Cargo Breaking News
With the opening of its first Asia-based Squair Service Center, ECS Group is increasing its capabilities related to the AWB Verification service offering (known as “Verify”). As demand for AWB verification outsourcing is increasing, the new team in Mumbai, India, will perform the AWB data capture activity for existing Squair customers and allow for future growth opportunities, especially in Asia. The new team in Mumbai, India, complements the existing Squair team based in Sofia, Bulgaria that has been providing both AWB verification and customs reporting services to international airlines across 12 countries since 2019. “There is a growing interest amongst airlines to maximise efficiency in their processes. AWB verification is a necessary, resource-intensive, yet non-revenue-generating activity,” says Adrien Thominet, Executive Chairman of ECS Group. “ECS Group recognised this opportunity for a new service offering early on and is the first and only GSSA to offer AWB verification as a full quality “ability” since 2019. India is the perfect location for our Verify service expansion as it offers an abundant and skilled workforce with competitive unit costs and increases our time zone coverage”.
“Our Squair team in India underwent two months of intensive training from December 2022, using ECS Group’s internal training platform, Discovery, as well as through a thorough cross-training by their Squair colleagues based in Bulgaria” Ian-Alexandre McMartin, General Manager of Squair, explains. “Squair India officially started operating on 01 February 2023, carrying out AWB verification on behalf of a leading airline operating from Spain.”
The team since then took over the AWB verification activity from that same airline in the Netherlands and is preparing to extend the geographical coverage in more European countries as the year progresses. “We offer a flexible service that allows for weekend and evening shifts matching our client’s SLAs on AWB verification,” he adds.
“Five new members joined our team in March, enabling this ramp up of operations, and we aim to treble the size of our Squair team in India to 20 by early next year,” Dimitri Arnaudin, Managing Director of Squair, outlines. “In the initial phase, our team in India is building on the “Verify” expertise of our team based in Bulgaria, where they are familiar with the specifics of the European markets. The long-term plan, however, is to establish dedicated Verify support for airlines located in and serving the Asian markets, operating in the same time zone as our Indian Squair Service Center.”
