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All features articles – Page 44
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FeatureEuropean vehicle ports sail into the light
After years of overall decline, this year’s survey reveals a sense that Europe’s ports are prepared to engage competitively as automotive trade recovers. In this story...Top ten port tablesBremerhaven still leadsGrowth at Zeebrugge Spanish exports on risePort figuresUK strong across the boardRouting and hub changes Volume by biggest regionsAlthough ...
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FeatureOpel/Vauxhall moves to ‘order slotting’
Opel/Vauxhall has a made a breakthrough in managing its vehicle orders and forecasting in real time together with material availability and logistics, thanks in parts to systems implemented by software-provider flexisIn today’s complex supply chains, with a proliferation of customer options and global material, one major challenge for carmakers like ...
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FeatureRedesigning in-plant logistics at Opel/Vauxhall
Part of exclusive coverage of Opel/Vauxhall, director of supply chain Michael Scholl describes how the carmaker is adjusting its in-plant logistics in response to supply chain complexity and changes Opel/Vauxhall special featuresRead these other stories that form part of this exclusive coverage of Opel/Vauxhall's supply chain management:End-to-send control with Michael ...
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FeatureAiming for end-to-end control at Opel/Vauxhall
Michael Scholl, Opel/Vauxhall’s director of supply chain, discusses parallel planning, in-plant logistics customisation and complexity with Automotive Logistics When carmakers make changes, be it launching a new model, adding or shifting a supplier location, or selling in a new market, they reverberate across the supply chain, either as ripples ...
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FeatureExecutive summary: Blue skies over Bonn as logistics returns to growth
Vehicle sales and production are rising again in Europe, while supply chain complexity is driving more demand for logistics and better systems. But many risks remain both within the industry, and on Europe's periphery. Additional reporting by Marcus Williams and Zoë Apostolides[sam_ad id=6 codes='true']Although the Europe conference was held at ...
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FeatureA transformation loaded with ambition at Volvo
The decision to bring logistics purchasing and operations in-house has resulted in dramatic changes in Volvo Car Group’s inbound and outbound supply chain.Four years after China’s Geely Cars bought Volvo Cars from Ford, the Swedish carmaker is undergoing the most significant ever change to its manufacturing and sales footprint. Since ...
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FeatureReasons for optimism at APL Vascor – Indian rail reforms
Bill Villalon (pictured), senior vice-president of global automotive for APL Logistics, as well as chairman of the APL Logistics Vascor joint venture in India, talks about his companies strategy for success in introducing advanced rail services in India. Ramesh Kumar: What brought APL Logistics and Vascor together in India? Bill ...
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FeatureAvoiding a national waste – Indian rail reforms
Anand Venkateswaran (pictured), general manager of sales logistics at Hyundai Motor India, talks about the potential benefits and pitfalls of switching to rail for moving vehicles in India. Ramesh Kumar: Two years ago, you made a presentation at the Automotive Logistics India Conference with a focus on alternate modes of ...
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FeatureOn track for change – Indian rail reforms
In this story... From road to railMaruti goes it all aloneTaking early advantageWaiting for the inevitable Reforms allowing private operators to manage their own rail fleets look set to have a big impact on how Indian carmakers transport their vehicles. Worry lines are clearly discernible on the face of G. ...
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FeatureArriving at the moment of truth in North America
In this story...Honda's multimodal exportsShort sea rises and flows Railroads respondVW's strategic savingsStretching capacity After years of anticipation about growth in North American production and potential logistics bottlenecks in Mexico, this is the year when hopes – and possibly fears – will become reality. Since the end of 2013, when ...
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FeatureCovering all the bases in damage protection
With quality expectations higher than ever, OEMs have to consider the cost and general effectiveness of damage avoidance solutions, including full body covers.In this story...Cost versus protectionWrapped up in filmOpting for full coverage Targeting risk If there is one thing that carmakers, logistics providers, dealers and final customers can all ...
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FeatureMexico vehicle exports dip in January
The Mexican Automotive Industry Association (AMIA) has released figures that show finished vehicle exports in January declined by 0.4% to 177,928 units, compared to January 2013. The organisation's president, Eduardo Solís, noted that the decrease was due to a fall in the US market brought about by the current harsh ...
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FeatureePOD – Delivering the future of proof
Chrysler’s decision to mandate the use of electronic proof of delivery systems from this year has brought the process to the fore, but an industry standard may be required before everyone follows suit.At the beginning of February 2014, a new transport management system went live at Mobile Services, a UK-based ...
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FeatureMinda's journey from desi to dominance
From humble beginnings to a sprawling automotive network, Indian tier one Minda had to learn supply chain quality along the way.Automotive manufacturers used to build much of their supplies and equipment under their own roof in India. The number of blue and white-collar workers at Premier Automobile, makers of Fiat ...
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FeatureGiving investors safe harbour in Brazil
Brazil has passed legislation to loosen terminal concession rules and encourage more private investment. However, it looks unlikely to be plain sailing aheadBrazil is widely viewed as having insufficient port capacity, with bottlenecks often constraining imports and exports. The country’s major port of Santos, in São Paulo state, faces heavy ...
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FeatureGetting to the point of return
As China’s use of returnable packaging for automotive parts grows, the need for standardisation has become increasingly importantThe move towards wider use of returnable packaging is gaining momentum in China, although it still has a long way to go. Increasing the use of such equipment still depends largely on further ...
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FeatureSpare parts to keep the wheels turning
Rising competition has pushed OEMs to speed up spare parts delivery, but are they striking the right balance between service, inventory and cost? There is no such thing as a risk-proof spare parts operation. Despite supply systems that are more robust and reliable in dealer orders and delivery than a ...
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FeatureGetting launches off to a flying start
More frequent launches and longer supply chains are placing significant pressure on manufacturers and inbound and outbound providers. Having spent tens of millions of dollars promoting the autumn 2012 launch of its 2013 model year Lincoln MKZ, Ford had high hopes for the vehicle, which was the subject of a ...
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FeatureSulphur limits: cleaning up shipping or going overboard?
With new limits on sulphur emissions coming into force for much of northern Europe and North America next year, shipping operators are trying to comply in ways as sustainable for costs as for the environment.Come January 1st 2015, parts of the shipping world will not be the same again. On ...
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FeatureAston Martin recall raises questions about sourcing
Aston Martin has been keen to stress the close relationships it has with its top tier suppliers in the wake of the massive vehicle recall it was forced to issue earlier this month because of what it called counterfeit material from a Chinese sub-supplier. But tier one locations are no ...