An OEM had commissioned a medium-sized German automotive supplier to set up a new production facility in an Eastern European EU country. The OEM wanted to start vehicle production there. In order to ensure just-in-sequence delivery to the supplier, the supplier's production facilities were also to be located nearby. He quickly realized that he would not be able to manage this major project with his own resources. The company then engaged the interim manager with proven experience in plant construction and production relocations in Eastern Europe.
Task packages identified and overall schedule developed
When the interim manager took over the project, only a few preparations had been made for the relocation. Instead, there were numerous challenges: These included setting up a new national company, building a new plant, designing the supply chain and managing the project organizations at the supplier and the OEM, which were spread across several European countries. The tight timeframe of 13 months until the planned start of production (SOP) was a major concern.
After the interim manager had gained an overview, he first developed a realistic overall schedule. This provided a complete and in-depth overview of the project structure, the task packages and the required resources for the first time.
Project plan prepared for new building and replacement plan for emergencies
One of the most pressing tasks was to create the legal requirements for the construction and operation of the new plant building. The interim manager therefore worked with the supplier's legal and finance departments to establish a company in accordance with the country-specific requirements, including court registration. This was because further important internal and external steps could only be taken once the registration had been completed: These included applying for a DUNS number, the mandatory registration in the OEM's IT system and the authorization to be able to acquire a plot of land for the new plant construction ("greenfield").
At this point, the new construction project was still in the concept phase. And it was not foreseeable whether the new building would be ready in time for the SOP. Together with his team, the interim manager therefore developed a plan B for temporary production in rented halls ("brownfield"). In this way, he ensured that production in the target country could take place on schedule under all circumstances.
Supplier's ERP system adapted to OEM requirements
After the interim manager had laid the foundations for the successful establishment of the plant and production, he turned his attention to the processes in the organization. He discovered that the supplier's ERP system (SAP) did not meet the OEM's requirements. The ERP system therefore had to be rebuilt for the specific country. In addition, the OEM required the SAP system to be closely linked to the OEM's EDI system and certified by the OEM due to the cycle-based delivery.
The interim manager put together a team of SAP experts for this work at short notice and worked with the specialists to draw up a project plan and budget. This sub-project was managed by an SAP-experienced expert from the parent company.
Recruiting driven forward and supply chain organization optimized
In the next sub-project, the interim manager drove the recruiting forward. Together with the German HR department, he hired an HR business partner who successfully recruited new employees. These employees were then trained over several weeks in Germany. This made it possible to build up a core team, which later trained other employees. The assembly components and engineering were provided by a foreign subsidiary of the supplier. The interim manager brought the relevant project organization on board and detailed the project plan with the local management and team members.
Surprising request for earlier production readiness fulfilled
A new challenge arose during the course of the project: the OEM requested that production readiness at the new location be brought forward by at least four weeks. The interim manager then activated Plan B, which had been drawn up as a precaution, i.e. temporary production in rented halls at a logistics service provider. The new assembly lines, which were designed and built in Germany, had to be ready for production to be brought forward. The plan was to first set them up in the main German plant, test them and then hand them over to the new plant. Thanks to his experience, the interim manager had already pushed the schedule for the construction of the lines right from the start. This now proved to be an advantage: the construction progress actually made it possible to shorten the required deadline.
The systems were set up in time for the pre-acceptance in Germany. All product variants were assembled by the new employees on a trial basis, and the young team successfully completed the pre-acceptance in the presence of representatives from the OEM. After approval, all production equipment was relocated to the brownfield after a few months.
The second deadline was shortened by the OEM shortly afterwards. Now production at the service provider was to take place three weeks earlier. Although the interim manager had already planned the product and process releases in advance for earlier production readiness, not all materials were available in sufficient quantities. The interim manager therefore convinced the OEM's project team of a new, adapted project plan, which initially only provided for the supply of the available part numbers.
New assembly line set-up successful, production start without disruptions
The assembly systems were finally ready for production a short time later. After fulfilling the final APQP requirements, the customer issued the final production and delivery approval in the spring. The SOP and ramp-up went off without a hitch in early summer.
Intensive stakeholder management promotes project success
Communication with the OEM's contacts proved to be challenging and demanding. On the one hand, the project participants were spread across several countries. On the other hand, central information, control and approval processes ran through different departments, particularly in the areas of IT, supplier quality and engineering. To ensure the smoothest possible decision-making processes, the interim manager organized and maintained intensive stakeholder management with all contact persons. His direct and transparent communication proved to be beneficial and increasingly trust-building throughout the entire project.
