Automotive Parts Manufacturing
Case Study

About

Automotive Parts Manufacturing (APM) is a world-leading manufacturing group for precision and complex mechanical automotive products. The end-clients for APM’s components are large, well-known car brands including Toyota, Renault, Nissan, and General Motors.

Brief

Several of APM’s vehicle manufacturers were looking for packaging options that would avoid the huge upfront cost of returnable packaging (a type of reusable packaging made of durable materials such as plastic or steel). With each vehicle build only lasting a few years, it was proving difficult to recover this substantial investment. Added to this, the returnable packaging was causing issues around contamination.

Packaging assembly was largely taking place on or alongside the production lines, so packing time and space were also critical factors.

Findings

The first step was to run an in-depth Insight packaging process review. APM has sites across the UK and Europe manufacturing vehicle components. An independent technician visited several of these sites to identify common themes and differences in the operations.

Sufficiently well informed, the technician made suggestions to improve packaging materials and design, which would work well within the industry and its systems, saving time and money and reducing environmental impact.

Solution

Looking at each vehicle build in its own right; the proposed changes were discussed with the relevant teams. These included removing as much single-use plastic as possible from the packing process. Anything that was still required would be supplied in a specification including at least 30% recycled content, so it would not be subject to the Plastic Packaging Tax. Various grades were trialled extensively to ensure the finished products were protected from any scuffs and marking.

We designed and trialled a series of corrugated fitment and divider sets to suit each of the components. These packaging sets were to be assembled by Actionpoint and then delivered as and when needed by the customer.

Following the initial packaging improvements, the product range continued to evolve. In response, a further 2 modifications were made, increasing efficiencies with each adjustment.

Results

• Average pack time of each component reduced by 17%.
• All packaging used is fully recyclable, contains recycled content, is Plastic Packaging Tax exempt, and carbon neutral.
• Damage rates have reduced.
• Production downtime has ceased to be an issue as packaging can be delivered within hours.