NEWS BLOG

Trans-Rak's Managing Director, Paul Donaldson (left), welcomes Lance Hunt (right) as International Sales Executive.

We are delighted to welcome Lance Hunt to the Trans-Rak team as our new International Sales Executive.

As Trans-Rak continues to expand its presence across global markets, Lance joins us at an exciting time in our growth journey. He brings with him a wealth of experience within the logistics and transport sector, having built a strong track record of developing customer relationships, identifying new opportunities, and delivering solutions that support efficient international supply chains.

As pressure grows on automotive logistics companies to reduce emissions, calculating the true carbon footprint of car transporter options has grown into a core business requirement, rather than being a simple sustainability exercise. This is particularly true for multi vehicle transport operators, where operational decisions about routing, loading, and equipment can significantly change the emissions tally per vehicle. In the UK, transport is responsible for around 29% of total greenhouse gas emissions, with road transit accounting for the largest share. Against this backdrop, car transport operators are increasingly expected to calculate, report, and actively manage their emissions with greater accuracy and consistency.

The global rise in electric vehicle production is quietly transforming how cars are shipped, as well as the types of cars people drive. As EV sales volumes grow and trade lanes shift in response to market changes and geopolitical pressures, logistics providers are having to rethink many long-standing assumptions about RoRo shipping, container capacity, and the role of the vehicle container in finished-vehicle logistics.

For many years, the art of loading cars into containers successfully relied heavily on experience. There was nothing particularly ‘digital’ about it. Skilled operators developed effective methods through repetition and trial and error, adapting their racking configurations to different vehicle profiles and constraints on the ground. However, as vehicle mixes became more complex and tolerance for error began to shrink, some operators began to reach for innovative software tools to help optimise their vehicle logistics strategies.

Global shipping costs are once again under scrutiny as logistics and procurement professionals warn of renewed pressure on transport budgets in 2026. According to recent industry reporting (published in the Guardian and other sources in Jan 2026), freight rate volatility, rising energy costs and persistent capacity constraints are feeding through supply chains and increasing the risk of higher end-consumer prices. In particular, spot shipping rates between major trade routes have climbed, and ongoing cost volatility is creating sustained pressure on global supply chains.

Following our earlier feature, From Logistics to the Racetrack, which introduced Trans-Rak International’s partnership with 7 Racing, the 2026 UK Championship continued at Snetterton 300 for Round 2, delivering another strong weekend of competition and a standout result for the Trans-Rak team.

Supply-chain resilience in automotive logistics is often discussed in terms of sourcing, inventory and digital visibility, but outbound vehicle flows deserve the same level of attention. For OEMs, the movement of finished vehicles has become more exposed to delay, capacity constraints and cost volatility over the past few years than many transport models were designed to absorb.

A new industry forecast shows that the global logistics automation market is expected to grow sharply from about US $36.9 billion value in 2025 to roughly US $70.6 billion by 2031 (some put the figure as high as B$146), representing an annual growth of more than 11% over five years. These systems, which include robotics, autonomous vehicles, and advanced control software, are being adopted within various logistics and transport sectors to improve efficiency at all levels of global supply chains.

Automotive logistics has always been shaped by constraints. Space is limited, lead times are fixed, handling points create risk, and every extra movement has a cost attached to it. That is part of why the net-zero 2030 (NZ-2030) discussion has become more concrete in this sector than in many others. Emissions do not sit outside the operation but are bound up with container fill levels, route structure, equipment choice and the discipline of execution.

In international vehicle logistics, quoting the ocean freight alone is never usually enough to secure a sale. What clients actually care about, and what determines whether a shipment is profitable or painful, is your Total Landed Cost (TLC). Accurately calculating and communicating the TLC is especially important if you are shipping multiple vehicles, or using space-optimisation tools such as multi-vehicle racking solutions.