Winter 2024 Edition of Automotive Logistics Magazine

The automotive industry is undergoing a significant transformation, with supply chain and logistics strategies evolving to meet the challenges of the 21st century. One company leading this change is Volkswagen de Mexico, which is navigating these changes using predictive analytics, artificial intelligence (AI), and enhanced regional collaboration.

In Mexico, Volkswagen's logistics landscape for its Mexican operations is undergoing a significant transformation, including for its own inbound and outbound logistics teams. This transformation is driven by factors such as the shift to electrification, decarbonization efforts, localization and nearshoring, geopolitical disruption, capacity constraints, labour disputes, and climate change.

Smart logistics and AI are also supporting the growth in the production of Seat and Cupra vehicles at the Martorell plant. Enric Martí, director of logistics at Seat, outlines the historical transformation at Seat's Martorell factory in Spain, integrating advanced digital technologies for in-plant logistics. This approach is leading to demand for reverse logistics in the recovery of those materials.

Meanwhile, General Motors (GM) is focused on unifying its supply chain strategy to create a more cohesive, customer-focused approach. This change involves a deep cultural shift across internal teams and external supplier relationships. GM's "act as one team" philosophy is redefining supplier partnerships and strengthening internal culture.

Aleksej Kruekov, formerly of BMW and now with battery maker CATL, emphasizes the need for closer and long-haul collaboration between OEMs, suppliers, and logistics providers for supply chain digitalization. Sustainability is transforming production at BMW through a continuously improving 'design for circularity' approach, which includes greater reuse of secondary materials.

The future of supply chain digitalization is a lesson the finished vehicle logistics sector needs to learn, according to the results of the Systems and Software Survey (p14). Further collaboration with industry peers is anticipated to bring more intelligence to the automotive logistics community.

As for the editorial direction of Automotive Logistics magazine, the new editorial director, who takes over from the previous publisher starting with this issue, is Mark Garrett. This edition marks the last as editor for the author, who is emigrating to the United States.

Mexico, the seventh largest auto producer, is making 3.3 million vehicles and exporting 3.3 million units globally. The growth of EV production and demands for more sustainable production and supply are putting pressure on the heads of production and logistics at Volkswagen de Mexico. The success of this collaboration depends on strong governance and secure data communication.

These transformations underscore the dynamic nature of the automotive industry and the importance of adaptability in the face of changing market conditions. As the industry continues to evolve, we can expect to see more innovative strategies and collaborations that will shape the future of automotive production and logistics.