All In-plant logistics articles
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ArticleHonda UK increases output thanks to Daifuku process improvements
Materials handling company Daifuku says it has helped Honda achieve a 30% increase in output at its Swindon plant in the UK through enhancements to the existing logistics processes at the facility.Completed during a series of shutdown periods over the past six months, Daifuku was tasked with increasing daily production ...
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ArticleDHL Supply Chain to handle in-plant logistics for JLR in Brazil
DHL Supply Chain has been awarded the contract to manage in-plant logistics at Jaguar Land Rover’s (JLR’s) new manufacturing plant in Itatiaia, Brazil (pictured).JLR opened its 750m reais ($215m) manufacturing facility last June. It is the first wholly-owned manufacturing plant the carmaker has set up outside of the UK (its ...
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ArticleImperial secures internal factory contract with Audi in Hungary
Imperial Logistics International has secured a contract with Audi to operate internal factory logistics for vehicle assembly at the carmaker's plant in Győr, Hungary, replacing an unnamed rival.The logistics company already held the contract to manage a logistics optimisation centre at the Győr car factory for three years through its ...
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ArticleNissan initiates automated towing system at Oppama plant
Nissan has introduced an intelligent vehicle towing (IVT) system at its Oppama manufacturing plant in Japan that uses a modified, self-driving Leaf electric vehicle to pull a car-carrying trailer.Trials of the system began a year ago and over 1,600 test runs have been carried out since, the OEM has revealed.The ...
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ArticleAudi embraces wearable scanning technology at Ingolstadt
Audi has adopted a wearable scanner from ProGlove at its Ingolstadt plant in Germany in what it describes as the first step towards the widespread use of wearable technologies in its production process.Audi tested the handheld scanner replacement – which leaves both hands free for other handling operations unlike conventional ...
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ArticleBMW and logistics automation: from prototype to (augmented) reality
The premium carmaker is taking a step-by-step approach to bringing smarter automation and digital technology into its day-to-day operations, with big plans for the future. BMW’s senior logistics managers are pushing new technology into the carmaker’s supply chain, with a number of pilot projects involving automated guided vehicles (AGVs), robots ...
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Slovakian plant wins Magna World Class Logistics awards
Magna International Europe has recognised three plants in its inaugural World Class Logistics awards, with Magna Slovteca, which produces mirrors, taking the top prize for a transformation project across its internal and external logistics operations.Magna Exteriors’ plant in Meerane, in eastern Germany, took second place in the awards for an ...
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ArticleJLR part 1: Ensuring logistics is not a victim of success
With so much expansion, change and inevitable risk still ahead of the carmaker, JLR’s director of global material planning and logistics, David Dyke, is pushing his department’s influence across the company and the supply chain to gain efficiency and further strength
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ArticleBMW and Schneider Electric make it to Gartner Supply Chain Top 25
Research and advisory firm Gartner has published its annual list of the top 25 supply chain companies. The only carmaker to appear in the list is BMW, which makes its first appearance in the ranking at number 22. Toyota, which was at 24 last year, has dropped out of the ...
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Mercedes plans new engine plant in Poland, deepens supply chain in eastern Europe
Daimler has announced it is planning to invest around €500m ($574m) in a new engine plant in Poland, expanding its powertrain footprint and its presence in eastern Europe.The new plant decision followed an earlier announcement that the carmaker would invest a further €560m to expand its plant in Kecskemét, Hungary ...
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ArticleChina conference: preparing for the new and the old, for growth and decline
The 11th annual Automotive Logistics China conference was held for the first time in the south-western city of Chengdu, a symbol of the automotive industry’s westward development and the centre of the revival of the old ‘Silk Road’ trade routes emphasised by the government’s ‘One Belt, One Road’ policy. Christopher ...
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ArticleChina conference: catching up with digital and automation trends
Steve Dyer, from Bain & Company, said China had a long way to go in catching up to the US and European productivityDespite China’s reputation as a manufacturing powerhouse, filling the world’s homes and stores with products ‘made in China’, rising labour and production costs are increasingly a competitive ...
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ArticleEurope conference: how to manage more with less in plants
Axel Van Het Kaar, FordComplex, varied and flexible inbound supply chains increasingly require sophisticated handling and line-feeding processes in plants. In Europe, where carmakers often face space constraints, particularly at older plants in western Europe, there has been more of a focus on developing in-plant strategies that can help ...
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ArticleEurope Conference: Planning for more than the Zeitgeist in the supply chain
The Automotive Logistics Europe conference set out to capture the Zeitgeist of logistics in terms of technology and skills – and it found that now may be a perfect time to invest in equipment, transport engineering and smart systems. Christopher Ludwig reports from in Bonn, Germany Additional contributions by Marcus ...
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Focus on Spain part 2: A platform for reorganisation
Renault has integrated the Alliance's CMF architecture in Palencia, and is ramping up kitting to handle an increased number of parts.The introduction of an all-new vehicle architecture into a plant can be a fraught experience at the best of times, but when it is accompanied by the need to continue ...
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Nissan North America part 3: The search for southern comfort
Nissan has been trying to draw suppliers from the Midwest closer to its US operations since as far back as 1983. Today, the carmaker’s huge volume, together with its new Integrated Logistics Centres at plants, could make it a more attractive proposition.Within John Martin’s wide remit as Nissan’s head of ...