THIRD party logistics provider Damco has appointed international logistics professional, Martin Sieg, to take charge of ocean freight at a time when the company aims to achieve ambitious growth.
Since January 1, Mr Sieg took up the position of global head of ocean freight with overall responsibility for 600,000 TEU of ocean freight that the company manages each year.
The international freight expert is bullish about his new job in spite of market volatility. "The role of ocean transport, as a substantial part of the ever growing worldwide trade, will grow further," Mr Sieg said.
Having registered record profit growth of 29 per cent to US$97 million last year, the company is looking to grow more than the market average, to become one of the top five logistics providers in the world.
"It is extremely exciting to be in charge of one of the major products supporting this growth. Our Ocean Freight solutions will play a major role in our future development and we will further enhance our service scope to follow the customer demands," the new head of ocean freight said.
Mr Sieg was prior to joining the company the managing director of German logistics company SDV Geis and has previously held several managerial roles with Hapag-Lloyd.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
INTTRA in collaboration with Fonterra, a major exporter of dairy products, says it is delivering the sea freight industry's first standardised electronic bill of lading.
Using the e-bill of lading process, sellers/exporters can accelerate the order-to-cash cycle, reduce days of sales outstanding and generate significant cost savings by reducing or eliminating courier and discrepancy fees, a statement said.
In addition, e-B/Ls are designed to facilitate faster access to goods for buyers. This new electronic process can impact over 15 million ocean shipments that rely on courier delivery of paper B/Ls each year as the document of title to goods.
"We are pleased to deliver a standardised multi-bank, multi-carrier electronic B/L solution to Fonterra, in association with SWIFT and Bolero, which utilises Bolero's proven technology and legal framework to reduce costs and streamline global supply chains," said Ivan Latanision, INTTRA, senior vice president, product management.
"This multi-party e-B/L solution streamlines electronic title transfer for shipments involving letters of credit or collections and connects the physical supply chain with the financial supply chain," Mr Latanision said.
Said Fonterra documentation manager Clyde Fletcher: "The potential savings from straight-through electronic processing and a faster supply chain are likely to be considerable for all parties."
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
JAPAN's largest carrier Mitsui OSK. Lines (MOL) has held this year's set of Safety Conferences in Manila, Mumbai, Dubrovnik and Tokyo.
More than 210 seafarers, who were on leave, took part in the February conference in Manila, 100 participated in Mumbai, 130 attended the event in Dubrovnik, and 70 were on hand for the March 7 session in Tokyo.
The event opened with a message from company chairman Akimitsu Ashida, and president Koichi Muto was cited as saying: "Safe operation is key to winning credibility and trust from our customers in the severe business environment surrounding our company. Our goal is to become the world leader in safe operation, as stated in its mid-term management plan."
"To achieve this goal, I hope all seafarers on the front lines of safe operation will be motivated to further enhance the safety of the MOL group fleet," Mr Muto added.
The conferences focused on the main theme of "eradication of accidents resulting in injury or death," and safe vessel operations.
In addition to the Tokyo conference, 60 Japanese seafarers and office staff, including executive officer Masaaki Nemoto, who took part in a "hazard experience" training session that replicated various potential risks in onboard operations, and reaffirmed the group's commitment to accident-free operation.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
JEDDAH based Saudi Airlines Cargo is to launch a twice-weekly freighter service to link cheaper manufacturing hubs of southeast Asia to the Middle East and Germany using a B747 freighter.
The service will fly from Ho Chi Minh City to Dubai and Frankfurt from March 25.
In a report from Air Cargo World its vice-president of commercial Peter Scholten said that Ho Chi Minh City (Saigon) is an emerging market: "With China becoming more expensive, production is increasingly being moved to Vietnam and other developing countries".
"With China becoming more expensive, production is increasingly being moved to Vietnam and other developing countries. This new service will enable us to expand our network into the region in response to changing market conditions," he said.
Saudi Airlines Cargo will perform a Brussels-Dubai routing twice a week and fly from Amsterdam to Dubai once a week, according to a press release.
Ingo-Alexander Rahn, executive vice president of global air freight and head of StarBroker at DHL, said the decision to collaborate with Saudi was strategic. "We chose to work with Saudi Airlines Cargo on this programme because, in addition to the new orientation of [Saudi Arabian Airlines], we have found the right mix of commitment, flexibility and network capabilities," he said.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
KOREAN Air has announced the launch of A380 service between Seoul Incheon and Frankfurt starting March 25 with a three-class layout of lowest number of seats at 407 for the double-decker aircraft.
KE905 will depart Seoul/Incheon at 1250 hrs daily and arrive in Frankfurt at 1745 hrs the same day. The return flight, KE906, will depart Frankfurt daily at 1945 hrs and arrive in Seoul/Incheon at 1305 hrs the following day.
"Our A380 flight is a game changer for Frankfurt," says Korean Air's regional manager for the Frankfurt Office, Sung Hwan Jung in a statement. "Our exclusive upstairs Prestige Class, Duty Free Showcase, the hosted Celestial Bar and other lounges, combined with the roominess of the A380 aircraft, will provide our passengers with an unparalleled travelling experience," he added.
Korean Air's double-decker A380s feature cutting-edge amenities, with 12 ultra-luxurious First Class Kosmo Suites and 301 Economy Class seats on the first floor, and 94 lie-flat Prestige Sleeper seats in Prestige Class (business class) on upstairs.
Korean Air currently operates five A380 aircraft to major destinations such as New York, Los Angeles and Hong Kong. The introduction of the super jumbo aircraft on the Frankfurt route is expected to increase both business and leisure passengers from China, Japan and East Asia transferring to Europe.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
MIDAMERICA St Louis Airport approval by St Clair County Board of US$550 million of bond issue to pay for a China air freight hub has been criticised by industry expert.
Aviation consultant Michael Boyd, of the Colorado-based Boyd Group International, a long-standing critic of the "big idea" of air cargo operation between St Louis and China, said Strategic Air Cargo's scheme is a "boondoggle" and a "national embarrassment".
But Strategic Air Cargo spokesman Gary Andreas said: "Nobody on the St Clair County side has gone into this blindly".
The air cargo group must still repay the bonds, despite tax-exemption, and should backers substitute equity for debt it is unlikely to borrow the whole amount, he added.
Further evidence of concrete links to a group, yet to be incorporated, is its partnership with BB&T Capital Markets, a subsidiary of a North Carolina bank, said Mark Kern, the county board chairman, of an underused airport with distinct advantages of lowest landing fees and excess developable land.
Mr Boyd stands by his previous criticism of a China hub in St Louis as a "pipe dream". Air cargo must be shipped to a place where the stuff is used or being built, not shipped by truck for another day and a half to New York.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
LEADING cross-border express services provider, DHL, has launched two direct flights from its Hong Kong hub to Ho Chi Minh City and Chengdu.
The company said its new Hong Kong-Chengdu route will ensure evening pick-up and next-day delivery for shipments to Chengdu and other economic centres in southwestern China, such as Chongqing, Kunming and Guiyang.
This route is operated in cooperation with Yangtze River Express Ltd, a Chinese all-cargo airline, operating a Boeing 737-300 freighter flying five times per week. High value and formal export shipments, dependent upon customs clearance, are expected to benefit from a previously unavailable same-day uplift service.
An additional direct flight was launched earlier this year, which connects Hong Kong to Ho Chi Minh City. The introduction of five Boeing 727F flights per week, each with a payload of 22 tonnes, is operated by its joint venture partner airline, Air Hong Kong.
The new direct flight, which replaces the existing flight transiting in Bangkok, shortens the transit time between Vietnam, the US and Europe by two hours. As a result, customers will now have extra time to package their goods before sending them abroad with latest courier pick-up at 22:00 for next day delivery.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
DESPITE industry concerns of the negative health effects of pilots being exposed to high levels of radiation over the North Pole owing to a thinning of the ozone layer, Russia's AirBridgeCargo Airlines has operated its first flight over the North Pole en route from Chicago to Krasnoyarsk.
The Boeing 747-400 freighter operating the flight was said to be carrying a very special load - 175 Angus bred heifers, weighing a total of 104,000 kilogrammes. The animals landed safely at Krasnoyarsk's Emelyanovo Airport from where they were transported to a local breeding farm.
"This type of flight requires a high level of expertise from the crew because it differs from regular flight operations. Transpolar traffic is subject to zero wind conditions and can face satellite navigation system errors, radiation hazards and disrupted radio contact," a company statement said.
"Given these challenges, AirBridgeCargo chose one of its most experienced pilots for the operation, chief pilot Oleg Trotsenko, who has participated in cross-polar flight tests since 1997," said the company.
"For each pilot, opening and deployment of this new air path is a challenge. At AirBridgeCargo we have an experienced team of highly-skilled flight crew capable of undertaking such flights," Captain Trotsenko said.
According to the cargo airline, the commencement of transpolar flights from Russia will boost the "transit potential of our country. This route allows for savings in both time and fuel consumption and we do hope that it will be popular with our customers," said company president Tatyana Arslanova.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
EUROPEAN airline group OLT, which recently merged with Polish carriers Yes Airways and Jet Air, has chosen to use Commsoft's OASES maintenance management software.
Warsaw charter carrier Yes Airways, which is rebranding as OLT Express Poland, was already an OASES-user since May 2011. Regional carrier Jet Air, based in Gdansk, is rebranding as OLT Express Regional and will initially use OASES to support its fleet of two ATR 42-300 twin turboprop aircraft.
Both carriers have substantial expansion plans. OLT Express Poland intends to grow its current fleet of three Airbus A320s to 11 A319/A320s this year and, as a result, is expanding its OASES licence to cover 20 concurrent users.
OLT Express regional intends to add six ATR 72 twin turboprops in the coming months, and another six aircraft later in the year. It is signing for an initial 10 concurrent users of OASES.
Nick Godwin, Commsoft managing director, said: "It is a huge pleasure to see our customer Yes Airways become part of a larger operation so quickly. Implementing OASES in a short period to support the carrier's rapid creation was an exciting and successful project. Now we look forwards to demonstrating how OASES has the flexibility and scalability to handle further rapid expansion and dynamic fleet growth. We are also delighted to add another customer, OLT Express Regional, to our growing family of OASES users."
OLT CEO, Jacek Lyczba added: "It is a great advantage for us to be able to build on Yes Airways' OASES implementation to support the rapid growth that we plan for our company. This gives us the confidence we need to know that our maintenance processes are robust and that we meet all regulatory requirements during a time of transition and beyond."
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
CHINA Eastern Airlines is forecasting a slow first half with a bigger improvement into the second half of 2012 due to the pressures of the European economic crisis on both cargo and passenger traffic.
According to the carrier's chairman Liu Shaoyong, 2012 will show a "big difference" from year previous but declined to give particulars of its impact on the company's financial performance, Reuters reports.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
SWISS WorldCargo is to double its connection options to Newark, New York by deploying a wide-body capacity using an Airbus A340-300 to connect with pharmaceutical manufacturing areas.
The carrier will provide its products suite for general and special cargo such as SWISS Celsius, SWISS X-Presso, SWISS Mail and SWISS Argus.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
MOSCOW will be the venue of this year's executive summit and annual general meeting of The International Air Cargo Association's (TIACA) to be held on May 23-24 and to be hosted by Volga-Dnepr Group.
The theme of the summit will be Air Cargo in the Rising Economies: East Balances West, and will see business leaders from both Russia and other major global markets discussing the fast-growing opportunities to do business in Russia.
With sustained growth momentum supported by a home market of 143 million consumers, rich oil and gas reserves and its imminent membership of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Russia sits proudly at the top table of the world's most influential economies, said the TIACA statemnent.
Situated midway between the Asian and North American markets and with a thriving air cargo industry of its own, the conference will explore the importance of the Russian air cargo market to the global economy.
TIACA has invited officials from the Federal Customs Service of Russia, the Freight Forwarders Association of the Russian Federation, the Moscow Chamber of Commerce and Volga-Dnepr Group to give a insights into the thriving Russia market. Tom Crabtree, regional director, marketing, Europe, Boeing Commercial Airplanes, will also present an overview of the Russia and CIS markets.
Douglas Brittin, general manager, air cargo, Transportation Security Administration (TSA), US Department of Homeland Security, will also be in Moscow to update TIACA delegates on air cargo security. He will then participate in a panel with industry representatives looking at other global issues impacting the air cargo supply chain.
The event will also incorporate TIACA's Hall of Fame gala dinner on May 24.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
TURKISH Cargo, a subsidiary of Turkish Airlines, boosted the number of its weekly Istanbul-Budapest flights to two, starting from the beginning of March, as the cargo airline sees "significant potential in the Hungarian market and plans further expansion of capacity and frequency," it said in a statement.
The carrier deploys an Airbus A310 freighter on the service from Budapest Airport that from now on departs on Thursday afternoons, as well as, on Saturday mornings.
The company said it plans to increase the frequency of its flights to three a week. "It may change with permission to Thursday-Sunday flights in the summer schedule," a company statement said. It also plans to replace its Airbus A310 with the larger A330 freighter, to boost carrying capacity from 38 tons to 67 tons per flight.
The cargo airline said it delivers mainly textile goods and electronics from Asia to Budapest and it exports from Hungary pharmaceuticals, engineering products and electronic appliances manufactured in Hungary.
Levend Arisoy, general manager in Hungary said: "We see great opportunities and high values in the Hungarian market. Hopefully in the near future we will be able to operate three weekly flights to Budapest in addition to setting a much larger sized aircraft on this route. By 2015 we would like to operate a daily cargo flight between Istanbul and Budapest."
The freight carrier debuted in the Hungarian market last July with a weekly cargo flight on the Istanbul-Budapest route. The delivered about 1,500 tons of cargo during this period between Hungary and Turkey.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
SCANDINAVIAN Airlines (SAS) has appointed CHEP Aerospace Solutions to supply and manage its unit load device (ULD) requirements under a five-year contract.
CHEP Aerospace Solutions is providing SAS with containers and pallets from its global pool of more than 45,000 ULDs, removing the cost and hassle for the airline of positioning, repairing and managing its own fleet.
The carrier will have an option to transition to using lightweight containers supplied from CHEP Aerospace Solutions' pool, allowing it to reduce fuel emissions, helping the environment at the same time as reducing costs.
Director of network and revenue management, Kenneth Fuhrmann, said: "Contracting with CHEP Aerospace Solutions provides SAS the flexibility we need to focus upon our core business of flying passengers and cargo. CHEP proved itself to have the resources and systems to manage our needs. We look forward to our future cooperation."
Said CHEP president Ludwig Bertsch: "An increasing number of airlines are recognising that outsourcing ULD supply and management is a viable and compelling proposition."
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
APPLE's debut of its new iPad has increased air freight rates by as much as 20 per cent from China to the US and Europe by its pre-booking of freight space at premium rates, reports Taiwan News Channel.
The millions of units of the latest tablet device, iPad 3, has boosted cargo business in March for the Taiwanese carriers of China Airlines (CAL) and EVA Airways.
But pressure is on to provide enough space for the huge shipments expected by Apple because of the mothballing of freighters because of recent overcapacity in the market.
Source Shipping Gazette - Daily Shipping News
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