Kanban Monitor brings transparency: Cover Story in the 4/2022 Issue of the German Trade Magazine 'Beschaffung aktuell'

M arkus Dröge, responsible for Logistics Line Management at Atlas, the internationally renowned manufacturer of mobile construction machinery, sees the kanban system as an important factor for the successful cooperation with Stauff. He is responsible for procurement at the company’s headquarters in Ganderkesee and two other pro- duction sites in northwestern Germany. This is where Atlas develops and produces excavators, handling machines and loading cranes for export to over 70 countries. Atlas advertises their “first rate technology and high economic efficiency” as the basis for the success of its customers. It is obvious that economic efficiency also plays an important role in the company’s own production processes. Markus Dröge summarises: “Kanban allows us to save several hundred hours of internal handling tasks every year.” It also omits having to stock parts in-house, which would require predictive planning and appropriate storage capacities while binding capital. And this is how the kanban service works: Stauff de- livers different tube connection elements from the Stauff Line range to Atlas GmbH once a week as a standard, and additionally as required. Overall, the full-line supplier provides over 50,000 components in the field of fluid and line components, developed and manufactured in-house. Pre-assembled items can also be integrated in the kanban control loops. The principle is always the same: A rolling container system provides the products just-in-time, directly at their assembly location. The setup by Stauff customer service staff includes installing and configuring the kanban software, providing the equipment such as shelves, containers and scanners, and an intro- duction into the very easy handling for personnel: Orde- red materials are delivered in small parts containers and then placed directly onto the shelves at the different work- stations. When a container is empty, the worker scans its code. This automatically trig- gers an order, which is forwar- ded to the automated Stauff logistics centre in Neuenrade online. Here, new containers are filled with the corresponding products and prepared for delivery. Plenty of savings: material management, reordering, costs This simple and logical procedure allows users to reduce their process costs in purchasing, logistics and administration while being able to rely on punctual, demand-based deliveries. This is precisely the underlying principle and the main advantage of the replenishment principle first used by Toyota in 1947. Back then, kanban cards were used, while Everything ready for kanban … The Stauff kanban system can be scaled to virtually any size. The range that Stauff customers can receive through kanban is accordingly broad: • Connection technology (tube connectors, hose fittings, flanges, couplings, ...) Over 50,000 standard components from a single manufacturer Image: Stauff • Fastening technology (tube and hose clamps) • Measuring equipment (test couplings, adapters, ...) • Control and shut-off equipment (ball valves, other valves, ...) With Stauff Line, Stauff offers another range for individual, on-demand deliveries: Complete assemblies – usually pre-assembled, ready-to-install hydraulic lines – are delivered to the customer’s assembly line on precision-fit load carriers just-in- time and just-in-sequence. This service is used by the manufacturers of standard machines (mobile and stationary) as well as by manufacturers of custom systems, and rolled out increasingly on an inter- national basis. The worldwide Stauff bases are equipped with state-of-the-art machinery for this purpose, e.g. high-precision bending machines. »With kanban, we save several hundred hours of internal handling work every year.« Markus Dröge,Atlas