Future-oriented investments increase efficiency and occupational health and safety – Two modernisation projects completed at the location

Neunkirchen / Iserlohn, 8 October 2025. Otto Knauf GmbH, part of EMW Stahl Service GmbH, has successfully completed two forward-looking investment projects: The conversion of the Guida shear outlet area and the installation of a new slitter robot. The company is thus setting new standards in the areas of occupational safety, ergonomics and productivity.

As part of a comprehensive retrofit project, the outlet area of the slitting line was completely modernised in close cooperation with the Italian mechanical engineering specialist Guida. The aim was to significantly improve both occupational safety and plant efficiency. The new solution eliminates the need to manually wrap the cut rings directly around the coiler. At the same time, the material flow is optimised and machine downtimes are avoided. The technical implementation is based on current best practice examples and fulfils the highest standards in terms of safety and ergonomics.

The project was implemented from the concept phase in August 2023 to the order in August 2024 and commissioning in May 2025 in close coordination between the internal specialist departments and the supplier team.

Slitter-setup robot automates assembly and inspection

At the same time, with the support of partners NLT (systems technology) and Neuenkamp (tools), a new slitter-setup robot has gone into operation, which fully automates the assembly of the knife shafts. This means that all previously manual and physically demanding work steps – from lifting tools weighing up to 43 kilograms to visual inspection – are now a thing of the past. At the heart of the robot is an innovative overall system comprising a washing station, high-precision laser inspection technology and an automatic ejection station. It ensures safe, efficient and ergonomically optimised processes. The robot assembles the knife shaft independently, mounts it on the knife shaft arm, cleans the tools, checks the knife edges by laser and then automatically transfers them to a transport container for grinding.

The project period spanned from technical planning in March 2023 to commissioning and the start of production in July 2025.

Teamwork as a success factor

Both projects were implemented together with an interdisciplinary team from the fields of technology, maintenance, production and purchasing as well as with long-standing technology partners. The project management also included the parallel implementation of further measures such as the knife rack overhaul and a control unit update for the packaging line.

“These investments demonstrate our aspiration to combine modern production with the highest levels of safety and quality – with a strong team at our side,” says EMW Managing Director Michael Mockenhaupt. “With these measures, OKS is strengthening its future viability and emphasising its clear commitment to the Iserlohn location.”