High technology and automation in manufacturing

Since November 2023, the transport of parts in our assembly production has been fully automated.

Cutting-edge technology at the service of people. At Böllhoff, we are constantly advancing digitalization and automation, always with an eye toward the benefits for our employees and customers. Take, for example, our assembly plant in Bielefeld, where parts transfer has been fully automated since November 2023. Nine automated guided vehicles (AGVs) whiz by, delivering blanks and transporting finished parts, always in line with the requirements of the production machines. This includes the automatic retrieval and storage of parts using buffer systems. Special production, special fasteners. Every day, more than 2 million plastic fasteners are manufactured at our injection molding plant at Böllhoff's headquarters in Bielefeld, Germany. For some of these fasteners, the journey through production goes even further: In the assembly production area, they are used as blanks and combined with other parts. This creates fasteners with additional functionalities, such as those in the FLEXITOL® product family. These specific elements, for example, can compensate for manufacturing tolerances in body parts or decouple vibrations. To create these special fasteners, assembly production workers use 25 production machines and have been working closely with 9 AGVs since November 2023. More efficient processes and greater added value instead of manual delivery. Before the automation project, logistics workers delivered the raw parts needed for the day directly to the production machines first thing in the morning. They also collected the finished parts there after production. With a total of 25 machines in assembly production, this process was very time-consuming.