Elly Yates-Roberts |
This article was originally published in the Autumn 2019 issue of The Record. Subscribe for FREE here to get the next issues delivered directly to your inbox.
Geesinknorba is one of Europe’s leading providers of refuse collecting vehicles and waste compactors. It has a broad portfolio of products, 99% of which are highly customised to customers’ needs – creating complex manufacturing processes. The company saw an opportunity to match its customer and product needs and intelligently control production.
Working with Nimble Institute, Geesinknorba selected Bizagi’s intelligent process automation platform. The Microsoft Azure-native solution enabled the company to design, optimise and automate its processes by building model-driven process applications. The team used Bizagi to flip the Smart Factory concept on its head. Smart Units paired with tablets now navigate themselves through the production process and start different production steps simultaneously, taking into account the supply side, lead-time and capacity.
Internet of things (IoT) sensors enable Geesinknorba to monitor processes throughout the factory, while sensing technology improves the efficiency and safety of self-driving vehicles used for material handling. IoT also enables collection vehicles to flag up when they need to come back to the factory for maintenance or if a fault occurs.
Geesinknorba can now deliver products faster and meet the changing needs of customers. In just eight months, along with a set of other measures, the company has decreased its lead-time, improved production efficiency by 45% and increased production output by 40%.