Case study Krenhof AG

A little better every day – CIP with MES

Transforming a traditional artisan business into a modern industrial enterprise is a major challenge. The management of Krenhof AG from Styria has mastered this task with flying colors. Through foresight, a clever business strategy and a focus on its own strengths, the forge was able to adapt its product portfolio to new markets and customers, as well as increase the number of its employees from 117 to over 280. PROXIA’s MES-Software helps the company to gain full transparency over production and to achieve CIP in manufacturing with the right action management – every day a bit better on track to lower-error, faster and leaner processes for sustainable maintenance of competitiveness.

“The PROXIA MES solution consisting of MDE, BDE and ETKS ensures a digital information flow and objective data in our production. The continuous improvement process is noticeable in figures: Through active action management, we were able to reduce our setup times by 40%.”

Matthias Hartmann
Executive Board of Krenhof AG

Highlights and benefits at a glance:

Accelerated: Continuous improvement process (CIP) accelerated
Reduced: Plant setup times reduced by 40%.
Improved: Performance increased through employee communication
Sound: Safer investment decisions through objective figures
Effective: MES for effective measures management
Lean: More efficient, leaner processes through secure decisions

Setup Times Reduced by 40% – More Transparency and Efficiency in Medium-Batch Production with PROXIA MES

Industry

Krenhof AG, based in Köflach, Austria, is a long-established manufacturer of drop-forged parts for the automotive industry, mechanical engineering, as well as rail and agricultural technology. With around 500 different forged parts produced annually, this medium-sized company specializes in flexible medium-batch production, in-house tool design, and the highest level of precision.

Problem

Paper-based recording of production data led to inaccurate information and a high susceptibility to errors. Interactions between setup times and downtimes could not be objectively analyzed. As a result, transparent productivity assessment and an effective continuous improvement process (CIP) were not feasible—posing a significant risk in the face of rising cost and competitive pressures.

Solution

With the implementation of the modular PROXIA MES system—including MDE, BDE, PZE, and monitoring—Krenhof adopted a digital, seamless real-time data collection approach. Industrial PCs at 93 workstations ensure reliable data capture even under the toughest production conditions, while an intelligent comment field system records the causes of production delays directly and initiates corrective actions. Close integration with the ERP system ensures continuous data availability.

Result

Setup times were reduced by 40%. At the same time, transparency across all production processes improved significantly, enabling targeted optimizations. Employee communication was strengthened through the system’s implementation, and the continuous improvement process (CIP) was firmly embedded in the company. Today, PROXIA’s MES provides reliable decision-making foundations for cost calculation, controlling, and investments—and serves as a central pillar for future-proof production at Krenhof.