Middle East and Africa – Page 5
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Stepping up the quality
There are several advantages of shipping vehicles in kits rather than as completely built units, including lower costs for transport, better customs import conditions and the support of local government in exchange for providing employment to the workforce. A major disadvantage, however, is that defective, damaged or lost goods may ...
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Ford reviews joint venture with Sollers in Russia
Ford may close some or all of the plants it operates in Russia with local carmaker Sollers, according to the Russian government.The statement follows a recent announcement by the carmaker that it would be “addressing underperforming markets” and reducing structural costs in Europe as it aimed to improve profitability ...
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The quest for greater unity
One of the main priorities for inbound supply chain managers from a packaging perspective is the proper management of returnable containers and packages so they are delivered as quickly, efficiently and economically as possible. To achieve this, many North American OEMs have up to now insisted on their own forms ...
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Q&A: Iain Lindsay
What do you say to potential investors who are concerned about what Brexit may mean for trade, particularly with the flow of goods and material being so essential to the automotive industry?Brexit is an issue that is at the heart of business concerns: what will it mean in terms of ...
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Tracking made easy
Just over 18 months after Slough, UK-based Movolytics was formed, the vehicle tracking company announced an ambitious expansion. Following its initial foray into providing fleet management services in the UK, the company decided to branch out into Europe’s second largest fleet market – Spain. “Spain has the second largest commercial ...
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Ekol starts first 3PL-operated block train between Hungary and Germany
Ekol Logistics has started a new block train service between the Hungarian capital Budapest and Cologne in Germany. A spokesperson for the company said that a third of the freight carried on the train would be automotive, mainly from two companies, and equal to 300 loads a month.The train will ...
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RIO Box now comes as standard equipment in new MAN trucks
All new MAN Euro-6 trucks will now come with a RIO Box as standard equipment, according to the Volkswagen Truck & Bus Group company.The RIO Box is a cloud-based telematics operating system designed to link together all participants in a supply chain, independent of vehicle brand or the telematics system ...
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Russia summit: Dealing with the reality of a slow recovery
Confidence is gradually returning to the Russian automotive market with sales and production showing definite signs of life after a tough period of retrenching and divestment. Sanctions remain but many at this year’s Automotive Logistics Russia conference in Moscow felt that this was the time to invest in the market ...
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Europe conference: Live poll results
Live polling conducted at the Automotive Logistics Europe conference revealed that a third of delegates see implementing new technology and IT systems as their company's biggest challenge over the coming year and that reliability of service was the most sought after quality in a logistics service provider. Delegates at the ...
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Report suggests US is reviewing its trade deal with South Korea
US vice-president Mike Pence (pictured) has indicated during his visit to South Korea that the trade deal between the two countries is under review and could be reformed, according to a Reuters report.The deal, which came into effect in 2012, has had a positive impact on US vehicle exports to ...
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Grimaldi launches ro-ro service between Mediterranean and Mexico
Italian ocean ro-ro provider, Grimaldi Group, has set up a service between Italy and Mexico dedicated to carrying vehicles, rolling freight and project cargo.The service connects the Italian ports of Civitavecchia and Savona with the port of Veracruz in Mexico. It will run via Turkey’s port of Gemlik and ports ...
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Groupe CAT takes full ownership of Carlson Vehicle Transfer
Groupe CAT has announced the latest acquisition in its consolidation spree, buying the 50% in UK firm Carlson Vehicle Transfer (CVT) that it did not already own for an undisclosed sum.The stake was acquired from founder Carl Richardson, who will still provide support to the company, according to a CAT ...
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McLaren Automotive appoints Ludmann as new COO
Jens Ludmann (pictured) has been named as McLaren Automotive’s first chief operating officer since Mike Flewitt, the supercar maker’s current CEO, was promoted from the position almost three years ago.Ludmann was most recently executive vice-president at FEV, the powertrain and vehicle engineering company, where he was responsible for the company’s ...
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Borgward edges closer to Bremen return with assembly site deal
Andreas Heyer (left), chairman of Bremen Invest, and Ulrich Walker, CEO of Borgward GroupGerman car brand Borgward and Bremen Invest have signed a deal over the purchase of a future assembly site in the German city.The memorandum of understanding covers a 140,000 sq.m piece of land in the Cargo ...
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Turkey’s auto sector grows in the midst of political turmoil
Representatives of Turkey’s automotive industry and the government’s investment support agency met in London, UK, last month to discuss the challenges the country faces in getting back on track toward production and export growth, following a politically turbulent two years. Despite the disruption, it seems the Turkish automotive sector is ...
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BLG Logistics reports €1 billion in sales for 2016
German logistics provider BLG Logistics has reported sales of €1.05 billion ($1.11 billion) for 2016, with its automobile division achieving a 2.6% increase in revenues to €473.7m.The division’s earnings before interest and tax (Ebit) did, however, show a year-on-year decline of 18.4% to €15.1m. The firm said this was caused ...
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ANT Lojistik invests in fleet to support Mercedes contract in Turkey
The Turkish division of German carmaker Mercedes-Benz – Mercedes-Benz Türk – has signed a deal with domestic finished vehicle logistics provider ANT Lojistik for the delivery of cars to dealerships across the country.Under the contract, which will run for a five and a half years, ANT will be the sole ...
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Daimler, VW and BLG Logistics recognised in ‘elogistics’ awards
German automotive industry body AKJ Automotive has recognised Daimler and Volkswagen in its annual elogistics awards for digital-based initiatives.In addition, BLG Logistics has been given AKJ’s Tool Award for its work on the use of drones in the logistics space.AKJ Automotive is made up of a group of industry experts ...
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Hungary and Slovakia to produce Audi’s new Q models
Audi has launched two new cars in its Q range of utility vehicles which it will build at its facilities in Hungary and Slovakia.The Q4, a compact utility vehicle, will be built at the company’s Győr facility in Hungary from 2019. Last year, the carmaker indicated production of the existing ...
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Sharp decline in South African car exports to rest of Africa
Exports from South Africa to the rest of Africa continued their downward trend in 2016, almost halving in number, according to the latest quarterly update from the National Association of Automobile Manufacturers of South Africa (Naamsa).Back in 2014, other African countries were together the second largest export destination behind Europe ...