REWE, one of Germany’s leading retail groups, has elevated its supply chain strategy with a new suite of Success Services from Cimcorp Group, ensuring reliability and customer satisfaction across its extensive distribution network.
REWE is securing its fresh food distribution in the long run with comprehensive support from Cimcorp. The relentless pace and volume of REWE’s warehouse operations. With facilities typically handling over 650,000 units daily, require services that can ensure continuous and punctual deliveries – especially in major urban markets, where missing a delivery window can mean failing to deliver altogether.
“Deliveries to big cities like Berlin are a logistical tightrope,” says Matthias Menzel, General Manager at the company’s largest fresh and chilled goods warehouse in Oranienburg, Germany. “Missing the delivery window, means a significant financial loss,” he explains, highlighting the time-sensitive nature of fresh goods logistics. “That’s why we demand not only reliability but the ability to act fast and prevent delays.”
This article is part two of REWE’s customer story with Cimcorp.
🍎 Automated fulfillment center for fresh produce 🔴 Logistics center in Berlin, Germany 🏪 370 supermarkets 🛒 580 shops 𝄃𝄃𝄂𝄂𝄀𝄁𝄃𝄂𝄂𝄃 29.000 units per day
A multifaceted service portfolio for peak performance
REWE’s Success Services from Cimcorp have been meticulously designed to guarantee the highest possible system uptime and thereby product availability for over 370 supermarkets and 580 stores served by the Oranienburg facility daily. The services include:
PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE SERVICE This solution brings expert technicians to regularly analyze and report on the condition of REWE’s automated handling systems, perform fundamental maintenance and collaborate with in-house staff on best practices. By scheduling comprehensive inspections twice a year, REWE is able to proactively address wear and fatigue, reducing the risk of unexpected failures and safeguarding consistent, top-tier performance throughout the year.
SYSTEM SUPPORT SERVICE Offering rapid and reliable remote assistance, this service acts as a critical safety net. REWE’s staff receive direct support from highly trained specialists who diagnose and resolve technical issues that cannot be managed onsite, significantly reducing the likelihood and duration of production stoppages.
ON-SITE SUPPORT SERVICE For incidents requiring immediate physical intervention, expert personnel are available to deliver corrective maintenance, repairs and ongoing preventive measures. The onsite response is structured flexibly, with service available six days a week —and extended coverage on Sundays and public holidays as needed — ensuring that even in urgent breakdown scenarios, downtime remains minimal.
SYSTEM MANAGEMENT SERVICE In an era of increasing IT security challenges, REWE’s system management offering remotely monitors, protects and maintains the IT backbone of its automated conveyor systems. This includes everything from antivirus protection and network administration to database oversight, always reinforcing system reliability and proactive threat detection.
Matthias Menzel, General Manager at REWE’s Oranienburg Logistics Center
Matthias Menzel underscores the necessity of strong preventive maintenance and fast, professional support, both onsite and remote: “For us, reliability is essential; our markets count on timely and error-free deliveries, and our system must reflect that expectation. We rely on our partners to deliver services that match the urgency of our market’s expectations.”
Empowering people and embracing the future
The transition to automation, paired with robust service, has been driven not only by the need for reliability but also by workforce realities. With labor shortages and physically demanding tasks impacting the sector, automation – supported by effective maintenance and support services – ensures that existing staff are better utilized and not overstretched.
“We want Cimcorp in the background running the system, a strong partner ready to react fast if something happens that we cannot solve ourselves,” Menzel explains. REWE’s commitment to comprehensive training means dedicated technicians are fully equipped to manage the system, with Cimcorp’s team always on standby for escalations.
Heikki Seppälä, Head of Services, Cimcorp Group
Setting new standards in retail logistics
REWE’s Success Services underscore a strategic vision: to maintain operational excellence, optimize employee welfare and guarantee the highest standards of service for every store, every day. In a sector where timing and reliability define competitive advantage, the company’s pioneering approach is setting a new benchmark for logistics performance and resilience.
“Our customers’ success is our mission,” explains Heikki Seppälä, Head of Services at Cimcorp Group. “For REWE and clients like them, we secure uptime because system downtime is simply not an option, especially in fresh food logistics where every second counts.”
