trailer world issue One 2008

In order to achieve greater ﬂexibility, the managers at Salzgitter started two years ago to consolidate processes and to introduce lo- gistics skills back in to the company. “Logis- tics is a key competence today,” says Harland, summing up. The programme: amalgamation, ration- alisation, standardisation. 13 “Master Hauli- ers” are currently employed for shipping in Germany and the rest of Europe. Each Mas- ter is responsible for a closely deﬁned re- gion. As the extended arm of the shipping department of Salzgitter Flachstahl GmbH, they transport the steel products as far as the customer’s storage facility. Each Master takes the leading role for “his relationships”. In order to prevent chaos when loading, collection orders are now systematically dis- tributed. “The haulier has to book himself a time slot via the Internet,” says shipping boss Gerhard Kosubek, explaining the principle. Any driver who misses the free two-hour time slot can park his truck on the service area outside Gate 6 and take it easy in the driver‘s lounge for a while. The web-based time slot control system prevents a situation that was still arising on some days two years ago between 11 am and 4 pm at the main gate to the Salzgitter works site. Up to 50 heavy lorries were tailed back as far as the motor- way slip road, obstructing the traﬃc. The military precision of Gerhard Kosu- bek’s synchronised traﬃc movements makes it possible to close gates, and hence “holes in the fence”. Up to 300 lorries now go through the barrier every day at Gate 6, the new con- trol centre for incoming and outgoing freight vehicles. “Every driver is given a schedule number,” says Kosubek, explaining the system. They use it like a key. After check-in at the Check-in in nine languages From Transport to Supply Chain Management On this hot-rolled strip mill the cast and pre-rolled slabs are rolled into long steel strips, and then ﬁnally rolled up into coils. Much in demand worldwide  The steel industry is booming. As a result of advances and industri- alisation, the need to catch up in the fast-developing nations and in Asia is leading to the frequently cited “hunger for steel”. China alone boosted the global steel industry by 17.7 percent in 2007. Russia, India and Brazil also saw increases. As a result the demand for raw materials such as iron ore and scrap is growing. The experts agree that steel will also remain expensive in the longer term. The steel industry in this country, employing around 92,000 people, achieved record sales amount- ing to 45 million euros. Issue One 2008 9

trailer world issue One 2008

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