With lean production to the breathing factory

The electronics production with pre-assembly and final assembly of the specialist for motion sensors and integrated drive technology Lenord + Bauer is located on 1,840^m2 at the Gladbeck site. Following the move to the new plant, the company wanted to switch to modern equipment based on ergonomic principles that would also meet the requirements of demanding assembly processes. Treston Germany was called in for this purpose. Working closely together, the partners first examined the existing work processes and deliberately questioned them.

The entire process - from analyzing the production processes at the old site to developing and implementing the optimal solution at the new plant - took around a year. The solutions were implemented under lean production aspects using standard components from Treston. In the course of the considerations, the entire hall was planned in grids based on the dimensions of the Treston work tables of 2 × 0.75 m. These concept tables were grouped into U-shaped islands. If necessary, conversions for new work islands can be carried out within one to two days. Special customer requirements can be met quickly and flexibly. The process-oriented arrangement and interlinking of the Treston products used enabled Lenord + Bauer to separate logistics and assembly, simultaneously integrate them into the newly designed production process and achieve a transparent material flow.

The production islands are supplied by a material train, which is always controlled according to demand using an electronic Kanban principle. Whereas the products used to take around three to four days to manufacture, today, thanks to lean production, this is done in just one or one and a half days. Cables and measuring systems are manufactured in parallel. A robot cell takes over the pre-parameterization. It checks whether the measuring system itself works, then the cable is added and the employees assemble everything. This results in significantly shorter throughput times.

Electronics production is divided into individual production islands. There are product-specific islands for all products. The hall also houses a paint shop for electronic assemblies and an oven room for temperature tests and curing processes. The table tops of the U-shaped Treston work tables are equipped with ESD protection. Each table is equipped with electrical connections, IT, compressed air and extraction. Additional furniture such as drawer units, industrial cabinets or multi-trolleys complete the islands. Within the U-shaped structure, there is a separate space for each work step, where only the necessary work materials can be found. In accordance with the principle of one-piece flow, one employee accompanies a workpiece through the various processing steps until completion.

The workstations are ergonomically designed. The tables are individually height-adjustable and the tools and materials required for the individual work steps are laid out using the so-called MTM gripping space template. MTM stands for Methods-time-Measurement - a type of measurement procedure for typical movement and time sequences at the workplace. Repetitive work sequences become easier to calculate in terms of time, making it possible to plan the work process. In addition, physical strain can be identified and minimized by optimizing movement sequences at the workplace, which prevents back injuries, for example.

Milkrun trolleys are a familiar sight in electronics production. The orders are picked in the warehouse and transported by milk run trolley together with the material to specific staging areas, where the employees take them. At the same time, completed orders are placed on the trolley and collected at regular intervals. Achim Olkner, Head of Production and Logistics at Lenord + Bauer, calls the new building a breathing factory. It leaves plenty of scope for change. Olkner is convinced that the initial additional investment has paid off: "When we rebuild now, we know how many places we need, in which grid we can set them up and then we just do it." In mechanical production, a standard cell for a machining center was already defined during construction. Where there are still empty spaces or old machines, new ones can be quickly fitted in. Busbar systems run under the ceiling throughout the entire hall and extraction systems are installed everywhere. IT equipment is also available. This means that the hall can be changed over quickly if necessary.

The principle of flexibility is very important in the workplaces. "Added to this is the versatility of the employees, who have certain basic skills and can manufacture several products. And so we can breathe - that's the "breathing factory". As we work in different markets, there are of course different demands and we can react quickly to them," explains the Head of Production and Logistics with satisfaction. ee