All articles by Steve Garnsey – Page 24
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FeatureMazda trebles Thai engine plant capacity
Mazda Motor has added an engine machining operation at its MPMT powertrain factory in Chomburi, Thailand, to increase engine production capacity there from 30,000 to 100,000 units a year.The move, which has involved a 22.1 billion yen ($200m) investment, will support the Japanese carmaker's plan to make the facility its ...
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FeatureYusen Logistics upgrades UK fleet
Yusen Logistics' division in the UK has upgraded its fleet with 95 new tractive units that it says will reduce its emissions, improve efficiency and protect drivers with the latest safety technology.As part of a fleet replacement programme, the logistics provider has bought 50 MAN TGX 460 tractor units and ...
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FeatureVW seeks to boost presence in emerging markets with exports from China
Volkswagen Group China has revealed plans to begin shipping cars from the country to emerging markets, beginning with South-East Asia. A pilot shipment is being made to the Philippines this month. The announcement follows similar moves by other carmakers over the last year, as China shifts towards becoming a global ...
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FeatureVolkswagen appoints Thomas Ulbrich as head of new e-mobility division
Thomas Ulbrich (pictured), currently management board member for production and logistics at Volkswagen, is to take charge of e-mobility at the German carmaker.From February 1st , Ulbrich will head a newly created division covering the e-mobility series and production of vehicles on the group’s new modular electric drive kit (MEB) ...
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FeatureJinling delivers latest car carrier to Grimaldi
Shipbuilder Jinling has handed over pure car and truck carrier Grande Halifax to Grimaldi, the last of three vessels the Italian shipping line ordered from the Chinese company and which has been built at its Nanjing yard.The carrier will be deployed on the Mediterranean-North America weekly service operated by Grimaldi ...
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FeatureKuehne + Nagel joins Temasek to invest in technology start-ups
Global logistics services provider Kuehne + Nagel (KN) has signed an agreement with Singapore’s state-owned investment company, Temasek, to establish a joint venture to invest worldwide in start-ups developing cutting-edge technology for logistics and supply chains.The partnership “will be able to accelerate the transformation of the logistics industry,” said Joerg ...
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FeatureMosolf buys out vehicle releasing agent AFG in Germany
German finished vehicle transporter Mosolf has acquired its compatriot AFG (Allgemeine Fahrzeugübernahme-Gesellschaft), a releasing agent operating between vehicle manufacturers and freight forwarders.Announcing the move, Mosolf’s CEO, Dr Jörg Mosolf, said the company had gained “an experienced, reliable and innovative” service provider in outbound logistics.AFG coordinates the handling of vehicles between ...
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FeatureThird-party logistics: An ever-evolving partnership
What's in a name?Dating from the 1970s, the term ‘third-party logistics provider’ (3PL) grew swiftly in importance and usage and was even seen as marketable at one time.Management consultants Accenture registered the term 3PL as a trademark in 1996, defining it as “a supply chain integrator that assembles and manages ...
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FeatureKobe’s data manipulation halts shipments, ripples through Japanese industry
Car manufacturers in Japan are checking the extent to which they are affected by using incorrectly certified parts from Kobe Steel that has brought a halt to its shipments and could have impacts across the supply chain in Japan.Internal quality and government-ordered safety checks are being carried out after the ...
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FeatureShift in powertrains drives strong growth in battery production
Production of lithium-ion batteries, like these ones at Nissan's Smyrna Vehicle Assembly Plant, looks set to soarAccelerating growth in electric and hybrid vehicle production is opening up a range of new supply chains across all areas of the automotive industry – not least in battery cell production.With vehicle manufacturers ...
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FeatureSentech to close Port Elizabeth site in wake of GM’s exit from South Africa
The Sentech automotive parts plant in Port Elizabeth, South Africa, is to close by the end of September. The move follows General Motors’ (GM) recent announcement that it would cease manufacturing and selling Chevrolets in the country by the end of the year.Describing the OEM’s recent announcement as “sudden”, Treve ...
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FeatureNew wave of protectionism threatens the automotive sector
India, Japan, the US and the UK are among those that seem to be adopting more protectionist measures in their international relations, and even the EU appears to be getting in on the act now… all of which seems likely to have some serious implications for international vehicle and parts ...
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FeatureThyssenKrupp adds to parts production in China and Hungary
German tier supplier ThyssenKrupp has announced plans to build two new plants in China and Hungary to manufacture more than 11m springs and stabilisers a year.In China, the group will begin construction this year of a factory in Pinghu, near Shanghai, with output starting in 2018. The site will produce ...
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FeatureThyssenKrupp centralises Chinese steering system production
German tier supplier ThyssenKrupp has confirmed it will move all of its Chinese steering system production activities to its new manufacturing facility in Changzhou (pictured), in central eastern China’s Jiangsu province.The German conglomerate is spending €200m ($213m) on the plant, which will have an annual capacity of around 4m electric ...
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FeatureParts materials: Metal manoeuvres
Aluminium has been threatening to edge steel out as a material for automotive components thanks to its weight advantages. But while aluminium’s role in components is growing, modern steels still dominate the supply chain – and the future requires the best of bothIn this story... Rising use of aluminium Steel ...
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FeatureConstellium invests in new line to serve a changing auto landscape
The growing penetration of aluminium in vehicle manufacture is changing the landscape in the automotive industry, Arnaud Jouron (pictured), president of Constellium’s packaging and automotive rolled products business unit, has suggested.Speaking to Automotive Logistics soon after the Dutch company inaugurated a €180m ($196m) integrated aluminium rolling, finishing and recycling line ...
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FeatureThyssenKrupp expands in South Carolina
German component supplier ThyssenKrupp has opened a new distribution centre in Charleston, South Carolina, to provide value-added kitting, sequencing, inspection, rework, export packaging, warehousing and transport to and from the Port of Charleston, mainly for vehicle and auto part producers.The US state already accommodates more than 250 automotive-related companies and ...
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FeatureGerman authorities raid carmakers and tier suppliers
Dawn raids have been carried out at the offices of a number of leading carmakers and tier suppliers in Germany as part of an investigation into suspected breaches of the country’s competition law.Firms including BMW, Daimler, Volkswagen, Bosch and ZF Friedsrichshafen were raided on June 23rd by officials from Germany’s ...
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FeatureKobelco goes local to remain global
Japanese metal products manufacturer Kobelco is adopting a new strategy as it seeks to keep its automotive parts supply chain as quick and slick as possible... Japanese industrial group Kobelco is ‘moving abroad’ along with its carmaker and other customers by increasingly investing overseas, cutting time and cost out of ...
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British carmakers prepare for possible steel supply disruption
Vehicle manufacturers in the UK have begun drawing up contingency plans to cater for possible disruption to steel supplies in the wake of uncertainty over the future of Tata Steel UK.It follows a statement by the Tata Group at the end of March that it had decided to exit the ...