Michelin has invested more than £10m in a major upgrade of its Stoke-on-Trent based logistics operation, opening a new European Distribution Centre (EDC).
The 53,500m² facility will also host a National Distribution Centre (NDC) for ATS Euromaster. Combined, the two sites have the capacity to handle more than 5 million tyres annually for the UK and Irish markets.
To meet this increased demand, Michelin has doubled its logistics team to about 150 members of staff, who are now responsible for handling the additional 2 million annual tyre movements required for ATS Euromaster’s nationwide operations.
The EDC has been re-developed with 26 loading bays which can be used simultaneously around the clock, and Michelin has also used the upgrade as an opportunity to install the latest generation fire protection system, with 5,000 sprinkler heads to ensure maximum safety.
Richard Whitehurst, service to customer manager at Michelin Tyre, says: “The transformation of our logistics operation will allow us to improve service levels to dealer partners and manufacturers, by reducing delivery times and ensuring greater product availability.
“This is a game-changing development for Michelin; the decision to share facilities with ATS Euromaster brings natural synergies, and focuses around having one logistical team with one shared vision, to support the next steps of both organisations’ growth.”
Peter Tye, Business Support Director at ATS Euromaster, comments: “Our new NDC is a pilot project for the Euromaster Group, increasing our flexibility and enabling us to get the right products to the right centres faster than ever before.”
The launch of the new facility has been more than two years in the planning, and involved close partnership working on new IT systems and interfaces between Michelin and ATS Euromaster, together with logistics partners Great Bear and Teliae.
Additional investment
Alongside the improvements in logistics, Michelin has marked its 90th anniversary of manufacturing in Stoke-on-Trent with the creation of a new Customer Service Division with responsibility for Northern Europe, comprising the UK, Denmark, Finland, Ireland, Norway and Sweden. This team is now actively processing around €2m worth of orders per day.
Michelin has also continued to invest heavily in its retread manufacturing operation, which is now the most modern Michelin retread plant in Europe, with the ability to produce Michelin Remix and Encore retread tyres on the same production line. Solvent consumption in the manufacturing process has been reduced by 90 per cent, and energy consumption has been optimised following a series of projects in conjunction with supplier EON.
Jonathan Wright, factory manager at the Campbell Road plant, adds: “We’ve invested more than £25m in our Campbell Road operations over the last eight years. We have been making tyres in North Staffordshire since 1927, and these projects demonstrate our continued long-term commitment to the area and to the communities in which we operate.
“Whilst this has seen significant building and development work locally, the investment runs much deeper than purely infrastructure. From the outset, we have been committed to developing and empowering our staff to be able to deliver beyond our customers’ expectations – and the buy-in and feedback from our teams along this journey has been fantastic.”
The next part of the development is the commissioning of a new 12,000m² warehouse being built alongside the retread plant, for storing truck and bus tyre casings ahead of processing. Upon completion, it will improve the local landscape and ensure the retread plant is best positioned to support increasing production levels.
Ends
Michelin, the leading tyre company, is dedicated to enhancing its clients’ mobility, sustainably; designing and distributing the most suitable tyres, services and solutions for its clients’ needs; providing digital services, maps and guides to help enrich trips and travels and make them unique experiences; and developing high-technology materials that serve the mobility industry. Headquartered in Clermont-Ferrand, France, Michelin is present in 170 countries, has 111,700 employees and operates 68 production facilities in 17 countries which together produced 187 million tyres in 2016. (www.michelin.com)
For further press information please contact:
David Johnson, Michelin Press Office
Tel: + 44 (0) 1782 402341 Email: d.johnson@michelin.com
James Keeler or Beth Laws, Garnett Keeler PR, Inver House, 37-39 Pound Street,
Carshalton, Surrey, SM5 3PG
Tel: +44 (0)20 8647 4467 E-mail: james.keeler@garnettkeeler.com or beth.laws@garnettkeeler.com
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