This practical example of a customer who manufactures warehouse and factory equipment and uses labelling strips shows that “less can be more”. For a frequently used labelling strip, it was possible to make significant savings on material and shorten the assembly time by revising the design of the profile. It was an idea put forward by mobil Kunststoffprofile and reduced profile costs by 50%.
Who doesn’t want or need to save costs? The issue is where to start with regard to the total costs. It takes more than just negotiating prices to make potential savings. This can be seen, for example, in the cooperation between strategic purchasing and mobil Kunststoffprofile. For a cost reduction project, components with high unit costs and/or high quantities were specifically selected. The focus was on a labelling strip with an annual purchasing volume in the six-figure range.
mobil Kunststoffprofile carried out a detailed value analysis of the profile and its application after precisely defining the requirements with the customer. It became apparent that the insertion section of the profile had a significant effect on the assembly time and anchoring of the profile. Different sheet thicknesses and manufacturing tolerances had to be taken into account when bending – deviations of 0.4mm in length and 0.3mm in width. At the same time, the wall thickness of the profile was cleverly optimised while maintaining mechanical stability.
Reduced profile costs
The carefully considered material savings (area and material type) on the profile reduce the profile costs by 50%, a significant amount.
Faster installation
The optimised profile can now be installed in 5 instead of 10 seconds – a significant reduction in installation time of 50% and well below the customer's specification of 8 seconds.
Equally high performance
The optimised profile still fulfils the function and mechanical stability 100%.
Proven economic efficiency
The tool for producing the optimised profile paid for itself within a few months.