Press releases
Outstanding value stream management – Knorr-Bremse wins “Factory of the Year” contest
October 30, 2012
Cutting throughput times from 25 working days to just five in the space of three years is a breathtaking achievement for a factory that manufactures non-standard products for the rail vehicle market. In recognition of the pioneering concepts behind this success story, Knorr-Bremse was recently named “Factory of the Year” in the category “Outstanding Value Stream”. The annual “Factory of the Year” competition is the toughest and best-established industry benchmark in the German-speaking world and Eastern Europe. The competition is organized by trade journal Produktion in conjunction with management consultants A.T. Kearney.
Cutting throughput times from 25 working days to just five in the space of three years is a breathtaking achievement for a factory that manufactures non-standard products for the rail vehicle market. In recognition of the pioneering concepts behind this success story, Knorr-Bremse was recently named “Factory of the Year” in the category “Outstanding Value Stream”. The annual “Factory of the Year” competition is the toughest and best-established industry benchmark in the German-speaking world and Eastern Europe. The competition is organized by trade journal Produktion in conjunction with management consultants A.T. Kearney.
In 2010, Knorr-Bremse Rail Vehicle Systems moved its operations in Budapest to a new site, creating the division’s largest production facility in Europe. Two years later, the innovative concept behind the new plant has proven its worth. For Dr. Albrecht Köhler, Member of the Executive Board of Knorr-Bremse Rail Vehicle Systems, the “Factory of the Year” award was particularly gratifying: “The concepts we developed in Budapest have enabled us to bring together two different things: low numbers of multiple variants on the one hand and very short throughput times combined with high flexibility on the other. This way we have been able to add tangible value for our customers, which is something we are very proud of. A whole new form of collaboration with our suppliers and value-stream-oriented production structures are decisive factors in the great success of what we call our ‘5-day factory’.”
In 2008, with rail vehicle markets around the world buoyant and production at maximum capacity, Knorr-Bremse decided to build a new plant in the Hungarian capital of Budapest to manufacture rail vehicle braking systems. As well as adding more production space, from the outset the company’s declared aim was to fundamentally reorganize procedures at the new location, aligning them with the value stream. The targets at the core of the redirection effort were greater flexibility and higher efficiency through shorter throughput times, maximum schedule effectiveness, and adding a further edge to the company’s high product quality.
When the new concept was implemented, the production process itself and the supply of materials were completely revamped in line with the very latest findings. At the same time, with the aid of a specially developed IT solution Knorr-Bremse achieved a fundamental improvement in order planning procedures. There was also a focus on maximum parts availability and on making optimum use of production resources. And last but not least, Knorr-Bremse also devised new and more effective ways and means of promoting greater supplier inclusion.
As the new building took shape, so too did the notion of the ‘5-day factory’. The idea is that 80 percent of the production output should clear the factory within the space of just five days, from the onset of production via surface treatment and assembly to the final product, ready for dispatch. Applying the ‘5-day factory’ concept has enabled Knorr-Bremse to achieve a significant reduction in throughput times by implementing highly efficient production processes along the value stream – to the ultimate benefit of its customers around the world.
The Knorr-Bremse Group is the world's leading manufacturer of braking systems for rail and commercial vehicles. For more than 100 years now the company has pioneered the development, production, marketing and servicing of state-of-the-art braking systems. In the rail vehicle systems sector, the product portfolio also includes intelligent door systems, control components, air conditioning systems and windscreen wiper systems, as well as platform screen doors. Knorr-Bremse also offers driving simulators and e-learning systems for optimum train crew training. In the commercial vehicle systems sector, the product range includes complete braking systems with driver assistance systems, as well as torsional vibration dampers, powertrain-related solutions and transmission control systems for enhanced energy efficiency and fuel economy.
