Valuable experience from the automotive industry and tool construction benefits FRECON’s customers

As a trained machine operator and tool maker, FRECON co-owner Leif Christoffersen can draw on his practical experience in working with customers across industries.

With a background in the design of advanced tools for the demanding automotive industry, FRECON’s co-owner, Leif Christoffersen, knows what it takes to achieve good solutions and satisfied customers.

“Along with being good at establishing an overview and having a sense of detail and solutions that also work in real life, it creates the foundation for solutions that make a difference for the customers,” says Leif.

Leif Christoffersen, Partner and Senior Solution Specialist, FRECON

From demanding automotive industry to diligence and creativity

Until he, as a 30-year-old, took a theoretical education as a tool design engineer, Leif Christoffersen worked as a machine operator and tool maker in the tool business. In particular, the construction design and documentation of various types of tools for Swedish and German car manufacturers has provided valuable experience that can be transferred to FRECON’s current and future customers.

”The automotive industry places very high and stringent demands to your skills and creative inputs. Often, we base our work on an item drawing and construct a tool to be used e.g. to produce a small part for a car seat. It can take up to a few thousand construction hours and end up with over 5,000 bits in a single tool,” says Leif.

The production in the automotive industry places ultimate demands on the precision and robustness of tools when the production halls start off. If a tool becomes worn too quickly or breaks, the entire production must be paused. Likewise, the finished tool must be able to produce individual parts in very large quantities – and this with an accuracy down to decimal millimeters. As a tool constructor, it takes both great care and a certain amount of creativity to create good and durable solutions.

“To be able to draw the tool, we must also consider several hundred pages of requirements for e.g. how Volvo or Lear Corporation want their tools built, or what standard part design or steel choices we use in the final tool, “ says Leif. “It takes great creativity and diligence to be able to work out the right solutions that can meet all the requirements and at the same time be produced in practice.”

In addition to the automotive industry, Leif has also designed tools for the production of items in industries such as aircraft, household appliances, food processing, windows, solar collectors, conveyor belts, flower containers – and not least wind turbines. A practical and versatile background, which is extremely valuable as a partner and Senior Solution Engineer at FRECON.

Knowledge and experience are transferred to FRECON’s customers

Both of FRECON’s owners are trained tool makers, and this benefits solutions to many types of tasks across industries.

“We bring our experiences from the tool industry to many other industries and tasks here at FRECON,” says Leif. “For instance, we have also worked extensively on cast iron items and the construction design of plastic injection molding tools. This knowledge is of great importance today, when we have to design molded items for our customers in the wind turbine industry. The same goes for our creative inputs and ability to come up with new and alternative solutions.”

But not only Leif and Frederik Rytter benefit from the extensive experience on which FRECON is based and founded. With teamwork as one of FRECON’s core values, the exchange of experience is an important part of the engineering consultancy’s everyday life.

“We like to share our unique experience from many years of work e.g. as tool makers, with our colleagues who have not had the same opportunities,” says Leif and continues:

“Similarly, we can learn a lot from the young employees who come from university and have great theoretical knowledge and skills. We prioritize the exchange of experience, and we like to sit and work together on a daily basis. It gives our customers anything but standard solutions that make a difference and precisely match the problem they bring to our table.”