Held has been a family business since its foundation. Motorcycle clothing was not yet the focus back then. After the end of the Second World War, Edgar Held Senior recognized the need to protect people's hands from injuries at work or in the cold - especially in the context of reconstruction. Together with his father Bruno Held, the young family entrepreneur produced robust glove models from durable leather. The expansion to the motorcycle sector did not take place until the 1970s. High-performance racing was in vogue at the time. And the gloves for the motorcycle sector had to meet tougher requirements than their counterparts. The starting signal for motorcycle clothing from Held had been given.

Well equipped from head to toe
Since the early 1980s, the Held family has been expanding its range of motorcycle clothing - from gloves to kidney belts and motorcycle luggage. The company now employs 120 people. 37 of them are employed in the logistics center, which was put into operation in Kempten in November 2017.

Picking was originally carried out on foot. The trolleys were pushed manually. © Toyota

Even today, part of the production still takes place at the company headquarters in Burgberg-Erzflöße in the Allgäu region. The work preparation for the sophisticated gloves, for example. "With fashionable gloves or ski gloves, the fit doesn't have to be precisely tailored - when riding a motorcycle, the gloves have to fit perfectly. Because they are of course also responsible for the rider's safety. That's why we don't miss the opportunity to punch some of the components of the glove that are relevant to the fit here in Burgberg. These are then sewn in workshops all over the world," explains Markus Held, who now runs the company together with his father Edgar Held Junior.

Fit is crucial
The big difference to other manufacturers is the wide range of products and the diversity of variants. This applies above all to the available size models and colors, says Logistics Manager Bernd Mack: "We have 111 variants of one jacket. Another, which is only available in black, we offer in over 50 different sizes." For motorcyclists, the right clothing for their needs is also part of the fun of riding.

The shelving system offers the option of storing goods hanging in the lower area. Pallets can be stored in the upper area. © Toyota

The dealers who are part of Held's customer base appreciate the availability of numerous models that need to be delivered quickly, especially at the start of the season in early March/April. The new logistics center had to be equipped accordingly. And the Toyota Stapler Center South from Toyota Material Handling provided support. "We chose Toyota Material Handling as our partner for the logistics center and are still very happy with it. From day one. Until today," says Held. Not only the complete racking system is from Toyota, but also reach trucks from the Toyota BT Reflex series and tractors from the Toyota Tracto series are part of the equipment portfolio.

Also motorized in the warehouse
Before Toyota presented a new solution, the picking of individual items at Held was cumbersome and not very ergonomic: the ladies, who mainly do the picking, sometimes had to walk 20 kilometers a day. Markus Held was particularly concerned about the health of his employees. Downtime was the rule. Added to this was the already heavy weight of the trolleys used for order picking.

From left: Markus Held (Managing Director Held ), Bernd Mack (Logistics Manager Held ), Sandra Zimmermann (Product Marketing Specialist, Toyota Material Handling), Ronald Drieschner (Logistics Systems Consultant, Toyota Material Handling), Alexander Bennigsen (Consulting and Sales, Toyota Material Handling) © Toyota

Now the ladies are motorized. The long distances are covered with the Tracto N series tugs. Manually pushing the order picking trolleys is now a thing of the past. "At first, my employees were a little skeptical and perhaps even afraid of the tugs - but after three hours, they were familiar with the device. They really are child's play to drive and the best thing is that the employees remain efficient even over eight hours."

Leather jackets have to be stored hanging
When it came to choosing the right shelving system, hanging goods presented a particular challenge. The delicate leather jackets are stored hanging on hangers to avoid creases in the material. Initially, there was no standard solution where goods could be stored hanging below and on pallets above. After joint consultation, a solution was developed that allows both. as