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Everything on One Card

The new hall at Spielkartenfabrik Altenburg GmbH was opened in spring 2023. Since the simultaneous introduction of the cloud-based SLOT time slot management system from Cargoclix, waiting times for truck drivers have been significantly reduced, according to Logistics Manager René Kühnel. (Photos: Spielkartenfabrik Altenburg GmbH/ASS Altenburger)

Since March 2023, the well-known Altenburger Spielkartenfabrik has been optimising its ramps with the cloud-based SLOT time slot management system from Cargoclix. The solution not only shortens waiting times for truck drivers, but also provides an important basis for supplier evaluation.

Freiburg i.B., 5 August 2024. Jack, queen, king, ace: anyone who has ever held a pack of skat in their hand will be familiar with Spielkartenfabrik Altenburg GmbH, Germany’s largest producer of cards and card games. The first official mention of a card manufacturer in the former Thuringian royal seat dates back to 1509, and the Bechstein brothers founded the Altenburg Playing Card Factory in 1832. The production portfolio of the company, which has been part of the Belgian Cartamundi Group, includes much more than just Skat cards: it also includes cards for Rummy, Mau Mau and Schafkopf, numerous quartet variants and complex card games such as Dominion. 

To ensure that these products reach the customer and that the raw material for production reaches the factory, playing cards also require extensive logistics. And it was precisely this that presented the company with many a complex challenge until spring 2023 and the move to a new hall. ‘In our old building, the goods were spread over six levels, which were connected by lifts, and we only had four ramps,’ recalls Logistics Manager René Kühnel. ‘That was cumbersome and caused a lot of planning work,’ he continues.

Logistics Manager René Kühnel

When planning the new hall, the desire to optimise processes also grew within the company – including in terms of waiting times for truck drivers. ‘These used to be three to four hours, the trucks were parked on the road because there were no parking facilities,’ reports Kühnel. ‘And then the issue of time slot management came into play.’ 

There is no longer any talk of cramped conditions in the new hall. Construction of the new building, which not only offers generous production and storage areas at ground level, but also sufficient space for around 300 employees, lasted from February 2022 to early 2023. Another important innovation was the creation of sufficient truck parking spaces. This was also seen as a contribution to significantly improving the conditions for the drivers on site.

The Time Slots Firmly in View

During the construction phase, a team from Corporate Logistics had already started to obtain quotes for various time slot management systems and to scrutinise their functionality. In the end, three systems were shortlisted, with SLOT from Cargolix making the final cut. ‘Our research showed that SLOT was the best fit for us in terms of clarity, handling and costs,’ says Kühnel. It has now been in use at the Altenburg playing card factory since March 2023. Since then, the handling of around 5 to 10 trucks a day in outgoing goods and 10 to 15 trucks in incoming goods has eased considerably. Around 3,000 pallets are moved each month. 

Since the introduction of the system, all service providers are now obliged to book a time slot for the delivery or collection of at least five pallets. Those who fail to do so must wait for clearance. For all trucks with a booked time slot, the waiting time for clearance has been massively reduced. ‘It now takes less than 15 minutes, then it’s their turn,’ says Kühnel, looking at the cards for his company. Free time slots in the system can be booked at any time; the reservation obligation only ends 24 hours before the desired appointment. 

Another ace up the playing card manufacturer’s sleeve: the satisfaction of colleagues in driver processing has increased massively. Handling at the 13 usable ramps can be better planned and staff can be deployed in a more targeted manner. Whereas it used to be necessary to work with external companies in logistics, all processes are now in our own hands. Nevertheless, it was not necessary to hire additional staff – the improved organisation enabled an optimised distribution of tasks.

Unannounced trucks in the yard have become rare. Drivers who don’t have to wait several hours for their turn are also in a much better mood, which lifts the mood everywhere. A time slot booking costs 50 cents, which the company pays itself and does not pass on to the logistics service providers. This also removes the last hurdle for them to use the time slot management system.

A Tool for Evaluating Service Providers

This is not the only reason why the introduction of the time slot management system was well received by suppliers and haulage companies. ‘Only a few found it difficult and had to do it repeatedly,’ recalls Kühnel. Another trump card: the reliability of time slot bookings is an important aspect in the freight forwarder evaluation for future collaboration. ‘If we are not 100 percent satisfied, we give the company in question feedback and explain the reasons,’ says Kühnel. ‘This gives the company the chance to make improvements and ensure that slots for the trucks are always booked.’ 

René Kühnel advises other companies that would also like to introduce a time slot management system to define the bookable time slots in line with the processes of the respective company and not flexibly. ‘This ensures that the slots match the processes,’ he explains. He also recommends defining clear times for the delivery and collection of goods. Those who follow these tips will ensure that their ramps are better organised – and will certainly not have one thing in the future: bad cards.

CARGOCLIX SLOT

CARGOCLIX SLOT is a web-based time slot management system for optimising loading and unloading processes at the ramp. Consignees can set free loading times, forwarders and carriers can book their desired delivery time. Internet access is all that is required for booking by forwarders and carriers.

Cost per slot booking: 50 cents. These are borne either by the company making the booking or, alternatively, by the consignee/location operator.

System description

• Interface to the ERP system or as a stand-alone solution
• Variable ramp opening times and flexible time window lengths according to number of pallets, tonnes, vehicle type, etc.
• Individual setting of break and holiday times, shift changes, booking limits, etc.
• Storage of capacity limits such as personnel, forklift trucks or processing capacities
• Layouts and authorisation assignments for re-bookings and changes
• Plausibility checks of booking data through duplicate checks, comparison of number ranges, etc.
• Event-based notifications and alerts
• Recording and analyses of incoming goods flows with punctuality and handling times
• Real-time comparison of booked and unbooked time slots (prerequisite: ERP interface)
• Tracking of loading and unloading processes in real time with selectable screen display as a schedule with ramp view, tabular booking list, traffic light system with colour symbols
• Recording of incoming goods flows with planned/actual time per lorry, quantity and quality per delivered consignment as well as comparison of delivered actual and target quantities from contracts
• KPI tool ‘CARGOCLIX Logistics Monitor’ for controlling ramps using individual KPIs (key performance indicators)
• ‘CARGOCLIX ETA App’ for dynamic arrival time calculation at the ramp through intelligent calculation of the ‘Estimated Time of Arrival’
• ‘CARGOCLIX TERMINAL’ realisation of ‘Gate 4.0’ without the use of personnel

About ASS Altenburger

Spielkartenfabrik Altenburg GmbH is one of the oldest and best-known companies in the

company in the field of playing card production in Europe. Since 2002, the company has been part of the Belgian Cartamundi Group, which combines expertise in the field of card and game production with locations all over the world. The current site in Altenburg employs over 300 people, produces over 14 million boxed games and almost 40 million printed packs of cards per year.

About Cargoclix

Cargoclix is a neutral Internet marketplace for the electronic tendering of transport and logistics services as well as a provider of modular time slot management systems.

The range of services offered by the logistics platform ‘Cargoclix TENDER’ includes worldwide tenders for contracts for road, rail, air freight, sea and inland waterway transport, courier express parcel services and logistics services such as warehousing. With over 28,000 registered members from industry, trade and freight forwarding, TENDER is one of the leading international tendering platforms for transport and logistics. The central product of the time slot management division is the modularly adaptable ‘Cargoclix SLOT’ software for optimising processes at the ramp. With more than 160,000 members, SLOT is one of the most widely used time slot management systems.

Cargoclix is a brand of Dr Meier & Schmidt GmbH. The company was founded in 1998 and is based in Freiburg i.Br. www.cargoclix.com

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