Machine Builder AWL Streamlines Production with Infor Cloud

Netherlands-January 15, 2024, 09:00 AM

AWL has chosen Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise to form the technological backbone of the production process

UTRECHT, Netherlands – Jan. 15, 2023 – Infor^®, the industry cloud company, announced today that machine builder AWL has chosen Infor to help optimize its production process. The global leading specialist in designing and building smart (modular) machines will deploy Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise as the enterprise resource planning (ERP) system for the material handling business unit to support volume production.

As a high-end machine builder, AWL focuses primarily on complex automation projects for global companies. This is where AWL's skills in engineering and machine building come together. The growth of serial orders stemming from this powerful combination generated the need for a new ERP system.

From project organization to mass scaling

Where this business unit could previously work on a project basis, the request for serial machine concepts, combined with the process characteristics of serial production, creates new requirements for the ERP system handling complex multi-modal manufacturing requirements. To meet this, AWL chose Infor’s cloud solution, powered by Amazon Web Services (AWS).

One deciding factor for serial machine concepts is the traceability within production and the product lifecycle. This allows any disruptions or issues to be quickly identified and addressed despite the large scale.

Global planning

The Infor CloudSuite was implemented first in the material handling business unit in just five months. Further implementation throughout the rest of the organization is currently taking place, with a targeted go-live in Q1 2026, so AWL will eventually benefit from a company-wide rollout of the standardized and highly flexible multi-tenant cloud solution. The organization has locations in the Netherlands, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, China, Mexico, and United States. With the new solution, AWL will be better able to roll out planning across multiple locations and better align it with various business units.

"Old systems limit growth. Because manual work is always required, the processes are both time consuming and error prone. An innovative ERP solution is an absolute must to be flexible in dealing with the dynamic developments in the market," says Daniël Bottema, business unit manager at AWL. "We deliberately chose Infor because of the experience and extensive track record in manufacturing companies. The solution will help our company to take the next steps."

Implementation in five months

The solution has already been implemented in five months for part of the organization, where normally such an implementation could takes years. AWL states that this is possible due to the combination of choosing standard solutions within only part of the organization. Moreover, Infor and AWL benefit from the limited need for data conversion because it involves a virtually new activity of the company.

"A small, focused team is essential to maintain this pace. And within that, we need to realize what capacity we are asking of our people," says Bottema. "Infor's experience within manufacturing companies is indispensable. It makes a huge difference that they know these kinds of companies from the inside. And precisely because we are now setting this up on a small scale within AWL, it will be easier to roll out the solution across the rest of the organization in the second phase."

Learn more about Infor CloudSuite Industrial Enterprise.

customer image - AWL - DHL's robotic depalletizer_3.jpg