binder was founded in 1960 and is today a market leader in the field of circular connectors. The company employs 1,800 people worldwide, 1,000 of whom are based at the corporate headquarters in Neckarsulm. This is also where the new, fully automated central warehouse was built, whose processes were fully integrated into SAP EWM.
From traditional logistics to digital processes
“Before the new construction, binder had very traditional logistics,” explains Bernd Mager, Head of Logistics at binder. “We were professionals in analog processes, but we wanted to become professionals in digital processes, because at times the company grew very strongly and with these static warehouses we were simply no longer able to pick and provide the required volumes.”
Therefore, the connectivity specialist decided to build a modern, fully automated warehouse and commissioned Körber as the general contractor — both for the software and the hardware of the logistics system. Together with Körber, the binder world was turned 180 degrees.
The new facility covers all logistical processes of the company. It serves both as a single-item warehouse for production and as a finished goods warehouse for shipping. Here it was particularly important for binder to map all processes with SAP and SAP EWM and to incorporate as much technical redundancy as possible into the central warehouse.
SAP EWM workstations integrated into the conveyor technology
Highlights of the project include a three-aisle shuttle warehouse with 45,000 storage locations, a single-aisle pallet warehouse with 1,500 storage locations, SAP EWM workstations with SAPUI5 integrated into the conveyor technology, as well as a tugger train with a dynamic schedule for supplying and removing materials from production.
A special feature of the new logistics facility is the Fastlane. When the goods are placed onto the system, a scanner reads the necessary information and automatically links it with the system. Manual intervention is no longer required.
Height-adjustable workstations and the use of software ergonomics ensure that employees can quickly and easily find their way in the new facility. SAP EWM is equipped, via SAPUI5, with an interface that can be operated intuitively via a touchscreen.
Everything fully automated
In the new logistics center, everything runs fully automatically: employees are brought the right goods at the right time to the picking workstations and only need to follow the dialogs on the screens.
Already in the first full month after the go-live of the project, binder was able to achieve the highest revenue in the company’s history. Markus Binder, Managing Director and shareholder at binder, is convinced of the joint logistics project with Körber:
“We are naturally very satisfied with the completion and are pleased that the project proceeded so smoothly through the cooperation both with the employees of binder and with Körber.”
