All features articles – Page 27
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FeatureSouth America summit report: Never let a serious crisis go to waste
The South American automotive landscape is looking bleak as sales and production continue to drag and excess capacity increases. But a crisis is also a turning point, as speakers at this year’s Automotive Logistics South America summit in São Paulo pointed out... Bleak outlook in Brazil Exports offer some ...
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FeatureBMW 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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FeatureFreight audit & pay systems: Better ways to pay the bills
Concluding our two-part look at freight audit & pay (FA&P) systems (see part one), Automotive Logistics investigates the variety of ways in which they can be used throughout the supply chain, weighs up the challenges of doing so and assesses some likely future trends... Although the exact nature of FA&P ...
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FeatureChanging trade agreements in the spotlight after US election
A week after Donald Trump’s surprise victory in the US presidential election, automotive manufacturers and experts are still piecing together what his new administration could mean for vehicle production, trade and investment across North America and beyond.Global trade deals with the US seem likely to fall back in priority or ...
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FeatureIndia conference report: Looking for the next leap forward
India’s automotive industry is set to become the third biggest in the world but its growth is testing the infrastructure to the limit and bringing a high level of complexity to the supply chain. There are also big changes ahead related to tax policy and equipment legislation, which bring their ...
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FeatureTen years in India part 3: going back on the Indian highways
Continuing our celebrations ahead of the 10th Automotive Logistics India conference on November 8th-10th, we look back at a journalist's adventures and activism aboard the nation's car carriers.About six years ago, our intrepid India correspondent, Ramesh Kumar, set off on a defining journey – one that would change not only ...
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FeatureService parts distribution: Less distance, more speed
Aftersales service is critical to a car buyer’s satisfaction and brand perception. We find out how OEMs are dealing with the growing pressures on North American parts distribution networksIdentifying efficiencies in service parts distribution is a key issue for OEMs – servicing retail outlets is the primary goal of any ...
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FeatureTen years in India part 2: MM Singh from Maruti Suzuki
Continuing our celebrations ahead of the 10th Automotive Logistics India conference on November 8th-10th, we look back at our past decade of exclusive interviews and coverage of the Indian automotive supply chain. After reviewing Tata Motors from ten years ago in part 1, Today, we’re going back in time ...
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FeatureEuropean vehicle logistics could get left behind in the digital dust
Experts at this year’s ECG Conference in Hamburg pointed to the risks and rewards for outbound logistics of the automotive industry’s shift towards digital technology and e-commerce[sta_anchor id="1"]Despite its recent run of economic recovery and relatively strong growth, the European finished vehicle logistics industry could become a victim of technological ...
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FeatureDamage limitation: Reducing damage drawn by design
Trends in vehicle evolution can add to the likelihood of damage in transit. While this can be partly mitigated by routing and planning, the vehicle logistics industry can struggle to adapt fast enough... A substantial increase in popular vehicle sizes in recent years has fuelled some of the logistics issues ...
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FeatureBMW outlines new plans to transform logistics efficiency
Oliver Zipse, the carmaker's board member for production, reveals how it intends to sharply increase the level of automation involved in its production and logistics activities BMW is already testing out self-driving robots and sees great potential to extend their useBMW Group’s top executive for production has outlined plans to ...
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FeatureTen years in India: a look back at Tata Motors
This November 8-10th in Gurgaon will see the 10th Automotive Logistics India conference. To celebrate our first decade in this critically important market ahead of the conference, we’ll be looking back regularly at our coverage of the subcontinent over this time, with links back to features and analysis from ...
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FeatureIndustry 4.0: Chipping away at the future
Automotive Logistics reports on the Fraunhofer Institute’s research into autonomous warehouse decision-making and how it is working to deliver practical advantages from Industry 4.0 conceptsIn this story... 4.0 reasons to look ahead Letting the devices decide Intelligent bins Safe space for dataGermany’s Fraunhofer organisation isn’t easily explained. Founded in 1949 ...
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FeatureUK summit report: Hoping for the best, preparing for the worst
Given the UK’s vote to leave the European Union in June this year, discussions of ‘Brexit’ were bound to recur at the inaugural Automotive Logistics UK summit, which took place last week at Mercedes-Benz World at Brooklands, just outside LondonCarmakers need to recoup the costs incurred by the recent fall ...
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FeatureIndian export logistics: Waiting for an upgrade
In this story... Shipping routes Coastal issues Road reliance Multimodal shift Growing outputIndia’s vehicle exports are gradually on the rise, with plenty of room to grow. However, the nation’s poor export logistics and high port costs may hold the country backIndia’s big problem is a straightforward one: it does ...
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FeatureKia West Point: Midnight freight trains to Georgia
In this story... The need for precision A multi-party approach Paving the way A model for automotive Keeping a distanceThe use of an inland port in Cordele is helping carmaker Kia to achieve the reliable, transparent supply chain it requires at its 24-hour production operation in West Point, Georgia ...
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FeatureAlternative logistics in Africa: The sky's the limit
Africa’s underdeveloped infrastructure and dangerous conditions are leading it to leapfrog other countries in adopting alternative freight technologies which might one day serve automotive logisticsAfrica’s infrastructure gap, which significantly hinders the movement of goods between and within countries on the continent, could soon be substantially filled through the use of ...
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FeatureRail transport in Russia: Tracking the downturn
Rail transport of finished vehicles in Russia is dropping fast under the combined pressure of rising charges, falling state subsidies and dwindling demand for new vehiclesRail transport of finished vehicles in Russia is falling fast – faster even than a new vehicle market that has virtually collapsed over the past ...
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FeatureYard management: Tricks of the terminal trade
Balancing the demands of high volumes and diverse products with the need for efficiency and security calls for investment and flexibility in both staffing and ITThe growth in the US and UK vehicle industries over the last few years means more cars are being moved in and out of the ...
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FeatureJLR part 2: The big cat is hunting for outbound efficiencies
Jaguar Land Rover has taken a lead in using in-vehicle technology and connectivity to improve outbound visibility, part of a recent programme of change and investment across the carmaker’s logistics[sta_anchor id="1"]Jaguar and Land Rover cars and SUVs are, by mandate of their brands, powerful and highly engineered creatures. Today, that ...