Cathay Pacific Cargo has launched ‘Skid Fire Containment Bag’ (SFCB) in the Indian market to ensure safe and convenient transportation of lithium-ion batteries with an unlimited loadable weight capacity. This innovative cargo solution is developed to fulfil the growing global demand for lithium-ion battery shipments. SFCB is an advanced and enhanced version of the earlier introduced ‘Fire Containment Bag’ (FCB) which had a limited loadable weight capacity of up to 50 kg for lithium-ion batteries. Currently, Skid FCB service has been rolled out to three ports of Cathay Pacific in India – Delhi, Bengaluru and Chennai, and is also available in other ports across the network, namely – Hong Kong, Shanghai, Xiamen, Chongqing, Chengdu, Kansai, London, Taipei, Penang, Dhaka and will be progressively rolled out across Cathay Pacific and Air Hong Kong network in months to come. One of the key advantages of Skid FCB is that it is over five times larger and can exclusively be used for skid size shipments like larger-sized batteries used in e-vehicles. The Skid FCB is designed to transport hazardous cargo and is constructed of innovative fire-retardant material that can contain the fire within the bag, in case of the battery combusting. The bag limits the supply of oxygen, while letting the smoke escape triggering the smoke detectors on board, thus also safeguarding other shipments on board. Rajesh Menon, Regional Head Cargo – South Asia, Middle East and Africa, Cathay Pacific, says, “At Cathay Pacific Cargo, we take pride in providing our customers with holistic innovative solutions, while also ensuring the safe and secure delivery of all shipment. The support we received across our 50 ports for the Fire Containment bag has been overwhelming. …

Welspun One Logistics Parks has announced the launch of its first Alternate Investment Fund (AIF) product ‘Welspun One Logistics Parks Fund I’. The fund, a SEBI-registered Category II AIF, is India’s first warehousing fund that provides domestic institutions, HNIs, family offices and NRIs, an opportunity to invest in the booming warehousing and industrial real estate sector in India. The sector, poised at an inflection point of growth, has exhibited significant interest from blue-chip investors globally and in India. Warehousing has been one of the few sectors to have demonstrated resilience and continued growth, despite the economic headwinds due to the Covid-19 pandemic. The fund has a target size of Rs500 crore with a tenure of four years and a hurdle rate of 15 per cent. It has a significant commitment from the Welspun promoter family office of Rs75 crore. The investment thesis of the fund is to acquire land parcels in high demand, pre-identified markets, and develop Grade-A warehousing parks which will be leased on a long-term basis to ‘AAA’ credit tenants from sectors such as e-commerce, FMCG, third-party logistics (3PLs), pharma and auto-ancillaries. On completion, these assets would be divested to institutional investors including private equity, pension and sovereign funds, REITs, etc. so as to provide an exit and deliver the targeted returns to the fund investors. On the launch of the AIF, BK Goenka, Chairman, Welspun Group said: “India’s logistics sector will continue to be the backbone of economic growth and warehousing is a key component of this ecosystem. Presently, domestic investors can only invest in this high growth sector by investing directly in warehouses. Through this AIF, the investor can reap the benefits of the returns by …

Completing 9 years in the industry this month, Spoton Logistics has recorded close to 5-fold growth, from clocking Rs180 crore in revenue in 2012 to greater than Rs1000 crore run rate over the past nine years. Started off as a niche surface express logistics company, today Spoton offers an entire gamut of services comprising Express (Air / Surface / Multimodal), 3PL and Service Parts Logistics to over 5,500 customers in India. Commenting on the strong growth of the company, Abhik Mitra, MD and CEO, Spoton Logistics, says, “We take pride in this journey of 9 significant years establishing Spoton Logistics as one of the most preferred and premier logistics companies in India. We remain humble and totally focused on continuously improving service levels to our customers across all our line of business. Backed by a team of vision-oriented people, who execute to perfection through excellent teamwork and accurately engineered network, and our focus on people, technology, engineering and data, we are committed to achieving greater heights as we head towards completing a decade in the industry. The company’s growth is backed by continuous innovation and automation in its 38+ logistics hubs and greater than 350 service centres across the country. Spoton Logistics continues to invest in technology & automation such as last-mile delivery management, dynamic and interactive Chatbot, and IoT. Besides, it is investing in mechanization to improve human productivity in the operating units including investments in Cross Belt Sorter Conveyor System, BoPT, and Flexible Conveyors. Spoton has also invested in Artificial Intelligence based Video Analytics and Network Management. In a major milestone, Spoton acquired a majority stake in Raag Technologies and Services in December 2019. RTS is expected to …

Virgin Atlantic is set to increase its cargo-only flying by 60 per cent this January as its operation continues to go from strength to strength. Despite a decrease in passengers travelling due to the UK’s latest lockdown as well as travel restrictions in many destinations, demand to transport cargo remains strong and the airline’s cargo operation has adapted once more to a rapidly changing external environment. Virgin Atlantic Cargo has increased its capacity on key routes taking the airlines’ cargo-only rotations from 21 up to 33 per week this month – an increase of 60 per cent – keeping global supply chains running and transporting essential goods across the globe. The broad cargo destination offering includes daily flights between London and Brussels, offering seamless and speedy same day European connections for customers. The increase in scheduled operations comes as Virgin Atlantic Cargo celebrates a historic and record breaking year in 2020. The cargo business operated 4,000 cargo only flights and also launched 10 new routes. These included Beijing, Boston, Brussels, Chicago, Dublin, Milan, Islamabad, Lahore, San Juan and Xiamen, an unprecedented feat during turbulent operating conditions and demanding trading environments. Dominic Kennedy, Managing Director, Virgin Atlantic Cargo, said, “The growth in our cargo-only flying this January demonstrates the agility and flexibility of our teams in order to maintain a resilient cargo operation in such dynamic market conditions. Despite a decrease in passengers travelling, demand to transport cargo remains strong and we’re delighted to play our part transporting a whole range of goods across the world, keeping vital global supply chains moving. The airline also continues to transport cargo on its scheduled passenger services to destinations including Atlanta, Barbados, Boston, New …

India has put one step ahead towards the aim of developing infrastructure of Shahid Beheshti Port of Chabahar; supplied a consignment of two Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHC) to Iran’s Chabahar port, with a total contract value of over US$ 25 million under a contract agreement for supply of 6 MHC. The consignment of cranes arrived from Marghera port, Italy has been unloaded successfully on January 18, 2021 at Chabahar port and presently undergoing trials run. With 140 metric tonnes lifting capacity, multipurpose equipment and accessories like Mobile Harbour Cranes (MHC) will enable India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) to provide seamless services for container, bulk and general cargo at Shahid Beheshti Port of Chabahar. The bilateral contract between the Islamic Republic of Iran and Republic of India was signed on May 23, 2016 with a total value of US$ 85 million ‎for equipping, mechanising and starting operations at Shahid Beheshti Port of Chabahar development Phase- I. To achieve this ambitious aim, an SPV namely India Ports Global Limited (IPGL) Mumbai was incorporated under the ambit of the Ministry of Ports, ‎Shipping and Waterways. Mansukh Mandaviya, Minister of Ports, Shipping and Waterways, stated, “Chabahar Port is a strategic port with great national importance. The delivery of consignment of heavy equipment, including cranes shows India’s commitment to the strategic connectivity of Chabahar port project that will provide access to markets in Central Asia. Development of Chabahar port is the anchor for the expansion of economic and mutual relations between India and Iran and it will give a further boost to the maritime trade between both the countries. The location of Chabahar Port has strategically advantage and high potential to provide connectivity among India, …

Aargus Global Logistics, who in the field of logistics pharmaceuticals, perishables and DG cargo for more than two decades, has recently unveiled 11500 sq feet state-of-the-art temperature-controlled warehouse at Delhi International Airport next to Terminal 3. The 4,000 sq ft temperature-controlled warehouse caters to the export and import of pharmaceuticals and perishables industry maintaining ambient temperature between 15-25 degree Celsius and two to eight degree Celsius. The facility will be operated under the guidance of a GDP certified team of the company. The company maintains the temperature monitoring systems necessary to safely store and distribute pharmaceuticals/fresh products through systematic qualification and validation process.

Registering a record quarter at the end of 2020, Budapest Airport has handled a total of 134,459 tonnes of air cargo in 2020 and dealt with 38,868 tonnes of air cargo in Q4. Ferenc Liszt International Airport handled 6,118 air cargo flights last year, 17.6 per cent more than in 2019. Cargo volume fell only a 0.8 per cent decrease from last year. Cargo charter flights transporting medical equipment and other healthcare supplies accounted for approximately 6 per cent of last year’s cargo traffic, which meant handling around 350 dedicated flights in 2020. “The fact that cargo traffic at Budapest Airport remained stable during this extraordinary year is attributable to the exemplary perseverance of the cargo community. It is our strong intention to maintain the organizing and supporting role of the airport in this work,” said Rolf Schnitzler, CEO, Budapest Airport, in addinh, “It takes numerous players, precise coordination and a strong base like the BUD Cargo City to handle the cargo traffic of the airport. We remain committed to continuously developing air cargo and the BUD Cargo City; in 2021, we will commence preparations for the second phase, the design and construction of more cargo handling facilities, warehouses, and offices.” József Kossuth, Cargo Manager, Budapest Airport noted, “We have numerous other development projects underway, including, for example, supporting digitization needs required for the work of the cargo community, or the introduction in Hungary of the IATA (International Air Transport Association) CEIV Pharma certification system for the aerial transportation of pharmaceutical products, which is in the implementation phase. We believe that the airport and the BUD Cargo City will serve as a world-class, efficient, and sustainable cargo gateway to Central …

Amsterdam Airport Schiphol’s total cargo volume for 2020 declined by 8 per cent to 1.44 million tonnes compared to 2019. The airport notes that the last year’s freight volumes were shipped in three categories of flights. Full freighters accounted for 61 per cent of total volume, whilst passenger flights with belly space as well as passenger flights with only freight on board (pax-cargo-only) accounted for 29 per cent and 10 per cent, respectively. Inbound cargo volumes dropped by 4.7 per cent to 754,361 tonnes in 2020 compared to 2019, and outbound cargo volumes fell 11.7 per cent to 687,161 tonnes during the same period. The three biggest destinations for cargo tonnage were Shanghai, Doha and Chicago. “The 2020 figures are in line with our expectations given the challenging year we all had to face,” said Patricia Vitalis, incoming Director Airport Operations and Aviation Partnerships. Schiphol airport saw outbound traffic drop across regions, with Asia down 8.21 per cent to 238,889 tonnes in 2020 compared to 2019. Meanwhile, inbound cargo volume declined 0.58 per cent to 266,688 tonnes. The outbound North American market fell 8.27 per cent to 150,988 tonnes, whilst inbound was down 9.72 per cent to 101,132 tonnes. Cargo inbound to Latin America declined 10.84 per cent to 102,983 tonnes and outbound dropped 4.28 percent to 72,899 tonnes. European figures show outbound traffic fell 28.62 per cent to 85,395 tonnes and inbound increased 0.01 per cent to 106,487 tonnes. The Middle East market inbound showed a positive story as inbound was up 8.51 per cent to 101,014 tonnes, but outbound was down 9.28 percent to 96,321 tonnes. Outbound traffic to Africa was down 17.67 per cent to 42,669 tonnes …

DSV Panalpina will develop an integrated logistics centre close to the airport, railway and motorway. The new site in Rosersberg north of Stockholm offers an entire range of transport and logistics services and will be ready for use by the end of 2021. The traffic around Stockholm is particularly dense during rush hours and in addition to its cross-docking terminal in southern Stockholm DSV will establish a logistics centre at the Northern part of the city. “With the new location, goods for local customers can be shuttled between the northern and southern sites and be distributed from either of the locations. We will to a great extent avoid most rush hour problems which will enable us to improve on both pick-up, delivery times and reliability,” says Magnus Malmqvist, Managing Director, DSV Road AB, Sweden. Driven by e-commerce, the demand for advanced warehouse solutions customised to meet the requirements of this segment continues to increase. “With the new site, we can offer automated robotic storage combined with narrow aisle racking and thus a very efficient and competitive utilisation of the general warehouse space. The capacity is almost twice that of a conventional warehouse,” says Ian Swinhoe, Managing Director, DSV Solutions AB, Sweden The warehouse will occupy approximately 68,000 sqm and feature an automated robotic storage system and narrow aisle racking systems and altogether provide twice the usual warehouse capacity. The location will also comprise a 5,000 sqm cross-docking area and office space. “We are always looking for sustainable solutions when building new sites. The buildings will be DGNB certified, 80% of the materials can be reused, solar panels on the roof will provide a large part of the electricity required for …

DB Schenker has identified significant problems relating to the new customs formalities that now apply to shipments between the European Union and the United Kingdom (UK) as a result of Brexit. Only around 10 per cent of the customs documents submitted for consignments that DB Schenker has been commissioned to ship have been complete and free of errors. Most of the documents are incomplete and/or contain errors. DB Schenker employees who have been specially trained for Brexit are available around the clock to assist customers in completing the required customs documents correctly. Nevertheless, every consignment accompanied by incomplete and/or erroneous customs documents delays the departure of the associated full-load shipment. Consignments that are not properly declared cannot be delivered to their destinations. To effectively manage the increased workload that has resulted from this situation, DB Schenker is mobilizing personnel for the Brexit Task Force that the company established more than a year ago. These employees will be responsible for supporting corrections and producing compliant customs documents. Despite this extra effort, DB Schenker has been forced to put a temporarily hold on the acceptance of new consignments for shipment to the United Kingdom. The company bhas also announced that all consignments that have already been accepted will, as always, be delivered as quickly as possible. DB Schenker expects shipping volumes to increase further in January. The logistics services providers can only process consignments quickly if the share of correct and complete customs documents also increases significantly. Both shipper and consignees need to ensure that compliant documents are provided. With the UK’s withdrawal from the EU, such documents now include a proof of origin, a compliant invoice in conformance with current customs …