Testimonials

Procured the necessary equipment and hired the personnel to support the growth of the new 8” production site. Developed and utilized database capacity calculation models to assure that sufficient capacity for all products is available.

https://www.edn.com/elmos-ships-first-products-from-new-fab/

Transferred smallest technology node from a 6” manufacturing site to a new
8” site that was operated by a Fraunhofer Institute and Elmos in cooperation. Qualified the technology and automotive products according to TS16949 standard and received the release from a major automative customer to provide products out of that manufacturing site.
https://www.ims.fraunhofer.de/en/Newsroom/Press-releases/2005/Cooperation_signed_with_ELMOS_AG_and_IMS_Duisburg.html

In my role as Chief Operating Officer at Elmos I entrusted Holger with the technology transfer of our most advanced technology node to the new production site we were setting up together with the Fraunhofer Institute in Duisburg. After the line was qualified and released to production for one of our biggest automotive customers, I gave Holger the responsibility to lead that manufacturing site. He utilized his experience and data driven approach to scale the output of the site to meet the growing customer demand while maintaining high yield and excellent quality. 

• Collected data for products and processes to analyze and model different business scenarios. 
• Calculated the capacity loading of equipment and personnel using volumes, the utilized process flow and equipment. 
• Developed cost projections per product and for cost of sales total to extract margins and resulting EBITA for the company.

• Analyzed product revenue and margin contribution to focus on products that contribute most to the overall profit of the company.
• Analyzed scrap reasons to focus on which error codes impact yield the most and eliminate root causes and reduced quality cost. 

When I became CEO at SMI, Holger was the VP Operations in my organization. He collected the necessary data from products, processes and equipment and created a database model that provided cost and profit per product based on different volume scenarios. This helped to establish the correct pricing and eliminate non profitable business to be able to achieve a thriving profitable business in a very short period of time. He was also able to analyze and reduce scrap significantly which improved profitability and customer satisfaction.

This was especially crucial to grow the automotive and medical business with high quality requirements.

 >2 x growth for wafer manufacturing, assembly and test in 90days.

 Secured the supply and enabled scaling of volume by > 2x 

Selected suppliers in California and Asia to develop high volume pressure sensor test equipment.

Implemented automated optical inspection to improve yield and deliver <1ppm quality to automotive customer.

Improved yield to > 98% and reduced customer returns by implementing statistical process control and dilation maps.

Transferred sensor process from 6” to 8” wafer size and reduced chip size to enable 4x more chips per wafer.

In his function as COO at SMI, Holger was instrumental to enable continuous supply for our TPMS sensors during a phase where we lost one supplier for the sensor elements. He led the organization to double production on wafer level, assembly and test. He used advanced technology like AOI and partnered with vendors in California and Asia to achieve the volume and improve the quality as well.
I highly recommend Holger for organizations that need support in growing businesses sustainably with high quality products. 

Implemented processes that allow size reduction, better process control and the ability to scale to larger wafer size.  Utilized models and simulation to reduce the size of products and increase the sensitivity. https://patents.justia.com/patent/8381596

High Accuracy with dedicated calibration equipment and algorithms

High Stability with shielding through design & process to reduce the impact of charges that influence sensor stability.

As CEO at SMI, Holger served as the Chief Operating Officer and VP Engineering driving all of the product and process development as well as the production of our world class products. With his leadership he helped build a top notch team that developed new products and processes that enabled SMI to achieve market leading stability and sensitivity for the low-pressure sensors enabling new applications. Additionally, his vision together with the hard work of the team enabled us to scale up production requiring highly engineered production testers and sophisticated calibration algorithms to achieve the accuracy needed to gain more market share. The IP he and the team generated was crucial to acquire and grow our medical business that enabled us to become a leader in the space and ultimately draw an acquisition of SMI by TE Connectivity. Holger’s drive for continuous improvement and ethical, faith-based behavior was inspiring and encouraged his team to go above and beyond to achieve amazing results while establishing a connected and collaborative culture.

Implemented design and process improvements to allow manufacturing of catheter pressure sensors in different wafer sizes with high yield and excellent stability. https://patents.justia.com/patent/10041851

Implemented production methods that allow for automation in the Assembly and test of these ultra-small pressure sensors.

As CEO of Elmos I realized Holger's potential when he was leading the 8” wafer line that Elmos and the Fraunhofer Institute Duisburg operated together. After he brought that line to full production and qualified it for our top automotive customer, I asked him to lead Operations at the Pressure Sensor Company SMI in Milpitas, CA that Elmos bought a few years prior. He enabled the company to become profitable quickly, improved the quality and supported the growth of revenue and profitability. SMI developed exceptional capabilities in the medical sensor field under Holger's Operations and Engineering leadership. The sensors established a benchmark especially in the ultra-small 1-French catheter market.

Yearly sessions to define the strategic initiatives, key performance indicators and responsible people linked to them. Monthly reviews of results and definition of activities to achieve the targets that lead to achieving the strategic goals.

Utilized a method from the Certificate of Excellence training at UC Berkeley to select and hire new leaders in the organization to accomplish the necessary transformation of the culture.

Combined different data sources to utilize old ERP data combined with new MES data to predict output dates and improve customer satisfaction. Supported the quick implementation of a new ERP System.

Holger took over leadership during a pivotal period and successfully guided the business through significant challenges. Leveraging his leadership skills, experience, and industry knowledge, he implemented key improvements that directly contributed to achieving business objectives. Under his leadership, Holger made strategic changes to the management team and restructured the organization to better align with customer expectations and future goals. A critical element of his success was the use of the Hoshin Kanri policy deployment process, which he effectively used to set, communicate, and cascade the company's vision, goals, and KPIs across the team. This ensured alignment with the broader organizational strategy. Moreover, Holger incorporated Hoshin Kanri’s framework to drive continuous improvement through regular reviews and feedback loops. By doing so, he maintained a focus on accountability and ensured that the business consistently moved towards its desired outcomes. In addition, Holger demonstrated strong technical expertise in database management and data analytics, which he applied to streamline production planning and manufacturing execution. This was especially critical during challenging times, as it improved operational efficiency and contributed to meeting business demands effectively.