Features – Page 20
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ArticleLiving in interesting times
With the shadow of a hard Brexit hanging over the UK, the question of how it will maintain a competitive automotive sector into the next decade is harder to answer than ever…
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ArticleVolkswagen Group part 1: Present and prepared for the future
Volkswagen Konzernlogistik (group logistics), the carmaker’s central logistics steering and purchasing organisation, has taken on new dimensions in managing the group’s complex and expanding supply chain
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ArticleVolkswagen Group part 2: Talking ‘then and now’ with head of group logistics, Thomas Zernechel
The group’s head of group logistics talks about the major changes seen over the past two decades – and why he is optimistic about the future of logistics
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ArticleChanges are the only certainty at Ford of Europe
Dirk Willmann, director of material planning and logistics for Ford Europe, outlines how the carmaker is improving visibility and adapting its vehicle logistics network across Europe to better manage customer demand and trade uncertainties.
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ArticleFord of Europe: A system of strength and complexity
Dirk Willmann’s 25-year career with Ford has made him witness to the changing arc of the company’s supply chain in Europe and further afield, including more complicated material flows, new locations and footprint changes, as well as advances in technology.
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ArticleLive poll results from the UK: present and future disruption
Live polling conducted at this year's Automotive Logistics UK summit revealed that delegates are anticipating major changes to the automotive supply chain as it relates to the UK and the wider sector. While most executives participating in the survey are optimistic about the industry's prospects in the short term, including ...
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ArticleMini plant, huge complexity
BMW’s Mini factory in Cowley, near Oxford in southern England, is a striking example of managing high levels of supply chain and production complexity, set against space constraints and long lead times for inbound parts delivery and exports of vehicles.However, thanks to well-defined supply and logistics processes, along with strong ...
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ArticleMexico rail vs sea: No easy route for exports
Figures from the Mexican Automotive Industry Association (AMIA) show that between January and June this year, more than 85% of the passenger cars and light trucks made in the country were exported to the US and Canada – equal to almost 1.3m units out of a production total of nearly ...
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ArticleUS car carriers: Driven to deliver
The US car market is forecast to contract slightly over the next two to three years, with sales set to fall from a high of 17.8m this year to around 16.3m in 2019, according to figures from industry analyst PwC. As OEMs cope with swelling inventory, the car carrier sector ...
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ArticleAn aftermarket network rebuilt for rapid response at BMW
An interview with Wolfgang Baumann, vice-president of parts logistics management and responsible for the global supply of service parts for the BMW Group
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ArticleConference report: Attracting a talent for disruption
Given the pace of change in digital technology the automotive logistics sector may not know exactly where it will be in ten years but it knows it is going somewhere different and that a risk-to-fail attitude is essential in adopting supply chain strategies for the future. What it cannot risk, ...
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From the industryA digital platform for changing the outbound sector
Fracht SIA’s transport management software is able to handle everything from purchasing, transport scheduling to route data services, accounting and more
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ArticleEmbracing change to drive velocity in North American ports
This year’s Finished Vehicle Logistics Import Export summit in Baltimore revealed an industry embracing the latest digital technology to deal with some familiar challenges around port capacity, infrastructure and security, but facing changing dynamics in the movement of vehicles around North America, not least the renegotiation of the Nafta trade ...
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ArticleVehicle protection: Trying to cover all bases
In June this year, upmarket Volvo S90 sedans built at Volvo Cars’ plant in Daqing, northern China, began arriving at a car terminal at the port of Zeebrugge, Belgium for European distribution. Travelling not by sea, but by rail, they are transported in containers across Russia along the China-Europe rail ...
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ArticleUkraine’s automotive industry on its way to a revival
Ukraine’s automotive market is building on the recovery that started at the end of last year, when the three-year slump in the passenger car market levelled off and a rebound began. Latest figures show that in the first half of 2017, the number of cars sold there rose 36% to ...
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ArticleOnline vehicle sales: ACES high as dealers face a new game
Once upon a time, interaction between carmakers and their customers happened in one place: the dealership. Dealer showrooms were where customers learned about products, chose a car and parted with their cash. Once a customer took possession of the vehicle, he was likely to return to the dealer for service ...
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ArticleBLG and Fenix commit to expansion of services at Bronka
German logistics provider BLG Logistics and LLC Fenix, the owner and operator of the Russian port of Bronka, have signed an official letter of intent for joint future development of finished vehicle handling at the port.BLG Logistics has been working with Fenix for six months at the port already, following ...
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ArticleBrazil: Exports are chasing away the clouds
Brazilian vehicle sales, which have fallen every year since 2013, continue to be hampered by a deep recession, a stubborn, double-digit unemployment rate, increasingly tight credit and haemorrhaging consumer confidence. Seemingly unending political crises have also hit the country. So, to combat the stalling economy and venal political climate, carmakers, ...
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ArticleOutbound deliveries: Blocking in the truth
Will bitcoin prove to be one of the most valuable innovations in changing the finished vehicle supply chain? If so, it is not because carmakers and logistics providers are moving their contracts from dollars, euros or yuan to the virtual currency (although given its recent escalation in value, some may ...
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ArticleShift in powertrains drives strong growth in battery production
Production of lithium-ion batteries, like these ones at Nissan's Smyrna Vehicle Assembly Plant, looks set to soarAccelerating growth in electric and hybrid vehicle production is opening up a range of new supply chains across all areas of the automotive industry – not least in battery cell production.With vehicle manufacturers ...