ARaymond Relocates Fastener Facility
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The company switched the manufacture of metal clips and fasteners from its historic site in downtown Grenoble to a new purpose-built facility 10km away to the north in Saint-Égrèvein the city’s suburbs.
“The transfer was necessary in order to increase output,” the company stated. “The old factory, surrounded by residential housing, was unable to operate at night and at weekends due to noise and vibration levels generated by machinery.”
The move also formed part of the wider strategy of ARaymond to separate its different business units and relocate them to modern, dedicated facilities, the company explained.
ARaymond began planning the transfer in December 2013. A team of 55 ARaymond and BYES personnel were working on the project at its peak.
The transfer itself began on July 15, 2014, and was finished on schedule and on budget by the middle of September. In the months before the move, ARaymond stepped up production to build up stock levels, ensuring no customer shortages of components during the period when no production was possible.
“The preparation phase was critical,” said Fabien Séjourné, equipments projects manager. “It took four days to disassemble some of the machines before they were ready to be transported and specialist cranes were still needed to lift them onto trailers.
“In total we transported 940 separate items of equipment including 22 presses, the heaviest of which weighed 51 tones. This involved 300 vehicle movements and the largest convoys had to travel between 2 am and 5 am to avoid disrupting traffic.”
The convoys had to negotiate bridges, tram lines and roadwork, and some trees had to be cut down to allow the passage of wide loads. But the only delay was caused when the peloton of the Tour de France passed through the area, and the transfer was completed without a single recorded accident.
The layout of the new 14,000 square meter site at Saint-Égrève was designed to optimize the manufacturing process. Inspired by lean methodologies and taking advantage of the extra space, ARaymond has positioned the machinery to speed up processes, improve productivity and reduce waste.
“The new plant became fully operational at the end of December,” added Séjourné. “Here we can operate 24/7 if necessary to meet customer demand, potentially boosting production capacity by between 30 and 50%. Lead times will also be shorter thanks to the efficient design of the production line.”
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