Continental, a global technology leader in automotive manufacturing and mobility solutions, took a significant step in advancing its warehouse operations by implementing AutoStore at its Periférico Plant in Guadalajara, Mexico.

(Read Press Release).

This state-of-the-art automated storage and retrieval system (ASRS) marks a new chapter in Continental’s pursuit of operational excellence and digital transformation.

Designed to optimize space utilization, enhance order accuracy, and improve productivity, the AutoStore system is a testament to Continental’s commitment to innovation and efficiency in its supply chain processes. With a focus on intelligent automation, the Guadalajara plant aims to set a new benchmark for streamlined operations in the automotive industry.

Challenge

Continental’s Periférico Plant faced a critical challenge: limited floor space that constrained its ability to efficiently manage inventory and meet increasing demand. As the company continued to grow and diversify its product offerings, it became evident that traditional warehousing methods were no longer sufficient.

“We started in 2001 in Guadalajara, Mexico. With 23 years of experience here at the plant, we are looking for an increase in quality of life for our employees.”

Sergio Márquez, Plant & Location Manager at Continental

The need for a scalable solution that could maximize storage capacity without requiring additional floor space became a top priority. Continental sought a system that could adapt to their evolving needs while ensuring seamless operations and high productivity.

Solution

To address these challenges, Continental turned to Element Logic. AutoStore, an ASRS known for its unique approach to warehouse efficiency and organization, has a modular design which allowed Continental to maximize storage capacity by utilizing vertical space. This effectively overcame the plant’s floor space limitations. The system’s high-speed robots efficiently retrieve items from a dense grid of bins, ensuring quick access to inventory while reducing strainful manual labor.

^{_{From left to right: Fernanda Morales Witrago, Communications Specialist at Continental; César Rodriguez Valadez, Advanced SCM Project Manager at Continental; Santiago Corona, Videographer; María Elena Ladrón de Guevara, Director of Marketing – Americas at Element Logic, María Luz del Alba Pérez, Head of Plant Communication & Executive Assistant at Continental, Sergio Márquez, Plant & Location Manager at Continental; José Luis Quezada, Head of Plant SCM at Continental; Salvador Nuñez, Material Flow Manager at Continental; and Santiago Corona, Videographer.}}

“The transfer times we had before AutoStore were much longer than they are today. We could not be happier with the performance. We have increased delivery of materials, both internal and external, by 67%”

Salvador Nuñez, Material Flow Manager at Continental

By implementing AutoStore, Continental was able to streamline its operations with an automated solution that enhanced inventory management, improved order accuracy, and increased overall productivity. The flexibility and scalability of AutoStore also meant that the system could be easily adapted to meet future growth, providing a long-term solution to Continental’s evolving warehousing needs.

Impact

The implementation of AutoStore has had a transformative impact on Continental’s Periférico Plant, driving both operational and employee-centric improvements. By optimizing storage capacity and automating repetitive tasks, the system has enabled Continental to handle larger volumes of inventory and meet customer demand more effectively. Order processing is now faster and more accurate, reducing errors and improving customer satisfaction.

“… we have greatly increased our security levels- which is a very important issue for Continental”

José Luis Quezada, Head of Plant SCM at Continental

“Continental has seen quite a few improvements.” José Luis Quezada, Head of Plant SCM at Continental said. “Once we implemented AutoStore, we began optimizing our resources as well as optimizing the workforce we have here. Additionally, we have greatly increased our security levels- which is a very important issue for Continental”

For employees, the shift to automated processes has significantly enhanced their quality of life. Tasks that were previously labor-intensive and physically demanding have been replaced by automated systems, reducing the risk of injuries and allowing staff to focus on more value-added activities. This has created a safer and more engaging work environment, fostering higher employee morale and job satisfaction.

Overall, AutoStore has equipped Continental with a future-proof solution that supports the company’s growth ambitions. The Guadalajara plant is now better positioned to scale operations, adapt to market changes, and continue delivering high-quality products efficiently and accurately. The successful integration of AutoStore underscores Continental’s commitment to innovation and operational excellence in a highly competitive industry.

Results

“Continental was looking for a highly efficient solution in a limited amount of space that would allow them to protect their products from debris.” Cristian Ahumada, Director of Operations – LatAM at Element Logic said. “Furthermore, they wanted a solution that had high processing rates. For all these reasons, AutoStore was the ideal solution for them.”

… AutoStore was the ideal solution for them.

Cristian Ahumada, Director of Operations – LatAM at Element Logic

Element Logic’s successful implementation of AutoStore at Continental’s Periférico Plant has delivered impressive results. The system has significantly increased space optimization, allowing Continental to make the most of its available warehouse area. Speed and efficiency have also improved, enabling faster order processing and reducing lead times. Additionally, the AutoStore system has proven to be highly reliable, ensuring consistent performance with minimal downtime. Its flexibility and scalability ensure that the system can adapt to future business needs, providing Continental with a robust and sustainable solution for long-term success.

The post Continental’s Story in Guadalajara, Mexico appeared first on Element Logic US.

At the headquarters of tractor manufacturer AGCO/Fendt in Marktoberdorf, Germany, a high-performance small-parts warehouse will ensure the supply of their production line in the future. The warehouse is optimized based on the available floor space and the material flow requirements on site. To increase the efficiency, automation and robotics expert Element Logic is implementing a future-proof and highly efficient AutoStore solution.

The American company, AGCO, is one of the world’s three largest manufacturers and suppliers of tractors and agricultural machinery. The Fendt brand has belonged to the American global player since 1997. All Fendt tractors are developed and produced at the headquarters in Marktoberdorf, Germany.

In order to meet the demands from the customers, manufacturing companies today have to stock a growing range of individual parts. As a result, existing warehouse capacities need to be expanded, resulting in additional personnel costs in production supply. Short provision times with simultaneously high added value do not have to be a problem despite expanded warehouse capacities – it is simply a matter of creating a smooth and efficient transition between production supply and assembly lines.

“With traditional warehousing, it became increasingly difficult to meet the growing demands on our small parts logistics, even from an economic point of view,” says Jens Kirchner, Supply Chain Manager at Fendt Warehouse. “On our premises, the utilization of the available space is of immense value. AutoStore, with its high storage density, was clearly standing out compared to all other solutions.”

Low energy consumption

The search for an alternative intralogistics solution led AGCO/Fendt to AutoStore and Element Logic, the world’s first AutoStore partner and the market leader in Europe with more than 220 AutoStore solutions sold. Numerous references within the production segment with customers such as STIHL, SCHUNK and Continental, convinced the tractor manufacturer of Element Logic’s extensive expertise and many years of experience in implementing future-proof intralogistics solutions. Element Logic has implemented AutoStore at other AGCO Group sites – including AGCO Parts’ European spare parts center in Ennery, France.

Sustainability in production is a high priority for AGCO/Fendt, which was critical to the decision. The company focuses on reducing its own power consumption and using renewable energy – this is precisely where AutoStore systems can make an important contribution. The energy consumption of ten AutoStore robots is actually equivalent to that of a vacuum cleaner, and every time a bin is lowered or the speed on the robots are reduced, energy is returned to the battery. AutoStore’s compact design also eliminates the need for aisles, significantly reducing space that requires lighting.

In Marktoberdorf, the AutoStore system will be installed in one of the existing buildings in the immediate vicinity of the transmission production, and in the future, it will supply all production lines with materials, such as small parts and semi-finished products. The parts and products that the production lines need will be automatically picked by the AutoStore system, pre-packed and supplied to the production lines via tugger trains, which will be loaded at the AutoStore system.

On a floor space of 315 m², the AutoStore solution implemented for AGCO/Fendt offers space for a total of 12,100 bins with an external height of 330 mm each. Eleven robots will handle the bins on top of the grid. Picking and packing is carried out at three ergonomically optimized workstations. The entire process is optimized by Element Logic’s own software, eManager, which is directly integrated into the customer’s ERP system. The system was handed over to the customer at the end of April 2021.

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GS Bildeler (car parts) is a true entrepreneurial success. This is the story of its journey from being a small company in the outskirts of Norway, to becoming the biggest supplier of BMW car parts in the whole country.

It was a chance encounter with the son of AutoStore founder, Jakob Hatteland, that made co-founder Jonny Skrivarhaug consider investing in AutoStore to keep his growing business, GS Bildeler, competitive.

Fast forward ten years, and GS Bildeler has become the biggest supplier of BMW car parts in Norway, with two AutoStore warehouses in Norway and one with its partner company, KW Parts AB in Sweden.

GS Bildeler was established in 1993 when Skrivarhaug and co-founder, Trond Gule, fearlessly started their own business venture in the little village of Bud in Norway.

“Our big breakthrough came in 1998 after investing in a 256-page catalogue printed in 12.000 copies. This was a greater investment than AutoStore twenty years later if you compare with turnover. Luckily, it turned out to be a good investment, and we increased our turnover from 18 to 32 million NOK that year”, Skrivarhaug says proudly.

Increased efficiency with AutoStore

As a result of the catalogue, GS Bildeler entered the B2B market, and the need for additional warehouse-locations emerged. Thus, within a few years, GS Bildeler gained a presence in five major cities, covering most of Norway.

The first AutoStore warehouse GS Bildeler invested in was delivered at Bud in 2017 by Element Logic. The new warehouse was completed in three months, and the old building is now used to store the larger car parts. In 2020, GS Bildeler expanded and had AutoStore installed in its Oslo-warehouse as well.

After implementing AutoStore in Bud and Oslo, GS Bildeler has achieved great efficiency making it possible to reduce the number of physical warehouse-locations to Bud, Oslo, and Bergen.

The efficiency we achieved with AutoStore, combined with an improved logistics industry, has made it possible for customers in Stavanger to receive orders faster from our automated Oslo-warehouse than from the manual Stavanger-warehouse

Trond Gule, Co-founder GS Bildeler

“The efficiency we achieved with AutoStore, combined with an improved logistics industry, has made it possible for customers in Stavanger to receive orders faster from our automated Oslo-warehouse than from the manual Stavanger-warehouse”, Gule explains.

Competitive with a tailored Oslo-warehouse

The combination of AutoStore for smaller parts and a manual warehouse for bigger parts has given GS Bildeler the prerequisites to be competitive in its market. Now, customers receive orders within the next working day across all of Norway.

Sales Manager, Øyvind Kollerud, at the Norwegian Element Logic office was challenged during the installation of AutoStore in the Oslo warehouse.

“Due to specific preferences from GS Bildeler we adjusted our sketches on placement and design to assure functional operations between warehouse and store. We also had to adapt to an existing building, resulting in a creative solution fitting the AutoStore-system in-between columns, fuse boxes, gates, and girders on the walls”, explains Kollerud.

Contrary to building a new service-mezzanine, GS Bildeler opted to use the existing loft-space. A custom-made tunnel through the AutoStore-system was also requested.

Altogether this ended up being a massive drawing-job with extreme accuracy on a millimeter-level. However, the result was definitely worth it.

“It was exciting to be challenged by a customer with specific requests and plans for the implementation of AutoStore”, Kollerud says.

The Oslo-warehouse doubles as a retail store where customers can come in and buy their products directly.

To achieve efficiency, a practical pick-in-store solution behind the sales counter is used. This way, AutoStore can pick orders for the in-store customers with practically no waiting time.

The inspiration for this solution came from the Bud-warehouse where employees have to walk over 50 meters to access the picking stations. GS Bildeler expects more in-store customers in its Oslo-warehouse and thus wanted to improve the picking efficiency.

Increased customer and employee satisfaction

The motivation to invest in AutoStore came from a desire to increase quality, efficiency, and customer satisfaction.

“After implementing AutoStore, there have been fewer picking errors, less money spent on rent, as well as more satisfied customers”, Skrivarhaug states.

The warehouse employees are also noticing the benefits of automation. They report improved control of their workload, fewer physical strains, and less stress overall.

Our employees were skeptical to AutoStore at first, but today we could never make them go back

Jonny Skrivarhaug, Co-founder GS Bildeler

“Our employees were skeptical to AutoStore at first, but today we could never make them go back”, Skrivarhaug says.

Room to grow for the future

As proved by GS Bildeler, it is not only huge multinational corporations that can benefit from warehouse-automation.

“There are limits to how much you can expand a warehouse, but with AutoStore, companies get room to grow and a chance to meet the increasing customer demands to service and delivery”, Kollerud explains.

The post Growing business invested in three AutoStore warehouses appeared first on Element Logic US.

For a company that offers the largest range of car brands in Norway, streamlining logistics is crucial. With expert help from Element Logic, Bertel. O Steen’s logistics department is moving into a new automated warehouse.

Bertel O. Steen imports brands including Mercedes-Benz, Opel, smart®, Peugeot, Citroen, Kia, Fuso, Setra and DS, and carries spare parts for cars, buses, and trucks in their range. Their logistics department handles all warehousing and distribution activities for the entire Bertel O. Steen Group.

Their new warehouse right outside of Oslo boasts tailor-made solutions and software developed by Element Logic that will greatly improve and expedite their logistics processes.

“We basically grew out of our warehouse, and for a while we were contemplating whether or not to upgrade our existing warehouse over time. Instead, we decided to invest in a new property. By relocating, we had the opportunity to design a whole new warehouse from scratch, together with Element Logic,” –Rune Kristiansen, Head of Logistics at Bertel O. Steen.

A long-standing partnership

Bertel O. Steen and Element Logic have collaborated on developing smart storage solutions for more than 16 years. When Bertel O. Steen first moved from their manual warehouse in 2002, they simultaneously implemented the Warehouse Control Software from Element Logic.

When Bertel O. Steen decided to build a new warehouse, however, they sensibly launched an open bidding round that included other suppliers as well. This way, they would be sure that they got the best solution suited for their business. Despite being presented with other available alternatives, AutoStore by Element Logic combined with Element WCS turned out to be their # 1 choice.

“It is a very reliable system that ensures continuous operation at all times. For instance, if one operator port stops working, we still have seven others running – and if a robot shuts down, there are still 46 in action. AutoStore is also far less vulnerable to technical issues,” Kristiansen explains.

An adaptable logistics system

The automotive industry is developing fast. Consequently, Bertel O. Steen has chosen technology that enables them to adapt quickly if needed:

“For example, if the market for spare parts for cars is declining, our new warehouse can easily be adapted so that we can distribute other things instead. The benefits we get from cooperating with Element Logic, and the technology they have included in their unique WCS system, are huge,” Kristiansen says.

Tight collaboration sparks developments

Kristiansen says the relocation process has been great, thanks to input from their own employees combined with the expertise provided by Element Logic: “Element Logic has assisted us with the implementation of new software and innovative logistics technology, as well as employee training for operating everything in our new warehouse.”

Håvard Hallås, Chief Sales Officer at Element Logic, adds that their continued collaboration with Bertel O. Steen challenged them to make further developments to their already unique AutoStore Warehouse Control Software solution.

“Bertel O. Steen has helped us to drive our software development. Their requests have enabled us to re-think and develop customized solutions. We are grateful that we have proactive customers who contribute to innovation in this way,” Hallås says.

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Only one year after the installation of AutoStore®, XXL experienced radical efficiency boost, crucial space utilization improvement, reduced lead-times to XXL stores and less picking errors. The ROI of the project was also beyond expected.

XXL Sport og Villmark is the largest and fastest growing sports chain in the Nordic Region. Continuous growth put increasing pressure on storing and handling capacity – leading to the need for manual warehouse adjustments. The solution was Element Logic’s AutoStore and eManager warehouse execution, management, and control system.

“We are highly dependent on efficient logistics to provide our customers with famous brands at low prices. Our cooperation with Element Logic is one of the major success factors for obtaining a highly efficient and low-cost supply chain”, says Geir Nielsen, Nordic Warehouse Manager XXL.

Investment beyond expected

Phase 1 of AutoStore® with eManager was dedicated to textile assortment – the segment with the most potential saving for more effective storage and handling.

Phase 2 enabled XXL to follow their vision –” If the article fits into AutoStore – it goes into AutoStore!”, expanding the system with 4x storage capacity and 4x transaction capacity.

“The project was smooth and painless, and we’re especially satisfied with being able to use the system 100% from day one. The fact that cost reductions are better than estimated makes it even better”, says Nielsen.

Built for future growth

In 2013 XXL built a brand-new Warehouse Distribution Center in Örebro, Sweden. The warehouse serves XXL’s strong growth in the Swedish and Finnish market, as well as upcoming new markets in Europe.

“When we decided to establish the Swedish Distribution Center, it was important for XXL to get it up and running as soon as possible. According to our request, I think Element Logic set a new world record in putting an automated system into operation; they only spent two months from start to finish, enabling our DC to perform at its best from day one”, says Nielsen.

He continues:

“The success we experienced with eManager and AutoStore in Norway made the choice easy when we decided to establish a warehouse in Sweden. An investment in AutoStore® and eManager from Element Logic is a guarantee for our efficient and low-cost supply chain”.

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