Fewer variants, same functionality
Making up cables is one of the LQ Group’s core skills and raw cables are right at the heart of cable fabrication. As the customer base has grown, the number of cables has also increased sharply over the years. LQ is standardising raw cables and thus reducing the number of different variants without it having a detrimental effect on functionality. Customers can still be sure that all their technical requirements will be satisfied in full.
In its role as systems partner for installation technology, the LQ Group is involved extensively in making up cables for many different applications. The advantages for customers are that they can concentrate all their efforts on their core competencies, in other words the development and manufacture of machines and systems.
Around one thousand raw cables have to be managed
LQ makes up over 30,000 cable assemblies each month. The range extends from servo cables for Siemens, Bosch and Fanuc motors and power cables for asynchronous motors to data and signal cables. It even includes assemblies made up especially for specific machines. Standard cables and cables made up to the customers’ specifications are used in very different sectors of industry.
Raw cables are crucial basic components in cable fabrication, in other words the unassembled cables in shielded and unshielded form that are permanently connected to plugs or terminals. A steady increase in the number of customers, each with new specific parts lists for raw cables and sometimes from new cable manufacturers, meant that over the years the number of different cables at LQ had increased to around one thousand.
The large number of different variants has the following consequences: extra work is needed for materials planning, warehousing costs are also higher and consequently more capital is tied up. Additional outlay is also required when making up the cable assemblies, as more tools are needed for processing.
Customers benefit
The LQ Group is aiming to standardise raw cables and thus reduce the higher outlay for administration, warehousing and expenditure associated with the many different raw cables and thus customers also benefit from standardization. By concentrating all the raw cables required among fewer manufacturers, the purchasing department can benefit from economies of scale. Thus the cost of making up cables at LQ can be less expensive for customers when selected raw cables are used.
LQ reduces the complexity of raw cables through standardisation but does not impair their functionality in any way. Customers can also be sure in future that LQ can implement all technical requirements for their applications when making up cables.
Technically equivalent alternatives
As part of the standardisation process LQ first defined technical characteristics in respect of shielding, cross-sections, etc. to allow the raw cables to be compared. The collected data is stored in a database. If asked, LQ can use this database to give customers clear recommendations on which cables from their parts list they can replace with LQ’s standardised raw cables, whilst still providing a technically equivalent alternative to the products used to date.
The desired benefits of standardisation are beginning to show. A clear reduction in the large number of raw cables has been achieved as a result of the measures taken.