Case Study | E-KanBan ensures replenishment in C-parts management

"The good partnership with KATHREIN was reflected in a pragmatic approach and real teamwork. Within just one day, we had very dynamically developed the best solution for STIEFEL."

- Daniel Diemer, Managing Director, L-mobile infrastructure GmbH & Co. KG

No production breaks due to empty KLT containers

STIEFEL provides its customers with pneumatic, hydraulic and industrial logistics products for manufacturing in the form of KanBan racks with KLT containers. The high availability of the system is crucial for the smooth production and assembly of STIEFEL customers. If a KLT container is empty because the replenishment in the ERP was not triggered in time, assembly comes to a standstill. This can not only be expensive, but usually also leads to non-compliance with delivery deadlines and therefore annoyance on the part of the end customer. As STIEFEL's products have stood for the highest quality for over 60 years, the replenishment process had to be improved in order to meet the quality standards of the traditional manufacturer. STIEFEL turned to L-mobile for advice. The beginning of a joint development process.

Goals for a digitized e-KanBan replenishment concept

L-mobile understood STIEFEL's desire to optimize the replenishment of its customers' production lines. The project objectives were quickly formulated: error-free and automated replenishment of the KLT containers, avoidance of production downtime and, above all, avoidance of travel times for the STIEFEL logistics team for unscheduled "emergency" deliveries. In addition, more transparency was to be achieved in the ERP, i.e. the order for the missing parts is triggered in real time and automatically booked in the ERP system. L-mobile approached KATHREIN Solutions to select the appropriate RFID components and a concept that could be customized for STIEFEL customers.

Test center: Finding the right hardware and suitable concept quickly

L-mobile's recommendation clearly went in the direction of an RFID-based e-KanBan system. They were looking for a 100%-reliable RFID solution that also enabled selective reading. This would prevent full and empty containers from being incorrectly recorded together. When it came to choosing a hardware supplier, only KATHREIN Solutions came into question for L-mobile. The RFID partner not only outlined a practicable solution in theory, but also invited L-mobile to its in-house test center in order to test a prototype for STIEFEL in a real environment in a very practical way.The first challenge was to find and combine exactly the RFID readers and antennas that fitted into the overall concept from a large hardware portfolio. With the KATHREIN Smart Shelf antenna from the RRU4500 RFID reader series, which can be flexibly connected or integrated via Ethernet, WLAN or 4G, the L-mobile-KATHREIN team found a reader that can control 32 antennas simultaneously. An efficiency aspect that should represent a cost-effective solution for the customer STIEFEL during operation. However, L-mobile also wanted to make this modularly available for the various STIEFEL customers, i.e. designed for small, medium and large KTLS racking systems.

Thinking ahead: L-mobile designs Plug&Play shelf types

L-mobile developed a pre-configured e-KanBan RFID hardware system that could be sent directly to customers for self-assembly in order to equip STIEFEL customers with the new e-KanBan shelving system without a great deal of effort. The system was designed by L-mobile in such a way that users can carry out both the mechanical installation and the IT connection themselves. This practical "plug & play" solution is available in a shelf and also a table version, on which the KTL containers are also fully recorded. But L-mobile went one step further and understood the needs of the various STIEFEL customers. They developed various intelligent modules, in a small, medium and large version, in order to be able to offer the right RFID e-KanBan module for every customer. Scalable, of course.

Project success at a glance: The practical test

L-mobile fine-tuned the system directly on site "on the shelf". When the worker removes the container from the shelf or puts it back, the system should read it at exactly the right time, not too early and not too late. L-mobile quickly implemented these functional customization requests as well as design requirements. STIEFEL customers quickly appreciated the benefits of the new digitalized replenishment process. Now it just works.

 

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Case Study | E-KanBan ensures replenishment in C-parts management