All Feature articles – Page 184
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FeatureWillmann replaces Schulz as Ford Europe’s director of MP&L
Dirk Willmann (pictured) has replaced Matthias Schulz as director of material, planning and logistics (MP&L) at Ford of Europe. As announced last month, Schulz has moved to a new role as director of North American MP&L operations replacing Pamela Stec, who has retired.Willmann was previously production and material planning manager ...
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FeatureToyota part 4: Looking for the ‘holy grail’ of predictability
Toyota’s visibility across its parts and distribution centres works to the great benefit of dealers, but the carmaker’s challenge is ultimately to try and distinguish real demand from stock replenishment requestsToyota’s North American Parts Operations (NAPO)has built inventory visibility across its part centres and distribution centres, thanks partly to an ...
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FeatureTo protect and serve
The conflicting demands of part protection, transport efficiency and line-side access often require innovative solutions from packaging designersCarmakers and their suppliers increasingly recognise the importance of getting inbound packaging right, to boost quality by eliminating transit damage, save costs by allowing more components to be squeezed into a truck, and ...
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Feature3PLs in China are raising the bar
Maintaining logistics leadership in China is becoming more about demonstrating the ability to implement innovative and sustainable solutions than it is about moving pure volumeChina, as this magazine has long noted, is a complicated automotive logistics market. State-owned carmakers tend to have affiliated logistics providers to handle their transport and ...
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FeatureECG column: a decision made
ECG president Costantino Baldissara (pictured with vice-president Wolfgang Göbel, far left) weighs up the effect of the EU’s trailer length compromise on vehicle logistics, with an eye on a future review dateIn my last column, written early December 2014, I noted the likelihood that the legislative process of the revision ...
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FeatureSkoda makes further logistics investments in Kvasiny
Updated April 2nd with further input from SkodaVW’s Skoda division is planning to make further investments in logistics support as part of overall spending in its plant in Kvasiny, Czech Republic. The company said it is planning to increase annual output at the plant to 280,000 vehicles by 2018, up ...
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FeatureJDA Software webinar: Meeting the new normal
A wise man once said that the automotive industry is the industry of industries. The automotive ecosystem is vast, consisting of a complicated network of tier suppliers, 3PLs, OEMs, distributors, dealers and retailers, and not least customers. Across that network parts are being borrowed from all over.After the steady recovery ...
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FeatureFord aims to triple exports from India following Sanand plant launch
Ford in India has opened a new $1 billion vehicle assembly and engine plant in Sanand, in the northwest region of Gujurat, the carmaker’s second major production facility in the country. The plant will have an initial annual capacity of 240,000 units, while the engine plant will start with an ...
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FeatureHonda begins Mexican exports of HR-V through Lázaro Cardenas
The Mexican port of Lázaro Cardenas on the Pacific coast has received the first rail shipment of new Honda HR-V vehicles, which are being made at the carmaker’s plant in Celaya. The compact SUVs are for export to the US and will form a regular monthly volume through the port ...
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FeatureSimon Stacy and Bob Mountain add logistics responsibilities at Honda Europe
Following a recent restructuring at Honda’s sales and manufacturing divisions in Europe, the carmaker has made changes to the logistics management covering its primary European production plant in the UK and across its outbound logistics for the region.As of April 1st, Simon Stacy (pictured), previously head of car logistics at ...
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FeatureDFDS to manage inbound logistics for Nissan Infiniti Q30
Transport and logistics provider DFDS Logistics has signed an agreement with Nissan to handle the supply of parts for assembly of the forthcoming Nissan Infiniti Q30 from a number of suppliers in Germany. The vehicle is being manufactured at Nissan’s plant in Sunderland, UK from November this year.DFDS will be ...
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FeatureIce storm buries vehicles at CN auto terminal in Nova Scotia
Winter conditions are continuing to hamper vehicle processing on the North American East Coast, with the latest snow storm burying vehicles at the Autoport facility in Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, operated by Canadian National Railway (CN), which handles European finished vehicle deliveries at the port of Halifax.The harsh conditions, which have ...
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FeatureAdampol helps with spot shipments of Fiat 500 to UK
Polish vehicle carrier Adampol has stepped in to help Grimaldi with the delivery of Fiat 500 volumes moving between Fiat Chrysler Automobile’s (FCA’s) plant in Tychy and dealers in the UK. The additional service was needed because of a peak in production at the Tychy plant according to Grimaldi.Additional capacity ...
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FeatureAytaç moves to aftermarket role at Turkish joint venture Tofas
Altan Aytaç (left) has moved from his role as supply chain director at Turkish carmaker, Tofas, to take up a new role as director of aftersales and spare parts.Aytaç joined Tofas, which is a joint venture between Fiat and Koç Group, back in 1992 and was initially part of the ...
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FeatureMeeting the “New Normal” in light of increasing demand and supply volatility
The automotive industry has entered a “New Normal” period, with large shifts in the landscape for demand, supply and competition. Despite dramatic improvements, automakers still operate supply chains in which real demand is not synchronized with supply.The problem gets worse when there is a high degree of uncertainty around demand ...
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FeatureHonda UK to become global hub for Civic; CR-V production moves to Canada
Honda has said its production plant in Swindon, UK, will become a global production hub for the next generation Civic five-door model, with exports to wider Europe and other unspecified global markets.Honda is dedicating the plant to Civic production, including the Tourer and Type R, but is shifting the assembly ...
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FeaturePacked with promise
A case study on the ambition and limitations shaping returnable packaging provider Goodpack’s growth in IndiaWhen Mahindra Sanyo Special Steel procured an order in 2010 from FAG for supply of 60 tonnes of rings per month from India to Hungary, dispatch was the critical issue. The buyer made it clear ...
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FeaturePCMA Rus plant will halt output in April; Peugeot Citroën Rus restructures
PSA Peugeot-Citroën’s joint venture with Mitsubishi Motors in Russia – PCMA Rus – has said it will idle production at its plant in Kaluga because of poor sales in the country. The decision follows similar moves by VW announced last week.It also follows last year’s decision by PSA to cancel ...
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FeatureTurkey’s Autoport finally recommences operations
Turkey’s Autoport terminal, which is located at Yeniköy in the northeast Kocaeli region, has recommenced operations following an 18-month suspension of services at the port.Autoport was the first purpose-built car handling terminal in Turkey when it opened in 2008 but it was forced to suspend operations in September 2013 following ...
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FeatureVolvo Cars to build US plant amid changing supply chain strategy
The Volvo Car Group has announced that it will build its first manufacturing plant in the US, in a bid to become a truly global carmaker. In a statement Volvo indicated that it would spend around $500m, and would eventually produce at least 100,000 cars per year for both the ...