Independent European Forwarding and Logistics group Maurice Ward has bought a majority stake in Bulgarian-based forwarder Dex Logistics. Maurice Ward Group, established 1968 in Dublin, now operates 32 forwarding stations in 15 European countries. Joint group managing director , John Ward said: “This acquisition will deepen our footprint in Europe , allow us access to a new geographical market and will further advance our drive to become a strong independent European supply chain organisation. The Dex management team is young and creative and will work well within the Maurice Ward Group.”
Ms Elitsa Vandalova, Station Manager, Maurice Ward Bulgaria.
Tags: Bulgaria, Freight, Logistics
CMA CGM Group’s flagship and largest French-flagged containership Christophe Colomb became the 100th vessel of more than 10,000 teus to call at the port of Le Havre on 6 December. The ship is the first in a series of eight vessels named after great explorers, and has a capacity of up to 13,800teu.
P&O Ferries’ Spirit of Britain, at 49,000 tonnes the largest ferry ever designed for the Dover Strait, made her first sea trials in late November and early December. She is due to go into service in late January and will be joined by a sister vessel in September.
GAC Logistics has opened an office in Sheffield, its tenth in the UK. It will provide a wide range of services and solutions to serve companies throughout South Yorkshire and the North Midlands. GAC is planning to open a further eight locations in the UK over the next two years.
International Heavy Transport Company Van der Vlist have recently completed a local quay movement in Rotterdam, moving several large vessels from the ship to storage. The size of the larger pieces was phenomenal, but by using specialist modular equipment they posed no problem whatsoever.
The items will be moved again once the delivery address is ready to accept them.
Van der Vlist have the equipment to move anything that can legally be moved by road in a trans-European capacity.
Tags: Freight, Logistics, Van der Vlist
CMA-CGM Shipping Ireland won the Port of Cork-sponsored the Irish Exporter Awards in the ‘Deep Sea Shipping Company’ category in Dublin on 25 November. It was made for the French-owned line’s record in providing global container shipping solutions for companies in all sectors.
London-based insurance company Thomas Miller has won the Insurance Day Corporate Social Responsibility Award for its sponsorship of the Chauncy Maples Malawi Trust (see FBJ 2, page 4). The UK charity is renovating a 19th century ship as a clinic to provide medical services to the lakeside people of Malawi. Thomas Miller has already raised more than half of the target £2 million but it is still not too late to contribute. Work has started stripping out the ship in preparation for major hull work and the next step is to persuade the world’s maritime manufacturers to donate £800,000 worth of parts.
www.thomasmiller.com/about-thomas-miller/125-years-chauncy-maples/
Tags: Freight, Malawi, Shipping
PALLETFORCE Plc chief executive Michael Conroy is urging the Prime Minister not to backtrack on plans to introduce a fuel duty stabiliser.
David Cameron recently suggested plans that formed part of the Conservative’s election manifesto to cap petrol prices could be revived.
However he has since told motorists not to ‘raise their hopes’ and said although he had asked the Treasury to look into the proposals, it is a ‘difficult issue’.
Mr Conroy is the Chief Executive of Palletforce Plc, the UK’s leading member-owned palletised distribution network made up of more than 100 of the UK’s top hauliers.
This week he warned that the government needs to heed the views of the transport industry.
“The government should not underestimate how important our industry is to the nation’s economy,” said Mr Conroy.
“It is our members’ trucks on the roads that enable other businesses to deliver their goods to stores and customers, ensuring a constant flow of trade and cash. Escalating fuel prices cause huge problems for our operators and eventually result in price increases that will push up inflation.
“Higher fuel costs also cause problems in the retail sector, which in turn reduces transport volumes. Putting up prices at the pumps gives consumers less money to spend which means that stores have fewer goods to deliver and transport. This combination of higher costs and lower volumes is a lethal mix for the transport sector, on which the UK is wholly reliant.
“As an industry we operate with very little margin and are already dealing with other austerity measures such as the VAT rise. With petrol prices already at a peak any move towards limiting fuel prices would go a long way to providing some security and breathing space for transport companies of every size.”
Tags: Freight, Logistics, Palletforce
ALS (Freight Management Nederland) BV, Moerdijk and ALS Belgie bvba, Antwerp has successfully shipped 3 large hydraulic foundation machines from Belgium to India.
Each machine’s dimensions were 24 metres in length, 3.50 metres wide and a staggering 3.50 meters high and weighed 68 and 79 tonnes.
The 3 machines together with 3 mafi trailers containing loose equipment were organised by ALS Moerdijk and shipped from Belgium by one of the largest roro vessels (6645 CUE) to India. (The largest being 8011 CEU).
In addition the remaining auxiliary equipment was shipped in 11 x 40′ Open Top containers, arranged via ALS’ container specialists in Antwerp.
The machines will be used in the development of India’s Paradip port area to drill thousands of foundation piles for a large refinery.
In India the machines and equipment were transported from the port over 1,600 kilometers to their final destination.
After lengthy trials, independent freight forwarder F.S. Mackenzie has
launched guaranteed twice-weekly express road trailer services between
Western Europe and Iraq.
The service, which caters for express groupage and part-loads, has
been launched in response to increased business demand to supply goods
to growing markets in Iraq, especially in the Kurdistan region. It
follows the creation of a business partnership with leading Iraqi
freight forwarder and integrated logistic solutions provider, Mateen Express.
The service operates twice a week from hubs in Dortmund, Germany and
Basildon, England and goes to the Mateen Express hub at Erbil, Iraq.
The trailers travel via Italy where they are taken by ferry to Mersin,
Turkey for onward travel to Erbil. During the trials, F.S. Mackenzie
has been handling around two trailers a week.
Alfred Stienen, Managing Director, F.S. Mackenzie, knows this is the
right time to offer this new guaranteed express groupage and part-load
service between Western Europe and Iraq.
Stienen says: Our trials have been an absolute success and given us
the belief to launch this service to the market. There are many
freight forwarders who claim to provide a service to Iraq, but few
deliver. The market knows that Iraqi consumers and business community
are demanding more Western European goods and that F.S. Mackenzie is
now on a firm footing to serve that demand.
F.S. Mackenzies German hub is strategically located near Dortmund in
the heart of the industrialised Rhine and Ruhr areas and can process
shipments from all over Germany, as well as other EU countries. The UK
depot at Basildon is convenient for motorway access to many of the UKs
manufacturing districts. Both locations cement F.S Mackenzies ability
to serve exporters from these and surrounding markets.
During the trials, I was so pleased that we were able to move valuable
and demanding cargo such as equipment for the oil and gas industries.
This demonstrates that the export community can trust us with their
valuable cargoes. Many customers will be attracted to the fact that
cargo on this service is not transhipped on the journey.
Co-loading opportunities
As part of the Famous Pacific Shipping (FPS) global family of
forwarders, F.S. Mackenzie offers opportunities for cross trading and
co-loading onto the Iraqi service at the European hubs, as well as a
link up in Mersin or Istanbul for on-carriage into Iraq.
Stienen adds: As part of the FPS family, our reach is global and I
invite freight customers throughout Western Europe to connect with
this service at our Dortmund or Basildon hubs, I am especially pleased
that we have linked up with Mateen Express. Their knowledge of the
Iraqi market is a perfect complement to F.S. Mackenzies European
knowledge. Clients of both will now be able to take advantage of the
synergies we have created in this arrangement.
Mateen Express is a full service freight forwarder with five branches
in Iraq (Erbil, Baghdad, Basra, Sulaimanya and Duhok), a full set up
in Dubai and two of its own branches in China.
