All Feature articles – Page 71
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FeatureScania and Northvolt partner on electrification
Truck and bus manufacturer Scania and battery technology developer Northvolt have agreed to work together to make batteries for heavy commercial vehicles.Scania is investing €10 m ($12.4m) to help Northvolt establish a demonstration line and research centre at Vaästerås, in Sweden. The companies will also form a joint team to ...
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FeatureEddie Aston takes over as MD of UKIN at Ceva
Eddie Aston (pictured) has been appointed managing director for the UK, Ireland and Nordic (UKIN) region at Ceva Logistics. He joins the supply chain management company from commercial van hire and leasing organisation Northgate, where he was UK managing director.He will be based at Ashby-de-la-Zouch and replaces Michael O’Donoghue, who ...
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FeatureAV Dawson makes key appointments
Andy Watkins (pictured) has been appointed operations director at UK logistics and transport provider AV Dawson. Watkins has been at the company for 30 years, originally starting there as a stevedore.The company said in a statement that he would oversee operations as AV Dawson expanded into new markets.“Andy has made ...
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FeatureChina car transporters: Axle position looks set to move centre stage
The era of the overloaded car transporter in China – the ‘aircraft carriers’, as some have referred to them – is entering its final stages this year. After more than a decade of growing lengths and dangerous loads, the country’s highways are set to see improvements in safety and standards, ...
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FeatureBosch and MAN win VDA award
Robert Bosch and MAN Truck & Bus have been announced as dual winners of this year’s VDA Logistics Award, with digital logistics solutions in intra-logistics and empty container scheduling, respectively. It is the first time the award has been shared between two companies. The award, from two of the country’s ...
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FeatureGefco reveals latest developments in regional strategy
Gefco has revealed a number of recent business developments at a meeting held in Paris this week to launch its new corporate direction, brand identity and the further development of its commercial activity. They include the purchase of rail and compound assets in Russia to support exports to neighbouring countries; ...
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FeatureMexico conference: Uncertainty well-balanced with optimism
While a degree of uncertainty over the future of free trade between Mexico and its Nafta neighbours to the north once again hung over discussions at this year’s Automotive Logistics Mexico conference, it was more than matched by confidence in the future of the automotive sector. That confidence is being ...
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FeaturePasajes suffers sharp drop in throughput
The northern Spanish port of Pasajes (also known by its Basque name of Pasaia) experienced a sharp drop in vehicle traffic over the first 11 months of last year. The port handled 215,119 units during the period – a fall of 8.8% compared to the same period in 2016, according ...
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FeatureMercedes automates tool selection for CLS
Mercedes-Benz has begun using an automated system to provide operation-specific screwdrivers to workers assembling the new, third-generation CLS at its Sindelfingen plant in Germany.The move is designed to provide staff with optimal support by supplying tools automatically along with the right order data and process parameters for the assigned vehicle, ...
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FeatureGroupe Cat appoints two new directors
Jean-Michel Floret has been made director of the vehicle logistics division at French finished vehicle logistics provider, Groupe Cat.His promotion to the executive committee follows the Paris-based company’s acquisition last year of STVA, the finished vehicle transport arm of French state-owned rail operator SNCF.Floret began his career at SNCF and ...
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FeatureToyota opts for digital planning
Toyota Motor Corporation is to switch to a cloud-based supply chain management system from a manual set-up, to manage its automotive demand and supply chain processes.The system, called RapidResponse, will unify the company’s global demand and supply planning between its sales and production divisions and help better manage vehicle and ...
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FeatureJapan trials truck platooning
Hino Motors, Isuzu Motors, Volvo group-owned UD Trucks and Daimler subsidiary Mitsubishi Fuso Truck and Bus have begun highway testing of truck platooning in Japan, under a project backed by the government.Each platoon consists of three 12-metre trucks, spaced about 35 metres apart and driving at 80km/h on motorways near ...
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FeatureOutbound TMS: The search for a system that can't be beat
In recent years, growing computer power, advanced software and algorithms for logistics planning have led to a rise in the use of the transport management system (TMS), which enables companies, among other things, to receive, plan, monitor and report on collections and deliveries. Some manufacturers and logistics providers have implemented ...
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FeaturePort users bemoan slow progress at Veracruz
Carmakers and logistics providers have expressed frustration over the slow pace of expansion at the congested Mexican port of Veracruz.The port is working to install new infrastructure to support growing automotive volumes, which reached 1.03m units last year (up 13.5% on 2016).The project includes a completely new landside and berth ...
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FeatureThird-party logistics: Future fields of opportunity?
As with most things in life, change is a constant in automotive logistics, but in finished vehicle distribution that doesn’t seem to hold as true. As one observer wryly comments about vehicle logistics: “The way of doing things is cemented because that’s how it’s always been done.”Being asset heavy, fewer ...
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FeatureLogistics IT: Is there an app for that?
At US finished vehicle logistics specialist Jack Cooper Logistics, recounts president Andrea Amico, as part of a contract for carrying out the collection and inspection of ex-fleet vehicles on behalf of a US carmaker, the need to supply seven images of each inspected vehicle was suddenly upped to a requirement ...
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FeatureAutomation: Paving the way for progress
Ask automotive manufacturers what their primary concerns are today within warehouses and factories and they will probably allude to one of three key things – productivity, safety and waste. Although various solutions are available to help alleviate problems in these areas, one of the most important is materials handling technology. ...
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FeatureNafta renegotiation ‘will not hold back investment in Mexico’
Following a 30% tax imposed by the Trump Administration on solar panels imported to the US last week and another 20% tax put on imported washing machines, vehicle and parts makers are wondering if the automotive industry is next on the list for high tariffs, as Nafta is renegotiated – ...
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FeatureAuto sector urges caution in Nafta negotiations
As the sixth round of talks to renegotiate the North American Free Trade Agreement (Nafta) got underway in Montreal, Canada, this week, a number of OEMs and advocacy groups with links to the automotive industry have urged politicians to proceed with caution.Carmakers have begun to hedge their bets as negotiations ...
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FeatureHorizon and Höegh announce new services
Horizon Auto Logistics (HAL), a division of Horizon Terminal Services set up last year in Mexico, has started full scale end-to-end operations this month out of its facility in Veracruz. The company is providing port operations, including stevedoring and the handling of all cars and services inside the port, as ...