endress+Hauser the vice-presidency has sent a good signal to the market that Siemens and Profibus are not one and the same, and attracted many more companies to join the association.

BG: When it comes to people, do you subscribe to a particular management philosophy?

HS: First of all, I am not managing people; I try to motivate them and manage the process. Managing the traditional way with close control and keeping an eye on every detail is not something I am in favor of. Instead, I prefer to give people freedom and responsibility – I outline the objective as part of the bigger picture, but please don’t wait for my detailed instructions on how to do it, that’s your job, although I of course can provide further advice.

As for motivation, try to keep challenging people, because that’s the way to link them to the organization and continue to grow both individuals and company. When I am hiring, I look for a balance between business and technical skills; smart thinkers rather than pure hard workers; and people that can deal with freedom and unclear situations. However, it’s not always easy to find such people!

BG: What are your ambitions for the company and for yourself?

HS: Now that we have built awareness of the Turck brand, the next step is to clarify further what we are bringing to the market – which essentially are smart solutions for below the control system layer – and explain the functional and financial benefits that our products and solutions can deliver to customers. The target is to be the established vendor in this region like we are in other parts of the world.

As for myself, my strengths are in marketing and business development. I do not see myself finishing my career managing a traditional organization of several hundred people. Rather, my interest is in working with functional teams of professionals to build up a solid business which can then be handed over to someone else. These are two different skill sets – building up a business versus consolidating and growing an established business.

Given the rapid expansion of Turck, reflected in double digit growth for the last six years and consolidated turnover of EUR 330 million in 2007, I am sure there will be many opportunities for me in this company. I would quite like to stay in this part of the world – I feel excited and energetic here and it’s a great place to work and live.