Practical process optimization

Optimizing processes, increasing efficiency and more digitization - these topics are on the agenda at all companies. With the help of Robotic Process Automation, REHAU Automotive has succeeded in having tedious, error-prone and monotonous tasks handled by software robots. Colleagues use the time freed up for more demanding tasks. 

Robotic Process Automation (RPA) is a technology that uses software robots, known as bots, to automate rule-based process flows to the point of mimicking human actions. Software robots use existing interfaces or elements of the user interface of applications to determine information, calculate and store information based on algorithms, and modify existing information. 

REHAU Automotive has been successfully using the technology for master data maintenance in a customer portal since the beginning of 2023 as part of a pilot project. Due to the high number of master data, the manual process previously caused several hours of effort per week and also consisted of monotonous and thus error-prone activities. Colleagues can now use this time for more demanding tasks.

The success of the bot has confirmed the potential of RPA. At the same time, Robotic Process Automation is not a "panacea," as REHAU Automotive CIO Axel Biedermann emphasizes: "Whether a process is suitable for automation must be examined carefully. But we are convinced that RPA will be an important building block for increasing efficiency and automating processes." The company has already identified further processes and is working on implementing additional bots.