Gearing up for growth - Speed, agility and cost-efficiency; the future of the automotive supply chain

New UK car sales have accelerated to a ten-year high. Fuelled by PPI compensation windfalls, attractive finance deals, and shorter buying cycles (due to perceived savings from the efficiency of new cars), the automotive market, at last, appears to be on the road to recovery following six years of decline. The rest of Europe looks equally promising. Demand is strong and on the increase; IHS Automotive predicts global auto sales will climb to 85 million this year and increase steadily through to 2018 when annual auto sales are forecast to top 100 million.