Michael Preuss has been with the company for almost exactly 37 years now, initially as a software developer but gaining promotion to Sales Manager within a short time. In 2004, he took over the management of the Tettnang-based control system specialist together with Wolfgang Lachmann, his long-time companion and Director Development Technology. Preuss subsequently put the company on course for growth, pushing ahead prudently with modernisation and focusing from an early stage on climate protection and sustainability. Probably one of his biggest challenges was last year’s change of name to Bucher Automation Tettnang GmbH. He has now decided to call it a day: Michael Preuss will step down at the end of March for personal reasons.

Seamless transition – excellently positioned for the future

“The change of name was a major landmark in the history of our company”, says Preuss proudly. “The process is now largely complete and it’s the perfect time for me to place our organisation’s future in the hands of my successor.” After all, Stephan Pies has been with the company for a very long time already and is thoroughly familiar with the situation there. Pies was most recently Director Sales with signatory authority and joined the management team at the beginning of the year. He will take over at the helm officially on 1 April.

“We’ve been working together well and extremely successfully for many years”, reports Christian Benz, CEO of Bucher Automation AG in Ludwigsburg and Managing Director of the Tettnang subsidiary. He confirms that the business Michael Preuss is handing over in 2024 has grown to become an integral part of the Bucher family and is excellently positioned for the future. Benz: “Both futronic and Bucher Automation owe him a great deal”.

Respectful interaction and flat hierarchies

It was back in the early eighties that Michael Preuss graduated in Electrical Engineering and Electronics from Ravensburg-Weingarten University of Applied Sciences, ten miles north of Tettnang. Whereas many of his fellow-students could not wait to get out into the big wide world after completing their final exams, he chose to remain faithful to his native Upper Swabia, starting work at futronic on 6 April 1987. Aside from a few holiday jobs and temporary employment as a student, Preuss has spent his entire working life at the Tettnang company.

A sympathetic ear

Preuss has always had a sympathetic ear for his staff. Mutual respect and a good working atmosphere are immensely important to him. Flat hierarchies as well as his friendly nature and prudent leadership style are key factors here. His colleagues have shown their gratitude with great loyalty to the firm, in many instances over a period of several decades.

Michael Preuss, born in 1962, is married with two grown-up children. In future, he will have more time to cruise around the countryside again with his wife on a heavy motorbike, relax with a fishing rod in the early hours of the morning or devote himself to modelmaking. And as grandfather of a newborn baby, there are also some hitherto unknown challenges awaiting him.