Powering Performance

As AIAG celebrates 40 years this month, the association says that successful collaborations and making sure standards and best practices are accessible to the entire automotive supply chain will help the industry navigate one of the most challenging periods in its history. With the evolution of electric vehicles and unprecedented supply chain and workforce challenges, the Automotive Industry Action Group (AIAG) is poised with 40 years of leadership experience to help the industry change, adapt, and grow.

Bridget Grewal is packaging continuous improvement director for Magna and a long-time AIAG leader and volunteer. Her most recent work includes helping AIAG complete the newer RC-18 publication and now orchestrating a version 2 of that same document. In this interview, Grewal talks about the work she’s found most rewarding and gives advice on how to get more from your AIAG membership.

SAN DIEGO — A rare Senate and House bipartisan agreement on an issue — the C-TPAT Pilot Program Act of 2022 — is being celebrated by the Transportation Intermediates Association as a major victory for the brokerage sector.

The unprecedented boom in logistics warehousing demand is now about a decade old. During most of the past 10 years, it was a safe bet that the aging of the industrial warehouse stock wasn’t considered a high priority. Stakeholders had their hands full just keeping up with demand for capacity that hit like a ton of bricks and has barely abated.

After four decades in law enforcement, Commissioner Chris Magnus maintains an enthusiasm for learning new things from other people. CBP photo by Glenn Fawcett. Graphic by Janice Swan-Jones

Sitting down with U.S. Customs and Border Protection Commissioner Chris Magnus to discuss his first 100 days at the helm of the nation’s largest federal law enforcement agency, the conversation quickly focused on the importance of working with people to get things done. “Everything I feel has been a successful accomplishment has been the result of a team that I’ve been part of.”

Signed into law by President Biden in December 2021, the Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA, or “the Act”) establishes a rebuttable presumption that all goods manufactured (in whole or in part) in China’s Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region (XUAR) are the product of forced labor, and not permitted entry into the United States. This rebuttable presumption will go into effect on June 21, 2022.

As one of the industries most substantially impacted by dramatic rule changes when USMCA replaced NAFTA in July 2020, many automotive companies are still working to gain a full understanding of the trade agreement’s new and enhanced requirements.

Developed jointly by AIAG and Odette, the revised M-17 publication contains operational guidelines for the development of an Automotive Supply Chain Management Agreement (ASCMA) to be used between parties in the global automotive industry.

Mike Sturgeon, executive director of ECG – The Association of European Vehicle Logistics, says that the combination of the ongoing war in Ukraine — coupled with the semi-conductor and other part shortages, exploding fuel prices, and inflation — are bringing automotive production to a stop in many places around the world.

AIAG recently participated in the Mexico Supplier Day in Puebla, Mexico, giving a presentation on AIAG’s Supply Chain Security Program, which addresses not only CTPAT, but also Mexico’s OEA program and others. Hosted by CANACINTRA Puebla y CLAUZ Automotriz Puebla on March 24, 2022, the event brings together OEMs and auto parts suppliers as well as representatives from the metalworking and plastic sectors. The purpose is to generate collaborations and networking opportunities between the participating companies.