All features articles – Page 65

  • smartrepair
    Feature

    Time to get smart (repair) in India and China

    01 April 2010

    PDI work is important for exportsLimited technical paint repair in PDI centresA quick fixPaint-less technologyA future for smarter repairA lack of transparent reporting masks high damage rates in India and China, but as consumer expectations shift there should be a big market for PDI and smart repair in these markets, ...

  • africa-1.jpg
    Feature

    Ford’s Asian vista

    01 April 2010

    Expanding in Asia Pacific Africa, Ford is growing the smart way with a push toward stronger electronic communication across its supply chain here, including the rollout of its European order-to-delivery system, Vista.Forecasting freight and dutyFlexible manufacturing and supplyBeing the first to build-to-order vehicles in AsiaSupply chain IT: champagne taste, a ...

  • sftsl
    Feature

    Searching for the silver lining

    01 April 2010

    Last year was a devastating one for European ports that depend on car handling. But while recovery is uncertain, Piotr Switalski uncovers the collaborative strategies towards which both ports and policymakers must work (Christopher Ludwig contributed reporting).

  • Feature

    Make way for the little guys

    02 January 2010

    Good time for a Plan CA market splintering rather than consolidatingThe US car carrier sector is in transition, and while many companies are disappearing, carmakers and 3PLs are giving more business to smaller, niche players for certain routes, reports Barry CrossThe US automotive outbound sector has seen chronic failures among ...

  • grooom
    Feature

    Grooming the yard

    02 January 2010

    Specialised software on the riseTagging to trackIncreasing productivityThe road aheadIT systems, whether hardware or software, are beginning to be more sophisticated for managing flows in and out of vehicle yards. Jim Romeo reportsWhile the automotive inbound and outbound supply chain has become more complex, the IT systems used to track ...

  • asiandream
    Feature

    European car ports are waiting on an Asian dream

    02 January 2010

    China’s big paper plansAssessing the European landing pointKia went to a smaller port, and so could othersChina and India have raced ahead in domestic car sales, but logistics providers and port operators in Europe are wondering when, and if, they will arrive on local shores in any substantial way. Malcolm ...

  • Feature

    Handling cars with a little less human touch

    02 January 2010

    Chock full of vehicle sizesProtect only where it countsDesign the terminal rightLooking to Asia as a guideA group effortSixthSeventhEighthWhile OEMs spend significant amounts of money on protective products, the most important measure that can be taken is training staff and developing careful processes for handling and inspecting vehicles. Carmakers and ...

  • canonesize
    Feature

    Can one size ever fit all?

    02 January 2010

    Flexible and adjustable equipment stands outDesigning the perfect car carrierA divided EuropeWhat to tell your carriersCarmakers are gravitating towards similar standards and technology for road carriers, but the recession has made investment tougher than ever. Carrier builders and customers speak about how much cutting-edge technology and processes countThe purchase of ...

  • saiclogistics
    Feature

    Designing a group logistics strategy for SAIC

    02 January 2010

    A family of logistical differencesLooking abroad, cautiouslyGetting stronger at homeA tale of two AnjisThe sprawling Chinese conglomerate is growing quickly across its indigenous brands and joint venture operations, which include truckmaker subsidiaries and an in-house logistics company, Anji Automotive Logistics. Namrita Chow takes a look inside the group to see ...

  • hoegh
    Feature

    Getting the sea legs back again

    02 January 2010

    Circling the globe to find growthRussian headacheShort-sea outlookCapacity conundrumPredicting the right balanceOcean carriers are sailing just a bit steadier as they emerge from the stormiest of seas this past year, with at least a mild recovery anticipated for Asian trade lanes in 2010. Finished Vehicle Logistics charts their course.The global ...

  • emile-benaim
    Feature

    Toyota to providers: ...let’s talk about price!

    02 January 2010

    Road carriers need to speak up if they want to slow downA missed opportunity and deferred risk?But it’s still business as usualA closer look at the networkHave other OEMs changed more, or just said so?Time for a change for TPS?The door is open for providersEighthToyota’s recent struggles in Europe had ...

  • tnt-1.jpg
    Feature

    TNT targets South America

    01 January 2010

    TNT is shifting gears to accelerate in the automotive aftermarket and emergency logistics sector, with particular expansion in the booming South American regionA sizeable spare parts and emergency freight businessBolstering BrazilAdvancing in ArgentinaAlthough TNT, which is best known for its €11-billion ($16.5m) revenue mail and express delivery business, sold its ...

  • easteu
    Feature

    Eastern Europe hangs in the balance

    01 January 2010

    Investing for beyond the tough timesWhen the sleeping bear wakes up?A long, slow recoveryPrice, price, priceSounds like a broken recordThe day after tomorrowBeing big acts as a bufferFollowing rapid growth and considerable investment, the markets in Central and Eastern Europe were among the most promising for European logistics providers. But ...

  • track-1.jpg
    Feature

    Track & trace: do we need the ‘next best thing’?

    01 January 2010

    The automotive industry has been talking up the potential of RFID for decades, but with budgets strapped, there appears to be no rush to bin the barcodeAuto's enduring affair with the barcodeRFID still only used in fragmentsTrack what is sensibleThe future is now... or soonAt the end of the production ...

  • back-1.jpg
    Feature

    Logistics is holding back South Africa’s industry

    01 January 2010

    With sales and exports hit hard, South Africa’s seven OEMs are scrambling to revamp their production to become more efficient, and pushing for the country’s rail and port operator to smarten up. If that doesn’t happen, carmakers may go elsewhereA lot going on at the bottom of the worldAll for ...

  • road-1.jpg
    Feature

    China builds a road inside itself

    01 January 2010

    As the largest and still the fastest growing car market in the world, carmakers in China are hoping to develop supply chains in its vast interior and western regions, with the government investing billionsLow visibilityA crowded market starts to spill inlandGo west, says the governmentRegulation and trade disputesFiat’s Jack Cheng ...

  • freight-11.jpg
    Feature

    Back in the fast lane

    01 January 2010

    Premium freight services nearly disappeared at the outset of the financial crisis. Now recovery and inventory cautious-carmakers have brought back the need for speed, but under new terms.Off a cliffSigns of recoverySame shipments, different dayCentralised purchasingLower cost optionsA cautious recoveryWhat will electric vehicles mean for air refight?To reduce inbound inventory ...

  • pack-1.jpg
    Feature

    Packing a punch

    01 January 2010

    We sort through the tiresome marketing jargon to identify the real innovations in packaging for automotive, and report on the benefitsInnovation is among those words editors should always treat with scepticism (other bugbears include optimisation, continuous improvement and synergy). A purchasing manager or logistics executive should use no less caution ...

  • audi-1.jpg
    Feature

    Audi: leading the pack for logistics again

    01 January 2010

    Audi has gained market share and kept a tight reign on inventory thanks to industry-leading logistics processes. Now, as Dr. Ernst-Hermann Krog tells Christopher Ludwig, it is applying its ‘new logistics concept’ further down the supply chainOrder visibility keeps Audi competitiveExtending the NLK to the supplier baseTranslating the NLK into ...

  • name-1.jpg
    Feature

    Giving logistics in India a new name

    01 January 2010

    Mahindra & Mahindra’s chief operating officer, Rajesh Jejuriker (pictured right), believes logistics and ‘demand’ chain management have improved the carmaker’s customer satisfaction ratings. Christopher Ludwig speaks to him and head of supply chain, SK Krishnan (pictured left), about M&M’s groundbreaking order-to-delivery system.Logistics ranks high in the management chainThe production and ...