In 2007, the German women's national football team won the World Cup and Apple presented its first iPhone. For KWM Weisshaar, the year was also marked by the construction of a new multi-story production hall equipped with Kasto's Unigrip buffer storage system. A retrofit was now underway, which was implemented smoothly. 

At KWM Karl Weisshaar, the signs pointed to expansion in 2007. "We completely restructured our material flow and invested in modern production machinery and efficient warehouse technology"recalls Jörg Weisshaar, a graduate industrial engineer. He runs the company in its second generation together with his father, Karl.

second generation

As a full-service provider, KWM covers the entire Customerssheet metal process chain: receive everything from engineering and sheet metal processing to welding and joining processes, as well as assembly and logistics, all from a single source. In addition to steel, the company also processes stainless steel and aluminum, totaling around 5,000 tons per year.

J. Weisshaar

Karl Weisshaar founded the company in 1979 and initially supplied computer cases to PC and printer manufacturer Hewlett Packard, among others. "An important milestone for us was the development of laser technology, which allows sheet metal to be cut precisely and which continues to ensure the material's popularity today"explains Jörg Weisshaar.

Buffer for semi-finished products

The company, with approximately 450 employees (around ten percent of whom are apprentices), generates annual sales of €50 million. Its main market is the DACH region (Germany, Austria, and Switzerland), and its most important sector is rail vehicle manufacturing. For this sector, it produces not only mechanical components such as roof segments for car bodies, but also complete air conditioning units and battery containers.

The sheet metal specialist has been using a Kasto Uniline with 13 dispensing stations for raw materials and a Kasto Unigrip with three dispensing stations as a buffer storage system for semi-finished products for 17 years. The Unigrip 3.0 offers 682 storage locations that can accommodate wire mesh containers of various sizes – from 530 to 2000 mm in height. The maximum payload is three tons per cassette. Sensors at the dispensing stations monitor the dimensions of the load on the pallets and stop operation if the limits are exceeded.

Remain able to deliver

“We’ve had very few problems with the bearing over all these years”reflects Holger Guddat, who is responsible for maintenance and repairs at KWM. “The technology works perfectly – that’s immensely important for us because a shutdown brings the entire production to a standstill.” That’s why the company has its bearings regularly serviced. “And if something does go wrong, we can rely on Kasto’s quick assistance”reports the maintenance manager. “When we report a fault, a technician usually arrives the same day. The breakdowns have almost always been resolved within a few hours.”

So why the retrofit now? "Kasto pointed out to us that they wouldn't be able to fully and, above all, promptly guarantee the supply of spare parts for the 17-year-old electronic components in the future"says Holger Guddat. "That would mean we'd have to wait longer for the components we need and wouldn't be able to produce during that time – a no-go for us." Weisshaar adds: "Our customers, for example, work with just-in-time, Kanban, or consignment stock. In any case, they rely on us to deliver the components they need at the right time." Since final assembly for many products only takes place when the buyer calls for the goods, the buffer stock of semi-finished products must always be ready for use.

Everything is prepared

This also defined the main requirement for the retrofit: "It had to be done quickly, and production should only be minimally affected. Therefore, the project was carried out at the turn of the year 2023/2024"reports Holger Guddat. KWM prepared everything with its own employees. This included, for example, moving the large control cabinet of the storage and retrieval machine (SRM) into the warehouse. "The cabinet was too large for manual access. We solved this problem with a scissor lift table, which we brought into the warehouse, and one of the dispensing stations, through which we removed the old control cabinet and moved in the new one."

Photos: Kasto / A1

Ten Kasto technicians completely renewed the electrical system. They replaced the control cabinets, including all control and regulating devices, replaced the station operator panels, converted the bus technology to Profinet, modernized the power supply to the stacker crane and the lifting beam, as well as all drive controllers. They adapted the safety devices, such as the limit switches for the hoist and longitudinal travel, the emergency stop system, the safety door, and the light barriers, to current standards.

In addition, the warehouse management system was upgraded. Kastologic now integrates seamlessly with the proALPHA ERP system via an interface. "Our experience with the retrofit has been very positive"agree Jörg Weisshaar and Holger Guddat. "Now we are well-positioned for the next 17 years with Unigrip."

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