A strategic business partner for the automotive sector: Arkas
Arkas is a solution partner for shipping and logistics, making it a strategic business partner for international corporations with investments in the automotive sector in Turkey.
Arkas has responded to the rapidly developing sector with new investment, transporting automobiles with containers to ports where there is no Ro-Ro service.
The Turkish automotive sector manufactured one million vehicles in 2006 out of which 700,000 were exported. The sector topped the list last year with 14.5 billion dollars of exports. Plans are in place for additional investments to the automotive sector that will increase production to 1.7 million units including 1.4 million units destined for exports. Exports are important for the spare parts sector as well, where they represent of 30 percent of total production. The fact that the export volume has reached this level has drawn attention to the importance of automotive logistics.
With over one hundred years in the sector, Arkas has a goal of delivering goods undamaged, on time and with minimum cost. Arkas also offers intermodal transport options for automotive manufacturers based on need. Eighty-five percent of automotive production is carried out in the Marmara region and 70 percent of the parts are imported into the country. On-time delivery of parts is very important for a sector in which an automobile comes off the assembly line every one to one and a half minutes. The logistics chain is important for holding costs down in the industry. Since the year 2000, Arkas has invested in new systems and infrastructure to develop services that ensure superior shipping for automobiles and automobile parts. For the past six years, Arkas has been carrying out damage-free delivery for Toyota, which ranked among the top five manufacturers last year with regard to total production. Spare parts used for Toyota automobiles are shipped from Antwerp Port in Belgium and Felixstowe Port in England to Gebze via MSC"S Express Continent Service in 7-8 days; this service has achieved 99% consistency through 4 years. Spare parts imported for Tofa?, Arkas" newest customer, are brought from Genoa Port in Italy to Gemlik based on a fixed, four day transit time.
Custom solutions for the automotive sector
Arkas has introduced many firsts to the container transport sector and has now begun to offer a new transport service especially for the automotive industry. With a new transport system called Arkas Rack, four automobiles can be loaded into one container. The Arkas Rack system went into use in November, 2006 and makes it possible to containerise and export vehicles to countries where there is no Ro-Ro service from Turkey. Having received design and production certificates from Bureau Veritas, container shipments can be made with zero damage using a quad loading system. The equipment can be attached to the container without damaging it and the wheelbase can be adjusted for each car. The cars can be loaded more rapidly without any need for special equipment. This system enables companies in the automotive sector to take advantage of low shipping costs for small size vehicles.
Fast, dependable delivery with Arkas Rack
The Arkas rack system is particularly important in Russia because Ro-Ro shipments in the Black Sea only reach the port. Containers with vehicles in them are transferred to trains in the port and delivered safely to inland destinations. This new equipment developed by Arkas can even be used to load minibuses and similar vehicles into containers. Previously, these kinds of vehicles could not be loaded into containers because it is impossible for a driver to exit the vehicle after he had driven it into the container. However, this new equipment from Arkas makes transport via container possible by loading the vehicle onto the container without a driver.
Turkey"s first car terminal: Autoport
Construction is continuing rapidly on the Autoport terminal, which will go into operation at the end of this year. Arkas" primary goal with this project is to provide service to all automobile manufacturers and Ro-Ro lines. Designed to have the capacity to handle 400,000 vehicles in the Yeniköy Gölcük region, Autoport will be Turkey"s first car terminal and will provide significant advantages to the sector due to its proximity to automobile factories.
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