The agricultural technology industry delivers products for the world’s increasing demand for food and examines how a food supply for ten billion people will be achieved in the future. It is doing this job in a difficult market environment, where the available agricultural area that can be used as productive land is largely already utilized nationally and internationally. At the same time, the half-life for the machinery and plant used has risen just as much as their efficiency has in recent years. The consequences of this are increased pressure and more intense competition, where it becomes more and more difficult for companies to maintain or improve their market position. Globalization additionally presents its challenges, whether they be environmental catastrophes, political upheaval, or the outbreak of disease. This all has consequences for your production and supplier reliability when your supply chains are globalized!

Levers for the Best-Possible Future in the Agricultural Technology Business

How can manufacturers and suppliers in the agtech industry hold their ground in an environment as difficult as this? What options do they have to organize themselves for the future in the best way possible and utilize new potential that is not yet uncovered?

Which Three Business Areas Can Be Improved?

In our experience, there are three areas of business above all in which a company’s competitive position can be permanently improved through process-optimized measures:

• Production and supply chains: At some companies there is often still a great deal of room for maneuver when it comes to order management and managing the company’s supplier network. Consider processing times for instance: The period of time up to delivery can be significantly reduced through clean order and supplier management. With the consistent application of lean principles, we can reduce the proportion of non-value-adding activities to a minimum in many areas, from the receipt of an order through to its completion.
• Production: Flexible production processes make it easier to react quickly and effectively to market developments. Ideas for this area can include establishing market-oriented production, where manufacturers always produce their machinery and plant with seasonal requirements in mind.
• Digital transformation: Most agricultural technology companies have, in terms of digital transformation, so far focused on their products – with “autonomous land machinery” being the keywords. However, many manufacturers and suppliers have tended to overlook the opportunities that digital transformation offers for their internal processes.

Digital transformation must never become an end in itself. What makes the difference is a point-by-point, target-focused approach. For example, one essential factor for success consists in increasing transparency throughout the supply chain and in quality management. When agricultural technology make data visible – data that is in many cases already available – they can respond more quickly to irregularities and fix complications before they become an actual issue. This strengthens certainty for planning and makes it easier to use company resources as efficiently as possible.

The Right Mix of Lean Management and Supply-Chain Management

At Ingenics, we rely on a mix of the new and the tried-and-true for our clients in the agricultural technology sector. We analyze your present situation together with you and, based on it, we identify the steps needed for lasting improvements. The combination of lean management, digital technologies with targeted use, and clean order, quality, and supply-chain management, for example, is a proven success.

No matter what it may be, our experts have successfully realized a vast number of agtech projects in previous years, at corporations active globally as well as at small- and medium-sized enterprises. We know the industry-specific factors that agricultural technology must deal with and the levers that we can use for it. That is why we are brilliantly equipped for the agricultural technology mission of supplying food to the world’s growing population.

Companies in the automotive sector have found themselves faced with a dramatically changing market situation. The broad spectrum of topics and questions involved presents tremendous challenges to management.

Given the numerous factors influencing these companies, Ingenics has identified four crucial industry trends for automotive OEMs:

• e-mobility – flexible integration of this generation of cars into existing manufacturing structures
• digital transformation and Industry 4.0 – leveraging the potential in each company individually
• connectivity, IoT, and big data – in the vehicle itself as well as in combination with logistical and manufacturing structures
• automotive logistics – particularly with a focus on processes for inbound and outbound logistics

Based on the industry trends illustrated above and our decades of experience supporting the industry, we have established five specific fields of action for OEMs:

1. making manufacturing structures flexible
2. benefiting from efficiency through digitization
3. optimizing processes throughout the entire supply chain
4. optimizing supplier management
5. taking control of complex supply chains

1. Making manufacturing structures flexible

Making manufacturing structures flexible is and remains a major challenge for OEMs when it comes to safeguarding their cost structures and, in turn, their competitive position. Ingenics supports its clients with the identification of potential for flexibility by establishing the company’s individual requirements and matching them with the company’s strategic direction. The existing on-site manufacturing structures have their strategic and operational fitness examined and various performance checks are carried out, such as systematic production analyses (SPA), green-field checks (potential analyses), and automation checks.

Foundational plans are developed based on this and pragmatic recommendations are formulated for implementation in partnership with the client. The following consultancy services are used in line with the company’s individual needs: 

• industrial engineering
• assembly-line planning (e.g. swarm assembly)
• automotive-body construction
• factory planning
• production and process planning, business-process management, and organizational development

As a result, the company will possess flexible manufacturing structures that can be adapted to changing requirements without complication. 

2. Benefiting from efficiency through digitization

For OEMs, the major challenges with digitization are normally the existing factories and established structures that need optimization. Digital transformation of these sites and structures can realize the real-time control urgently needed to take control of the complexity. For example, the use of RFID technology can provide updates on inventory levels and part locations, helping control and optimize production planning.

Digitization projects start with a company-specific position analysis which records the processes and IT systems of relevant company divisions. The target vision (master plan) derived from this keeps track of the entire company and interrelationships with outside the company.

For automotive manufacturers, leveraging efficiency benefits through digitization means intelligently combining their manufacturing with their entire supply chain – in real time.

“Assembly/Production 4.0” and the “Internet of Things” are both approaches to digitization that make it feasible to supply data. The data is analyzed and evaluated, and made into KPIs, using IT systems that are integrated vertically and horizontally.

Ingenics Consulting views its role in this as being a digital architect that, together with the company, plans and embarks on an individual journey to digital solutions and makes digital transformation and Industry 4.0 a reality.

3. Optimizing processes throughout the entire supply chain

The supply chain in the automotive sector is marked by increasing complexity. The wide range of parts, tight deadlines, supplier specializations, electronic components with added complexity, and new suppliers (who are not yet fully on top of automotive standards) are but a few of the drivers of this trend. All this makes it difficult for OEMs to keep track of things and manage the supply chain efficiently and in real time.

In keeping with the slogan “Logistics 4.0”, Ingenics Consulting and its clients exploit the potential transparency and efficiency throughout the supply chain while incorporating digital technologies – for example with the Intralogistics Cockpit 4.0. This improves material flows, storage capacities, and logistics concepts to achieve the highest possible degree of efficiency.

Business processes are simultaneously examined and optimized, waste exposed and eliminated, and the employees involved in the process are made aware of the changes.

What results is a holistic logistics concept and a more robust and more efficient business process throughout the entire supply chain.

4. Optimizing supplier management

In the automotive sector, suppliers have an average share of approximately seventy percent of the value created by the OEM. This figure shows just how important it is for the OEM to have an efficient supply chain and high-performance supplier management.

E-mobility and connectivity in particular mean that new suppliers are being listed even if they have not yet fully mastered automotive standards. Additional requirements have developed due to the establishment and enforcement of IATF 16949 (the new quality standard of the International Automotive Task Force).

Ingenics supports its clients in the automotive industry with the safeguarding of product and process quality in the supply chain, and with the establishment of a systematic and digital supplier-management system. This support focuses on the following objectives:

• ensuring cost efficiency and supplier reliability
• defining and ensuring the quality of supply
• optimizing procurement costs
• effectively and efficiently managing suppliers
• collaboratively optimizing cross-company processes
• sustainably minimizing supply risk
• establishing and expanding strategic cooperation with important suppliers

The result is a management system based on a concept and performance indicators, with an underlying process that is suitably robust. This allows OEMs to have a detailed overview of suppliers, their current performance, and their development status at any time.

5. Taking control of complex supply chains

Multilayered structures in an automotive manufacturer’s supply chain require individual management systems that create transparency and thereby make it possible to take control of the complexity.

The IT system by itself is just a part of the solution. Even more important are the KPI system, sources of data, interfaces, and harmonization, alongside the concept of “real time” – as a subject, topical issue, and general key word.

A high-performance business intelligence solution for the supply chain should map out the complete supply chain and all suppliers involved. To meet this need, Ingenics has developed its own business-intelligence solutions which are adapted to companies individually:

• “Production Cockpit 4.0”, with a focus on the manufacturer’s own production range
• “Intralogistics Cockpit 4.0”, with a focus on the logistics processes on the company’s own premises and potential integration of suppliers

The cockpits combine data-analysis expertise with system expertise and extensive experience on the shop floor, in logistics, with process optimization, and the industrial-engineering approach.

Ingenics Consulting successfully supports its clients in the automotive industry at the strategy and planning levels as well as at the operational-process and organizational levels, and in realizing all these with excellent results.

The German chemical industry is one of the most important chemical producers in the world. Nevertheless, growing populations and increasing stability are making dynamic emerging markets the preferred focus for new production capacities.

Ingenics has supported its renowned customers in the chemical industry for years.

The development of globally standardized processes for managing the increasingly complex industry stands at the center of this support, alongside the equally important consideration of process cost efficiency. The service spectrum ranges from strategic needs assessment and international factory planning to optimization of production and logistics processes across the entire supply chain.

In addition to establishing new production capacities in emerging markets, industrialized markets by contrast are experiencing a shift in demand in favor of innovative high-quality and high-priced chemicals. The importance of chemicals in customer industries will also grow, such as the increased need for special chemicals that contribute to the lightweight design and electromobility of the “car of the future.”

As a competent partner, Ingenics provides support in both general development planning and in the areas of production and logistics with consistent application of lean methods. From analysis and optimization of your working system at the start to increasing material efficiency, planning plant and warehouse logistics, and setting up the entire supply chain, our longstanding knowledge of the automotive industry is certain to offer you significant added value.

Factory of the Future

How do you design production to be modern and highly adaptable for future developments?

Many manufacturers of electrical technology are on a growth trajectory. However, rapid growth frequently has a negative effect on efficiency. Constant capacity expansion and the unknown requirements for future products demand an ability to adapt production environments flexibly. Production in the electronics industry requires “built-in adaptability” for processes, structures, media planning, and layout design.

In an Industry 4.0 factory, areas such as logistics and production are efficiently interwoven. For this, you need to improve the material flow as well as the flow of information in processes themselves and in company divisions. Everything is predicated on well-thought-out factory planning, from the right site selection and ideal space requirements to the most appropriate working environments. Ingenics relies on building-information modeling (BIM) for this and consistently uses it as part of a holistic consulting approach from the outset and through all stages of the factory-planning process.

Manufacturing & Process Excellence

How do you reduce lead and cycle times to increase on-time delivery?

Short-notice orders in the electrical industry often result in a requested lead time that is shorter than the cycle time needed to fulfill the order. Lean management processes can optimize structures and shorten cycle times when combined with automation solutions. However, lean is more than just applying methods. What’s more, not every level of automation provides benefits for your production.

When implementing and enhancing the lean management philosophy, we do not just observe methods. Instead, we employ a holistic optimization approach. This helps you to shorten your cycle times, increase your output volumes, and improve the quality of your results. Our consultants use a human–robot collaboration (HRC) checklist to determine when and where investments in digitalization and automation solutions can pay off for you.

Production-Strategy Development

How do you harmonize the production strategy for products with high and low part diversity?

New products, custom products, and different requirements in different markets (laws, regulations, standards, etc.) result in a large diversity of parts in the electronics industry. In contrast, there is a large number of standardized and modular products with a very small diversity of parts. The challenge is to manufacture both product categories in the same factory and incorporate them into the production plan.

In such a volatile environment, businesses need to respond to change quickly and flexibly. We nurture this adaptability with an integrative, agile strategy approach. Based on a comprehensive observation of the value chain (through to the end user), we analyze the perspectives of all employees and managers. Building on this analysis, we work with you to define strategic action scenarios appropriate for the ongoing development of your digitalized organization. We derive initiatives from them and implement the initiatives with you without any productivity loss.

Resilient Supply Chains

How do you ensure material availability and delivery capability in global supply chains?

Political tensions, blocked trade routes, pandemics – singular events shake the global supply chains of the electronics industry time and again. Resilient supply chains and well-structured supplier management are, therefore, indispensable for long-term competitiveness.

The economic planning and optimization of supply processes, to include lean management principles, is the focus of our supply chain management approach. This knowledge is of particular importance for assessing the effects of a strategic realignment. Our focus is on a proven methodical approach, which we can quickly adapt to your situation.

Logistics Optimization

How can you reduce logistics costs – while maintaining quality?

In the electrical industry, many materials are highly sensitive and costly. Therefore, particularly high demands on logistics and material handling apply here. Additionally, logistics is subject to competitive cost pressures. Inefficient logistics processes, which have long been accepted due to high-profit margins, are accordingly no longer acceptable.

At many manufacturers, there is still significant potential for improvement in logistics, for example in terms of transparency, flexibility, and speed. We use a detailed value stream analysis of your product to determine the areas in which improvements can be made. Based on this, we work with you to develop and implement a future-proof logistics concept that takes all quality requirements into account.

Aerospace Is Transforming

The impacts of the global COVID-19 pandemic and the sudden recovery will result in lasting changes for the aviation industry. This is made all the clearer when considering several key issues that aerospace businesses will need to get a handle on as the industry ramps up again:

Human Resources

Many companies across the supply chain were forced to shed one-fourth, and some even one-half of their workforce during the crisis, even after shortening their employees’ working hours. As a result, many brilliantly trained specialist staff switched to other industries and that means the pool of applicants for positions in the aerospace industry has grown smaller.

Ramp Up & Delivery Performance

The entire commercial-aviation supply chain is preparing for a massive ramp up, especially for single-aisle products. While production rates are currently still manageable for many businesses, we are already witnessing large problems in relation to quality and material availability on both sides of the Atlantic.

Supply Chain

To safeguard business survival and liquidity during the pandemic, many aviation companies applied strict cash containment measures. Warehouse inventories were therefore drastically slashed and safety stock reduced to zero. Uncertain forecasts from OEMs as well as a lack of transparency across the supply chain (the bullwhip effect) were also negative influences on the entire supply chain. These factors make the planned ramp up more difficult and lead to further uncertainty. Furthermore, it was also impossible to predict that only very limited amounts of raw materials would be available in 2021/2022. As a result, there is uncertainty regarding planning and whether delivery dates will be met, and there are also price rises.

Sustainability Becoming an Entrepreneurial Responsibility

In addition to these crisis-related issues, the industry is also being forced to reduce its carbon footprint massively by legal requirements (e.g., the German federal government’s Supply Chain Due Diligence Act) as well as societal pressure. This raises completely new sorts of questions for managers and leaders:

• How can aerospace be made sustainable and how can zero-emissions flight be made a reality? 
• What components make industrial systems sustainable and futureproof? 
• How do existing factories become “green”?
• What are the features of a global strategy for carbon emissions in supply chains? 
• How are modern leadership principles practiced sustainably?

Zero-Emission Flight

OEMs are currently strongly pushing their vision of developing a zero-emissions aircraft and putting it in service by 2035. This transformation (including the infrastructure to go with it) will be the main influence on the industry over the next decade. It demands a variety of new solutions, including in relation to production networks and factory structures. Hydrogen will be a key technology for this process. Synthetic aviation fuel, a climate-friendly alternative to fossil-based jet fuel, will be a crucial bridging technology. 

Aerospace Businesses Must Invest in Their Future

As a corporate consulting firm, we are currently seeing rapid growth in many segments of the aerospace industry. For instance, companies are continuing to invest large amounts in up-and-coming technologies such as hydrogen and autonomous, zero-emissions flight.

These organizations have identified how important it is to pave the way for the next generation of aerospace manufacturing. It demands, among other things, using technologies to increase efficiency and quality and giving employees more time for developing strategies and solutions for better business results.

OEMs and suppliers simultaneously need to pull off a balancing act in acting for the short term, medium term, and long term when they consume their resources. Firstly, they must master their planned ramp up in difficult conditions. Secondly, they absolutely cannot lose track of future-oriented topics such as sustainability and future aircraft generations.

In our view, there are currently four main areas of action that OEMs and suppliers in the aerospace industry need to focus on: 

1. Material availability (supplier development, ramp up management, efficiency increase) 
2. Quality management (quality planning in advance) 
3. Competitiveness (benchmarks in production and logistics) 
4. Sustainability (carbon footprint/green factory)

Material Availability – Grow without Growing

Layoffs in the aviation industry mean that businesses are compelled to master the ramp up of their production in stretched staffing conditions without recruiting any significant numbers of employees (“growth without growing”). They have to do this in an environment where many are already struggling with low material availability (which is part of recovery management). Their ramp up management also faces heavy cost pressures, and these pressures are accompanied by strict quality requirements.

The solution for this complex situation is operational excellence. In our experience, efficiency increases are the primary tool for sustainable “growth without growing.” As a consulting firm, we concentrate on the following influencing factors for this:

• Production (process optimization through a classic lean approach with a focus on the value stream & adding value/coaching new managers and employees) 
• Logistics & supply chain (stabilizing & optimizing stock levels despite uncertain forecast data/safeguarding material availability & ability to deliver) 
• Administration (business process management for end-to-end business process optimization) 
• Process transparency (KPI tracking using digital tools)

Medical Device Manufacturers Must Change

Short innovation cycles, a wide range of variants, and extremely high quality have been characteristics of the medical technology industry for years. German manufacturers, particularly small- and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), have been able to develop competitive advantages for themselves in this global growth market thanks to their strong innovation. However, their position is more at risk than ever due to the increasing pressure from competition, costs, new regulatory requirements, and the challenges of digital transformation.

The future belongs to organizations whose primary and supporting processes are lean and high-performing and have integrated both inward and outward data. A range of levers must be pulled in order to achieve this state. Some of the items called for include:

• Critical analyses that focus on measuring how future-proof existing strategies, business models, and product portfolios are. For plans to be prudent in the future, they must also address the status quo throughout the supply chain.
• Initiatives that ensure more cost efficiency within a company and drive the flexibility of production and healthcare solutions; such initiatives cannot be realized without the smart, targeted use of digital technologies.
• Structures that are suited to meeting all regulatory requirements and standards, from the European Union Medical Device Regulation (MDR 745/2017) to MDSAP and quality management system standard DIN EN ISO 13485:2018.

Although there are currently many challenges facing the manufacturers of medical devices, their situation also offers opportunities: By getting rid of inefficiencies, optimizing outdated structures to meet regulatory requirements, and harnessing digital transformation in a targeted manner, they can maintain their strong position in the market and even significantly improve it. Now is the right time for this, especially as new regulations and standards are increasing the pressure on companies to act.

We Help Arm Your Company for the Future

Our consultants have successfully collaborated with medical-device manufacturers for many years. Based on this experience, we have developed concepts and standards that we quickly adapt to your requirements and implement using professional project and change management. This expertise, industry knowledge, and our growing international network allow us to support you in numerous domains:

Lean Management

How do you make your processes more efficient?

Many manufacturers spent a long time downplaying the importance of improving organizational structures and processes. The improvement potential that could be identified and leveraged using Lean Management has therefore not been revealed. Businesses cannot allow themselves to overlook this backlog anymore given the increasing competition.

Lean principles are the foundation on which our consulting is based. At the same time, our consultants know how lean methods should be applied to meet the medical industry’s strict regulatory requirements. Together with you, we develop a comprehensive concept that reflects your objectives and processes. We create a road map with all the actions that will progressively improve your organization by training your managers and workers as needed, and implementing these actions through extensive change management.

Digital Transformation

How do you engage in digital transformation without risking the official approval of your products?

With digital transformation, there are numerous opportunities for improvement and innovation in the medical-technology sector. Yet whether that be automation, a digital twin, or machine-data analyses, the technology that makes sense in your situation depends on regulatory requirements as well as the objectives and digital maturity of your company.

When medical-device manufacturers seek digital transformation and adjust processes, they need a risk-based approach that stops the adjustments from risking the validation of those processes. During the first step, our consultants create a digital transformation strategy that suits our client’s status quo and considers their complete value chain. Building on this strategy, we develop a road map with all the initiatives that we can implement for improvements in production, logistics, and procurement. This is the plan that we will pursue for the implementation of all improvement measures.

Supply Chain Management

How can you optimize your supplier network?

Even the smallest of mistakes can endanger human lives in the medical-technology industry. That is why the goal of Supply Chain Management is to create a transparent, high-performing supply chain in which all value-creation partners work together and are tightly connected. This reduces the risk of mistakes to a minimum and improves the efficiency of the entire supply chain.

We believe that there are two requirements that need to be met to achieve this goal: 100 percent transparency of all suppliers’ processes and a meaningful classification system, including concrete audit planning. In this case, transparency is created by key performance indicators and digital monitoring systems that enable real-time supplier monitoring. Classification in turn serves to organize suppliers based on their performance and strategic relevance. This appraisal is the basis for targeted improvements of all supply-chain processes.

Logistics

How can you improve your logistics operation without breaching regulatory requirements?

In the medical technology industry, even distribution is subject to heavy pressure from competition and costs. A focus is being put on inefficient logistics processes that were accepted for a long time thanks to high profit margins. This focus is not just on internal logistics, as it also includes collaboration with suppliers and partners.

When it comes to logistics, many manufacturers have immense improvement potential, particularly regarding transparency, flexibility, and speed. We conduct an analysis that looks at the complete value flow of your product. Based on it, we assess the points at which improvement is possible. In consultation with you, we then develop and realize a logistics concept that incorporates all statutory and government requirements.

Regulatory Requirements

How can you manage the administrative expense associated with new regulations (such as the EU Medical Device Regulation)?

The medical device industry is characterized by strict legal and regulatory requirements. Businesses are currently preparing for the implementation of the EU Medical Device Regulation, which takes effect on May 26, 2021 and includes numerous new reviewing, testing, inspection, and documentation obligations. The requirements for new products and production methods to be approved for the European Economic Area are therefore increasing considerably.

Our consultants have acquired a significant amount of experience with the regulatory requirements in the medical technology sector in recent years. Accordingly, we are familiar with the regulations and legislation that must be followed for the validation of a product. We analyze your current situation together with you and identify the gaps that you must fill in order to comply with regulations. Furthermore, we help you adapt your organization as quickly as possible, from the development of suitable structures to strategic cooperation with other companies (e.g., joint operation of quality-management or risk-management systems).

Corporate Mergers

Can you improve your situation with strategic partnerships?

Whether it is for strategic reasons or due to the administrative expense of regulatory requirements, many SMEs are better off joining forces with like-minded businesses and harnessing the resulting synergies. Some proven examples include quality-management officers and persons responsible for multiple companies, as well as jointly-used administrative systems. Resources can be deployed significantly more effectively with this form of centralization.

Our consultants assist manufacturers in every phase of the restructuring process. As part of a resilience analysis, we concentrate on financial considerations and, moreover, on whether the business models, corporate processes, and technologies used are future-proof and, if relevant, integrable. In connection with this resilience analysis, we compare the processes of the companies being integrated. This gap analysis is the basis for an integration map that we programmatically implement with intensive change management.

Production

What path leads to operational excellence in the medical-device industry?

Production processes and structures in the medical technology industry are often outdated. After all, for a long time there was no commercial imperative to improve them. Most manufacturers have a way to go before they can achieve loss- and waste-free production where all the factors of production are used efficiently.

With medical technology clients, we plan out the path toward operational excellence in multiple steps. Based on a thorough survey that reveals improvement potential and problems, we define an action framework which includes all measures feasible under the law and regulations. Proven initiatives here include the introduction of KPI systems and shop-floor management, point-by-point process optimization and problem solving for incidents, and intelligent hygiene and cleaning policies for production areas. Using these measures, we increase the productivity, quality, and flexibility of your production.

Due to the special application conditions involved, products and services in the space industry are subject to the highest standards encountered in the industrial sector. At the same time, space missions are subject to ever-increasing investor scrutiny and more and more are expected to justify their purpose and the costs incurred.

For the companies involved this means taking a far closer look at the entire value-added chain from their own perspective – from product development all the way to manufacturing and quality assurance – including new business models.

Approaches which are already established in the aviation or automotive industry are finding their way into the space industry as well. Relevant topics are:

• Optimizing development and design processes in terms of target costing (design-to-cost approach)
• Effecting a comprehensive increase in efficiency under key words such as factory planning, production optimization, and comprehensive quality management
• Optimizing output and quality by applying operational excellence management and optimized process management, as well as securing sustainable improvement (CIP)
• Utilization of already existing data to achieve integrated process structures
• And in general the utilization of the opportunities of digital transformation by individual companies

The requirement already placed on established suppliers – to offer attractive prices and sustainable products while maintaining consistent quality – is gaining in importance as this sector moves towards commercialization, private suppliers, and the accompanying shift in supply structures.

Ingenics successfully supports its customers in the space industry both at the strategy and and planning level and the operative process and organization level, thus promoting excellence in implementation.

The demands placed on the transport and logistics sector by industry and trade continue to grow at a steady pace. Increasingly, companies require better quality, faster speeds, more individuality, and greater flexibility. In industry, the focus is mainly on synchronous or precisely timed supply of the production line. All of this should lead to success while maintaining the highest standards of quality, often in close proximity to, and working in tight cooperation with, the client.

In the area of logistics services, Ingenics has a detailed, expert understanding and many years of best practice experience on both sides, working with clients as well as contractors. The team therefore knows exactly what matters most when developing competitive logistics services for individual companies. Especially with respect to the challenges that surround interacting with partners in the value chain, Ingenics can act as a neutral intermediary, utilizing potential to achieve the overall optimum. We also assist with the creation of quotations and specifications as well as the start-up process. Our experience of supporting numerous companies in their outsourcing decisions and the choice of a logistics service provider offers real added value on this front. The work of our specialists also draws on the latest insights gained from the expert involvement of Ingenics in Industry 4.0, for example in the area of big data. This guarantees holistic optimization along the entire supply chain.

Thanks to a comprehensive range of services in the area of transport and logistics, Ingenics can offer you as a logistics service provider the right solution for every need – or develop individual solutions as required. A structured approach is guaranteed, as demonstrated by successfully implemented practices to achieve greater efficiency and optimized processes in line with the principles of lean logistics and a catalog of best practices, including standardized logistics process analysis, MTM evaluations, and value stream mapping. This portfolio of services is rounded off with professional support in the development of quality management systems and in warehouse and factory planning – including site selection, general development planning, and much more.

To achieve lasting success in the face of drastic economic and political changes, companies need a new perspective – and a partner who can guide them with holistic strategy consulting.

Digitalization, the increasing demand for skilled workers, and demographic and climate change are radically and rapidly changing our world. In addition, political and economic changes are affecting companies across all industries.

Change Is Setting the Pace

Traditional strategic approaches no longer do justice to these modern changes. Exponential trends can no longer be managed in five-year cycles – no one can say for sure today what the world will look like in five years.

What is foreseeable, however, is that consumers’ fundamental values will change dramatically. Values such as constancy and ownership are increasingly giving way to an enthusiasm for innovative products and flexible use.

Focusing solely on the direct customer is too short-sighted. Successful companies understand the mechanisms of the entire value chain all the way to the end users – and draw their conclusions not just once, but continuously.

These trends are giving rise to three success factors for manufacturing companies:

• The level of focus on the end user
• The adaptability of the organization
• The speed at which strategies are implemented

Creating a Framework for Business Success

Speed does not mean responding in a panic to stay ahead. To safeguard their future viability, companies need to be agile. And lasting agility requires underlying conditions that our strategic approaches create.

We identify and evaluate current and projected underlying conditions and influencing factors that exist both internally and externally. Based on this data, we develop beneficial target visions and effective implementation strategies for companies, business units, and specialist departments.

Our goal in this context is always to harmonize the strategy with the company’s people, processes, and technologies. We delegate strategic action to the individual departments and managers.

Ingenics’ Services for Your Business Success

Our strategy consulting incorporates various factors in order to develop a personalized target vision for small, medium-sized, or large companies.

As such, we support them in:

• Developing objectives for the entire company and individual functional areas
• Developing corporate strategies, site strategies, and functional strategies specifically geared to the areas of production, logistics, supply chains, and industrial engineering
• Entering new industries and markets
• Developing or adapting business models

Strategy Consulting: Move into the Future in a Structured Way

Ingenics gives you the necessary input to develop an effective, long-lasting business strategy.

Our knowledge in management consulting, strategy consulting, and performance improvement is rooted in years of experience in sectors such as automotive, electrical engineering, mechanical and systems engineering, and transportation and logistics.

Strategy Consulting Questions and Answers

What purpose does strategy consulting serve?

Various trends such as digitalization, globalization, but also the shortage of skilled workers require companies to be more flexible today than ever before. Decision-makers and executives are challenged to respond more quickly to changes and constantly question their company’s roadmap and positioning. This is the only way to ensure the lasting success of their organization. Strategy consulting can help with all of these challenges.

What should a corporate strategy include?

A corporate strategy is based on analyses of where the organization currently stands and how it positions itself vis-à-vis employees, partners, and customers. On one hand, the strategy defines the purpose of the company; on the other hand, it defines the benefits offered to its customers and what role the company plays in the market. A corporate strategy answers the question of how the organization wants to develop over the long term and sets the direction for it to do so successfully. Each employee’s performance plays a role in implementing the strategy.

In What Areas Can Ingenics Support You?

In the supply chain consulting field, Ingenics possesses strengths in both strategy development and implementation. Our consultants bring many years of procurement experience to the table and have both the industry-specific and cross-supply chain expertise necessary to solve your supply chain issues.

Our range of services in the supply chain management field includes:

• Designing, evaluating, and optimizing supply chain networks (inventories, supplier, and procurement strategies)
• Developing and establishing the organizational structures needed for SCM
• Implementing a 360° assessment of supply chain risks along the supply chain including identifying, evaluating, managing, and monitoring risks
• Identifying the cost and GHG footprint in the supply chain
• Identifying and optimizing control mechanisms of an end-to-end process

What Is Business Process Management?

Business process management is a way of managing business with a focus on processes. It is a holistic approach to process and organizational design. It allows a company to capture, design, document, measure, monitor, control, optimize, and automate its business processes and workflows.

Ideally, Business process management encompasses all operational processes and includes all roles and responsibilities necessary to manage a company efficiently.

We Help You with Your End-to-End Process Management

Process mining and other digital solutions can act as a quick fix for clients; however “plug & play” solutions do not exist. Solutions require clearly defined target processes so that deviations and waste can be made transparent.

Accordingly, every BPM project starts with the analog process, organizational structure, and people behind it.

Our consultants have supported companies in manufacturing for decades with fast and targeted implementation of business-process management and with increasing their BPM maturity.

It begins with an analysis of the current process map and with process optimization, and ranges from choosing and implementing suitable business process management software, creating mechanisms for the continuous improvement process, and process monitoring approaches to training employees and overseeing the change process.

As part of this, clients benefit from our expertise in process design and optimization, in organizational development, and in digital transformation.

Key processes in supplier management

Managing suppliers is a key skill when it comes to successful company management. The technical complexity of new products calls for a large number of partners who can offer specific knowledge as well as the advantages of their specific location and their purchasing power to enable networked development and production, supported by the pursuit of shared company goals. In cooperation with suitable partners in the value chain, companies can harness the innovative strength of the market and optimize procurement costs.

Challenges of supplier management in the automotive industry

This is all easier said than done, of course. In practice, companies of all sizes face a variety of challenges, including inadequate supplier reliability, misunderstandings between clients and customers, and the high costs associated with redrafting work and handling complaints. This represents a difficult starting position for success in competitive markets.

Many companies are not aware that they contribute to the root causes of these problems. After all, most challenges can be traced back to communication problems and a lack of transparency when customers come into contact with suppliers. The result is inefficient processes with a direct impact on procurement – and thus the quality of the manufactured products.

That is why it is important to raise the quality of your supplier relationships to a new level. We can support you in the following areas:

Strategy

• Introducing a company-wide supplier management program
• Benchmarking supplier businesses and production locations
• Developing and introducing globally integrated management systems
• Transparent, preventive risk management based on intelligent networking of the supplier structure

Selecting and qualifying suppliers along the value chain

• Supporting and carrying out supplier analysis (supplier identification, evaluation, and selection)
• Performing structured assessments and audits, evaluating potential, e.g. IATF 16949, VDA 6.3, ISO 9001, EN 9100, EN 1090
• Developing qualification and learning modules as well as providing training
• Rapid company maturity management tailored to specific suppliers, including direction and control of product and process approval to incorporate developments and technologies in the supply chain more quickly

Supplier development measures in the project and series process

• Supporting and safeguarding quality requirements in the product creation and development process
• Quality and efficiency improvement measures on the shop floor
• Supporting and optimizing the error handling process, change management, complaints process, and the warranty process

Task force and project management

• A rapid response team with structured task force management on-site
• Interim management, including coaching management staff in quality
• Structured project management for a holistic, sustainable solution
• Standardized dashboards and real-time data collection to improve transparency and to support predictive analysis of supply chain issues

Your possible fields of action in quality management

Where can Ingenics support you specifically in the area of quality management?

•    Developing and introducing globally integrated management systems
•    Performing structured assessments and audits, evaluating potential, e.g. IATF 16949, VDA 6.3, ISO 9001, EN 9100, EN 1090
•    Designing company-wide quality programs
•    Introduction and support of Advanced Product Quality Planning
•    Developing qualification and learning modules as well as providing training
•    Coaching and developing the organization to meet specific client requirements in automotive technology, aviation, medicine, etc.
•    Transparent, preventive risk management based on intelligent networking of the supplier structure

Applying the lean management philosophy creates effective and efficient organizations. This is true for individual company departments (sales, production, development, etc.) and the company as a whole. Processes and structures are optimized, and the corporate culture is developed to raise staff awareness of the lean approach.

The lean philosophy centers on creating value. It includes all activities that increase the value of products or services from the customer's perspective. Specifically, this means identifying and focusing on the requirements (internal and external) that are most relevant for the customer. Activities that cannot be explained by customer requirements (non-value-added activities) are deliberately highlighted and called into question.

A wide variety of results can be achieved. These range from shorter lead times, more significant output quantities, and an improvement in the quality of results to significant cost savings thanks to the optimized use of staff and material resources as well as land. Being lean means more than merely applying the right methods – being lean is a culture and philosophy.

For this reason, Ingenics does not only observe methods when introducing and developing a lean management philosophy; it presents a holistic approach to optimizing your business.

To meet the particular needs of individual departments, we have evolved the basic approach into specific concepts, such as:

•    Lean Office
•    Lean Production
•    Lean Logistics
•    Lean Development
•    etc.

This allows staff to understand the lean philosophy quickly and to adapt it to their unique working environment, and the relevant levers are methodically put in place. You will, therefore, be able to measure the benefits of optimization. We can design these concepts together depending on your general environment and the goals you hope to achieve.

We focus especially on a balanced approach, considering our three success factors: qualification, implementation, and management.

Success Factors Lean Management Qualification Implementation Leadership

Our experience from previous projects confirms that sustainable success can only be guaranteed when these factors are harmonious. And ultimately that is what matters. With Ingenics, you therefore receive all the support you need from a single source: a theoretical approach combined with hands-on experience in practice.

Conclusion

When introducing and developing a lean management philosophy, our consultants will consider your company's crucial success factors: qualification, implementation, and management. Appropriate methods and approaches are used to consistently implement the necessary measures – efficient, on-target, and individually tailored to your circumstances and requirements.

Furthermore, the decision to create leaner structures and processes also means you stand to benefit from the many years of experience gained by Ingenics working with a large number of companies of different sizes in various industries.

Today, logistics is an essential factor in achieving company goals to optimize cost-effectiveness and competitive strength. Immense gains are possible here in terms of transparency, flexibility, and (of course) speed. A sound understanding of the overall process as well as substantial industry knowledge is needed in order to evaluate, develop, and provide individual solutions. Many SMEs and corporations around the world benefit from our considerable project experience combined with our involvement in various research projects. After all, Ingenics has followed the approach of focusing on solutions and their implementation simultaneously for decades.

A deep understanding of processes and a wide range of solutions

Strategic decisions in logistics planning are based on fundamental criteria such as site selection and master planning, but they also require expertise in identifying the right levers to optimize logistics processes. If a logistics center is bursting at the seams, experience is needed to remedy the situation quickly. At the same time, foresight is required to prevent the same weaknesses from reappearing in the future. In the age of global value chains, it is more important than ever before to improve material flows, storage capacities, and logistics concepts in order to achieve the highest possible degree of efficiency. Only with a holistic view of the overall system can the best strategic direction and potential in the area be guaranteed and identified.

Holistic logistics planning down to every last detail

With projects in logistics planning, we understand the importance of high-level planning from concept to realization. We are familiar with company processes and the particular requirements in a wide range of industries. For that reason, we also know precisely where the sticking points need to be tackled. Our interdisciplinary teams offer broad technical expertise and a holistic way of thinking, working with on-site specialists equally. Only through such cooperation is it possible to improve planning regarding capacity, storage, supply, and material flows while optimizing warehouse space. It is not necessarily about what is technically feasible, but predominantly what is financially sensible. From the initial concept and broad planning to detailed planning, implementation, and the use of innovative technologies, we pull together with our clients. For example, warehouse technology planning involves strategically selecting warehouse technologies and their use, which must be worthwhile in the long term.

Logistics 4.0 – from greater transparency to more efficiency

The digital transformation of logistics involves implementing cutting-edge technologies on the one hand. Still, the balance must be right regarding using such solutions for a specific purpose and embedding them in existing structures. From automatic goods receipt, self-driving vehicles, and RFID to smart containers and swarm intelligence, the strategic use of technological developments is always based on a thorough cost–benefit analysis. Likewise, digital solutions can be put in place to strengthen critical areas of logistics in a very economical way, rendering them more efficient. One approach that is effective and quick to implement is business intelligence: uncovering existing data that is not being processed and making it useful. This can provide an overview that makes it possible to optimize logistics control. By introducing our Intralogistics Cockpit 4.0, for example, companies can glean a wealth of data and display it on a single platform – for greater transparency and efficiency across the board.

Companies must work more sustainably, digitally, and efficiently. The initiatives taken to achieve this create various projects that can quickly end in frustration without good project management. Using modern project management methods and standards, companies guide projects to success and get the best out of their capacity.

We Help You to Manage Your Project

Ingenics Consulting has completed more than 10,000 projects for German and international companies in classic industries in recent decades. This experience has been integrated into a project management framework that we can quickly and flexibly tailor to the needs of your organization in practice:

1.    Planning phase: structuring of the task, coordination of targets and structures, planning of the project, risk analysis, establishment of committees and communication.
2.    Start: preparation of the project handbook, kick-off with all parties involved (project lead, team members, stakeholders, etc.).
3.    Implementation: continuous monitoring and accounting of project progress, definition of suitable measures for target achievement, monitoring of milestones, communication, and reporting.
4.    Project completion: presentation, review, lessons learned, relief for the project team.

With this methodological approach, we ensure that you meet your schedule, quality, and cost targets. It is an approach that has proved successful in the planning and implementation of new projects as well as in crisis management during ongoing projects. For both scenarios, we provide experts with industry experience who can lead the projects or support your experts.

On top of that, we show you how you develop standards for your project management that can be used to generate success. The things that are critical for this include the implementation of individual project processes, the adaptation and new development of practice-relevant project methods and new organizational units for approving and managing your core projects. We work with you to develop customized digital project management cockpits to enhance transparency in your projects.

Overview of Services and Tools

Systematic project management analysis (SPMA): An SPMA shows the maturity of your project management. A look at the project management’s quality reveals potential improvements (processes, methods, qualification initiatives, etc.).

Implementation of a project management office (PMO): The PMO defines standards for project implementation and provides them in a project management handbook. They create a central hub for coordinating your projects and developing your leadership.

Furthermore, the PMO takes responsibility for program management and multiproject management.

Establishment of a project office (PO): The PO is responsible for preparing (including approving) and organizing the project launch and ongoing project management. Our project managers ensure that the concepts, methods, and tools fit your requirements and train your team to apply new methods.

Schedule coordination: Working with you, we define roles and responsibilities, coordinate the interaction at your interfaces, and provide templates for the planning and realization phase. Diligent digital reporting with clearly structured documentation not only increases transparency and on-time delivery, but also prevents scheduling or venue conflicts.

Change management: Every project affects the employees’ day-to-day work. Rituals such as change stories help to convince everyone involved to lessen any resistance and give changes strong roots within the organization.

Agile methods: We show you how you can roll out and use agile frameworks such as scrum, design thinking, last planner systems and kanban in your organization. They let you react to changes in the project more flexibly and promote self-guidance as well as motivation among your employees.

Critical chain project management (CCPM): CCPM seeks to use resources in projects as efficiently as possible and uses transparent information and open communication. It influences the company’s culture and improves your entire project portfolio in the long term. 

Project quality management (PQM): PQM checks compliance with the defined standards, reveals best-practice approaches, and gives the project leads tangible support in the successful implementation of their projects. It also delivers input for the continuous enhancement of the standards at your company, ensuring high satisfaction among the management team and the workforce.

Digitization processes are expanding into all areas of business. New, innovative technologies are coming onto the market virtually every day and are continuously amplifying existing opportunities. Decision-makers are faced with the significant challenge of evaluating, prioritizing, and implementing these technologies in a short time and generating additional value from them. After all, a digital transformation can only be successful if it is implemented goal-driven and cost-conscious.

Our Services at a Glance

MVP Development and Rapid Prototyping

Launch your digital transformation with maximum speed and minimal risk. Achieve rapid results and create immediate additional value with the Ingenics MVP approach.

Business Intelligence

You have the data - we will show you the added value it contains. Increase transparency in your processes and save time and money by automating your reporting.

AI Solutions

You gain a competitive edge when you unlock the full potential of AI solutions. Using our AI solutions approach, we can systematically identify use cases that add value and ensure that they are implemented efficiently.

Software Development

You have a use case – we have the development expertise. Whether a desktop, cloud, on-premises, or mobile solution, we can translate your case into a custom-developed application that meets your requirements.

Embedded Systems

Whether the focus is on your equipment’s operating system, user interfaces, or completely connecting your hardware and systems using state-of-the-art IoT solutions, we will support and guide you from the initial concept to the finished solution.

We Achieve Efficient, Rapid Results

When working on client projects, we combine our 40 years of experience in process and organizational consulting with our own expertise in the field of digital transformation, our LEAN DNA, and a development team of around 170 people. This gives us the ability to offer you the unique combination of subject matter experts, implementation strength, and an efficiency mindset.

From basic certification to advanced education and multiple qualification programs – now you can choose the Ingenics Academy training opportunities that best suit you and your business.

All programs are individually tailored to your needs and goals, according to the Ingenics formula for success: “Possibilities x Motivation = Success“.

Lean & Excellence

•    Value Stream Mapping and Value Stream Design in Production and Administration
•    Identifying potential performance increases
•    Shopfloor Management Training
•    Lean methods and concepts to increase performance
•    Lean methods and concepts to secure performance
•    Optimizing Setup Times
•    Implementing Lean Administration
•    APQP – Advanced Product-Quality Planning

Digital Transformation& New Work

•    The Basics of Data Modeling and Reporting with Qlik
•    Applying Artificial Intelligence in Industrial Contexts
•    Developing a Successful Digitalization Strategy
•    Power BI Desktop – Data-Modeling and Reporting Basics

Leadership & Management

•    Kata Coaching
•    Management behavior
•    Systematic leadership training
•    Leading initiatives to increase performance successfully
•    The first 100 days in leadership

Academies

•    Lean Value Stream Academy
•    Lean Production Academy
•    Lean Engineering Academy
•    Lean Administration Academy

Software & Development

• Our subsidiary Ingenics Digital GmbH offers training in the areas of embedded & software engineering and software