In his new role Bednarzyk is leading Nissan's efforts to maximise the company's total delivered cost efficiency across all model lines produced in North and South America. Bednarzyk will focus on lowering total manufacturing costs including those associated with raw material, purchased parts, fixed and variable labour, logistics and general administration.
"Dan's extensive experience in manufacturing and his successful leadership of the Nissan Canton Vehicle Assembly Plant will help him drive total delivered cost improvements across all our manufacturing operations," said Bill Krueger, senior vice president, Manufacturing, Purchasing, Production Engineering and Supply Chain Management.
Bednarzyk joined Nissan in 1985 in Manufacturing Engineering and has since held a number of positions including engineering, trim/chassis, body, stamping and maintenance as well as a foreign service assignment with Nissan in Japan.
David Aldana, currently director of Nissan's manufacturing facility in Aguascalientes, Mexico, will replace Bednarzyk as vice president at the Canton plant.
Ceva Logistics has appointed Jim Barnett as vice president, Automotive for the Americas region. For the last four years he has been serving as COO of Ceva’s joint venture with SAIC-subsidiary Anji Logistics in China – Anji-Ceva – the largest automotive 3PL in China according to the company.
Barnett will now be based in Detroit and brings almost 20 years of supply chain management and automotive manufacturing experience to the role.
Prior to Ceva, Barnett was the supply chain director of GM’s Flint Manufacturing Center. During his time there, he had responsibility for managing supply chain activity for two assembly lines that made GM’s Commercial Medium Duty Trucks and GM’s Heavy Duty Pickups, as well as responsibility for one of the carmaker’s largest metal stamping operations.
He was also the supply chain director of GM’s joint venture in China, Shanghai GM. In that position, he was responsible for growing and managing Shanghai GM’s supply chain footprint as that company went from a single assembly center producing 30,000 vehicles per year to a multi site manufacturer producing hundreds of thousands of vehicles, engines and transmissions per year.
“Jim brings to the Americas automotive sector insight and experience which will deliver value to our customers and further position us for increased business opportunities and profitable growth,” said Cindy Cochovity, executive vice president of Business Development, for Ceva in the Americas.
There have been a number of management changes at French logistics provider Geodis in the areas of supply chain management and transport.
Jean-Paul Vignal, former director of the contract logistics division at the company, has moved to become director of the newly-created Supply Chain Solutions unit, which will be managing group key accounts, marketing and the contract logistics and supply chain divisions. Laurant Parat has replaced Vignal at the contract logistics division.
Oliver Mélot has been appointed director of the Groupage/Express division, taking over from Bruno Mandarin who is leaving Geodis. Mélot was previously in charge of Geodis BM, the road division, a position held since 2008. He joined Geodis in 2002 as sales director at Geodis BM Chimie having previously worked at the rail freight division Fret SNCF.
He will be replaced in his previous role by Olivier Royer, previously assistant director with the Road division. He joined SNCF Geodis in 1996, successively holding the functions of director of the Keolis subsidiaries, CEO of Uniroute and lastly director of the road and rail operations of STVA.
"This organisation change aims at boosting Geodis performance in offering to our customers innovative supply chain solutions in an increasingly complex economic environment," said Marie-Christine Lombard, CEO of Geodis.
Maxim Akimov, former deputy governor of the Kaluga region in Russia, has been appointed first deputy head of the Russian government by the country’s prime minister, Dmitry Medvedev. His most recent role has been as deputy chief of staff in the Russian government
In his previous role Akimov coordinated the strategic planning, development and forecasts of socio-economic development of the Kaluga region, which has grown into a major area of automotive production for both domestic and foreign carmakers.
Akimov’s new responsibilities will involve implementing state policy in a range of areas. As well as transport he will organise the divisions responsible for economy and finance, agriculture and forestry, investment, industry, energy and communications, as well as looking over federal property management.
Yves Fargues, who retired from his role as chairman and CEO of Gefco in July last year, has this month taken up a new role as president of the TLF (Entreprises de Transport et de Logistique de France), the French freight transport and logistics union.
Yves Fargues, who retired from his role as chairman and CEO of Gefco in July last year, has this month taken up a new role as president of the TLF (Entreprises de Transport et de Logistique de France), the French freight transport and logistics union.
Patrick Bouchez, who formerly held the posts of TLF chairman and delegate general, will now concentrate on the latter duties.
