Facts and figures about road transport
Facts and figures about road transport
Read MoreAuthor: Archive
TDG wins contract with DuPont
DuPont, US-based science corporation, has awarded a £1 million distribution contract to TDG, through the logistics operators Nylog joint venture with UBC.
Read MoreRexam Webster wins contract with Meachers Transport
Rexam Webster, cosmetic packaging producer, has appointed Meachers Transport at its exclusive UK logistics provider.
Read MoreWincanton wins contract with Safeway
Safeway has strengthened its relationship with logistics operator Wincanton, with the award of a new contract to handle transport operations at the supermarket retailers Swindon distribution centre.
Read MoreSecuricor Omega Logistics wins contract with Campbell Grocery Products
Campbell Grocery Products of Kings Lynn has renewed and extended an existing distribution contract with Securicor Omega Logistics (SOL) for a further five years to incorporate the Bachelors and Oxo brands, which the company recently acquired from Unilever.
Read MoreRed tape clogs transport chain
Automotive Logistics
PSA, owner of Peugeot and Citroen, has lofty ambitions in South America. It established a direct presence in Brazil last year by opening a small assembly plant, and plans to produce more cars to fill the forecourts of a promised 200 dealers next year, double the present number.
Whether, as a latecomer to this market, the group can take on and beat the established powers in the region, such as VW, Fiat and Ford, only time will tell. But any gains in market share PSAmakes will be to the benefit of Gefco, its in-house logistics provider.
A drop in orders brings logistics to the surface
Automotive Logistics
The most recent sign of distress following the decline in demand for cars came from Ford, which posted a profit warning in mid-September. “This is definitely a tough year for the automotive industry, ” says Rosanne Esposito, senior VP of customs brokerage at Expeditors International.
The decline in business has prompted the automotive industry to intensify its quest to trim costs, and logistics expenditure has been a major target. “With the economy slowing down, there is a lot of focus on bringing down costs, ” says Don McKay of APL Logistics.
As car manufacturers try to slash their logistics expenses, air freight is a prime target, since it is typically about 10 times the price of ocean transportation. Doug Foster, VP of sales and marketing at Emery Worldwide, says there has been a steady downward trend in automotive air freight volumes since the middle of 2000.
Read MoreIntermodal keeps up with the flow
Automotive Logistics
Huge flows of containerised automotive components are now being shipped around Europe by rail, which is now winning its fair share of traffic as competition between service providers grows.
Joe Pickers, general manager UK of Spanish rail operator Transfesa, emphasises the contribution that rail can make to the supply chain. The operator runs between six and 12 blocktrains a week, between Ford’s production plants in Dagenham, east London and Valencia.
“Each train carries 44 13.6 metre swapbodies, ” he says.
“It would be difficult to arrange the movement of such a large volume of freight by road at any one time.”
Transit time is between 36 and 48 hours, and Pickers says the service is extremely competitive in both speed and price, compared with road.
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