Category Archives: Warehousing

National Logistics Policy recently launched by the Hon’ble PM is beyond just being a paper policy. It is a call for action! Action by one & all for an India standing tall and taking its rightful place as the leading economic powerhouse of the World, shares Rajesh Lal, Honorary Treasurer, Warehousing Association of India (WAI). Beyond vision statement, objectives clearly stated, targets laid down, strategy identified to achieving targets, robust monitoring & co-ordination and a comprehensive implementation plan to key action areas, it is the openness approach to identifying problems faced, including within ministries, which truly sets NLP 2022 apart. NLP 2022 is not the end but means to an end. An underlying objective, the most critical one which needed to be addressed, is the stress laid on teamwork. It strives to create a framework for cohesive working where all stakeholders, including different ministries/departments, align themselves and work together, as one and not in silos. A single online portal (ULIP) seeks to ease doing business in logistics sector. Digital integration of different systems of seven different departments will be undertaken (IDS). The eagerness to hear in a transparent manner and address issues faced by user industry (E-LogS) is commendable. Service Improvement Group (SIG) is to be formed to monitor projects and resolve issues timely. A laudable target is to develop an action plan to address human resource challenges. Warehousing, identified as distinct for improvement, is a welcome step. It is capital intensive and with numerous issues faced, setup and operational, needs special focus for India to attract much needed private investment, improve overall efficiency and reduce costs. It is now for us to take inspiration from the clarion call by …

According to a recently published report by Allied Market Research, titled, “Warehousing and Distribution Logistics Market by End Use (Healthcare, Manufacturing, Aerospace, Telecommunication, Government and Public Utilities, Banking and Financial Services, Retail, Media and Entertainment, Trade and Transportation, and Others), rise in acceptance of multimodal transport system and surge in penetration of e-commerce tools across the globe will boost the growth of the global warehousing and distribution logistics market. Furthermore, breakthroughs in last-mile delivery mechanism in retail & e-commerce sector will boost the global market trends. Nevertheless, lack of control of logistics manufacturers on service delivery of logistics can impede the growth of the global market. The report also suggests, the global automotive Ethernet industry was estimated at $12,019 billion in 2021, and is set to reach $25,788.7 billion by 2031, growing at a CAGR of 7.7% from 2022 to 2031.

Allcargo Group has launched Logistics Park in Malur, Karnataka. The state-of-the-art logistics and warehousing park is now fully occupied, further accelerating economic growth and infrastructure development in Karnataka. With this park, Allcargo will further complement Karnataka to become a logistics hub that seamlessly connects India to the southern states of Andhra Pradesh and Tamil Nadu, making the state a desired destination for big businesses. The park is creating employment opportunities directly on-site, by creating over 5500 jobs. The park will also act as a strategic warehousing destination, thanks to the increasing interest of businesses in Karnataka. The government’s National Logistics policy and the PM Gati Shakti plan has been looking to solidify first and last mile connectivity, both for commercial and other purposes. This gives a boost to Karnataka as a desired business hub, and Allcargo’s logistics park can provide businesses with the right infrastructure and digital tools to make their business profitable and transform their supply chain. Furthermore, it can connect businesses to the rest of India with increasing ease.

Chetak Group has inaugurated its first Green warehouse in Pune. The warehouse, which adds to the over two million warehousing capacity, was inaugurated by Chetak Group’s Directors Mukesh and Rajesh Haritash, in the presence of guests from Tata Motors and other prominent clients. The warehouse will serve all vendors of Tata Motors. Mukesh Haritash, Director, Chetak Logistics said, “We are happy to inaugurate first Green and Happy Warehouse in Pune. This is a result of the inspiration we derived from our father, late Jai Karan Sharma, Founder, Chetak Group. We dedicate the warehouse to him and pledge to take forward his vision of serving the customers with the quality product offerings. The warehouse, measuring one lakh sq. ft., adds to 2 million sq. ft., warehousing space offered by the Chetak Group across India.” The new Green warehouse at Pune offers many firsts such as solar power energy, environmentally friendly last mile delivery, unique facilities for employees, safety measures and smart material handling.

According to Knight Frank India’s latest report, India Warehousing Market Report-2022, Bhubaneswar recorded an exponential surge of 700 per cent taking the warehousing transaction volume to 0.86 million sq. ft.., in FY 2022 from 0.11 million sq. ft., in FY 2021. “Warehousing in Bhubaneswar is clustered around Bhubaneswar-Cuttack Road (NH-16), Tangi, Pitapalli and Chandaka. The demand for warehousing in the city has been picking up gradually in recent years and is widely dominated by local developers. In the last few years, development of industrial and logistics parks around the city has further boosted warehousing activities in the market,” the report stated.

Safexpress has launched two new ultra-modern Logistics Parks in Maharashtra and one in Nagpur and another in Ranjangaon MIDC in Pune. Safexpress Logistics facilities in Maharashtra has a combined land area of 5.25 Lakh square feet, enabled with ultra-modern transhipment and 3PL facilities to boost storage and warehousing needs of the region, while providing for faster connectivity. The new Logistics Parks are cross-dock, have a column-less span of over 80 feet to facilitate simultaneous loading and unloading of multiple vehicles and unhindered movement of goods within the facility. To enable all-weather loading and unloading of goods, the facility is equipped with 16-feet wide Cantilever Shed. The logistics facilities have the required firefighting equipment and trained manpower to deal with such emergencies. The physical infrastructure will be backed by a robust IT infrastructure and an efficient warehouse management system.

“The launch of the National Logistics Policy is a watershed moment for Indian logistics’ sector and a step closer to developing a digitized, seamlessly integrated and efficient logistics ecosystem in India,” said Sunil Tyagi, Secretary, Warehousing Association of India (WAI). He shared his views and added, “Its emphasis on standardization and digitization to warehousing value chains is a welcome initiative. It will improve efficiency, productivity, and quality of services in the warehousing segment, canonized in the e-Handbook on Warehousing Standards, a guiding document launched alongside the Logistics Policy. The pivot towards promising technological initiatives such as the ULIP will help in integrating the logistics sector and ensuring first and last mile connectivity for seamless movement of people and goods.”

DHL Global Forwarding has inaugurated a new sustainable, solar-powered transhipment hub and head office in Johannesburg, South Africa. Located in the Sky Park Industrial Estate it provides easy access to OR Tambo International Airport. The facility’s temperature-controlled chambers and Good Distribution Practices (GDP)-trained personnel enable the new hub to cater to the unique needs of Africa’s rapidly advancing life sciences and healthcare (LSH) sector, said official release. The new EUR 7-million facility (R127 million) includes offices and a 10,000 m2 warehouse. It will serve as a hub for transport, logistics, and warehouse solutions, as well as international freight expertise for different industries.

Strengthening its position as a global integrated logistics company, A.P. Moller – Maersk inaugurated two new warehouses in India, that are strategically located near the National Capital Region (NCR) in the northern part of the country, the company said in a statement. The 420,000 sq. ft. Farrukhnagar Warehouse is a brand new, state-of-the-art warehouse connected to the busy manufacturing hub of northern India. With proximity to the Western Direct Freight Corridor (DFC), Farrukhnagar Warehouse will be a key facility for retail, FMCG and large e-commerce customers. The 100,000 sq. ft. Maersk Dadri Warehouse, located within the Inland Container Depot (ICD), offers customers bonded warehousing solution. Being at the confluence of Western and Eastern DFC, having a rail head connection, proximity to eight national highways, and Jewar Airport coming up within 60 km range, this warehouse has all the prime attributes that will add value to customers’ supply chains.

According to a latest report by property firm, Knight Frank India, the warehousing market in India grew 62 per cent year-on-year (YoY) in eight major cities of the country taking the total space covered to 51.3 million sq. ft. The Indian warehousing sector, which has witnessed tremendous growth because of the boom in online shopping especially during the pandemic has seen fund flow to the tune of $1.2 billion in 2022 through June, against the $1.3 billion raised in all of 2021, stated report. Shishir Baijal, Chairman and Managing Director, Knight Frank India said, “The high growth rate of organised warehousing sector in India is a result of its rising GDP and consumerism. With warehouse leasing in India surpassing the pre-pandemic levels, the sector is poised to take a quantum leap to match its more mature peers around the world.” A survey of the sector in the top 13 secondary markets including cities like Guwahati, Lucknow, Jaipur, and Coimbatore revealed a 31 per cent YoY increase in transaction volumes taking the total area covered to 12.6 million sq. ft in FY22 from 9.7 million sq. ft in FY21. The National Capital Region (NCR), followed by Mumbai, is leading the market with the highest overall transaction volumes, while Pune and Hyderabad exhibited maximum percentage growth in annual transacted volumes at 166 per cent and 128 per cent YoY respectively, the report added.