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of selected DLP projects

Get to know our working methods using specific examples.

Process optimization concrete block plant construction

Particularly in plant engineering, where only a few orders are placed each year, the topics of variant management and standardization present companies with major tasks and challenges. Encrusted structures and old habits often prevent optimization projects from the inside out; at the same time, the ever faster pace of technical innovation makes it more difficult to reuse individual machines and modules. Nevertheless, there are ways to make the diversity more manageable and to make the processes between sales, design and production smoother and more consistent.

Client:
Manufacturer of plants for concrete block production
> 300 employees

Sector:
Mechanical and plant engineering for the building materials industry

Topic:
Quotation configuration, parts list system, product construction kit, classification, customization design, change management

Situation:
The average age in the mechanical design department was around 50 years, in the electrical department around 40 years. The structures in the design area had grown. Manufacturing cost reduction measures in the past were successful, but the optimization of workflows and processes was not to the same extent. Even with declining order backlogs, capacity utilization in the design department remained high. Optimization efforts under our own steam were without lasting success.

Task:

  • Optimization of processes, especially in design as well as upstream and downstream areas
  • A paradigm shift in design: development of a market-driven, maintainable, order-neutral modular product system, i.e. moving away from "copying old offers and orders" towards proactive, technically pre-planned solution consulting with the customer
  • Reduction in processing costs and times for customization and change designs, resulting in less deadline pressure and more time for development and innovation
  • Making the knowledge of "old hands" available to young, up-and-coming employees
  • Eliminating the bottleneck of parts list entry and maintenance in SAP, including improving data quality
  • Reducing the variety of parts by creating neutral CAD model structures and machine and system structures in SAP (keyword: master/template concept)
  • Appropriate coupling or integration of the CAD world with the ERP world, resulting in overall cost-reducing improvements in the product itself and in the direction of process costs; this leads to sustainable improvement and ensures competitiveness.

DLP services:

  • Recording of product portfolio, processes and IT systems
  • Derivation of potentials/weaknesses, need for action
  • Creation of a roadmap for step-by-step and results-oriented implementation
  • Creation of a rough task plan with corresponding packages of measures
  • Support during implementation

Result:

  • Identification of interface problems between sales, design and production
  • Coordination of a modular product system between sales and engineering
  • Suitable structuring of machines, components and assemblies
  • Conception of a suitable PDM solution in the SolidEdge SAP environment
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