“Currently Indian Railways boasts one of the largest rail networks globally. The dedicated freight corridors have improved rail freight transportation efficiency, but challenges such as capacity constraints and last-mile connectivity persist, says Mohit Kapoor, Chair Projects and Events Committee Warehousing Association of India. He adds, “The extensively expanding road network in India is improving yesteryear’s traffic congestion, poor road conditions, and operational inefficiencies. The air cargo industry is growing, with major airports serving as cargo hubs. However, infrastructure limits, limited freight handling facilities, high operating expense, complex legal frameworks, lack of smooth integration between multiple forms of transportation, and sustainability issues are main hurdles, in addition to hesitancy for technological upgrade, and environmental concerns in unplanned ways of development.”

DHL Express announced the significant agreement with Komatsu Australia for their commitment to invest one million-dollar towards DHL Express’ GoGreen Plus service, which allows Komatsu to reduce (‘inset’) the carbon emissions associated with their international shipments through the use of Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF).   GoGreen Plus is one of the most effective ways companies can choose to reduce their carbon emissions for their international shipments as they have the opportunity to invest in SAF, allowing companies like Komatsu to track their progress toward their sustainability goals, backed by science-based, verified and certified reporting on their carbon reduction insets.   This partnership makes significant contribution to Komatsu’s ambitious commitment to slash their carbon footprint by 50% by 2050. The impact of the investment will be announced at the end of the year and audited by an external auditor.

“India’s gateway to streamlined and sustainable logistics lies in adopting multimodal transportation for Economical, Ecological, and Energy-efficient (3E Principal) cargo movement,” says Kiran B. Nandre, Director NVOCC & Short Sea Shipping, Rhenus Logistics India. He adds, “Over the past two decades, India has seen a push for multimodal connectivity. Initiatives like PM Gati Shakti for integrated infrastructure projects, Bharatmala Pariyojana for highways, Sagarmala for coastal and inland waterways, and Dedicated Freight Corridors for high-speed rail freight movement have laid the groundwork. Public-Private Partnerships have played a key role in developing a network of roads, railways, ports, warehouses, and port connectivity.”

DACHSER announced that it is acquiring Brummer Logistik in Germany and Brummer Logistic Solutions in Austria, encompassing the entire operational business of the Brummer Group. “Under the terms of the deal, the companies agreed not to disclose the purchase price. The acquisition still requires the approval of the German and Austrian competition authorities,” reads the release. In 2023, the family-owned companies generated revenue of around EUR 128 million, putting them among the leading food logistics providers in Central Europe. The two owners and managing directors of the Brummer Group, Hans Brummer and Simone Brummer-Leebmann, have decided to concentrate their business activities on the management and development of real estate, particularly in the logistics sector. They will be supported in this enterprise by their daughter, Valerie Brummer. Brummer Logistik was founded in 1977 in Neuburg am Inn, Bavaria, where it owns a 40,000 m2 facility for refrigerated and frozen food. Brummer Logistic Solutions launched in 2021 and has 45,000 m2 of storage space at its location in St. Marienkirchen, Austria. Flows of goods from all over Europe are thus strategically consolidated right next to the border, facilitating the optimal utilization of transport capacity and greater efficiency in transit times. In its core market of southern Germany and Austria, Brummer currently employs some 950 people.

Leasing of industrial and warehousing spaces rose by 23 per cent annually in January-March this year to 135 lakh square feet across 19 major tier I, II and III cities of the country on demand from third-party logistics players and manufacturers, according to Savills India. Real estate consultant Savills India on Thursday released the data on demand for industrial and logistics spaces. The year started on an impressive note, with a strong absorption or leasing of 13.5 million (135 lakh) square feet in January-March 2024 compared to 11 million (110 lakh) square feet in the year-ago period. Tier I cities witnessed 78 per cent of the absorption, while tier II and III cities accounted for the remaining 22 per cent. Leasing of industrial and warehousing spaces in Tier I cities increased 25 per cent to 10.5 million (105 lakh square feet) during January-March 2024 from 8.4 (84 lakh square feet) in the year-ago period. Tier II and III cities witnessed a 20 per cent growth to 3 million (30 lakh) square feet from 2.5 million (25 lakh) square feet.

TVS ILP (a part of TVS Mobility Group) launched new state-of-art warehouse in Cuttack, Odisha. The upcoming facility spans 24 acres of land, housing two large warehouses totalling 5 lakh square feet, catering sectors like FMCG, FMCD, 3PL, and e-commerce. With its presence at a strategic location at the confluence of the Mumbai and Chennai-Kolkata highways (off NH 55), it enjoys excellent connectivity to the Paradip port and the major parts of the country. TVS ILP will invest around ₹125 Crore in the project and it anticipates its completion by the end of December 2024. The Cuttack logistics park is expected to generate over 110 direct jobs and between 500 to 1,000 indirect employment opportunities in the region. Additionally, as part of TVS ILP’s commitment to sustainability, the logistics park will incorporate green building principles, focusing on energy efficiency, water conservation, and the use of sustainable materials. Plans are underway to certify the park with the Edge Advanced Green Building certification issued by the International Finance Corporation. Commenting on the development, Mr. Manikandan Ramachandran, COO, TVS ILP, said, “The Choudwar Industrial Estate has immense growth potential, and our new facility aims to enable businesses to efficiently cater to the rapidly growing demand from the eastern part of the country. We look forward to contributing to the region’s prosperity by creating meaningful employment opportunities for the local community while building seamless connectivity across various trade points. This facility is a step further in our commitment to build industrial parks every 400 km in India. As the first player to explore the market, we desire to remain steadfast in our aggressive expansion plans into the Eastern markets.”

Global air freight rates are maintaining their recent firm tone, according to the latest data from TAC Index. “The overall Baltic Air Freight Index calculated by TAC edged up a further one percent in the week to April 8, the sixth successive weekly gain leaving it lower by only -10.6 percent over the past 12 months,” the update added. Activity is often a little quiet around the Ching Ming festival (which happened on April 4) but rates out of China kept on edging up with the index of outbound routes from Hong Kong gaining another 0.7 percent WoW to leave it ahead by 7.7 percent YoY. Outbound Shanghai edged up another 1.1 percent WoW to leave it narrowly ahead by 0.7 percentYoY. “The biggest price action out of Asia again occurred from the very hot market in India with further large increases WoW on rates both to Europe and to the U.S. as well as from both Bangkok and from Vietnam to Europe.”

DHL Global Forwarding has announced the first investment of the Prada Group in Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF) credits, utilising DHL Global Forwarding’s GoGreen Plus service. Already in 2023, the partnership with DHL allowed Prada Group to save approximately 4,500 metric tons of CO2e, which would correspond to 7% of the Group’s total transport associated emissions. By leveraging sustainable fuels, DHL Global Forwarding is able to support customers in effectively reducing their transport emissions from airfreight. SAF allows for a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions by at least 80% compared to conventional aviation fuel. The fuel itself is produced from waste sources, such as used cooking oil and food waste. DHL follows hereby an insetting approach, utilising sustainable fuels to reduce emissions directly at the source. Air carriers use sustainable biofuels on behalf of DHL, leading to reductions in emissions. These emission reductions are transferred to DHL, who then allocates them to the shippers in the form of certificates. “In today’s world, it is crucial to establish a clear roadmap for decarbonization that involves carriers, SAF manufacturers, regulators, and customers. We are proud that Prada Group has chosen to leverage the expertise of DHL Global Forwarding to form a partnership that we believe will drive the much-needed change forward,” said Mario Zini, managing director of DHL Global Forwarding Italy.

“The regulatory guidelines for Packaging, Labelling, Documentation, Emergency Response Process Guidelines have been defined elaborately are followed thoroughly. However, the lack of awareness of shippers regards to regulations of shipping dangerous goods during offloading / X-RAY scanning, which results in a disruption of flow of cargo processing, in the otherwise seamless acceptance of cargo,” shares Sanjiv Edward, CEO Cargo and Logistics, GMR Airports. “Additionally, deficiency of skillset amongst those involved in transportation of dangerous goods to Airport cargo Terminal can detrimental to Air Freight. Any error in handling of such goods at any stage, possess imminent and considerable hazard to both airport personnel and cargo if not handled cautiously.”

Kale Logistics Solutions (Kale) announced its collaboration with Budapest Airport (BUD), Hungary, to revolutionise cargo operations through the implementation of its cutting-edge Airport Cargo Community System (ACS). The partnership between Kale Info Solutions B.V (Kale Info), the fully owned subsidiary of Kale, and BUD marks a significant milestone in streamlining cargo operations at one of Europe’s busiest airports. Presently, various cargo handlers and integrators use separate IT systems for data collection, reporting and transmission: to the airport and the relevant authorities. This includes parallel or double data communications, opportunities currently open to digitalise airfreight operation and business processes. Kale’s innovative ACS system provides stakeholders with enhanced visibility and transparency, enabling the real-time tracking and monitoring of cargo movements, incorporating automated regulatory compliance checks, which further streamlines operations, ensuring adherence to industry standards. Commenting on this development, József Kossuth, Cargo Director for BUD said: “Budapest Airport aims to become the main cargo hub in the Central and Eastern European region. “We are on the right track, as the dedicated development of the BUD Cargo City in recent years has provided world-class infrastructure, which, combined with excellent connectivity and a tight-knit cargo community, is attracting more and more partners. “We are now the fastest growing airport in the region in terms of cargo volume, as we handled a record 201,306 tons in 2023 with +48.5% increase compared to 2019. “The introduction of the new Airport Cargo Community System adds an important innovative feature to BUD’s profile, further strengthening the hub function of the airport. He further added: “The ACS will serve as a centralised platform, facilitating seamless communication and data exchange among all stakeholders involved in the cargo handling process.” “We are …