Modernizing industrial metals trading

thyssenkrupp Materials Services has acquired the data analysis and data science company Westphalia DataLab GmbH with effect from December 05, 2022. With the purchase, the largest mill-independent materials distributor and service provider in the western world expects to strengthen its expertise in digital supply chain services and accelerate the development of concrete solutions.  

As part of its "Materials as a Service" strategic development, thyssenkrupp Materials Services is investing in new digital business models, particularly in supply chain services. "The potential for digital solutions to make supply chains more resilient and reduce CO₂ emissions is huge. Against the background of the dynamic market environment, we are focusing on innovations here and opening up new business areas," says Ilse Henne, Chief Transformation Officer of thyssenkrupp Materials Services.

Time savings and the reduction of error rates in production workflows as well as business processes: Aspects that are becoming increasingly important for customers in the dynamically changing environment. Fast and compact information exchange is essential for the smooth running of business processes and also saves resources elsewhere. Service center specialist thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe has optimized the exchange of data with its customers via edi and added several new functions.

With mpe edi deluxe, customers have the option of having the inspection data of their material and paper or PDF certificates transferred and stored in their individual ERP system – and this completely automatically. "We are thus able to simplify data exchange between suppliers and customers. The elimination of manual steps also minimizes the error rate," says Sandro Freudenberg, Sales Manager at the Stuttgart site of thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe. Due to the automated processes, there is a high time saving and personnel resources can be used more effectively. Customers also benefit from minimizing the cost of a complaint, as information about the manufacture of the products is stored in the system. As a result, the customer's inventory can be better selected and sorted. In addition, there are further development possibilities up to the introduction of inspection mechanisms such as a target/actual comparison of material properties.

Sustainability as an essential component of all business activities

Sustainable action is an essential factor in all activities of thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe. As part of its sustainability strategy, the parent company thyssenkrupp Materials Services has set itself the goal of operating on a climate-neutral basis by 2030. In addition, the company also wants to accompany its customers on this path and offers green products and solutions to reduce CO₂ emissions in the supply chains.

Offers such as mpe edi deluxe are an important part of this. In addition to steadily increasing digitization, thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe is also contributing to environmental protection with other projects: These include the offer of a pallet return system and the use of robust plastic pallets for recycling to enable more careful use of the scarce raw material wood. In addition, customers can take advantage of recycling services as part of their scrap disposal. In this way, surplus materials are bundled for remelting and fed back into the recyclable materials cycle in a structured manner.

thyssenkrupp Materials Services at EuroBLECH 2022

These and other digital solutions as well as sustainability topics will be presented by thyssenkrupp Materials Services, thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe and thyssenkrupp Schulte at EuroBLECH in Hanover from October 25 to 28, 2022.

We are looking forward to your visit in hall 17, stand E33.

A year ago thyssenkrupp Materials Services announced its new sustainability strategy "BEYOND" and the goal of operating in a climate-neutral manner by 2030 – around 20 years earlier than originally set. The company has now received the Sustainability Award from the Berlin Institute Supply Chain Management for its strategic approach.

"As the biggest mill-independent materials distributor and service provider in the Western World, we have a responsibility: Our actions have an impact on the climate, our products and services, our employees and society," says Daniel Wodera, CFO of Materials Services, at the Sustainability Congress 2022 in Berlin. "That's why we're taking big steps forward on sustainability to move the entire industry. This can only be done with a clear strategy and the contribution of every single employee. Our approach is cross-functional, agile and closely linked to operations, which is why we have been able to achieve results in a very short time. We are delighted that this approach has now been recognized."

• New site specially geared to key future issues of the automotive industry: Sustainability and electro-mobility – exclusive service offering to meet the need for lighter vehicles

• Expansion of leading market position in aluminium and steel service centers in Mexico

• thyssenkrupp Materials Services with total investment volume of more than $100 million in the North American market in the last 12 months

thyssenkrupp Materials Services is continuing its expansion in North America and is planning a new site for the Materials de Mexico division in San Luis Potosí. In the central Mexican city, the company is investing around $37 million in a service center that will support the future viability of the automotive supply industry, which is growing strongly in this region. The new site will create jobs for around 65 employees. With this step, the biggest mill-independent materials distributor and service provider in the Western world is strengthening its leading position in the North American market and further aligning its service business to evolving customer needs. "The needs and requirements of the industry are changing rapidly," says Martin Stillger, CEO of thyssenkrupp Materials Services. "Against the background of the major transformation themes of electro-mobility, sustainability and supply chain resilience, Mexico is a clear growth market for us. Here we can support customers with our Materials as a Service strategy precisely in these key areas." In total, thyssenkrupp Materials Services has invested around $102 million in the North American market in the last 12 months.

Exclusive service offering to meet the need for lighter vehicles

The centerpiece of the new location is a Schuler blanking line used to cut aluminium and high strength steel blanks for the automotive industry. Due to its low weight, aluminium helps to reduce emissions and is often used prominently in electric vehicles. The automotive industry is responding to increasing demand brought on by the faster transition to electric mobility and stricter emission standards planned by the US government. For the Mexican suppliers, the USA is by far the biggest sales market – around 80 percent of sales are generated in this region. Secretary of Economic Development Juan Carlos Valladares Eichelmann explains: “San Luis Potosí will be a key geographical site for this international company to reach the State, due to the enormous advantages of its infrastructure and its industrial vocation.”

The advantage of new types of digital services lies not only in efficiency and speed. They often also contribute to considerable resource conservation, made possible by automation, improved data or even forward planning. For example, in addition to edi offers and its customer portal "mpe connect", the processing specialist thyssenkrupp Materials Processing Europe has also developed the digital service "mpe control tower" for its customers.

The complete mpe control tower package is a solution for improved coordination throughout the supply chain. At its core is a data dashboard that gives its customers an overview of the entire supply chain in terms of compliance with delivery deadlines, quality monitoring, acceptance behavior and forecasting of the various plants and suppliers. In the event of disruptions in the supply chain, the transparency enables the company to react at an early stage and provide alternatives. Improved planning of inventories and logistics can thus contribute to far-reaching CO₂ reductions in the supply chain.