Smart tool for flexible human resource management in manufacturing under volatile markets

Driven by volatile markets manufacturing companies face stronger fluctuations in customer demands which cannot be predicted in advance. Thus the flexible adjustment of human resource (HR) capacity represents significant advantages in competitiveness for future business, safe employment and sustainable application of resources in manufacturing. The German market for high quality fresh meat products varies extremely strong and at short notice. Therefore it was the challenge in a German meat producing plant to develop and implement a tool for the operational planning of flexible HR-capacities in manufacturing. It was expected that a tool-supported HR-capacity planning should raise a variety of potentials for the company (e.g. productivity, labour costs) and the employees (e.g. less short term changes of working times). With the help of the HR-planning tool "CapacityStar" a completely new quality of planning for flexible work assignments was realized. The tool supports the manufacturing planner in short-term adaptation of the operating HR-capacity utilization in different manufacturing areas. The tool also provides the development of control specific performance indicators for flexible workforce to the plants management.