Author: Kloepfel

Production of stoves and ovens from the end of 2024 Miele is building its first American plant in Opelika in the US state of Alabama. According to the family-owned company’s press release, production is scheduled to start there at the end of 2024. In the first phase, 150 employees will work at the site. Production close to the market The provider of domestic appliances writes that there are several good reasons for the decision to also produce in the USA in the future. For example, the United States of America is Miele’s largest market outside Germany. At the same time,…

Read More

German foreign trade stagnates The Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel) published the values of the “Kiel Trade Indicator” on December 6. This analyzes the trade of 75 countries worldwide and predicts increases or decreases in trade with the help of real-time ship movement data. A special algorithm uses artificial intelligence to convert this data into values. According to the Kiel Institute, global trade fell by 0.9% in December 2023 compared to October 2023. German foreign trade in particular contributed to this development. Vincent Stamer, head of the Kiel Trade Indicator, states: “German foreign trade has basically only…

Read More

Investment in precious metal processing and environmental protection Aurubis AG, a leading global supplier of non-ferrous metals and one of the largest copper recyclers, recently announced investment decisions, particularly for the Hamburg site. At the most recent meeting of the Supervisory Board, two new projects were approved for the northern German site, totaling 330 million euros. Of this amount, around EUR 300 million is earmarked for the construction of a new precious metals processing plant, known as the Precious Metals Refinery (PMR). In conjunction with the existing facilities, this will create a new, highly secure area for processing precious metals…

Read More

November Edition: Kloepfel Magazine Dear Readers, In our article “Hidden Savings Potentials in Indirect Procurement,” we highlight why many companies often overlook their direct and indirect costs and present measures to achieve significant savings. Another focus is on the “Great Purchaser Salary Report 2023.” Like last year, over 1,500 employees and executives in procurement have provided information about their salaries. The results provide valuable insights into salary differences and the factors influencing them. Additionally, we take a look at the “Lorry Toll Changes from December 1, 2023.” The changes decided by the federal government will have significant implications for companies,…

Read More

Exploit savings opportunities – do not underestimate material and overhead costs Our experience shows that indirect purchasing costs – also known as material and overhead costs – are often not at the center of companies’ purchasing activities. We believe that one reason for the low relevance of these topics is their secondary importance compared to activities relating to the core product or core business. Companies often focus on the efficient procurement of the core components required for the production and sale of the core portfolio and neglect the seemingly secondary cost components. Indirect product groups are all goods and services…

Read More

Examples: Potential savings in IT and telecommunications, marketing and packaging materials What are the challenges and potential savings in the area of IT and telecommunications costs? Companies are faced with the challenge of having to efficiently manage different IT licenses, software solutions and mobile and hardware contracts and cover requirements. This means that the range of topics and the scope of activities are diverse and at the same time highly relevant for the smooth running of the company. In addition, the challenges in the IT and telecommunications product groups often lie in the fact that there is no close cooperation…

Read More

Companies should prepare for negotiations with logistics providers The changes to truck toll charges in Germany decided by the German government already made companies sit up and take notice a few weeks ago. While the government wants to raise additional funds for transport infrastructure, many are expressing concerns about the threat of competitive disadvantages. It is important that companies prepare for the upcoming changes in order to minimize the impact on their business. On October 20, the Bundestag passed the federal government’s bill to change tolls. Here are some important information and steps you should consider: Planned changes The first…

Read More

Investment of 100 million euros for energy storage solutions Global technology and construction group Strabag is investing in the development and production of safe, sustainable and cost-effective energy storage solutions. In cooperation with the battery storage manufacturer CMBlu Energy, Strabag intends to accelerate and simplify the realization of specific large-scale storage projects through construction projects and infrastructure support. Both companies aim to give the energy transition a significant boost by combining their respective expertise. This decision is based on the strategy of combining leading storage technology with expertise in construction and infrastructure. According to the company, this will enable industrial…

Read More

New AI-supported assistant to increase productivity Microsoft and Siemens are deepening their existing partnership. Microsoft reported on this last Thursday. The two companies are now presenting a jointly developed, AI-supported assistant. This assistant is called Siemens Industrial Copilot. It is designed to improve collaboration between man and machine in production. The integration between the Siemens Teamcenter software for Product Lifecycle Management (PLM) and Microsoft Teams will also further pave the way to the industrial metaverse, Microsoft promises in its press release. This will also simplify cross-functional, virtual collaboration between development engineers, customer service staff and other teams. Man and machine…

Read More

Increased EU trade contributes significantly to the increase The Kiel Institute for the World Economy (IfW Kiel) published the values of the “Kiel Trade Indicator” on November 7. This analyzes the trade of 75 countries worldwide and forecasts increases or decreases in trade with the help of real-time ship movement data. According to the Kiel Institute, global trade increased by 2% in October 2023 compared to September 2023, with EU trade in particular contributing to this increase. Vincent Stamer, Head of the Kiel Trade Indicator, states: “The figures for global trade are stronger than they have been for a long…

Read More

October Edition: Kloepfel Magazine Dear Readers, We are heading purposefully towards the end of the year and in many companies planning for the coming year has already begun. This October issue of our newsletter provides you with a wealth of information to support and inspire you as you optimize in the areas of purchasing, logistics and human resources. While in the first article we look at the challenges and opportunities of cost planning for 2024, in the second article we take you to Düsseldorf-Lierenfeld, where the new logistics hub of Kloepfel 4PL Solutions is waiting for medium-sized companies and startups.…

Read More

Cost optimization through efficient processes and digitization Planning for the coming year is on the horizon. The challenges remain considerable. The risk of high costs persists. Therefore, you should already plan your costs holistically for 2024. In this context, it is crucial to pay attention to costs instead of prices. Costs can be influenced and controlled more directly and easily within the company than prices for purchased parts. Prices are set before parts are procured, based on specifications, requirements and drawings. In contrast, costs in the company arise from internal processes and procedures that have a certain momentum and may…

Read More

More and more customers of the Kloepfel Group, which specializes in supply chains, are relying on skilled workers from Eastern Europe due to the shortage of specialists in the areas of production, construction, sales, accounting and purchasing. With them, company processes can be relocated temporarily or long-term to Eastern European countries. In this press release, we explain examples and let customers have their say. Flexibility in purchasing With Kloepfel Services, companies can flexibly ramp up and down their purchasing, sales and accounting capacities with Eastern European experts as needed from one day to the next. The specialists have many years…

Read More

Rapid placement of strategic buyers Find out in the recommendation letter of STIEBEL ELTRON GmbH & Co. KG how Kloepfel Consulting successfully recruited specialists in strategic purchasing for the company. Kloepfel Consulting was chosen for the project implementation due to its expertise in recruiting purchasing managers. After only two weeks, the first candidates were introduced by profile. STIEBEL ELTRON develops and produces intelligent and green heating technology solutions with around 5,500 employees – whether for hot water, heating, ventilation or cooling. Are you looking for highly motivated specialists and managers for purchasing, supply chain management and logistics? Then contact us:…

Read More

Customer interview with managing director Oliver Ahrens In our interview, Oliver Ahrens, Managing Director of TonerPartner GmbH, provides insights into a successful consulting project with Kloepfel Consulting. Among other things, Ahrens emphasizes the good cooperation with Kloepfel’s consultants and points out the use of digital possibilities in logistics. The conclusion of the project is extremely positive, as the savings have exceeded expectations and structures have been simplified. Did you conduct a potential analysis with Kloepfel in advance? No, at TonerPartner we did not conduct a potential analysis with Kloepfel. However, Kloepfel consultants talked to our CFO and looked at freight…

Read More

Expansion of the Airbus A321F freighter route network in the north Lufthansa Cargo is strengthening its presence in the Nordic region by expanding the Airbus A321F freighter’s route network to Helsinki and Copenhagen. Lufthansa Cargo freighters will reportedly fly from Frankfurt to Copenhagen via Helsinki from September 27, 2023. This will create direct connections from Frankfurt to more than 300 global destinations and add additional flights to existing connections. Expansion of route networks Denmark, Sweden, Finland, Norway and Iceland are of great importance for international freight traffic due to their location between Europe and North America. Exports are mainly technology…

Read More