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DELTEC Group, a leading EMS provider specialising in high-quality electronic assemblies, has partnered with Panasonic and its partners Inovaxe and B4Creation, to digitise its Surface Mount Technology (SMT) production. This marks a significant leap forward in material logistics, traceability, and manufacturing efficiency across DELTEC Group’s 30,000m2 Bavarian facility in Furth im Wald, Germany.
Tackling the Challenge of Material Transparency and Efficiency
With fragmented systems, unstructured material storage, manual data collection, and a lack of end-to-end traceability, DELTEC Group needed to streamline operations, improve material handling, and drastically reduce search times. This would give it real-time visibility into its KPIs and Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). It also sought to prevent unplanned downtime and extended changeovers.
DELTEC Group implemented a fully integrated Just in Time (JIT) and Just in Sequence (JIS) production and material management system. This was powered by Panasonic’s PanaCIM manufacturing execution software, Inovaxe’s intelligent storage solutions, and B4Creation’s traceability platform. This spans warehouse logistics, SMT production, and Through Hole Technology (THT) production, manual assembly, and final product configuration.
Intelligent Material Logistics for Maximum Efficiency
Key innovations of DELTEC Group’s digital transformation include:
- Pick-by-light guidance and structured storage for faster kitting and reduced search times.
- Smart reel verification and location tracking to eliminate loading errors.
- Real-time inventory monitoring and automated cycle counting for optimised stock levels.
- Kardex Pater Noster vertical carousel storage system. This optimises material availability on the shop floor and saves space.
Materials are tracked from receipt to machine with PanaCIM’s Reel ID system. This enables predictive planning, automated replenishment, and full visibility of component locations and quantities.
High-End SMT Line for Scalable Production
DELTEC Group’s SMT production now includes a SPG2 solder paste printer for high-precision printing; Panasonic’s NPM-W2, NPM-WX, and NPM-DX modular placement machines; and automated production monitoring software and smart maintenance tools. All data is digitally managed through the PanaCIM manufacturing execution system.
Advanced Traceability and KPI Automation
Beyond material logistics, Panasonic and B4Creation introduced a new THT line with machine-integrated traceability and Traceability By Design (TBD) software. This automates product configuration, defect detection, and material management while generating real-time KPIs including First Pass Yield (FPY) and OEE.
“The PanaCIM solution is a game changer for our employees. You can see exactly where the material is located and prepare it efficiently. As a result, picking and search times have been drastically reduced. The automated KPI generation gives us full transparency of our production performance, at all times, and immediately highlights where we need to take action to further improve quality and efficiency,” said Thomas Fischer, Head of Technology and Maintenance at DELTEC Group.
To read the full DELTEC Group case study, click here: eu.connect.panasonic.com/gb/en/case-studies/digital-transformation-smt-production-efficient-material-machine.