Founded in 1995, Howdens Joinery has become one of the UK’s premier kitchen and joinery suppliers, producing over 4.5 million kitchen cabinets annually and distributing more than 44 million pieces through its extensive supply chain network.
As the business expanded, so did the complexity of its operations and the expectations of its customers. The existing manufacturing development team, focused on small-scale factory applications, found it increasingly difficult to keep up with the pace. The data was often locked in silos or other systems. To address this, Howdens set out to automate and collect data from multiple points across its supply chain.
Considering off-the-shelf solutions that could be tailored to its needs, Howdens Joinery needed a solution that would continue to evolve with the company. Through a detailed assessment of several manufacturing execution systems (MES), Howdens Joinery decided to replace all outdated manufacturing execution systems with the SAP Digital Manufacturing solution, making it the heartbeat of its production processes with the help of a featured partner, Eng.
Reinventing kitchens with an innovative and customer-centric process
The kitchen has evolved from a simple cooking space into the heart of the home. Knowing this, Howdens Joinery has adapted its offerings to meet the changing needs of its customers. “The kitchen market has changed a lot over the years,” says David Peacock, IS Manufacturing System technical lead at Howdens Joinery. “We don’t sell a kitchen; we provide a living space, the central part of their homes.”
Howdens expanded its range beyond the standard kitchen colors and styles. This approach enables customers to experiment with various colors and styles before making a final decision. “It’s almost like a trial run,” Peacock explains. “We can see if a new color is worth adding to our main range. If it’s popular, we can roll it out on a larger scale.”
This strategy not only helps customers find the perfect kitchen but also provides Howdens with valuable feedback on what works best. To support this expanded offering, the company invested in a new factory and upgraded paint lines. These improvements enhanced production capacity and equipped the team with new skills and expertise.
Traditionally, the company made a stock model, but now customers can visit depots and order kitchens in any color and style they want. “We have a fast turnaround, with manufacturing and shipping taking just five days,” Peacock says. “To make this possible, we updated our entire order strategy and implemented the new system in less than 12 months.”
By embracing innovation and listening to customer needs, Howdens Joinery has successfully transformed its business to stay ahead in a competitive market, making it easier than ever for customers to get the kitchen they truly want.
“Having our own homegrown MES provided us a clear view of what needed to be produced on each production line,” he says. “In real time, operators could start or stop orders and receive confirmations. And we continued to add more features and functionalities to our MES.”
Reducing order production lead time from 21 days to 14 days
Howdens Joinery faced two major challenges as it transformed its approach to kitchen manufacturing. The company sells the individual pieces of a kitchen, such as cabinet doors or shelves, that are ordered separately.
Highlighting that the company is sales order-driven, Peacock further adds, “When you convert the sales orders into production orders, you get a sort of production order per piece. Tracking this is easier said than done.” Each piece follows a specific route through the factory, depending on its shape and the machinery it needs to pass through. Since the company isn’t selling finished panels that are simply waiting on a shelf, tracking each part and keeping everything together was a great challenge.
Another major hurdle was managing the concept of process lots. Because of the specific routing required for different components, orders often needed to be split and sent down two separate production routes. These production orders would then be grouped into SFCs (shop floor controls), but this sometimes made the process more complicated rather than simpler.
“We are potentially in a one-for-one relationship with the production order, so the SFC number became a bit redundant,” Peacock explains. The complexity increased when multiple orders were launched simultaneously. He adds: “We might be launching different production orders at a time, but we did not want in [SAP Digital Manufacturing] the guys on the shop floor to press start 40 times.” This led the company to create a mechanism for efficiently grouping orders, allowing, for example, all orders of a certain color to be processed together on the same production line.
“When you purchase [SAP Digital Manufacturing], you’re not just buying manufacturing, but you’re buying the ability to build a manufacturing landscape. So you can do your own customizations,” he adds.
With SAP Digital Manufacturing, Howdens Joinery enhanced operational efficiency and achieved a supporting mechanism to support both make-to-stock and make-to-order production models.
Continuous improvement as a key driver for the future of manufacturing
Howdens Joinery is leveraging diverse technologies in production systems. Particularly as a company expanding its manufacturing capabilities, this requires the integration of IT and operational technology, as well as seamless communication with machinery and the automation of production workflows—such as custom SAP Business Technology Platform (SAP BTP) processes and production connectors.
With this integration, Howdens Joinery achieved direct communication with various types of machinery, thereby enhancing production efficiency and reducing the need for manual intervention.
“With SAP Digital Manufacturing, we gained operational excellence in our supply chain processes, leading to more efficient planning and an enormous increase in production. We reduced order production lead time from 21 days to 14 days in 2023 to 2024, contributing to faster customer fulfillment,” Peacock says.
Moreover, Howdens achieved a 99.98% service level from primary sites to depots in 2024, demonstrating near-perfect product availability. “We will continue this journey of continuous improvement to deliver the best products for our customers,” he says.
The innovative manufacturer plans to replace its legacy MES systems with a fully digital manufacturing solution, ensuring streamlined and efficient operations. With robust data quality and a flexible approach to integrating new technologies, Howdens Joinery is planning to integrate AI into its manufacturing processes as the next step. Its proactive approach to utilizing new technology for operational excellence is a great industry example for the broader manufacturing community.
To learn more about Howdens Joinery’s transformation story, check out the full customer story here.
Oyku Ilgar is part of SAP Supply Chain Management Thought Leadership & Awareness.
