IN THE RIGHT PLACE AT THE RIGHT TIME
INTEGRATED LOGISTICS CONCEPTS

As an automotive supplier, we meet the exacting logistics requirements of the automotive industry. The basis of any production process is being able to get the right part to the right place at the right time.

To make sure that your parts exhibit the desired quality and cleanliness on arrival and that they arrive when you want them, LÄPPLE AUTOMOTIVE sets the logistics processes in motion as early as the order planning stage. In the interest of creating seamless material and goods flows, we devise intelligent and customer-specific logistics concepts, not only for our internal workflows but also for cross-company operations.

LOGISTICS PLANNING

Right from the acquisition phase, we make sure our operating resources are perfectly geared towards logistics, placing particular importance on our logistics planning activities. By working closely with our interface partners, our customers and our own production department, we can make sure that all our series production processes are fully coordinated with one another. Within this context, we focus primarily on surface area productivity, lean processes, and making optimum use of human resources and industrial trucks.

LOGISTICS AS PART OF SERIES PRODUCTION OPERATIONS

When supplying our customers with car body parts and modules, we deliver the products directly to their plants for further processing or final assembly. The top priority here is to make the right parts available at the right time, so that supply is perfectly synchronised with assembly. All the workflows at our production facilities and along the entire value chain are geared towards achieving this aim.

Our logistics team uses an optimum materials supply strategy to control the physical workflows, thereby ensuring that the right materials arrive at the correct point of use at exactly the right time, and are of top quality.

The subsequent steps are then dealt with by our production logistics team, which coordinates the in-house transport, handling and storage processes to ensure that each stage of production is supplied seamlessly with whatever it needs.

To achieve the best possible workflows in line with lean management principles, we are constantly working to revise and improve our information, material and value flows within the production process.

In addition to using standard floor conveyor systems, we also employ – among other things – driverless transport and tugger train systems. The use of an RFID-assisted logistics system also enables us to identify each individual part and incorporate it into the workflow. In turn, this optimises production supply and results in a smooth material flow.

Our inventory management approach is largely based on fully automated processes and is primarily built around customer call-off order patterns. In light of this, we are able to offer various delivery options for outbound logistics, whether that means shipping the goods to a consignment warehouse, just-in-time delivery or just-in-sequence delivery. Here, we seek to achieve short lead times coupled with minimal handling effort and an optimised inventory.

Thanks to our picking technology, all details are captured and then checked multiple times en route between the incoming and outgoing goods departments. At the end of the process chain, we deliver a custom-made part or module – our total output comes to more than 21 million units a year.