Industrialization and implementation of charging station production in Germany

Client context

The plant, part of a group of over 100,000 people, is in the midst of a major business transformation. It is moving from the production of pitch control systems for wind turbines to the development and production of DC chargers for electric vehicles. To facilitate this transition and to be able to produce the required quantity of chargers, the customer wishes to implement a new organization based on Lean Management, whether in terms of industrialization, production or logistics. This organization must also respond to the need to reduce delivery times in order to gain market share.

Support put into place

The project began by validating the customer's requirements in order to size the organization to the right volume level. We then worked with the operators on assembly times: measuring time, reducing certain tasks thanks to a different industrialization approach. This provided us with a shared basis for designing the assembly line: balancing workstations, setting up a line of fish-bone sub-assemblies, creating standards with operators, etc.

We then implemented all the logistics required to supply the line, thus facilitating assembly work. Working with different sources, we set up a flow management system with suppliers to precisely monitor orders, procurement and deliveries. Finally, we supported the line's ramp-up by defining training paths for the various players involved, and coaching local management in their new role to guarantee lasting results.

Results

• Capacity multiplied by 10: 5 / month -> 50 / month 
• Productivity: +70% from 5 to 14 operators (instead of the 50 projected initially)

• Lead Time divided by 12: from over 12 weeks -> 1 week

• On Time Delivery: from 32% -> 100%.