Optimizing Schedule and Resource Planning to Improve Reliability and Transparency in Product Development
Our client is a leading manufacturer of onshore wind turbines with an international presence and a high level of technological expertise. The company employs several thousand people worldwide and is one of Europe’s largest providers in the renewable energy sector.
Complex Product Development in a Dynamic Market Environment
The wind energy industry is characterized by intense international competition, particularly from Asian suppliers with lower production costs. In addition, political and regulatory conditions (e.g., licensing and permitting procedures) make it difficult to plan with certainty.
Our client faced the challenge of maintaining a high level of efficiency and innovation in this difficult market environment. Following organizational changes that had already been implemented and adjustments to the product development process, the goal was to further professionalize project planning. The objective was to increase the level of detail in planning, make dependencies more transparent, and be able to respond early to deviations in the development process.
From Concept Development to Training
The project was implemented in three phases:
- Concept development for improved scheduling and resource planning in product development.
- Development of a tool framework that efficiently supports planning.
- Implementation and Training: Defining processes and tools in concrete terms, supported by coaching and operational assistance in ongoing development projects.
The challenge was to coordinate more than 220 milestones and their associated activities across three levels and to make the data transparently available for downstream processes. To achieve this, a top-down approach was combined with lessons learned from past experience. At the same time, users were involved early on to build acceptance and ensure the transition into everyday practice.
Success Factors and Learnings
The project’s success was based on three key elements:
- Early involvement of users and ongoing support through coaching.
- A combination of structured methodology and practical experience that enabled a pragmatic approach to finding solutions.
- A high degree of transparency regarding dependencies and resource utilization, which has significantly improved planning reliability.
A key lesson: Project planning is most effective when methods and tools are closely integrated with users’ daily processes.
Greater Efficiency and Strategic Decision-Making Capabilities
The project has established a robust method for project scheduling and has significantly improved the planning of resource and skill requirements. Specifically, this means:
- Early identification of peak loads and mitigating them through strategic measures.
- More efficient use of corporate resources throughout the entire development period.
- The basis for well-informed business decisions, as project and resource data are transparently documented and available for subsequent processes.
This enabled our client to carry out its development projects more reliably, with greater predictability, and in a more resource-efficient manner—a crucial factor in remaining competitive even in a highly dynamic market.
