Europe – Page 161
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FeatureStop hanging around
Getting in and getting out…fastChrysler-Fiat deal could nurture two-way flowPorts need to be meaner and leanerGrappling with recessionEast coast is fiercely competitiveLess attractive than containersHow the West Coast comparesWho you sell to still dictates carmakers’ choice of ports but patterns are shifting, and US ports try to keep pace with ...
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FeatureMaking plans reality
The dividing line between IT vendors offering planning systems, and those offering execution systems may no longer hold.The split between planning and executionDownturn brings the two sides togetherBuild-to-order productionIn April, as the Icelandic volcano filled European air space with ash clouds, leading to much of its closure, the assembly lines ...
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FeatureIndia is hungry for logistics change
The growth for local as well as export demand out of India is making the need for supply chain improvements a must. While progress is slow, Namrita Chow finds some hope on the horizon, from tax reform to an increase in returnable packagingTaxation hurdlesInfrastructure needs upgrading: portsRail in IndiaRoads in ...
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FeatureIndian exports seek the perfect port
The Big Two versus home-grown talentAny port in a boom?Mumbai PortMundra PortChennai PortEnnore PortThe futureForeign carmakers have been quick to seize the opportunity of using India as an export base for small cars. Since 1998, policies in India have supported wholly-owned vehicle manufacturing facilities allowing foreign carmakers to set up ...
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FeatureIs sharing a box worth it?
Container pooling tackles some important hidden costs in the inbound supply chain. But are the opportunities offered by the approach being ignored as OEMs and suppliers struggle with larger problems?Pool playersA pool, not a puddleImpact of the crisisCurrent challenges but future opportunityTracking the boxesPackaging in the inbound automotive supply chain ...
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FeatureA simple approach to damage prevention
Training is the best defenceSpeeding up the claim timeData capture is the frontline of preventionLet’s talk about damageJust a simple premise that goes a long wayThe fight against damage is fought on many fronts, from protective products to sophisticated data tracking systems. But a focus on staff training and continuous ...
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FeatureHow to cope without a crystal ball
General Motor’s head of logistics Susanna Webber talks to Christopher Ludwig about improving supplier relations and how a total enterprise cost approach could help the company understand how to react to future risk and changes in the global supply chainLooking back and learning from the painThe recession's silver liningBuilding a ...
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FeatureRussia takes tighter control of industrial policy
Russia has been using an ‘industrial assembly’ scheme for several years that mandates foreign carmakers and parts producers with operations in the country. Under the scheme they are required to maintain certain levels of production, obligatory technological operations, localisation and reporting, in exchange for tariff concessions. The authorised ministries have ...
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FeaturePorsche balances in-and outsourced logistics
While logistics is the most common part of the supply chain for manufacturers to outsource, the balance between in-house and outsourced management and control functions is different depending on the OEM.One carmaker that in recent years has developed a strong central logistics management organisation is Porsche, which concentrates considerable internal ...
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FeatureSuppliers are healthier, but face capacity shortfalls
The outlook for tier suppliers in North America has improved significantly in 2010 with higher vehicle sales coming atop aggressive moves to cut costs. The recent “Automotive Supplier Barometer”, released in May by the Original Equipment Suppliers Association (OESA), a North American supplier group, reveals significant improvements in production capacity ...
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FeatureRussian policy is a real pain for logistics
The most significant challenge facing automotive logistics in Russia is government policy according to attendees at last week’s Automotive Logistics conference in St Petersburg, with 65% of delegates surveyed citing it as the primary issue above the widespread infrastructure problems affecting logistics in the country (19%). And as Wilhelmina ...
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FeatureGefco announces JVs with Russian operators
The Russian division of French logistics provider Gefco used an event alongside last week’s Automotive Logistics Russia conference to announce two new joint ventures in the country – one with full service logistics provider Russian Transport Lines (RTL) and one with rail freight container operator, Transcontainer. The partnership with RTL ...
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FeatureEukor renews export contracts with Hyundai
Korean-based car carrier Eukor has renewed two contracts with Hyundai for export volumes from India and Turkey. The first with Hyundai Motor India (HMI) is for three years and will start from the beginning of July this year. It builds on Eukor’s export business with Hyundai, which started a decade ...
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FeatureCeva builds contract with BMW in Italy
Ceva Logistics has signed a three-year agreement with BMW to operate a new dealer metro distribution centre (DMDC) for supply of spare parts to dealers in Lombardy and Piedmont. Ceva will handle BMW and MINI parts in the new 3,100m2 centre owned by BMW at Albairate in the west of ...
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FeatureAdampol launches rail service from Poland
Polish finished vehicle carrier Adampol has launched a new regular rail service from the logistics centre in owns and operates in Malaszewicze on the eastern Polish border with Belarus for shipment of vehicles to Eastern Europe. Tuesday (29 June) saw the first loading, which will take Suzuki vehicles between the ...
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FeatureAnalysis China: rising currency & wages to benefit global LSPs?
Factories in China continued to see disruptions this week to the flow of material to assembly lines following another set of strikes by parts suppliers over low wages. This time the walkouts were in Guangdon province at Denso (Guangzhou Nansha), a subsidiary of Japanese tier supplier Denso–the largest global supplier ...
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FeaturePractice makes perfect with proper qualification
At a time when much of the European and North American vehicle logistics industry is still recovering from the harsh cuts in capacity and staff following the global downturn, there have been worries on both sides of the Atlantic over the potential for looming shortages not only in future transport ...
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FeatureReform badly needed for intermodal, customs
If automotive logistics providers operating in Russia are to make the best of the optimistic forecasts expressed this week in St Petersburg they will need to improve rail and intermodal services, as well as be flexible and adaptive when it comes to the country’s ever-changing customs procedures, according to several ...
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FeatureSollers increases Ssangyong imports
Ssangyong Motor has signed a deal with Russian holding company and partner Sollers to increase CKD kit exports to Russia over the next seven years. From an estimated total of 12,000 kits this year CKD, shipments will increase to 16,700 units next year and by 2017 the number of exports ...
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FeatureA Chinese supply chain in transition
Rising labour and logistics rates could change the landscape of supply chain management in the automotive industry in China, it emerged last week at a special workshop organised by Automotive Logistics at the transport logistics China trade exhibition in Shanghai. On the other hand, a slowdown in the growth of ...