Electrical Engineering in Good Hands

Interview with Willy Hentschel, Branch Manager Cloppenburg, Head of Engineering at Dipl.-Ing. H. Sitte GmbH & Co. KG

Dipl.-Ing. H. Sitte GmbH & Co. KG Ship Installation
In the area of ship installations, the order books are full until 2027

Around 1,000 employees and 30 locations in the north of Germany - Dipl.-Ing. H. Sitte GmbH & Co. KG is an electrical engineering company that has established itself as a brand through its visible presence. Whether it is shipbuilding, offshore, marine, power engineering, or electromobility - Sitte has the expertise and qualified specialists to handle a variety of electrical engineering projects competently and reliably.

"With our experience and our skilled workers, as an electrical expert company, we have the ability to support and drive forward the energy transition," says Willy Hentschel, branch manager of the Cloppenburg and Bremen locations and department head of Engineering. "This is clearly our focus. An example of this is our work as the project manager for an electrolyzer in Bremen for green steel production." 

Close to the Customers

The fact that Sitte today covers a portfolio as broad as it is demanding is the result of long-standing experience in the market. Founder Herbert Sitte started out in 1971 traditionally in a garage, offering electrical engineering services. He started in the sewage sector, focused on sewage treatment plants, and over time integrated more and more areas into the portfolio, became active also for shipyards like the Meyer Werft, worked for power plants and in wind parks in the North and Baltic Seas. To be close to the customer and to be able to serve them directly, a dense network of branches was created. Each branch has its own regular customers and areas of expertise; often they join forces on a supra-regional level to pool competencies for the customers. "Today, 1,000 employees in 30 branches are active - the majority, between 800 and 900, trained electrical specialists, the rest work in project management and administration," says Willy Hentschel.

Dipl.-Ing. H. Sitte GmbH & Co. KG Willy Hentschel
Willy Hentschel, Thomas Tönjes, and Martin Brinkmann at the Hannover Fair – Branch Managers and Regional Managers of the company

Qualified employees are the foundation of the company. "We do not offer products, we have no production," says Willy Hentschel. "Our strength is the expertise in electrical engineering. Here, we can train our employees for different challenges, whether it's about ships, gas turbines, wind turbines, or power plants." To counteract the shortage of skilled workers, a dedicated applicant management system has been established to support the individual branches with job advertisements, online campaigns, and similar activities. The focus is on further education, working internally with a qualifications catalog, making employee care and leadership central topics, and even offering specialized lessons for trainees to prepare them for their exams. With success. "Through targeted employee care, we were able to stop employee departures by mid-2023," says Willy Hentschel. "In addition, we try to support each other in co-existence with market companions rather than poaching skilled workers from each other." 

People at the Center 

Good employees will continue to be needed by Sitte; the order books are full until 2027 in the area of ship installation. And although AI and automation are intended to reduce working hours and simplify processes, Sitte will continue to focus on people in the future. "AI and automation are big topics in the industry," says Willy Hentschel. "However, we expect that cables will still need to be laid and connected despite innovative technology, and that even in 30 years, no robot will perform this task." 

Dipl.-Ing. H. Sitte GmbH & Co. KG Trade Fair
At the trade fair, there was an opportunity to present the Sitte brand and the associated expertise

Better for Customers

Sitte aims to continue to grow healthily in the future by further developing and qualifying employees. The goal is to become even better and more attractive for customers. To become more visible as a brand, the company presented itself at the Hannover Messe in a joint stand with the state of Lower Saxony; it also relies on partnerships in professional and amateur sports. Ultimately, however, Sitte draws attention through its professional competence. There is a reason why the company has been a partner of Meyer Werft for 25 years and has been recognized as their Partner of the Year.