Prefix Aims to Broaden Its Customer Portfolio

Since Aleš Tengler took over as Managing Director in May, the company has seen a significant increase in new enquiries. Some former customers are returning to Prefix, while new projects are also coming in. We spoke with him about where he wants to take the company, what strengths it can build on and his plans for its further development.

You joined Prefix as Managing Director at a rather challenging time. What did you see as the biggest problem when you arrived?

For me, the biggest problem was not production itself, but a lack of orders. The company did not have enough work, some of its production capacity was underutilised, and this was naturally reflected in its financial results.

That is why my first priority was to strengthen sales. There was little point in focusing on whether we could save ten or twenty thousand crowns here and there when we were missing millions in revenue. Above all, we needed to bring more work into the company.

We strengthened our sales team by bringing in Michal Hudec, an experienced sales professional with extensive knowledge of the engineering industry. We quickly found common ground and worked together to develop a strategy for winning new orders. Today, I can say that the situation has changed significantly. Orders are coming in.

This has brought us to the next stage. Now we need to demonstrate that we can prepare these orders from a technological perspective, manufacture them efficiently, deliver them on time and, most importantly, make a profit on them.

One of your goals is to broaden your customer portfolio. Why is diversification so important for Prefix?

In the past, Prefix was heavily dependent on one major customer. We do not want to find ourselves in a situation again where losing a single customer has a significant impact on the entire company. That is why we want to spread our business across a wider range of customers while also securing stable partners for long-term cooperation and larger production volumes. The key is to maintain a well-balanced customer portfolio.

We are currently at a stage where many new customers are testing us with smaller production runs. They need to verify that we can deliver the required quantities, on time and to the expected quality standards. If we demonstrate that we can meet their expectations with these initial orders, they may develop into long-term partnerships.

So the number of orders is growing. What is the company's biggest challenge now?

A few months ago, we were trying to find work. Today, we are focused on getting new orders through technological preparation and into production as quickly and efficiently as possible.

New orders are not always straightforward. They are often technologically demanding and require new procedures, programming, fixtures or finding the most efficient manufacturing process.

But that is exactly where I believe an engineering company's strength should lie. I do not want us to start explaining why something cannot be done as soon as we encounter a problem. I want us to ask ourselves first: What do we need to do to make it work? That is the change in mindset I am trying to introduce into the company.

Are you demanding of your employees? What do you expect from them, and what can they expect from you in return?

Yes, I am demanding. But I also try to be fair. If I expect someone to deliver results, they must have the conditions and resources they need to achieve them. If we need a new tool, fixture, software, machine repair or another investment, I am ready to discuss it and make a decision.

What I am not willing to accept, however, is passivity. If someone comes to me with a problem, I expect them to bring at least one possible solution as well. I really value people who come to me and say, "We have a problem, but I can see three possible ways to solve it." Every company needs people like that. I expect professionalism and personal responsibility from my employees.

In return, I can promise that I will make decisions openly and based on results. If the company succeeds, employees should gradually benefit from that success too. If we have a problem, I will not pretend it does not exist.

Equally, I will do my best to remove obstacles that prevent people from doing their jobs well. If we have an outdated process, faulty equipment or a missing tool, we need to address it.

On the other hand, I expect the same openness from my employees. If something is not working, I need to know about it. Not when we are already facing a problem with a customer.

What management style do you want to introduce at Prefix?

I believe in a fairly straightforward approach to management. Clear responsibilities, clear deadlines and measurable results. I do not want to create more administration just for the sake of having another spreadsheet. But we do need information. We need to know how fully our machines are utilised, where we have spare capacity, where bottlenecks occur, which orders are running behind schedule and why.

We also need to understand our costs. It is not enough to know that we are manufacturing products. We need to know whether we are manufacturing them productively and whether we are making a profit on each order.

At the same time, I do not want to manage the company solely from behind a desk. I spend roughly 70% of my time on the shop floor and 30% in the office. I need to be out in production, see what is actually happening and talk to people.

What does Prefix need to develop further?

I do not think Prefix needs one big revolution. It needs a series of specific changes that gradually come together. We need a strong sales team, high-quality technological preparation, realistic production planning, stable manufacturing processes, effective maintenance and a quality department that works in partnership with both production and our customers.

Above all, we need individual departments to stop thinking only about their own responsibilities. Commercial success does not end when we win an order. It comes when we have manufactured the product correctly, the customer has accepted it, we have issued the invoice and the order has generated an appropriate profit margin for the company. That must be a shared goal across the entire business.

What role will investment and subcontracting play in Prefix's future development?

I am open to investment. But every investment must make sense from both an economic and a technological perspective. I do not want to buy a machine simply because it is new or because it would be nice to have. I need to know what work we have for it, which operations we currently outsource, what the operating costs will be and how long it will take for the investment to pay for itself.

I take the same approach to subcontracting. If we do not have the technological capability to perform a particular operation, or if outsourcing is more cost-effective, subcontracting has its place. But I do not want to automatically outsource work that we can handle efficiently with our own people and equipment. Every such job helps us utilise our capacity and develop expertise that stays within the company.

What strengths can Prefix build on as it makes these changes?

Above all, our people and our technical equipment. We have employees who have worked here for many years and have tremendous experience. I consider these people the company's greatest asset. They know the production processes, the machines and the technologies.

We also have a high-quality and diverse range of machinery that enables us to focus on larger and more technologically demanding components.

After I joined, we also focused on the condition of our machines. We had them adjusted, carried out the necessary geometric accuracy checks and verified their capabilities so that we know exactly which parameters we can guarantee to our customers. This is also important for sales. When we quote for a new order, we need to be certain that we can manufacture it to the required accuracy and quality standards.

At the same time, I understand that after everything the company has been through, accepting further changes may not be easy for employees. That is why we need to explain where we want to take the company and why we are taking each step.

Where would you like to see Prefix in three years?

I would like to see a stable, efficient and profitable engineering company with enough work coming in and, at the same time, the freedom to select orders that make sense from both a technological and an economic perspective.

I do not want us to compete on price alone. Prefix has the machinery and expertise to manufacture more technically demanding products. I want our customers to know that when they entrust us with a complex component, we can find the right technological solution, manufacture it to the required quality standards and meet the agreed delivery date.

And within the company, I want our employees to know where we are heading and what is expected of them.