Samir J Shah, Partner, JBS Group of Companies has been conferred the ‘World Customs Organisation (WCO) Certificate of Merit’ representing India on occasion of International Customs Day 2018 for rendering exceptional service to the International Customs Community. The selections for this year were announced by the International Customs Division (ICD), Central Board of Customs and Excise, Ministry of Finance, Government of India. The WCO Certificate of Merit was awarded by Shiv Pratap Shukla, Union Minister of State for Finance, Government of India, Member Parliament (Rajya Sabha) at a glittering event organized by Government of India on January 27, 2018 in the capital.

The 4,051 TEU XIN NAN TONG, part of COSCO Shipping Lines, on COSCO’s CI1 service had its maiden call at APM Terminals Mumbai on February 12, adding another important Far East service to India’s importers and exporters. Far East trade services comprise 62 per cent of the terminal’s throughput. Deployed mainly to serve the Far East trade with India, the CI1 service will enhance India’s regional market by calling on key ports such as Pipavav, Shanghai, Ningbo, Shekou, Nansha, Singapore and Penang. The service consists of five COSCO vessels and one from Wan Hai Shipping Line. APM Terminals Mumbai COO Ravi Gaitonde welcomed the vessel stating, “This new port call adds another choice for our customers shipping to and from the Far East. More choices create stronger supply chains and business growth – so we look forward to working closely with COSCO and Wan Hai to deliver operational excellence.”

Embassy Industrial Parks has announced roping in Mahindra Logistics as its client for their project in Chakan, Pune. Mahindra Logistics has signed one of the largest spaces, which is now ready to lease for warehousing purpose. Embassy Industrial Parks invested Rs 350 crore to build a 1.1-million sq. ft. industrial park at Chakan, Pune. The project mainly comprises built-to-suit facilities ranging from 50,000 sq. ft. to two lakh ft. in size. Embassy Industrial Parks has already strongly established itself by acquiring strategic land parcels lands in select areas across the country. The company plans to invest US $250 million to build seven industrial parks in major cities and has already invested in Pune, Haryana, Delhi, West Bengal & Chennai further to MOUs signed with the governments of Haryana & West Bengal. Anshul Singhal, CEO, Embassy Industrial Parks, said, “Service to us is as important as the product and we continue to set new benchmarks for Grade-A quality warehousing solutions.”

RS Subramanian, Country Manager, DHL Express India and P. G. Jadeja, CMD, Jyoti CNC Automation inaugurated the fourth service centre in Gujarat, further enhancing the company’s network capabilities in the state. Located in the Saurashtra region, the 2,518 sq. ft. facility will support the growing demand for international express services in Gujarat. “Setting up our Service Center in Rajkot is a significant step towards strengthening our network capabilities to support our customers’ growing business needs. With Rajkot set to become one of the largest automobile zones in Asia, and exports from Jamnagar and Morbi on the rise, the opening of this facility reinforces our commitment to connect Gujarat to the global market,” said Subramanian.

Expressing how technology benefits business, Kapil Mahajan, CIO, Safexpress, lists features like performance tracking and visibility, increased efficiency, enhanced floor planning, etc for optimal processes. He said, “Oracle’s enterprise-grade cloud platform solutions have helped us fast track innovation, increase operational efficiencies and improve overall IT management. The technology element aside, Oracle’s commitment to customers is demonstrated through regular, hands-on interactions we have with their various teams. These teams ensure we are taking full advantage of Oracle technology to power our business growth, making the entire journey smoother.” Mahajan listed the following business benefits achieved through technology transformation: 1.HOG (Hub On The GO) – Digital Predictive Analytical Dashboard which integrates the IoT platform with core operations. Operational Efficiency of 15-20% w.r.t the reduction in Loading/Unloading times post vehicle arrival within Safexpress Hub Geofence. 2.Workforce productivity in the range of 10-15% w.r.t the average scan count projection, post go live.

In a recent study, it has been observed that the processes and operations across India’s ports are not standardised or uniform, while costs and time for key processes are unpredictable, also there is an unacceptable level of variation across as well as within the ports. The study titled, Port Logistics: Issues and Challenges in India, undertaken by advisory firm Dun & Bradstreet (DNB) on behalf of Niti Aayog identified the major problems faced on the ground by the end-users of ports—exporters, importers and freight forwarders. It listed five issues—port congestion, custom clearance, shipping line issues and charges, documentation and paperwork and regulatory clearances—as the major hurdles leading to detention and demurrage challenges faced by traders in.

DTDC has launched its largest integrated hub in Delhi’s Samalka region. The hub will house the operations for four big verticals of express delivery business, i.e. air, ground, international and B2C. The state-of-the-art hub, occupying an area of 1,00,000 sq ft, will be equipped with an array of cutting-edge devices and state-of-the-art amenities such as automated sorter, x-ray machines, hydraulic trolleys, and several other devices that enhance the facility’s compliance, efficiency, and productivity quotients manifold. Abhishek Chakraborty, Executive Director, DTDC, said, “With the launch, DTDC has taken a step further in its efforts to establish a strong operational backbone that emboldens the entire logistical framework of the country. We envision the hub at Samalka to emerge as one of the largest, busiest integrated express hubs of the country, and equipped with all the latest technological solutions to help achieve this goal. With an ideal balance attained between labour intensive activities and automation, we hope Samalkha hub sets an example in optimising productivity without compromising on job creation, efficiency or compliance to regulations.”

Safexpress has announced the biggest-ever investment by a logistics company in the Northeast region. Out of the 12 focus industries identified by the Government for investment in Northeast in general and Assam in particular, logistics is one of the major industries. Vineet Kanaujia, Vice President – Marketing, Safexpress, said, “Given the vital role Assam plays in connecting Northeast to the rest of the country, Safexpress has recently built up an ultra-modern Logistics Park at Guwahati. We have invested Rs. 30 Crore in creating this state-of-the-art Logistics Park at Guwahati. This facility spans over an area of more than 1 million square feet, and is located strategically on National Highway 31. This logistics facility is functional 24x7x365 and ensures excellent connectivity of Northeast with the rest of India.”

Taking another step ahead to realize the potential of inland waterways in the country, Cochin Shipyard & United Shipbuilding Corporation, Russia has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to collaborate and engage in Design, Development and Execution of contemporary, state-of-the-art vessels for inland and coastal waterways. The massive push to water-based transport through the infrastructure development efforts under the Sagarmala programme of government will open up opportunities for specialised vessels. The MoU is an effort to get ready to cater to the demand for different kinds of vessels that is expected in the near and medium term.

The 9662 TEU capacity Maersk Salina arrived at APM Terminals Pipavav representing the first call of Maersk Line’s FM3 Service to APM Terminals Pipavav. The service links India to key markets through port calls in Tanjung Pelepas, Malaysia; Colombo, Sri Lanka; Nhava Sheva, India; Singapore and the Chinese ports of Dalian, Xingang, Qingdao, Busan, Gwangyang and Ningbo. The Maersk Salina loaded seafood, polymers, chemicals, dyes, tires etc. for export. Imports handled included home appliances, auto parts, machinery, plastic items, electrical/electronic goods and furniture. Keld Pederson, Managing Director, APM Terminals Pipavav, said, “We are persistent in our endeavour to offer best services to our customers by quick turnaround of cargos at the berth, at the yard & at the gate. The new addition by Maersk takes us one step closer in providing easy access to our customers located in north and west hinterland in India with key markets across the globe.”