Holzwerke Ladenburger: Successful implementation of the RampMan® time slot management system
Wood is our business
The motto of Holzwerke Ladenburger GmbH & Co. KG clearly shows that the company works with the natural product wood. The site in Geithain near Leipzig is part of the steadily growing company with a European focus. In addition to the manufacture of timber products in a wide variety of designs, the finishing of individual products and the construction of entire houses and assemblies, sophisticated logistics are of fundamental importance. Smooth scheduling of internal and external goods traffic plays a very important role in optimizing processes.
RampMan® time slot management system – for greater efficiency at the ramp
In 2021, for Holzwerke Ladenburger GmbH & Co. KG in Geithain, the planning and introduction of a web-based time slot management system was an important project. The primary objectives of the software implementation were the optimal management and booking of clocked time slots as well as the creation of transparency regarding the utilization and availability of all unloading stations at the site in Geithain.
A customer who was already using RampMan® successfully drew the attention of Holzwerke Ladenburger’s scheduling manager to this central, cloud-based and intuitive communication platform. During the internal selection process, the complete RampMan® service package impressed with its particular flexibility and its expandability and adaptability.
Decisions regarding new software solutions are not made on instinct at Ladenburger either, but are put through their paces.
Up to 50 trucks are unloaded every day. If the goods are delivered by train, there are theoretically 10-15 trucks in the yard at the same time. Holzwerke Ladenburger in Geithain also has its own fleet of vehicles and works with regular suppliers and freight forwarders. This required a reliable solution, i.e. a time slot management system with all the trimmings. The focus was on a future-oriented tool. One that is flexible enough to be connected to a modified or new ERP system in a few years’ time.
The tool had to be uncomplicated and intuitive so that all employees would want to work with it and be able to do so. On this basis, the decision was made in favor of RampMan®.
The service package currently includes
- hierarchical master data concept
- individual access for the logistics service providers
- independent booking of time slots by forwarders and suppliers
- an integrated notification and reporting system
- an intuitive user concept with an innovative user interface and drag & drop operation
- Pre-defined influencing variables for automatic pre-calculation of the time slot duration
- and actual time recording
One of the customer’s specific requirements was that Holzwerke Ladenburger’s order numbers, including relevant order data, should be transferred directly from a third-party system to RampMan®. This means that a time slot booking can only be carried out in the RampMan® application with a valid order number. Based on this order number and the associated data record, the permitted unloading location is offered and the corresponding time slot length is calculated. “In the current situation, you have to be a little more flexible in your planning than before. So it’s good that you can adjust the time slots according to company circumstances. It is very helpful to be able to plan the slots precisely. For example, if we are expecting a train with 6 – 8 wagons and the volume of 12 – 15 trucks, we close an inbound slot completely. This means that there are fewer time slots available for delivery by truck on that day. RampMan® enables us to show transparently that no more time slots are available, thus saving suppliers and forwarders long waiting times. In the case of regional public holidays, such as the Day of Prayer and Repentance, we can – after successful RampMan® implementation – exclude the day from the planning in the long term and make this visible and transparent for everyone,” reports Kerstin Rauner, who is responsible for the project.
Employees were “really hot” for the RampMan®
“Internally, we hadn’t expected that the employees who work directly with RampMan® – incoming goods and scheduling – would implement this program immediately and were really looking forward to the start. and were really looking forward to the start. During the test phase, everyone was “really hot” for it. Everyone wanted to be involved and insisted on being able to try it out. That was the surprise for us with this project. The program is partly designed in the same way as the colleagues were used to working with their Excel spreadsheets. However, the web-based application is much more convenient and much more granular in its evaluation. It is filled automatically, different information is shown and it is more intuitive and faster to use. That’s why it’s been so well received. Some of our regular suppliers and forwarders who use RampMan® on a permanent basis are very satisfied. Booking is possible at any time and saves a lot of time that previously had to be spent on e-mail traffic,” continues Kerstin Rauner.
Important for success: speaking the same language
For the LOGSOL Senior Project Manager in charge, Robert Kunz, it was a new industry with new processes that he first had to familiarize himself with.
“For me, the special cooperation with the customer in this project should be emphasized; they communicated in a very cooperative, friendly manner and at eye level. The entire project ran smoothly: it was based on good planning. The customer knew what he wanted and clearly defined the requirements in advance.
This allowed the project to be implemented on schedule between October 2021 and the go-live at the end of March 2022,” says Robert Kunz, summarizing the project. “It’s important to speak the same language and that worked extremely well here. When discussing a project together, I think it’s very important to be on the same level.
Everyone in the project group should receive support at the same level as themselves. That was a very important component for all of us. Mr. Kunz gave us expert advice on all topics and took our concerns and special ideas seriously. This also made for good project support. We are delighted that the project worked so well, that we were on the same wavelength and that it got off to such a successful start for us,” summarizes Kerstin Rauner.
Take everyone with you and leave enough time for testing
“You have to involve the colleagues who will be working with this software in the future right from the start. We actually wanted to launch it on March 1, 2022, but then there were absences due to illness. We didn’t stick to this date, but left enough time to test and try it out. We worked in parallel throughout March: Old method, new method and we tried to ramp up the RampMan® bit by bit. And we succeeded,” Ms. Rauner concludes.