Category Archives: International

Saudi Arabian Logistics (SAL) has launched the operations of its state-of-the-art pharma facilities recently opened at the King Fahd International Airport’s Cargo Village in Dammam. The new warehouses will support the infrastructure of pharma and medical equipment handling facilities as per the international standards of the World Health Organization (WHO), the European Union Good Distribution Practice and Saudi Food and Drug Authority (SFDA). Before the expansion, the total area of the medical storage facilities stood at 118 square meters but after expansion, it reached 542 square meters with an operational capacity of 14,000 tonnes a year as follows: 262 square meters of the facilities are dedicated for storing goods with temperature ranging between 15-25 celsius whereas 262 square meters are used for storing goods with a temperature between 2-8 celsius. The facilities can also be used for storing different types of medical cargos with very low temperatures, below zero. Omar Hariri, CEO, SAL, says “We usher in a new phase of advanced cargo handling services for pharma and medical equipment. We are creating the proper environment and developing the infrastructure needed for the current period, which has seen an increasing demand for pharma and medical equipment cargos during the Covid-19 pandemic.”

In order to serve scallop producers in the region of Hokkaido, Japan, DHL Global Forwarding (GH) has launched a thrice-weekly charter from Chitose in Japan to Hong Kong. Harvesting for scallops in Hokkaido typically begins in June and ends in October. The charter is the only direct airfreight service from Hokkaido’s main international airport to Hong Kong since airlines halted international flights from the airport as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. Since authorities had imposed virus-related travel restrictions, exporters from Hokkaido were unable to fly scallops and other perishables to Hong Kong, which is the top importer of Japanese agricultural and marine products and also a gateway to mainland China. According to DHL GF, scallops make up the largest portion of seafood that it ships out of Japan and primarily from Hokkaido.

Qatar Airways has signed an agreement with Airlink to transport 200 tonnes of humanitarian aid over the next two years for free of charge. The move was undertaken to help prevent the spread of Covid-19. Guillaume Halleux, Chief Officer – Cargo, Qatar Airways, says, “The Covid-19 pandemic has shown how essential air freight is to responding to crises and we are pleased to support the work of governments and NGOs around the globe, transporting essential supplies to places where they are needed.” Steven J Smith, President & Chief Executive, Airlink, adds, “The 200 tonnes of freight space is a generous donation that will help fragile communities now, amid the Covid-19 pandemic, and in future disasters.

cargo-partner has added over 3,600 pallet slots to its warehouse in Dunajska Streda, Slovakia, bringing the total up to 26,700 pallet slots on an area of 18,300 square meters. The investment consists of 2,727 slots for euro pallets (120×80 cm) as well as 900 slots for 160×80 cm pallets on an area of 1,000 m². Two new very narrow aisle (VNA) forklifts with floor induction ensure highly efficient warehouse operations. The forklifts are used in the storage zone and service area for fine picking, kitting and packing of over one million parts per year for two main clients of the very service-sensitive automotive sector.

With the aim to log 35 per cent growth year-on-year over the next three years, FM Logistic India has announced to add 40 lakh sq feet of warehousing space under its operations during this period. The company had announced setting up of a 31-acre multi-client logistics facility at an investment of USD 30 million, last year, which is expected to be completed by the end this year. This project is part of the company”s plans to invest USD 150 million in the next five years in setting up warehouses in India, announced in March last year. The French 3PL (third party logistics) player forayed into the domestic market after acquiring Pune-based warehousing firm, Spear Logistics in 2016.

In order to expand its reach in Spain, Agility has opened a state-of-the-art, 11,000-square-meter warehouse and office facility at ZAL Port (Prat) in the Port of Barcelona. The new building addresses the current needs and planned growth of Agility Spain; equipped with state-of-the-art technology for logistics. Features of the warehouse include free height of 11 meters in the storage area and a deck roof built on site. The plot is equipped with 56 private parking spaces distributed in two areas and 25 loading gates with automatic sectional doors and external shelters. “Agility Spain offers extensive experience with three customs warehouses, temperature-controlled management, and the GDP certification required by pharmaceutical companies,” says Carlos Martinez, Sales Director, Agility Spain, in adding, “We focus on the renewable and engineering sectors, project logistics, transportation management, and turnkey projects for large-scale and complex initiatives.”

To meet the accelerated demand for e-booking solutions, All Nippon Airways (ANA) has announced that the airline would be able to provide real-time quotes for all available air cargo capacity on e-booking platform named cargo.one. The participation was first announced in February. “The Covid-19 pandemic has been a catalyst for the increased digital sourcing and booking behaviour of freight forwarders and has encouraged our companies to join together with an even stronger bond,” says, Toshiaki Toyama, Executive Vice President, ANA. Last week, cargo.one also announced that it had developed ‘plug and play’ capabilities with IBS Software which means that airlines using the iCargo system, such as ANA, could easily offer their capacity on the booking platform.

In order to cut India’s dependence on overseas hubs to send and receive container cargo, shipping ministry has decided to designate a port as a transshipment hub. The step has been taken under ‘Atmanirbhar Bharat’ (self-reliant India) initiative. The Ministry will pick the port based on the report submitted by a committee formed for the purpose of deciding the criteria for declaring a port and developing it as a transshipment hub. Container volumes handled at Indian ports in FY19 hit 16.5 million TEUs (twenty-foot equivalent units), with the Central government-owned major ports handling 9.8 million TEUs and private ports handling 6.7 million TEUs, according to the Ministry of Shipping.

Alitalia Airlines has launched its first cargo flight from Mumbai to New York via Rome [Mumbai (BOM) – Rome (FCO) – New York (JFK)] with B777-300 / B777- 200 aircraft on June 20, 2020. The airline would be operating a weekly P2C flight on Mumbai – Rome – New York route with B777 aircraft without cabin seats. It is scheduled to operate every Saturday/Sunday, offering a capacity of 50 tonnes per flight. With its strong and robust network, the airline is offering onward connectivity into Europe & USA. Air Logistics Group is the cargo GSSA for Alitalia in India since 2018 with the airlines having had a successful daily operation DEL- FCO pax flight through A330 aircraft in the pre-Covid times. Deepak Kumar, Cargo Manager – Western India, Air Logistics Group, says, “The customers in Mumbai are delighted to have the Italian bird flying back to Mumbai and have given a stupendous welcome to the carrier which is clearly reflected by an overwhelming response to the capacity offered, with the first flight taken off with a whopping success of full capacity utilisation for Italy, Europe and USA.” “We are here to serve during these challenging times and assure our complete support to our cargo fraternity because we firmly believe that problems are not stop signs, they are guidelines,” he adds.

To give its customers more autonomy when booking, schedule searching and submitting claims online, American Airlines Cargo has added new features to its digital booking platform aacargo.com. “Our new technology platform allows for a better experience for our customers, enables them to make bookings at their convenience and offers more flexibility and efficiencies behind the scenes for our team members,” says Angela Hudson, Head of Transformation, American Airlines Cargo. The latest new tools will both streamline and advance business through reduced paper use and an increasingly more touchless system. This type of efficient foundation allows for greater flexibility and speed to market for new products and solutions to continue to provide the best in customer service. The entire technology transition began more than three years ago and involves more than 8,000 team members in cargo and airport operations, and more than 30,000 customers.