Production logistics GW

Effi cient and value-enhancing

Production logistics:

Procurement | Warehousing | Distribution | Fulfi lment

Logistics is the key to productionIn industrial manufacturing processes, just-in-time delivery

of components and individual parts is a key requirement

for an economic production process. The demands on lo-

gistics are correspondingly high. Against this background,

Geberit Apparate AG commissioned Gebrüder Weiss to

control and handle the transport and logistics processes

for the production of the AquaClean shower-WC product

line. The long-standing customer of Gebrüder Weiss ben-

efits from a customised kanban solution with no production

downtime.

Gebrüder Weiss developed a solution which guarantees rapid, reliable deliveries. For ex-

ample, when they enter the warehouse in Wil (CH), the kanban containers have already

been filled with the components which will be required at a later stage for production. This

speeds up the outsourcing procedure. This creates an effective, durable logistics chain

which prevents waste and dead freight. www.geberit.com

“ Cooperation with Gebrüder Weiss is based on trust and skills.”

Josef Kunz, Head of the Procurement & Logistics Department

The Challenge.

The Challenge

The Geberit GroupThe Geberit Group is a global company with its headquar-

ters in Jona, Switzerland, and is represented in around 41

countries. Since it was founded in 1874, the company has

been one of the pioneers of modern sanitary technology.

Geberit is now the European market leader in its indus-

try. The company has 17 production sites in eight different

countries.

Production logistics for Geberit Apparate AGIn 2009, the Geberit Group decided to expand its AquaClean

shower-WC business and to return the products that were

previously manufactured externally on Geberit’s behalf to

in-house production at the Group’s headquarters. This pre-

sented the company with new challenges. Geberit Appa-

rate AG was founded and the entire procurement process

needed to be re-established. Geberit decided to rely on the

expertise of an experienced external logistics provider so

that it could concentrate fully on its core business and the

insourcing project. The logistics challenges in the compa-

ny, which focus on added value, were great: high-frequen-

cy, fast and just-in-time delivery of materials in accordance

with production (low stocks in the supermarket), reliable IT

solution and a willingness for interdisciplinary cooperation.

The Solution.

The Solution

Kanban SystemA special solution that is both customised and highly flex-

ible, and which incorporates logistics as an integral part of

the production system.

Optimised warehouse logisticsCustomised warehouse logistics, geared to the containers

defined by Geberit. The key advantage here is that the 500

different components and individual parts from around 70

manufacturers are packed into consignments and labelled

with the requisite information before they are put into stock.

High-performance logisticsWhen it comes to outgoing shipments, order consolidation

and pre-sorting make for speed. In this way, Gebrüder Weiss

guarantees fast delivery on schedule.

The Benefi ts.

The Benefi ts

Low stock levelsGoods are supplied as required, avoiding high stock lev-

els in the Geberit supermarket. If production is increased,

Gebrüder Weiss intensifies the frequency of transport.

Effi cient order processingIntegrated material and information flows along the supply

chain ensure fast order processing with short throughput

times through the kanban system.

Process-oriented IT solutionThe kanban solution adapts to the production circumstanc-

es: specially-developed labels contain the storage location

in the Geberit supermarket, which reduces planning and

management work.

Seasonal peaks are coveredBy outsourcing these tasks, companies can achieve a high

degree of flexibility and convert their fixed costs into perfor-

mance-related, variable costs.

The Process.

Gebrüder Weiss does not only work for Geberit in production

logistics. We have been managing and implementing the

company’s internal works transport throughout Europe

for many years. We also transport the finished products –

mostly via Gebrüder Weiss’ Pöchlarn branch – to wholesal-

ers in almost every country in Central and Eastern Europe.

Denmark, Sweden, Norway and Finland are served directly

via the Geberit production site in Langenfeld (Ruhr valley)

and Pfullendorf (Baden-Württemberg). GW Air & Sea is the

transport partner serving the Far East.

Anywhere we are needed

Daily goods receipt in the

GW warehouseIntermediate storage

Empty containers in the Geberit supermarket trigger an order

Removal for production

Immediate outsourcing/ dispatch

Supermarket storage at

Geberit

Picking process and bar code labelling

Transport GW > Geberit

Production logistics at Geberit

GW – W

il

Transport

Geberit – Jona

Daily goods receipt in the

GW warehouseIntermediate storage

Empty containers in the Geberit supermarket trigger an order

Removal for production

Immediate outsourcing/ dispatch

Supermarket storage at

Geberit

Picking process and bar code labelling

Transport GW > Geberit

Production logistics at Geberit

GW – W

il

Transport

Geberit – Jona

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