Bell Equipment has been producing in the Thuringian city of Eisenach since October 2003. The newly constructed Bell ADT plant was completed in only six months on a total area about 10 hectares. With its production area of approximately 6000 m² it is geared towards the flexible production of all current vehicle sizes.

In April 2007 all production and assembly processes at the Eisenach location were successfully certified in a comprehensive qualitative procedure in accordance with DIN 9001:2000.  This step was an important precondition for Bell Equipment in the realisation of its European production strategy. With the Eisenach plant as central finishing for the vehicles of all of its European customers, a strengthened localisation of component suppliers in Europe was provided in addition to the flexible implementation of customer-specific requests "ex factory" from the extremely diverse supply markets and sectors throughout Europe.

 

Production in Eisenach is organised according to the flow-line principle. All models are assembled on one line with a total of seven stations.

In the process, Bell’s own chassis and undercarriage technologies (frames, axles, differentials, oil bath brakes, etc.) are based on vehicle-specific container kits from the main production facility in South Africa. Nearly all drive units, hydraulics and control components are supplied “just-in-time” by renowned European suppliers and preassembled in subassemblies by qualified specialists parallel to the production line.

 

The strengthened integration of regional suppliers (e.g. Mulden steel manufacture) as a core element of Bell’s European production strategy increases the value-basis proportion of components and parts with EU-manufacture to over 70 percent on individual vehicles.

After leaving the production line, the vehicles pass through additional stations where customer-specific equipment (cladding, tailgates, etc.) is installed. Only then does the extensive quality inspection follow. The quality data already gathered during assembly is verified with test runs on the plant’s own proving grounds, among other things, and the plant’s release is painstakingly logged. In normal, single-shift operation the Bell plant is laid out for a maximum of 17 vehicles per week. The production achieved this output early on. The 1000th dump truck was already produced in Eisenach by the beginning of 2006.

 

Current prognoses (mid-2007) predict about 500 vehicles for 2007 and up to 600 units for 2008. After the start of production of Bell’s top model, the B50D, all Bell dump trucks offered in Europe, up to the 18-ton B20D, will be produced in Eisenach starting at the end of 2007.
An important guarantee for the high flexibility of the Bell dump truck plant in Eisenach is the high qualification of the personnel, currently around 60 permanent employees, which will, according to production planning, be strengthened by additional skilled technicians on the basis of medium-length fixed-term contracts (80 total employees by mid-2007).
In addition, a broad foundation for additional growth and ambitious production goals is achieved through intensive engagement in instruction and employee training.