OEMs
Coronavirus hits FCA in Europe, but signs of restart for OEMs in China
Fiat Chrysler Automobiles (FCA) has confirmed that it has had to halt production at its Kragujevac plant in Serbia because of a shortage of unnamed components supplied from China, which are thought to be electrical…
Trade barriers threaten automotive sector after Brexit
The UK government has confirmed that almost all imports from Europe will be the subject of trade barriers when the UK leaves the EU at the end of this year. All imported goods will need customs declarations and mandatory safety and security certificates..
Toyota and Panasonic charge up battery plans
Toyota and Panasonic are to form a joint venture called Prime Planet Energy & Solutions to manufacture automotive batteries. As well as a supply option for Toyota, the company will sell batteries to the wider automotive market. The move comes at a time of increasing demand for lithium-ion batteries as the market for electrified vehicles takes off around the world
Seat claims AGV first with Slam
Spanish carmaker Seat says it is the first industrial manufacturer in Europe to use automated guided vehicles (AGVs) with the Slam navigation system outdoors…
Toyota begins exports of Tacoma from Guanajuato
Following the start of production at its new $700m Mexican assembly plant in Guanajuato, Toyota has outlined its distribution strategy for the new model-year Tacoma pick-up trucks it is making there. The majority of the output from Guanajuato will be exported to the US on short-sea routes through the ports of Veracruz on the east coast and Lazaro Cardenas on the west. The remaining volume to the US will be shipped via rail through the border town of Laredo in Texas
Coronavirus hits automotive supply chain in China and beyond
The outbreak of the coronavirus respiratory disease in China has led to carmakers extending the closure of their plants beyond the Chinese new year and (currently) into the second week of February, something that is going to hit first quarter output and revenue…
Procurement a priority in Mercedes’ sustainability plan
Mercedes-Benz Cars has launched a pilot project to improve transparency on how much CO2 is emitted in the transport of source materials, starting with recycled cobalt. It will extend the company’s existing use of blockchain technology by tracking climate-relevant gases and other material along battery cell manufacturers’ supply chains
ACEA urges EC to treat vehicles as one product
The European Commission (EC) should avoid individually assessing materials when vehicles are being scrapped and retain the current practice of considering them as a single item, says the European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association (ACEA)…
Decline in UK car production a grave concern, says SMMT
On the point of the UK leaving the EU, British car manufacturing was revealed to be at its lowest level since 2010, falling for a third consecutive year to 1.3m units in 2019 (-14.2%), according to figures released by the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) on Wednesday..
Renault Trucks researches HGV parts recycling
French lorry manufacturer Renault Trucks has started a preliminary study into reusing and recycling end-of-life heavy goods vehicle (HGV) parts…
Gedia hit by “massive cyber-attack”
Gedia Automotive Group has been the victim of a cyber-attack by a gang using ransomware known as Sodinokibi…
Russia to tie vehicle utilisation fee to local production
The Russian government is changing the rules of its utilisation scheme, through which it allocates state aid for the reimbursement of fees paid by carmakers that are intended to cover eventual vehicle recycling charges. Carmakers in the country are divided over whether linking the utilisation scheme to the localisation programme is fair.
Automotive industry looks for silver linings in China-US trade ‘truce’
On the face of it last week’s signing of a ‘phase one’ agreement between the US and China is more of a truce than a substantial trade deal, though that is no less welcome given the two years of escalating tariffs between the two countries, which has affected a range of industries, including automotive…
BMW selects tough tablets for logistics operations
German car manufacturer BMW has opted to buy a new batch of rugged mobile devices from Getac Technology of Taiwan, a supplier for six years…
DRS and STVA UK to support Ford finished vehicle shipments
Ford has awarded a contract to Direct Rail Services (DRS) for the transport of finished vehicles from its UK factory in Dagenham to DRS’ rail terminal at Garston, near Liverpool. Services are to begin mid-2020.
Seat expands use of duo and giga trailers
Spanish car maker Seat now has four supply routes for transport of components using duo and giga trailers, which it says it expects to increase in the future…
Toyota claims 100% use of renewable electricity in Europe
Toyota Motor Europe’s 14 parts distribution centres (PDCs) and seven vehicle logistics centres (VLCs) have been instrumental in ensuring all electricity the company used across the region last year came from renewable sources…
Senate vote on USMCA a step closer to trade certainty
In a step closer to a working United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), the US Senate has approved the trade deal with an 89-10 vote. The deal replaces the 25-year old North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta)…
Explaining EU vehicle emissions targets: can OEMs avoid heavy fines?
The new average fleet targets that came into force in Europe on January 1st 2020 are having big impacts on the supply chain, pushing OEMs to produce and sell more hybrids and EVs. But the rules are complex and varied by brands, volume and sales. Here we provide a summary of the key rules and terminology.
BMW’s balance of power
BMW already has a 6% share of the market for new registered battery electric and photovoltaic electric vehicles but to meet the increase in demand in the coming years it has plans to have 1m fully electric and hybrid vehicles on the road by the end of 2021. In preparation it is moving battery production closer to its main areas of global assembly
