In writing a previous editorial about London’s Low Emission’s Zone, I pointed out that while important, the environment is not the only issue in town.

However, despite that being my view I am all too aware that it is not the prevailing view today as people, politicians and populists all get on the bandwagon with a tunnel vision that will no doubt help the environment, but at the detriment of others.

The latest occurrence of this as I see it is the decision by German coffee and retail chain, Tchibo.  In it’s wisdom, the company has decided to place pressure on its contracted container carriers and forwarders by demanding a reduction in emissions, with Tchibo wanting a 30% reduction of its own CO2 emissions by 2015.

Admittedly the company is trying to do the right thing by the environment on it’s own, but by placing demands on others, Tchibo has moved from being conscientious to controlling, and while I have always held a belief that in normal circumstances the customer is always right, there must be a limit.

Indeed some of what Tchibo is now pressing for, the reduction of ship speed to save fuel and the implementation of eco-friendly technology, has I imagine, never been the total prerogative of the customer.  Tchibo therefore has now entered that realm of wanting more than just the provision of services, they are demanding a right to oversee how those services are provided.

While some freight carriers may be happy to accommodate Tchibo’s demands, the end result will be increased costs, all of which will be passed onto the consumer. 

As ever, a balance needs to be found between environmental, financial and every day life issues, something that will not be accomplished by one-sided environmental demands.

Editorial by Findlay Osborn

Source: Lloyds List

Frankfurt-Hahn airport in western Germany has been chosen by EgyptAir Cargo as the carrier’s central European cargo hub.  The airline announcing their decision this week along with the plan to increase their weekly flights to Frankfurt-Hahn from seven to fifteen flights.

EgyptAir Cargo started operations at Frankfurt-Hahn in 2002 with the airline carrying fresh fruit and perishables into Europe with machine parts, technical equipment and even live animals and other valuable freight making up the return journeys.

Hassaan Aglan, Sales Manager of EgyptAir Cargo in Germany, commenting  on  the announcements said that with the expansion services, EgyptAir Cargo will be in the position to offer customers freight capacities of more than 1500 tons per week.

Welcoming the decision to make Frankfurt-Hahn EgyptAir Cargo’s central European hub was the Minister of Economics for Rhineland Palatinate, Hendrik Hering.  “Egypt Air Cargo has been a large factor for the successful development of the freight sector at Hahn for the past five years” said Hering.  “The increase of weekly flights from seven to fifteen will lead to a considerable incline of economic growth and have the consequence of creating new positions. We are calculating with more then 100 jobs on a mid–term time span which will emerge through the stronger commitment of Egypt Air.”

EgyptAir Cargo currently serves eleven cities in nine countries with a fleet of Airbus A300B4 cargo aircraft.  EgyptAir Cargo also makes provisions for surface transportation arrangements in both Egypt and between selected European cities.

Source: Frankfurt-Hahn Airport and EgyptAir Cargo

Canadian freight carriers Canadian Pacific and Consolidated Fastfrate have put pen to paper on a new deal that will se the two companies cooperation extended another ten years.

The $500 Million dollar deal is a continuation of a lengthy partnership between the two organisations, both companies having decided back in 19666 to embark on a co-location program for the respective companies infrastructure.

Indeed Consolidated Fastfrate’s strategic decision to build all of it’s freight handling centres adjacent to Canadian Pacific inter-modal terminals has seen remarkable benefit for both companies.  Together the companies are able to combine the long-haul efficiency of railway transportation with the speed and convenience of a dock-to-dock carrier.

Commenting on the continuing partnership was Ron Tepper, President and Chief Executive Officer of Consolidated Fastfrate.  Mr Tepper said that “The strategic relationship we have with CP, which exists at every level of their organization, has been the foundation upon which we built our company.”  “I am incredibly proud to sign an agreement of this magnitude.”

President and Chief Executive Officer of Canadian Pacific also touted  the deal saying that “Over the past forty years we have seen the incredible growth and development of the intermodal industry,” and that “This is an important business for CP, and CFF has been a
strategic intermodal partner from the start.”

Together the two company’s provide customers with  a reliable rail-based intermodal service across Canada, as well as an efficient less-than-truckload service, freight consolidation, de-consolidation, warehousing and transshipping.

Source: CNW Group

United Arab Emirates airline, Etihad Airways has announced that it’s “Crystal Cargo” concern will now offer global shipment tracking via short message service (SMS).

The decision by Etihad to offer SMS tracking will enable customers around the world to obtain real-time information about the status of their shipments, which is sent by SMS to the customers designated mobile phone.

First introduced in 2006, the ability to track shipments globally by SMS has now been enabled by Etihad Crystal Cargo, thanks to the utilization of the “SMS Xprez” SMS Gateway solution, supplied by the Ontrack Systems (UAE) Ltd.  The system is linked to Etihad’s Cargo Reservations Information Sales Tracking Accounting and Logistics program, which picks up the information on the shipment from the system and sends the SMS update to the customer.

Speaking on the announcement of the new SMS service, Etihad Airways’ executive vice president for cargo, Des Vertannes said that “The introduction of SMS tracking technology is another important step for Etihad Crystal Cargo.”  “It is vital for our customers to know at any time exactly where in the world their shipment is located. Furthermore, by tracking their shipment so precisely our customers will be able to improve the efficiency of their own businesses.”

Launched in 2004, Etihad’s Crystal Cargo aims to eke out a growing slice of the surging Middle-East freight and cargo markets, along with it’s service to some fifty destinations worldwide.

Source: Etihad Crystal Cargo

Global logistics provider CEVA Logistics has announced that they will invest some six-million Euro to expand their Jundiaí distribution centre in Sao Paulo, Brazil. 

The expansion will allow the company to double the capacity of the reception, storage, shipping, and transport management facility, giving the centre a total of twenty-five thousand square metres of capacity, space for over twenty thousand pallet positions.

Ceva Logistics utilises the Jundiaí Distribution centre to provide logistics services to a number of worldwide companies whose primary business relates to electronics, office supplies and consumer goods.

Among the services offered by CEVA Logistics at the Jundiaí site include modern inventory management systems as well as other programs designed for the general storage regime.  The company also asserts that the Jundiaí distribution centre will be certified to Transport Asset Protection Association, Freight Security Standards.

Business Development Director for CEVA Logistics South America, Paulo Franceschini, highlighted the importance of continued investment, saying that CEVA had set a growth target of 10% for 2008 and that the company needed to offer the correct infrastructure and solutions for the companies current and future customers.

Source: CEVA Logistics and the Transport Asset Protection Association

Airline and air freight giant American Airlines (AA) Cargo has announced that it will expand it’s express freight product “Expeditefs” guarantee to include its truck feeder service.

According to AA Cargo, the carriers express freight product provides for a 97 percent service reliability metric and a 100 percent flown-as-booked guarantee.

Expected benefits from the move to incorporate trucking segments to the Expeditefs guarantee include complete shipment visibility resulting in shipper confidence.  AA Cargo customers will now be able to track and check shipments on a real-time basis, from the city of origin right up until final destination, via the cargo carriers web-based tracking system.

Commenting on the expansion, Carl Frey, Manager of AA Cargo’s Operations Centre said that “By expanding Expeditefs to include routings on American Airlines scheduled truck services, AA Cargo further enhances its ability to provide customers priority boarding and faster hub connections to any of the more than 250 AA Cargo destinations on four continents.”

Highlighting the need to keep pace with constant consumer demands, Bob Dibble, AA Cargo Operations Manager said on the announcement that “We aren’t just providing greater confidence, we are giving forwarders what their businesses demand. With a service reliability rate of more than 97 percent, we know that we are meeting the needs of our customers with this product.”

AA Cargo operates one of the largest cargo networks in the world servicing over 250 destination cities in over 40 countries with a combined fleet over over 1,00 aircraft.

Source: American Airlines Cargo

Integrated freight forwarding company Towne Air Freight has announced that it has purchased Synergy Cargo Logistics with the aim of expanding the company’s services into the South-Western portion of the United States.

The purchase of Synergy culminates what was a five month effort by Towne Air Freight to expand into the  south-west region, the deal seeing Synergy’s eight locations in the region go to Towne, this equating to seven full-service terminals in the South-Western United States, with a further four service points in California, Arizona and Texas.

With the additional Synergy locations, Towne Air Freight now services fifty-three cities nationwide, locations the company says will provide a complete menu of services including Towne’s “On-Time Guaranteed” airport-to-airport and airport-to-door service as well as Local Pick up and Delivery.

Speaking on the announcement of the purchase, Towne Air Freight’s President and Chief Executive Tom Downey said that “It expands our geographic footprint in the cities that we serve.  We just feel like that (The South Western United States) is a very fast growing part of our country.”

In light of Towne’s acquisition of Synergy Cargo Logistics, founder of Synergy, Kim Sheridan-Rohasek has taken on the role as Vice President of Towne Air Freight’s Western Region and has remarked that the deal does provide Synergy the opportunity to continue to excel.

South Bend Illinois based since its founding in 1963, Towne Air Freight has grown to become a full-service provider of premium air cargo ground transportation, as well as a rapidly growing provider of logistics management services.

Sources: South Bend Tribune, Towne Air Freight and Edgeview Partners

Merged logistics companies DB Schenker and BAX Global have broken ground on a massive freight and logistics hub at Dallas Fort Worth airport.

The two-building project that measures over 61,500 square meters is the second such facility for DB Schenker and BAX Global in the United States and is set to become, once completed, a major asset for the integrated companies, given Dallas Fort Worth Airport’s (DFW) strategic location.

In a deal that took some eighteen months to finalise, DB Schenker and  BAX Global have leased the land from the Dallas based, Perot Development Company.  The 18.34 acre allotment will be leased on a standard 40-year lease and contained within DFW Airport’s International Commerce Park.  The facility itself will consist of a 6,596 square metre cross-dock with 78 front bays with dock-high doors, over 7 metres clear height and a 36.5 meters clear span, in addition to an over 120,000 square meter side-load structure with 30 dock-high doors and 9.7 meter clear height.

John Terrell Vice President for Commercial Development at DFW Airport welcomed the new development, saying that “the Schenker deal is directly in line with the type of development and users that are complementary for the airport. It will make a fantastic statement for this park and the airport as well.”

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Hamburg based shipping line Hapag-Lloyd has announced that it will restructure its container freight services between Northern Europe and destinations within Greece and turkey.

The company announced on Friday that its European Express (EEX)  Service would be restructured allowing for a doubling of weekly departures.

In line with dedicated European feeder services, the EEX Services will sail to the Ports of Istanbul, Thessaloniki and Gemlik once per week, and the ports of Izmir and Piraeus twice per week. 

Both services will be run in co-operation with MSC Shipping Lines, with the first departure of the restructured service leaving the Port of Bremerhaven on February twelve.

Source: Hapag-Lloyd

British Columbia’s Vancouver International Airport has today received authorisation from the Canadian Government to participate in an international air cargo transshipment program.

The program, which was first rolled out in Canada in the 1980’s to assist less frequented airports by allowing air carriers, in the absence of operating rights under bilateral air transport agreements, to carry cargo to and from Canada and en-route to international destinations. 

Since 2006 however,  the program has been extended to all Canadian airports subject to application requirements and approvals.  Vancouver International Airport is now the latest airport on the growing list of approved airports.  Canadian Minister for Transport, Infrastructure and Communities The Honourable Lawrence Cannon announcing the airports participation yesterday.

“Our government is pleased to have the international air cargo
transshipment program in place,” said Minister Cannon. “Vancouver
International Airport now has an additional tool to help develop its air cargo business, which will benefit the local economy.”

Vancouver International Airport Chief Executive Officer Larry Berg welcomed the governments move, saying that “the program fits well with our overall gateway strategy for air cargo.” “It puts Vancouver International Airport in a more competitive position in facilitating international goods movement.

The Vancouver Airport Authority reports that in the eleven months to November 2007, the total volume of cargo moved through Vancouver International totaled just over 207,000 tonnes, with the airports “cargo village” contributing significantly to the airports business.

Sources: Transport Canada, CNW Group and the Vancouver Airport Authority