A new start with the packaging star
Metin Sahin
Plant manager at the Bielefeld plant
In 2000, 17-year-old Metin Sahin finished school. He did not have a job in sight. Through neighbours, the young man heard that the nearby F. Luce packaging plant in Bielefeld was booming after it had been taken over by the Schumacher family a year earlier.
"Before I knew it, I was standing at the gluing machines for several weeks," he laughs. When the summer was over and Metin actually wanted to catch up on his A-levels, they didn't let him go so easily.
"If you love your job, you don't
have to work your whole life."
Metin liked the idea of staying, but he wanted to start his career "properly": And so he started a three-year apprenticeship on site to become a packaging technologist (formerly: packaging mechanic). He finished as one of the best three in his year - which attracted the attention of company boss Wulf Schumacher: After all, he had bought the Bielefeld plant to start his expansion plans, for which new capable employees were also needed.
Schumacher's son Hendrik also saw great potential in him and therefore offered to pay for Metin's further training to become an industrial foreman. "In my early 20s, I wanted to gain experience and earn money first and not go back to school straight away," Metin recalls. "So I continued to work on the stamping presses for a while and then did the further training from 2008 to 2011." Since a suitable position was not immediately available for him afterwards, Metin indulged his passion for punching for another two years before he took over sole responsibility for the work preparation/purchasing area.
Since the beginning of 2020, he has acted as operations manager at the Bielefeld plant. When Hendrik Schumacher offered him the job, his first thought was: "What does a plant manager actually do?". Metin was unsure whether he was the right person for the position and sought feedback from colleagues. The positive feedback from the crew and the knowledge that the bosses were there to support him with any questions encouraged him to take the chance.
From personnel planning for production to dispatch, work preparation, purchasing of operating materials, quality assurance, energy management, operating technology and investment planning in coordination with the management: there is a lot to do as an operations manager. "I'm well challenged, but I still have room for development," he says - and adds: "If you love your job, you don't have to work your whole life."
In the meantime, Metin has also built a young management team around him, in which everyone pulls together. "We master the daily tasks together," he reports proudly.
Metin about Schumacher Packaging
Schumacher Packaging is continuously developing. Metin's personal growth and that of the company go hand in hand. "I could and can find my own demands in our work and identify with every innovation."
What he particularly appreciates about his employer is that, despite the size of the company today, the family DNA is still clearly noticeable. "When I became a father in autumn 2022, the directors were honestly and sincerely happy with me. In my more than 20 years I have always had the feeling of being part of both the company and the Schumacher family."
For the future, he says it is important for him to keep an eye on the world, to help drive developments and to make the Bielefeld location even more attractive for the market. "We want to keep up with the big players here in the region. New applicants should get to know our company the way I once did: If you bet on Schumacher, Schumacher bets on you."
The cleaner with the big dreams
Orcun Sönmezgök
Plant manager at the Forchheim plant
From rags to riches? Not quite. Nevertheless, Orcun Sönmezgök's career path leads steeply upwards. When Schumacher Packaging took over Kartonax GmbH & Co. KG in Nuremberg, the Turkish-born Orcun Sönmezgök had just completed his training as a packaging technologist. Two years earlier he was still working as a cleaner in the same company - committed and with big goals.
From production worker to plant manager
Brooms, rags and buckets were passé, his training successfully completed. Orcun then continued working as a production employee in Nuremberg for seven years. From 2009 to 2011, he temporarily said "goodbye" to Schumacher Packaging in order to reorientate himself professionally. Hendrik Schumacher left the door open for him during this time. Orcun returned in 2013 as a media technologist - to the newly built Schumacher plant in Forchheim, which had replaced the Nuremberg site in the meantime.
From then on, things went steeply uphill for him: "With the necessary ambition and passion for my job, together with my superiors and a great team, I managed to achieve the goals I had set and gain a lot of experience," Orcun enthuses.
First work preparation, then process optimisation, since 2017 operations management at the Forchheim plant with 170 employees. Orcun's core competence is in the commercial sector and includes design, work preparation, pre-press, planning, production and logistics.
Orcun about Schumacher Packaging
The opportunities in our dynamic company left hardly anything to be desired for him, says Orcun. Hardly. There is still one or two dreams he is working towards: to take on more areas of responsibility and to expand his involvement in supply chain management. To this end, the doer is even improving his English in lessons in order to be able to communicate with colleagues and business partners throughout Europe.
"Loyalty, determination and productivity are the keywords that characterise me as an employee, motivate me and make me hungry for further success."
From apprentice to plant manager:
A steep career at Schumacher Packaging
Oliver Michel
Operations manager at the Sonneberg plant
Oliver Michel is a real hands-on person - and one who shows what's possible: even as a schoolboy, he worked for us during the holidays. Since then, Schumacher Packaging has been a thread running through his CV. In 2009, he began an apprenticeship as an industrial clerk. Today he works as a plant manager at the Sonneberg factory and is responsible for 200 people.
With his A-levels in his pocket, Oliver enrolled in an automotive degree programme at university. But student life was not for him: "I wanted to get started directly on the job and prefer to learn first-hand," he says. So he started a commercial apprenticeship as an industrial clerk - and with us. Thanks to his commitment and good performance, he completed the intermediate examination with a grade of 1.0, which enabled him to shorten his training period to two years.
A promise for the future
After three years in process optimisation at the Ebersdorf plant, Oliver wanted more and therefore sought a conversation with Managing Director Björn Schumacher. He then added a degree in business administration to his training - and continued to work at the company in the meantime. The Schumacher family promised him an interesting job after his successful graduation. And that's what he got: Hendrik Schumacher, also managing director, offered the freshly graduated bachelor the position of plant manager at the Sonneberg plant. "I could always rely on the company. I really appreciate this trust," he says.
Since September 2016, Oliver has now been working successfully as operations manager. He is responsible for production, quality assurance, shipping and personnel, among other things. A dream job for him: "I have a diverse range of tasks for which I need motivation, courage, patience, perseverance, negotiating skills and assertiveness - and that every day anew. That's what I love about my job.
Oliver about Schumacher Packaging
A European player that has retained the DNA of a medium-sized company and its family structure despite rapid growth - that is what Oliver values most about his employer. He firmly plans to be part of the company until retirement. "I am currently in the position I always wanted to be in," he says. "I want to continue to grow together with Schumacher Packaging, also on a personal level."
Write your own maker story
Our doer stories inspire you to take your next career step at Schumacher Packaging? Do you like to get things done, are you committed and want to make a difference? Then do it! Browse our career portal and apply for your desired position. We look forward to receiving your application!