Lowdhams team visit Dethleffs

Twelve members of staff from Lowdhams management, sales and aftersales teams visited Dethleffs, Germany's number one producer of motorhomes and touring caravans, seeing for themselves all aspects of motorhome and caravan manufacture, from design and materials sourcing, through to production, quality control and distribution.

Arriving at Munich airport, the team drove through 'jet wash intensity' rain to reach Isny in the beautiful Allgaü region of southern Germany. They found a warm welcome from their Dethleffs counterparts and a friendly evening was spent relaxing together at their hotel before the factory tour the next day.

Dethleffs production

The manufacturing facilty at Dethleffs is on a massive scale, occupying 250,000 square metres (imagine two Meadowhall shopping centres) and employing around 800 people from the surrounding community of Isny Im Allgäu. Production for 2011 is likely to exceed 11,500 units. In June 2011 Dethleffs published a 20% increase in sales from the previous year and forecast a further increase for 2011/12, aiming for sales of 340 million Euros. No surprise then, that they have planned expenditure of nearly 6 million Euros on new plant and equipment.

At any one time, up to three production lines are running and yet, the whole process has the feeling of being unrushed, with quality being the number one priority. Supply of components to the lines is on a 'just in time' basis and our team found the logistical supply chain 'fascinating', especially when they saw the variety of vehicle specifications on any one production run. Dethleffs' Parts facilty was equally impressive, with 'essential items' such as bumpers, windows and light clusters available for all production models up to 10 years of age.

Investing in skills

Aside from the massive investment in logistics, computer controlled plant and machinery, Dethleffs take a proactive approach to maintaining skill levels by offering apprenticeships in their own on-site Apprenticeship School facilty. Production apprenticeships last up to 4 years, starting with learning hand craft skills without power tools.

Environmental responsibility

And it doesn't end there. The Dethleffs factory is in an area of Germany where seasonal temperatures can vary between +25 to -25 centigrade. Temperatue and humidity levels throughout the factory are monitored and adjusted automatically, to maintain the optimal environment for both the workforce and production processes, such as the chemical bonding of walls and roofs. The factory heating system is also an environmental triumph, with heat coming from an incinerator which uses waste materials from production as fuel.

With such high levels of organisation apparent, it seems as if every detail has been accounted for. Take snow for example. When it snows, the giant factory at Isny has to continue functioning. Dethleffs' snow-clearing contingency would probably be the envy of many UK councils. This includes a massive sheltered area for up to 1450 newly-built motorhomes and caravans, to protect them from heavy snow and hailstorms. This covered area is so large, that the roof panels are multi-coloured to blend in with the local scenery!

A resounding success

Some of our party had visited a manufacturing environment before, whilst others were seeing a production environment for the first time. All were impressed by the scale and organisation of Dethleffs.

Rounding off the factory visit, Lowdhams Commercial Director Steve Sharpe commented:

''All-in all, it was a fantastic experience for our team to see and understand Dethleffs' passion for what they do and how they do it. Going forward, this must have a positive effect on our ability to look after our Dethleffs customers."

It wasn't all work and no play though; a snatched opportunity for a little Christmas shopping was not to be missed -