Corona everywhere: not only for the industry no easy situation. At Tsurumi, a manufacturer of pumps for clear water, wastewater and sewage, the situation is more relaxed than elsewhere. Because the Japanese have a different supply concept.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe majority of our product range is available at short notice,\u201d said Daniel Weippert, Managing Director for the Tsurumi Europe GmbH in D\u00fcsseldorf\/Germany. There are currently no shortages, the warehouses are full. Only extreme weather conditions such as continuous rain could cause short-term bottlenecks. This statement is somewhat surprising, as some companies complain about a difficult delivery situation. In fact, however, many things are different at Tsurumi in comparison to other manufacturers.<\/p>\n
Contract manufacturing is the standard of the industry, with weeks and months of waiting time for the customer. Not so with Tsurumi. The Japanese maintain huge intermediate storage facilities and distribution warehouses. For Europe, e.\u2009g., Belgium functions as the central logistics centre. That is where Tsurumi keeps a stock level that can guarantee supply for six months. As a precaution to the Corona crisis, the stock in D\u00fcsseldorf has also been considerably increased. A substantial part of the product range can be delivered within 24 h. Even large aggregates are at the customer’s site within a few days after ordering. The spare parts supply in the EU is handled centrally from D\u00fcsseldorf.<\/p>\n
This organisation is currently playing into the manufacturer\u2019s hands. However, costs have increased because freight rates are higher than before due to scarce transport capacities. But Tsurumi does not pass these on to the customer, Weippert said. He does not see the supply situation for the plants in danger. Most of the pumps are \u201cMade in Japan\u201d. The country is by far not as affected by the crisis as others.<\/p>\n
Think big, is also the motto in direct manufacturing. A product is manufactured in large quantities with a high degree of automation. In Kyoto\/Japan, the manufacturer maintains the world\u2019s largest production facility in the industry (Figure 1). Final individual tests are intended to guarantee the lowest possible response rates. Users also benefit from the efficient pump construction with many identical parts even after purchase, because they can carry out maintenance themselves thanks to the modular design. Admittedly, even Tsurumi, the world’s largest pump manufacturer in the construction sector, is not immune to stagnation should Corona in Asia unexpectedly become more severe again.<\/p>\n