“The expansion of our logistics and service centre in Ludwigsburg is a milestone for LAPP and a clear commitment to the greater Stuttgart area. This will make Ludwigsburg the centrepiece of our logistics operations throughout Europe: highly efficient, highly automated, sustainable and with maximum availability for our customers,” emphasised Matthias Lapp, CEO of the Lapp Group. The expansion is the largest single investment in LAPP’s history.
Commissioning in 2027
Construction work on the building is due to be completed in 2026. Commissioning is planned for 2027. The investment sum is in the high double-digit million range. The expansion will enable LAPP to meet the increased demand for customised products (e.g. individual cable cutting to length, individual labelling) and strong volume growth. “In order to increase our competitiveness, we will be investing heavily in future-oriented technologies for a digitalised working world and a modern and ergonomic working environment in Ludwigsburg,” says Matthias Lapp.
Eleven metres deep
The extension covers around 14,000 square metres and is directly adjacent to the existing 30,000 square metre logistics building, which went into operation in 2013. Although the new area of the extension is smaller, it still offers as much space as the existing building. The reason: the building will be built eleven metres deep, so that the automated warehouse will have a total height of up to 21 metres.
Once completed, the logistics and service centre in Ludwigsburg will be the most modern in the Lapp Group worldwide. In addition to the existing automated drum warehouse with over 70,000 drum storage locations, an automated pallet warehouse with around 40,000 storage locations, an automated small parts warehouse for almost 100,000 containers and modern automated guided vehicle systems (AGVs) with innovative control station technology and optimised battery charging management will be added. As a result, transport within the building is no longer carried out using forklift trucks, but almost exclusively with the AGVs. In addition, there are modern cut-to-length machines with a high degree of automation. The bottom line is that LAPP will be able to speed up all work processes and make them more efficient. In future, forklifts will only be used at the 33 loading ramps for loading and unloading lorries.
Expansion of the photovoltaic system
Sustainability with a better energy balance and CO2 savings also play an important role in the new logistics centre. The number of consolidation journeys and partial deliveries will be reduced and transport routes will be shortened by concentrating on the Ludwigsburg site. This will significantly reduce CO2 emissions from logistics processes and also reduce the volume of traffic in the Stuttgart city area. In addition, the existing photovoltaic system in Ludwigsburg will be expanded: in future, the green roof will be able to generate a total of 3,000,000 kWh p.a., almost twice as much electricity as the existing system. In the summer months, the company will be able to cover almost all of the electricity requirements at its Ludwigsburg site.
LAPP currently employs almost 1,500 people in the Stuttgart region, including almost 200 in Ludwigsburg.