This month in Modern: Grob snaps together the pieces of innovation

We’re living in a wonderful period of “realization,” where mangers are taking the time to examine exactly what they need in certain areas of an operation instead of throwing the kitchen sink at a problem and spending millions in the process.

When we become aware that no single technology or process can do it all, the idea of piecing together a more customized solution—where technology and process match our exact needs—becomes more approachable from both an implementation and cost stand point.

Today, the goal is not to find the “one” right way, but to find the “many” right ways to solve an issue. And with this mindset, we’re not only getting smarter, we’re getting bolder in terms of the technology and process we use and the path we take to get there. Enter Grob-Werke GmbH & Co., the Mindelheim, Germany-based machine manufacturer that’s the subject of this month’s System Report.

Grob has gone through what it defines as a “logistics paradigm shift” after it realized it had to throw out its manual systems to keep up with explosive growth.

In fact, the company put a combination of a high-density automated storage system together with goods-to-person picking technology—a duo found in any savvy e-commerce facility—to streamline the way it picks and kits materials in its new logistics center to replenish assembly stations in its adjacent manufacturing plant.

“What I found most intriguing in Grob’s story is that the goods-to-person revolution is moving from distribution into fulfillment operations in manufacturing,” says executive editor Bob Trebilcock, author of this month’s System Report. “And, in a way, that might be a matter of things coming full circle.”

After all, the whole idea of a manufacturing assembly line is to keep associates in one place with the line bringing the work to them.

“Don’t forget, distribution adapted that idea into its fulfillment processes and now manufacturing is taking a cue and bringing it back home where it began.”

Today, Grob’s order selectors pick between 5,000 and 6,000 parts each day from the new system, numbers they were never able to touch in the past. And even with those high pick rates, the company claims that they have fewer missing parts in orders and delivery is on time and in the right place.

“Grob has essentially pieced together a strategic puzzle of technology and process to meet a specific need,” adds Trebilcock. “It includes automated storage, goods-to-person, advanced vision systems, the integration of its warehouse management system into SAP, as well as a crossdocking process to streamline newly received materials—all pieces that have been snapped together into a cohesive whole.”

Some may call it “unconventional,” but we believe it’s just pure innovation at work.