Lupold

THE INNOVATORS OF HYDRAULIC SYSTEMS

Andreas Lupold Hydrotechnik GmbH is one of the leading manufacturers of valves, pumps, control and regulating devices, and hydraulic lifting equipment. Thanks to the company’s innovative products and services, it can offer customers system solutions that are tailored precisely to individual requirements. Hannah Barnett spoke to Sales Director Rifat Cetin to find out more.

The core competence of Andreas Lupold Hydrotechnik GmbH is in hydraulics. Otherwise known as Lupold, the company offers a range of standardised and complex solutions in the field of stationary and mobile hydraulics and has been doing this successfully for over 75 years.

In 2019, Lupold became part of the Hydraulik Nord Group – a medium-sized corporate network of technology com -

panies – allowing the further expansion of its capabilities.

“The benefits of belonging to the group are clear; we can build a much bigger network in the hydraulic sector,” said Rifat Cetin, Sales Director. “It means we have access to both a wider customer and supplier network; and of course, there are capital benefits including a lot of investment into R&D.”

Lupold has always existed at the cutting edge, while working with some of the biggest players in the industry. “For the last 30 years, almost every pump from the market leader for piston pumps has used regulators from Lupold,” Mr Cetin explained. “We are a key supplier for them. If we speak about regulators in hydraulic, we have more than half of the complete market share.”

The company had a turnover for 2022 of €22 million, while the figure for the whole Hydraulik Nord Group is around €230 million.

Digitalisation for the future

Lupold has been able to test the potential of hydraulic innovation by developing a pioneering digital regulator, which may prove to be a ground-breaking product in the sector.

“Compared to the old-style standard regulators in hydraulics, we are going to save up to 95 per cent of energy usage with a digital regulator,” Mr Cetin explained. “We have developed this new system, known as Beyond Digital, and it is a very big milestone. It means we can save energy in all hydraulic systems, thereby helping to reduce the environmental impact of our customers and contributing to the fight against climate change.”

The digital regulator combines the advantages of digital technology with those of hydraulics to provide optimised pump management. The controller uses its own poppet valves (known as pulsed universal leak-free solenoid valves, or pulse

for short), which are leak-free, unlike a standard system, and can be switched in a few milliseconds. The basic controller type can be adjusted live to the system’s needs via pioneering software, meaning a change from a pressure controller to a flow or capacity controller is possible during operation. The flexibility of the system is increased enormously from standard models, and controller losses are also minimised.

Lupold launched this groundbreaking product at the 2023 Agritechnica show in Hanover, Germany.

“There is a similar system from a competitor on the market, but our system is more dynamic,” said Mr Cetin. “A customer using the Lupold regulator can see from their construction machinery that the system is reacting faster. Not only that, but the energy efficiency is better and there is only one system that can adapt the software to different pumps. In the

classic version, every pump needed its own regulator and a physical system to run it: the digital version allows for true standardisation.”

Committed to change

As well as helping its partners to improve their carbon footprint via more efficient products, the company is committed to sustainability in its own operations. Lupold is TÜV certified according to ISO 9001 and ISO 14001.

The company also introduced its first solar power plant, consisting of 246 modules, at the end of 2022. This commission marked not only a step towards a greener present, but also an investment in the future. In synergy with this, the Hydraulik Nord Group is also in the process of implementing photovoltaic systems at every location across the group.

Lupold also has on ongoing project to ‘digitalise’ its workforce. “This means the worker in the assembly area has their steps tracked by a digital system,” Mr Cetin explained. “So, we can monitor if the work is done to the technical requirements we expect in-house. The system is made by TULIP, part of DMG MORI, programmed and individually adapted for different applications and clients in-house, and is very innovative.”

The company is also looking to establish a retail presence online for its own range

of hydraulic systems, including lifting tables for various applications.

“I think we cannot maintain our market share in the classical hydraulic system, without making the step into digital –meaning we have to build up new systems,” said Mr Cetin. “And we are not the only ones thinking this way. It is inevitable that the future of hydraulics will be digitalised.”

Compatible partnerships

Like many companies with decades of experience in its sector, Lupold has several long and loyal supplier relationships, some stretching back 40 years. However recent market turbulence has meant other partnerships are less certain. This is where being part of a larger group proves useful, once more.

“We have a commodity management system within the Hydraulik Nord Group,

where we can build up a network and check the best conditions for all of us and then make long term contracts through the group,” Mr Cetin explained. “It benefits suppliers too; they get a bigger share of orders and we, most of time, get better prices.”

In what is sometimes a demanding market, amidst fluctuating raw material prices, a shortage of skilled professionals and an ongoing transition to greener energy, it is clear that Lupold will continue to thrive on the basis of its commitment to innovation.

“I love a challenge,” Mr Cetin concluded. “That’s the main reason, I think, why I’m in sales. And I am inspired by the technical innovations within this group. Selling a product which everybody can make is not so exciting. But if you can go to the customer and offer a new solution, like our digital system, then that really motivates me.” n