Fluid control systems use a variety of heavy and irregular parts, requiring careful packaging and shipment. Despite KLINGER Spain’s excellent audit metrics and multiple regulatory certifications, the team knew there was still room for improvement. Mari Carmen Arnal, Quality Manager of KLINGER Spain, saw an opportunity: the logistics department already had rigorous testing in place for both incoming supplier materials and outgoing KLINGER materials. Was there a way to combine the two, and make the process more sustainable?
Contacts mentioned in the article:
Mari Carmen Arnal, Quality Manager of KLINGER Spain
Reducing and Reusing
Replacing purchased box filler with recycled supplier packaging materials would allow KLINGER Spain to maintain less packaging inventory, but preparing the materials for reuse would require a few additional steps. New tools, including a cardboard shredder and paper cushioning system, allow the team to turn received shipping materials into reclaimed packaging.
Rather than requiring custom sizes to fit the wide range of KLINGER valves and accessories, these machines reshape paper and cardboard into corrugated packs that are easily formed into a variety of shapes. Outgoing shipments are visually consistent, with branding prominent on the exterior packaging. Interior packaging consists of the materials best suited to each product, such as cardboard and paper fillers, bubble wrap, or shrink wrap. The reuse of supplier packaging has allowed KLINGER Spain to reduce waste by more than two tons per year, improving both the branch’s carbon footprint and its expenses.
Testing and customer input helped the team to fine tune the new process. According to feedback, rough handling and settling during shipping were major issues. As Carmen explains, “There is a lot of movement in these boxes during transport. What we try to do is to protect the material as much as possible.” The top priority was to increase padding with corrugated and air-filled materials, anchoring the parts in place and preventing them from striking any hard surfaces. Because transport conditions can be unpredictable, cushioning the product is the best way to ensure a successful shipment. This method has proven effective, with customer shipping complaints dropping by more than half (from 1.1% to 0.4%) in one year. “Some customers told us that they have seen an improvement with this packaging,” Carmen says. “So that’s where we can see that the changes are okay, and the customers appreciate that.”
Thinking Green
The new system has been a success in more ways than one. Not only has a greener packaging process decreased resource consumption, but it has also spurned a more innovative environment throughout the rest of the business. Seeing this successful project has inspired the team to think cross-functionally, incorporating greener behavior through the entire project life cycle. Upcoming efforts will include examining power and water use by the department.
“This is something that we didn’t used to think about. Now that we are in this movement, we are more creative in looking for improvements. This is going to be imperative for our customers. I think that is something good for us, and also for the business.”
Mari Carmen Arnal, Quality Manager of KLINGER Spain
KLINGER Spain’s packaging system statistics:
| KLINGER Spain | 2023 | 2024 |
|---|---|---|
| Total costs of packaging | 145.171€ | 115.673€ |
| Costs of packaging vs. Sales | 0,38% | 0,30% |
| Packing waste | 4.146€ (24,9Tn) | 2.194€ (22,8Tn) |
| Filler material | Reduction of 33,3% of the costs | |
| CCRP (Customer Complaint Resolution Process) because of packaging | 1,1% | 0,4% |
