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The production of the future

At the Albstadt site, Groz-Beckert’s headquarters, the new production building stands for state-of-the-art production that unites the various production sites on the plant site. The new production building brings together what was previously spread over twelve floors in five buildings.

With the relocation, production in Albstadt – with the exception of the manufacturing area – will switch from traditional workshop production to line production. The aim is to increase production capacity by up to 20 percent.

The new production building meets the latest standards – both in terms of sustainable construction and with regard to production processes in line with Industry 4.0 and social standards.

In the production of the future, state-of-the-art construction standards meet digitalization and virtual reality in product development as well as flexible collaboration models.

Four factories in one

The entire needle production facility in Albstadt is located in Building 30. All product groups benefit from optimized space conditions and value stream-oriented production.

Line production

Three out of four factories are switching from traditional workshop production to line production. The system relies on integrated processes and agile teams – for up to 20 percent more productivity.

New social spaces

The production building sets standards for modern working with bright lounges, modern quiet zones and meeting areas that encourage exchange and cooperation.

Photovoltaic system

The solar cells on the roof achieve a peak output of almost 1,000 kilowatts – an important building block for the sustainability of the building and part of a group-wide strategy.

Bird-proof facade

Textile elements on the south facade and printed glass panes on the north side: Protective measures on the building reduce the risk of bird impact by up to 95 percent.

The new production building in figures

Start of construction
April
2020
Construction time
Years
5
Completion of relocation
April
2024
Total investment
€ million
144
Total area (in m²)
46,000
Photovoltaic output (in kWh)
958,000

Focus on employees

With the move, many things will change for the production employees – new teams, altered decision-making processes and more responsibility for each individual. The transition to line production requires a changed approach that turns traditional foremen into team leaders and specialists into independent team players.

more on the topic of employees and careers

Construction phase milestones

2016: Initial ideas

In 2016, the first ideas for a comprehensive investment in Albstadt emerged, as the spatial situation did not allow for an optimal flow of materials in production.

2020: Decision on new construction

Following more detailed analyses, the certainty was established in 2019 that a new building offers clear advantages over a conversion of the existing buildings. The final decision for the new building was made at the start of 2020.

April 2020: Start of civil works

The construction and preparation phase began in April 2020 with the first civil works. 220,000 tons of excavated material were removed. In addition, 482 piles were installed with an average depth of 16 meters.

June 2020: Start of structural work

Work on the structure started two months later, in June 2020.

November 2021: Start of facade and roof work

The facade and roof work began in November 2021. 5,880 square meters of glass and 7,430 square meters of brick had to be installed for the facade.

March 2022: Start of interior fitting

After processing 20,230 cubic meters of concrete and 9,090 tons of concrete steel, the structure was completed in March 2022. The interior fitting work started in May.

November 2022: Completion of photovoltaic system

The work on the photovoltaic system was completed in November 2022. It consists of a total of 2,400 modules and has a total output of 958,000 kilowatt hours.

March 2023: Mounting the textile screen

The facade and window were completed. One month later, in March 2023 the textile screen was mounted the windows. It is used for shade, privacy and to prevent bird impact.

November 2023: Transfer to Groz-Beckert

Following official acceptance, the building was officially handed over to Groz-Beckert in November 2023. Since then, 25,768 square meters of production space have been available there.

December 2023: Start of relocation

The moving of the first machines began on December 4, 2023. More than 1,000 machines were relocated in total. In February 2024, production started gradually in the new production building.

April 2024: Completion of relocation

The move was successfully completed on April 26, 2024. The new production building is now the workplace for almost 600 employees.