Our Linde MH brand is completely restructuring the production supply at the Aschaffenburg site. This turns the production plant into a flagship use case for showcasing its solution expertise.
2026-04-15
This Is What Production Supply Looks Like Today: The KION brand Linde Material Handling is systematically redesigning its Aschaffenburg production plant for maximum efficiency – creating an in-house reference project that demonstrates its performance capabilities.
The Aschaffenburg site is home to the KION brand Linde Material Handling. This is where the headquarters and "Plant 2" are located in the Nilkheim district, where since production began in 1959 more than one million forklift trucks have been manufactured. In recent years, the plant's production lines have been comprehensively modernized .
Plant renovation plan
The next step towards the future is now a complete overhaul of the production supply. "We are taking internal logistics to a completely different level," says Sebastian Klug, Director Logistics Planning/Engineering at Linde MH, who is leading this gigantic modernization project.
The forklift components that were previously transported daily by truck from five different warehouses within a 20-kilometer radius to Aschaffenburg will in the future be stored directly on the other side of the road and, when required, delivered partially fully automatically to the assembly lines.
The storage "on the other side of the street" is meant literally – it just sounds much simpler than it actually is. Because this road is a major thoroughfare, used by thousands of cars every day. A 410-meter-long bridge is therefore currently being built to connect both parts of the factory site. In the future, material supply will run across this bridge.
The bridge is intended to connect the two parts of the factory grounds and make the supply of materials more efficient
At its core, the "AB LOGO" project (AB stands for Aschaffenburg, LOGO for logistics optimization) comprises the following components:
The goal is to centrally control the entire flow of materials – including the underlying technologies and the link to the production processes – via smart software and cross-functional teams. The vision is a "digital twin" of the entire factory, including an end-to-end flow of materials.
"This represents a tremendous boost to our competitiveness," says program manager Sebastian Klug. Workflows will become significantly more efficient, routes shorter, processes faster. Every 20 seconds, a mesh box or a picking cart will travel fully automatically across the bridge from the warehouse to the assembly area.
Loading and unloading trucks will no longer be necessary, eliminating several steps in the process. "Instead, we will have a high degree of automation," says Sebastian Klug: "That is the major increase in efficiency."
The environment also benefits from the new processes, as eliminating around 10,000 truck journeys a year alone saves roughly 400 tons of CO2 annually. There will also be far less truck traffic and fewer manual work processes on the factory premises themselves in the future. These changes significantly reduce the risk of accidents – and, conversely, increase workplace safety.
The fact that the entire system is built with KION solutions (from the Linde MH and Dematic brands) also turns the production supply at the Linde MH plant in Aschaffenburg into an in-house reference case for customers. "You can experience our most innovative solutions working together right here on site," says program manager Sebastian Klug.
The new production logistics in Aschaffenburg is scheduled to be gradually put into operation starting in spring 2027. There are still a number of challenges to overcome before then. While the new processes are being planned, installed, and tested, regular series production will continue as normal on the same site.
"We’re essentially performing open-heart surgery here," is how program manager Sebastian Klug describes the approach. Once this operation is complete, our Linde Material Handling brand will have transformed its main German plant into one of the most advanced forklift truck production facilities worldwide – a clear commitment to this site!
Forklift trucks from the Linde Material Handling brand have been produced at "Plant 2" in the Nilkheim district of Aschaffenburg since 1959. In total, more than one million vehicles have already been manufactured there.
Previously, material supply was handled via several external warehouses within a 20-kilometer radius. In the future, the components will be stored centrally and transported to assembly in a largely automated process.
In the future, the components for the forklift truck plant will be stored on the opposite side of the street. A 410-meter-long bridge connects both parts of the plant and enables automated material transport without disrupting road traffic.
