Hordijk optimises stock to improve their manufacturing productivity

The right stock, optimised batch sizes and peace on the factory floor; that is what the packaging manufacturer, Hordijk strived for when looking for ways to improve their manufacturing productivity. 

As a supplier to the food industry, the pressure on availability and flexibility became so great that the old planning solution was simply no longer sufficient. “We have enjoyed double-digit annual growth and with Slim4, we are ready for the future,” states process optimisation & IT manager, Rob Hordijk.

As a leading manufacturer of thermoform and injection moulded packaging, Hordijk supplies products to the entire food processing industry from their three production sites. “Quality and availability of packaging are critical factors for our customers” explains Rob Hordijk. “The large suppliers to retailers simply cannot afford to shut down their production lines. Equally, these businesses require a high degree of flexibility. When the weather is much better than expected and people want to barbecue, they have to be able to scale up their operation quickly. Sometimes these businesses will make an order today for products that they require tomorrow.”

Optimum production series

Hordijk found the solution for the complex planning puzzle with the help of Slim4. After undertaking a pilot project at the Zaandam site located in the Netherlands – where the planners quickly indicated that they absolutely did not want to go back to the old way of working- the system was introduced fully. “The ABC analysis within Slim4 showed that fifty percent of our stock consisted of C-items. Here we have made a huge improvement. Slim4 also includes a module for calculating smarter order times and quantities. As a result, we have optimised our production batch sizes and thus improved the output and efficiency of our plants.”

Responding to summer peaks

Happy with the results, Hordijk is determined to take even more improvement steps. “With Slim4, we can identify bottlenecks and react proactively to them. With the bill of materials functionality within Slim4, we will optimise the inventory of raw materials and semi-finished products. We will also focus more attention on KPIs, such as supplier reliability in the supply chain and the stock turn.”

“With the bill of material functionality within Slim4, we can optimise the stock of raw materials and semi-finished products.” Rob Hordijk, Process optimisation & IT manager Hordijk.