© BASF
Opening photo: The lab dosing machine is unique in the paint industry and ensures consistent quality and reproducibility of standard formulations.
HIGHLIGHT OF THE MONTH
BASF’s Lean Lab Sets New Standards: Fit for the Future Susanne Focken BASF Coatings GmbH, Münster - Germany
susanne.focken@basf.com
“E
veryone is talking about
Germany (Fig. 2), and is to be introduced
areas of responsibility allow BASF to respond
digitalization and automation. We
at additional sites in Europe: in Würzburg,
to future market requirements quickly and
have successfully implemented
Germany; Guadalajara, Spain; and Clermont,
flexibly. The laboratory employees in Münster
digitalized and automated processes for
France.
are supported by a lab dosing machine that
automotive OEM coatings in our new Lean
Lean Lab is the modular lab concept that
was specially developed for BASF and is the
Lab,” said Susanne Richert, Lean Lab project
ensures optimized, transparent processes and
only one of its kind in the paint industry (ref.
manager at BASF’s Coatings Division Münster
the efficient use of lab-related resources. The
Opening photo).
site, clearly pleased (Fig. 1). The first Lean Lab
use of standardized and automated processes
Since 2014, BASF has invested €24 million at
was opened in September 2018 in Münster,
and the segmentation of the lab employees’
the Münster site to completely overhaul an
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N. 56 - MARCH/APRIL 2019 - international PAINT&COATING magazine