Success Story Automotive: WITTE Automotive centralizes and optimizes plant line planning

Planning for the future – across all sites

When a manufacturing company introduces a new production line, determining how and where it fits into an existing facility can be a complex and time-consuming task. To better manage these challenges, WITTE Automotive now uses the space management software AREAPLAN to proactively plan space requirements for new or expanded production lines across its various plants. By implementing AREAPLAN, WITTE has significantly improved the quality of its planning data, established a unified planning foundation across all sites, and saved valuable time in determining space requirements.

Key facts at a glance

Initial situation

• Space planning (layouting) was previously done using various tools across different plants
• Space requirement analysis was conducted solely via Excel spreadsheets

Special features

• Harmonization and synchronization of the IT landscape for global plant planning
• Implementation completed in just four months
• AREAPLAN currently maps approx. 50,000 m² of production space across six sites (one still under construction)

Benefits

• Visualization of temporal changes in layout
• Improved data quality
• Unified planning foundation for all plants
• Time savings in space requirement analysis
• Better decision-making for expansions or new site development through utilization reports

The challenge: Space planning as a strategic decision-making tool

“When new production lines or expansions are introduced, the impact can be so significant that we need to expand existing sites or even build new ones. We needed a tool that would allow us to better assess space requirements and understand the scope of necessary changes”, explains Christiane Franke, VP Logistics at WITTE Automotive.

The goal: Transparency and centralized space planning

WITTE chose AREAPLAN from DUALIS to enable cross-plant planning of space usage in assembly and production halls. The software allows production areas to be efficiently planned, managed, and optimized.

Unlike traditional planning methods, AREAPLAN is scalable for expansions and new builds. It can simulate ongoing project changes and visualize time-based sequences.

Previously, WITTE used a variety of tools for layout planning, with space requirement analysis handled exclusively in Excel – a time-consuming process that made data consolidation and analysis difficult.

With AREAPLAN, WITTE can now:

• Visualize how layouts evolve over time
• Export reports on used and available space as Excel files
• Incorporate time-based occupancy using machine start and end dates
• Use utilization reports to support decisions on site expansion or new construction

“The ability to visualize time-based components is crucial for precise planning,” says Daniel Ottosson, Head of Lean & Technology at WITTE Niederberg. “And the easy export function helps us feed our reporting systems without maintaining parallel Excel lists. Both features save us a lot of effort.”

Implementation: Seamless integration and 3D simulation synergy

The implementation of AREAPLAN took just four months and integrated smoothly into WITTE’s workflows. A key advantage: WITTE was already using parts of the Visual Components 3D simulation platform, for which DUALIS is an experienced and authorized reseller.

AREAPLAN builds on the proven capabilities of Visual Components and integrates directly into its interface. Existing machine and production layouts created in Visual Components can be easily imported and reused for space planning.

Thanks to this synergy – and WITTE’s positive experience with DUALIS – AREAPLAN proved to be the ideal add-on. DUALIS handled configuration, customization, and training.

The result: A unified data foundation across all plants

AREAPLAN enables WITTE Automotive to harmonize and synchronize its IT landscape for global plant line planning. The result is a more efficient and consistent management of production space across all sites.

Multiple users can now work centrally within one platform, creating a unified, consistent data foundation and 100% transparency for all stakeholders – significantly improving planning quality.

Looking for a solution for global factory line planning?

Let’s talk! We’re happy to provide expert, no-obligation advice tailored to your needs. Or request your personal live demo – we’ll walk you through how AREAPLAN can support your specific planning requirements.