Solution-oriented, further development of elastomers, a success story
Melos creates innovations where creative solutions are needed and individual requirements must be met. In their varied application, Melos products provide people with progress – flexible, reliable and safe for the environment.
Playground@Landscape: The Melos GmbH has grown strongly over the last years. What is your recipe for success? Jörg Siekmann: Melos has been active for more than 70 years in the field of compounding rubber granules. This experience and the know-how it entails, help us to develop Melos products to exactly fulfil customer wishes: A wide range of colours, stable high quality levels, long duration of life and granules with finely adjusted material properties.
In addition, we have the advantage that our granules can be used in many different fields: Track athletics, synthetic turf, fall protection systems for children’s playgrounds, industrial applications and many others.
Playground@Landscape: This sounds like very many different interests and demands. Is there a common denominator? Jörg Siekmann: No - and that wouldn’t be practicable.
The demands of our customers are very different. We satisfy them all in that we orient ourselves according to the specifications of planners and installers and always give customer benefits priority.
The requirements are also increasingly individual because we awaken customer wishes – and, much more important – we can satisfy them. One good example of this is the Meydan project in Dubai.
Playground@Landscape: Where you delivered hundreds of tons of granules “Made in Germany” to the Arab Emirates to clad a two-kilometre long tunnel connecting the horse racing track and stables.
How important was “Made in Germany” for this project? Jörg Siekmann: It is a well known fact that customers in the Arabian states believe particularly strongly in the quality and reliability of German products and this is definitely helpful for us.
It is demanding work to deliver around 500 tons of granules. Sales, development and production must all work together in a customer-oriented way in order to exactly meet the customer’s demands and satisfy the local requirements posed by the burning desert sun. Intensive discussions with distributors and the customer resulted in the product “Dubai Brown”, a new pigment mix which convinced the customer.
Playground@Landscape: Melos attracted nationwide attention in Germany as you fitted out the Berlin Olympia Stadium. Since then, the athletic track there glows in the deep blue of the local, national division football club Hertha BSC. Eye-catchers like this are on the increase, and not only in the field of classic sports. A range of colours is in great demand, above all for the growing playground market. Trends?
Jörg Siekmann: The trend is very definitely towards more colour, individual design and optimal integration of playgrounds into modern living landscapes.
Playground@Landscape: And how do you respond to this?
Jörg Siekmann: The question is who is determining the trends and providing impulse. Just less than one year ago, we presented the “Melos Granules Mixer” – a software solution which allows planners and providers of system solutions to create granule surfaces in practically any colour.
We would also like to continue providing impulse and starting trends. In order to remain innovation leader, we invest heavily in research and development of new products, but also of new marketing approaches.
In this way, for example, we have presented a software solution which follows completely new approach to determine the required quantity of infill granules for synthetic turf. Things will stay exciting.
Playground@Landscape: You show great dedication to local sports clubs and youth sport programmes. What significance do sport and youth development schemes have for you? Jörg Siekmann: A particularly high one! I was active myself for several years in competitive sport and know the importance of successful work with young athletes. Along with the sport-oriented reasons to invest in youth movements, the social reasons are also very important to us. Sport and the companionship within a team strengthen the personality, provide support and promote socialisation. This is especially important for children and adolescents – which is why we support them.
In addition, together with our suppliers we also support the “Junior-Cup”. This is an annual benefit football tournament where the proceeds and donations received are given to social institutions. Major national German teams such as Eintracht Frankfurt, Hamburger SV and Arminia Bielefeld took part in the tournament last year and helped it to gain attention. With the donations received we supported the excellent work of the children’s clinic at Bethel and helped them to build a new children’s hospice.
The interview was conducted by Thomas R. Müller (Playground@Landscape)
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