Considerable time pressure, a great deal of dangerous goods, valuable freight: the global automotive industry places strenuous demands on its logistics partners. Lufthansa Cargo has been reliably fulfilling these requirements for decades. Not only in emergencies but also at the start of serial production in overseas plants and in regular production supply.

Processes in the automotive industry are determined by a global division of labor as suppliers and major manufacturers migrate towards emerging markets. Countless vehicle parts are manufactured in Europe, for example, and then installed in Asia or North America. Major supply flows also move in the opposite direction as well as between North and South America or within Asia. These can include completely assembled vehicles, spare parts and prototype models. 

To avoid high import tariffs, manufacturers sometimes dismantle their vehicles into individual parts – Completely Knocked Down (CKD) – before transporting them thousands of kilometers and reassembling them in the respective target markets.

Lead times in the industry are very short. Freight has to be delivered in clearly defined time slots so that it can be assembled just in time and preferably just in sequence. After all, inventory levels must be kept low, and yet production bottlenecks or even production stoppages have to be avoided at all costs. 

In addition to this, many of the parts have a high product value or have to be transported as dangerous goods. Both are true in the case of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries, for example, which are becoming increasingly important thanks to the boom in hybrid vehicles.

All in all, this calls for the speed, transport security and flexibility that only airfreight can provide, particularly in time-critical situations or in emergencies, but increasingly also in regular production supply. And it requires a carrier like Lufthansa Cargo with a clear understanding of the requirements of manufacturers and suppliers, and solutions specifically developed for the industry.

Emergency.Solutions is Lufthansa Cargo’s express product for critical situations. When unforeseen circumstances disrupt a supply chain in such a way that production bottlenecks and even assembly line standstills cannot be ruled out, Emergency.Solutions provides the answer: within hours, Lufthansa Cargo can make deliveries ready for take-off and bring urgently needed parts to their destination quickly and safely. Capacity limitations are lifted and the progress of the express shipment is constantly documented, enabling the customer to trace it at all times.