All Feature articles – Page 220
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FeatureHarmonisation of loaded lengths remains “key priority” for ECG
Members of the Association of European Vehicle Logistics (ECG) met last week in Athens, to discuss the current climate in Europe and the challenges faced across the industry. The importance of continued lobbying for harmonised loading lengths in car carriers was a key point of discussion, as was the slowly ...
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FeatureSupply chains: preventing a weak link
It is more important than ever for both manufacturers and suppliers to have greater resilience in their supply chains so not to fracture the growth in British automotive manufacturing.Increasing volatility and uncertainty in global supply chains can cause traditional supply chain management models to break down. Natural disasters, socio-political unrest, ...
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FeatureECG survey results looking to the future
At the spring congress and general assembly of the Association of European Vehicle Logistics (ECG) held in Athens between 22-23 May, Mike Sturgeon, executive director, described the results of a recent survey which revealed that investment in trucks and drivers had been more prevalent than that of ships, railway wagons ...
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FeatureEuropean sales not much to celebrate yet, says LMC’s Cox
A number of recent reports have painted a rosy picture of returning sales to the European market, but the reality is less overwhelmingly positive than these would suggest. This was the opinion of LMC Automotive’s head of European production, Justin Cox, speaking at last week’s spring congress and general assembly ...
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FeatureThirsty for pressure
Gefco’s chief executive, Luc Nadal (pictured), has ambitious plans for global expansion under Russian Railways ownership. But as an avid seaman, he knows it won’t always be smooth sailing.Few logistics providers have seen as much change as the Gefco Group in just two years. The major trigger was PSA Peugeot ...
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FeatureAsian ambitions
Gefco was not first to the door in China or south-east Asia, but its regional management believes that it still has great potential to expand.Today, China and Asia barely make up 3% of Gefco’s global turnover, about par with operations in Italy and around ten times smaller than business in ...
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FeatureAmports sold to private equity firm; Davis returns to CEO role
North American vehicle ports processor Amports is in the process of being purchased by private equity firm Lincolnshire Management for an unverified sum. Subject to completion it will be the second time that Lincolnshire has owned Amports, having first bought the company from Associated British Ports in 2006 for 107.8m.It ...
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FeatureOEM drive for parts quality threatens supply chain
Premium vehicle manufacturers are stipulating improving standards of suppliers’ component quality in order to meet the demand of increasingly sophisticated buyers according to emergency logistics specialist Evolution Time Critical. As a result severe knock-on effects could be felt throughout the supply chain says the company. Fierce industry competition is increasing ...
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FeatureAutomotive supplier park mooted for Durban redevelopment
The Kwazulu-Natal provincial government in South Africa is to make use of land being developed for a new port on the site of the old Durban International Airport to create an automotive supplier park, with the aim of expanding the export of new vehicles.This plan was announced by state premier, ...
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FeatureChrysler will ship 800k transmissions from Tipton to global facilities
Chrysler expects to be shipping 800,000 transmissions out of its new plant in Tipton, Indiana when it reaches full capacity. The facility is set to become a global hub for the nine-speed transmission made there and units will be sent to Toledo, Ohio, for use in the Jeep Cherokee and ...
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FeatureUkraine threatens three-month ban on car imports
Ukraine could ban any import of cars to the country for three months as part of a package of measures designed to stabilise the economy in the country, according to representatives of the country’s parliament, the Verkhovna Rada.The bill, entitled ‘Draft resolution on the measures aimed for the stabilisation of ...
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FeatureRZD and China Railways to work on improved cross border traffic
Russian Railways (RZD) has signed a strategic agreement with China Railways to develop rail border crossings and supporting infrastructure for both freight and passenger traffic between the two countries.The volume of large container shipments by rail between Russia and China in 2013 amounted to almost 408,000 according to figures from ...
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FeatureDB Schenker centralises logistics operations in northern Portugal
DB Schenker has invested €9m ($12.3m) in a 12,000 sq.m logistics centre in Vila do Conde, near Porto in Portugal. The centre, which opened at the beginning of May, will offer dedicated contract logistics and transport management to vertical markets including automotive and centralise logistics operations in the northern part ...
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FeatureAnji orders second PCTC as it increases maritime services
Anji Automotive Logistics has ordered a second pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) from Jinling Shipyard, part of the Sinotrans and CSC group, with delivery due in 2016. The vessel will have capacity for 2,000 car equivalent units and will join a growing fleet as the company meets demand for ...
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FeatureHambantota has become regional hub for South Asia
Sri Lanka's Ruhunu Magampura Mahinda Rajapaksa port, in Hambantota, is now South Asia's biggest regional transshipment hub for finished vehicles, according to Dr Priyath Wickrama, chairman of Sri Lanka Ports Authority.In the first quarter of this year alone, the facility handled more than 41,000 transshipped units, which he said was ...
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FeatureWindmills squeeze out vehicles at Montevideo
Vehicle importers at the Uruguayan port of Montevideo are seriously concerned by a 50% reduction in the amount of space given over to inbound vehicles. They suggest that the situation could get worse.According to Julio Martínez, head of the Uruguayan Automotive Business Association (ACAU), which represents 23 companies in the ...
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FeatureDelegates discuss conflict and cost in vehicle shipments
Outside of sudden weather events, such as hailstorms, less than 30% of damages that occur to finished vehicles between the factory and the dealer are traced back to the true culprit, especially when there is no comprehensive system in place to identify where and when that damage happened. So said ...
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FeatureBMW and Mercedes part ways at Baltimore
Mercedes-Benz USA (MBUSA) and BMW North America will end a cooperation agreement whereby Mercedes-Benz has processed BMW imports at its terminal at the port of Baltimore, Maryland. The operations will terminate at the end of May, from which point Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics (WWL) will take over processing activities for BMW. ...
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FeatureWhat’s keeping US outbound executives awake in the middle of the night?
A severe disruption to rail capacity this year has left thousands of vehicles stranded in North America, leading some carmakers to look more carefully at their road and short-sea shipping options. Executives discussed their long-term plans at this year’s conference in California.The prospect of modal shifts for finished vehicle distribution ...
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Feature‘Insane’ ideas for solving the crunch in used car deliveries
Speakers at this year's FVL North America conference revealed ideas for streamlining used car deliveries and saving logistics costs.While the first quarter of 2014 was bad for new vehicle deliveries as a result rail capacity issues and weather disruptions, it was worse for the more unpredictable used car market, which ...