Efficient logistics and manufacturing at Ensinger

The Ensinger site in Nufringen with the new construction of the semi-finished products division in the foreground.

The attachment bridge (interior view)

The connecting bridge links the existing buildings with the new construction (on the right side of the image, the high-bay warehouse).

Control station / High-bay warehouse

In the high-bay warehouse: rack handling equipment and stored semi-finished products

Conveyor technology in the logistics center

Handling gears help lift heavy loads

Conveyor technology in the logistics center

Handling gears assist in lifting heavy loads

Conveyor technology in the logistics center

Cleanroom technology: Through a material lock, the plastic granulate is transferred into a drying hopper

Ensinger has commissioned a new building for semi-finished product production and a high-bay warehouse at the Nufringen main plant. The new facilities optimize internal logistics, increase the speed of workflows, and expand manufacturing. With additional production areas and clean rooms, a fourfold increase in storage capacity, and extensive automation of material flow, the plastics processor has created the prerequisites for further growth in its largest business division. Customers benefit from shorter lead times, a broader inventory program, competitive prices, and high delivery service.

The semi-finished products division is the company's group's most revenue-generating business area. In extrusion processes, Ensinger processes thermoplastic plastics into sheets, rods, and hollow bars at Nufringen. The common engineering and high-performance plastics are available from stock in various dimensions. Additionally, Ensinger manufactures special semi-finished product modifications and cuts according to customer specifications.

The decision to build a new facility was made three years ago. At that time, it was foreseeable that increasing production volumes would not only exceed the capacity of semi-finished product manufacturing but also the site logistics. The family-owned company invested around 20 million euros in the new building complex. The planned budget was maintained for this project.

The new high-bay warehouse and additional production areas are connected to the existing manufacturing halls via a linking bridge. Ensinger has largely automated the inflow and outflow of goods. Using modern conveyor systems, internal transports and handling processes can now be carried out much faster and more efficiently.

Intralogistics and Conveyor Technology

The automated intralogistics offer further advantages: "It eliminates the need for costly floor conveyor vehicles, reduces accident risks, and prevents material damage," explains Ruhullah Wasseh, the project manager responsible for the new construction.

To integrate processes from manufacturing to shipping, conveyor technology experts developed customized components together with the supplier Herrmann and Hieber: The basis for fully automatic transport and storage of semi-finished sheets and bars up to 3 meters long are so-called skids. These load carriers can be loaded with up to 2.5 tons.

The High-Bay Warehouse

The new long goods high-bay warehouse (manufacturer: Remmert) is 50 meters long, 24 meters wide, and 24 meters high. On a footprint of approximately 1,100 square meters, Ensinger can store up to 5,700 tons of plastic semi-finished products. Compared to the old deep-freeze warehouse, this quadruples capacity, enabling the plastics processor to expand its portfolio of constantly available stock materials with new products.

"The double-aisle high-bay warehouse with 3,000 storage locations is served by two fully automatic rack handling systems. All plastics are stored in batch-controlled quality," explains Dieter Scharf, head of logistics at the site. "The capacity forecast and planning, as well as the control of conveyor technology, are managed via the computer-assisted logistics control center. The two rack handling systems can perform up to 135 loading or unloading cycles per hour."

Ergonomic Picking Workstations

Assembling individual items for an order now takes significantly less time than before. Ensinger has switched to a dynamic picking process based on the "goods-to-man" principle. With the introduction of the fully automatic, paperless system, the average picking time has been more than halved.

Work safety and ergonomics have also improved. Manually transporting heavy loads is a thing of the past. Ceiling crane systems reach all areas of the hall on both levels. Additionally, flexible handling devices are available for lifting heavy sheets and bars.

At all picking workstations, saws are available for cutting semi-finished sheets and bars, allowing work without intermediate buffers. The logistics staff are relieved not only by eliminating strenuous physical activities but also by returning from a three-shift to a two-shift operation.

The cold hall adjacent to the logistics center, where two trucks can be loaded in parallel regardless of weather, offers maximum noise protection for residents.

Expansion of Production Area and Clean Rooms

On the additional production area in the new building, Ensinger has installed further extrusion lines and six clean rooms. Here, specialized products for the semiconductor industry and medical technology are manufactured.

The clean rooms are qualified according to DIN EN ISO 14644-1 Class 8 or EU-GMP Class D. Their three-zone cascade principle meets the latest state of the art.

Before shipping or interim storage in the new high-bay warehouse, the extruded semi-finished products are sealed and packed in a clean room. Ensinger also performs these final two process steps in a clean room of ISO Class 8. Thanks to the constant and controlled processing conditions, Ensinger guarantees that no foreign particles enter the final product beyond a defined limit.

The Energy Concept

Ensinger has been pursuing the goal of reducing resource consumption and continuously improving manufacturing efficiency for years. The success of these measures was officially confirmed last fall by DQS after an audit at the German production sites. The energy management system of Ensinger GmbH is now certified according to DIN EN ISO 50001.

"By installing modern plant and building technology, we exceeded the requirements arising from the Energy Saving Ordinance (EnEV) during the new construction at the Nufringen site," says Robert Müller, Head of Operations for the semi-finished products division. "An important role is played by heat recovery in the new building: The waste heat contained in the cooling water return is not lost but is raised to a higher temperature level using an electric heat pump with a refrigerant cycle."

This surplus energy can be used for heating logistics areas and the truck dispatch hall or for domestic hot water in the cooler months. Even the energy generated by braking the rack handling systems is fed into the grid.

"We were able to do without energy guzzlers like cooling machines and air conditioning," says Werner Buschek, head of technical services at the site. "In summer, we use the energetically optimal principle of adiabatic cooling to air-condition the production and office areas: Cooler hall air is drawn in and humidified compared to outside temperatures. Using a heat exchanger, we generate evaporative cooling."

The systematic analysis of electricity, heat, gas, oil, and compressed air consumption is the prerequisite for the economical use of these energy sources. Meters installed on each production line and system enable optimal energy control.

Fire Protection

The fire protection concept for the site was developed in close cooperation with the fire departments of Böblingen and Nufringen. With the high density of smoke detectors and sprinkler systems in the new building, Ensinger has exceeded VdS guidelines. Three sprinklers are installed per rack compartment. The extinguishing agents used are not only water but also foam, which allows for even more effective firefighting.