Ford is terminating its contract with Express-1 Expedited Solutions for distribution from its high-velocity parts centre in Evansville in the US.
The company provides daily, dedicated pick-ups from the Evansville centre, with nightly deliveries to Ford dealerships throughout the south Indiana region. The contract between the two companies is administered by Schneider Logistics.
As of March 2009, however, the carmaker will hand over the operation to a new service provider, bringing to an end its five-year relationship with the Express-1 Dedicated business unit. Neither Express-1 nor Ford would comment on who will be taking over the business, although Express-1 spokesman Mark Patterson (pictured) said his company would be working to try and secure 38 existing jobs with the new supplier. “We are still working with all parties on the development of a transition plan. We remain cooperative, committed to serving the customer through the end of the contract. Our hope is that we are able to see these people hired by the new provider,” said Patterson.
The contract with Ford covers 90 per cent of Express-1 Dedicated’s activity. This involves dedicated delivery services to automotive dealerships, including reception, sorting, and staging of automotive freight from distribution facilities, as well as dispatching freight across dedicated routes. It manages on-time delivery through company-leased and company-owned vehicles. Without the Ford business in Indiana the company is considering closing its business there.
“Our consolidated company estimates are that less than 15 per cent of 2009 revenue will come from automotive accounts, including the Detroit Three, foreign domestic manufacturing and all suppliers,” said Patterson.
For its part, Ford offered redundancies to staff at Evansville earlier in the year as it sought to cut its salaried workforce in North America by 15 per cent.
