Jack Lampinski

Lalin Sabuncuoglu-Janssen

Ashwin Bhat

     Just this month Lalin Sabuncuoglu-Janssen, who had served as Head of Market Europe, took the reigns as Vice President Europe & Africa, while Ashwin Bhat assumes additional responsibility for the American markets as Vice President Americas, Middle East & Asia.
     “The important voice of the U.S. market will continue to be fully heard, however: Jack Lampinski, Senior Director The Americas, remains a full member of the Cargo Management Team,” Swiss Cargo said.
     “The revised area management model offers the benefit of better alignment with Lufthansa Cargo (where Europe and Africa are also led by the same Vice-President), facilitating reciprocal learning and collaboration within the Group.
     “The new structure shall also strengthen and promote Swiss WorldCargo’s own internal learning and collaboration processes, as most intercontinental markets will now be under the same leadership.”
     Another key change has been effected in Swiss WorldCargo’s Product Management, where Susanne Wellauer, formerly Sales Manager in the Basel district, was appointed Manager SWISS Mail last month.

     An old American expression might accurately sum up 2012, especially for a world that offers little forgiveness for failure.
     “When the going gets tough, the tough get going,” my grandfather, Franz Joseph Arend, Sr., used to tell me, recalling his hard-scrabble upbringing growing up in Ohio. He was just a young man when the Wright Brothers built the first airplane, which flew in Kitty Hawk in 1903, in nearby Dayton, Ohio.
     For the past months we have been asking people about 2012 and what lies ahead for 2013.
atrick Murray sees his occupation as Head of CALOGI Worldwide Cargo Distribution Network as part and parcel to being connected to what’s new and next.
He is a no-nonsense, smart straight shooter, who thinks through problems multi-dimensionally.
     It’s no wonder the answers come fast and furious as we ask the always approachable Patrick, “Where Do We Go From Here?”

      “Looking at the present market really depends on where your major markets are.
     “The number of growing austerity measures being introduced in Europe, and the slowdown in the US economy are having a huge impact.
     “As we in the industry are all too aware, whenever there is a negative trend in a countries’ economy, the air industry, passenger and cargo, are amongst the first casualties.
     “I also understand that cargo yields are being depressed, an all-too familiar story, possibly as a result of increased competition from other modes, but a contributing factor has to be because airlines have given much of the buying power to the large consolidators.
     “Fuel prices are also not really helping the cause, although I believe that many airlines are now focusing on increasing their automation and distribution tools to compensate for high fuel costs.
     “I think that wide-scale adoption of the e-AWB is a step in the right direction, but if it is to be successful the rate of implementation needs to accelerate.
     “There also needs to be incentives for the forwarder to adopt the e-AWB.
     “Cargo security remains a hot topic and while we all want to feel safe when we are flying, we have to be careful that we do not throw the baby out with the bathwater and make the industry more complex than it already is.
     “e-Commerce in the air cargo supply chain is another area that is currently under exploited.
     “Everyone wants to move to an e-commerce environment but it appears that taking (and investing in) the first step is the barrier.
     “As a result, our industry is still fragmented, steeped in paper and bearing a significant amount of costs due to current manual processes.
     “Finally, I believe that many systems providers need to re-evaluate their place in the supply chain.
     “There needs to be greater collaboration between the providers to turn messaging platforms into trading platforms and yes, this will take investment.
     “In terms of 2013 we will continue to see the number of airlines reduce as more consolidations take place.
     “This will be driven by the passenger business, but will have economies of scale for cargo.
     “I think we will also see the same in the forwarder business; expansion by acquisition is a cost-effective means of quickly gaining access to new markets.
     “Many businesses now have programs to attract SME customers, recognizing that these consumers still represent a large portion of the market.
     “I think that some airlines and GSAs will recognize this and will look at how they can do business with this group of stakeholders by allowing them access to their stock and controlling the financial risk.
     “This move will help to increase yields.
     “Many airlines and forwarders will also look at various ways in which they can distribute their products through the usage of cost-effective e-commerce solutions.
     “There will be a push by some to remove many of the outdated manual processes that still beleaguer our industry.
     “Over the next few years, this push could be the difference between having a profitable and non-profitable cargo organization.
     “The solution providers will meanwhile be under pressure to control their costs and to ensure that they offer the best value for money.
     “E-commerce platform suppliers now need to see themselves as business partners to the industry stakeholders.
     “Cargo Security is slightly more tricky to foresee.
     “I believe that there will be pressure on various governments to recognize each other’s known shipper programs and we should see more bilateral recognition over the next few years.
     “The airline will continue to be held responsible to report details of a shipment containing data which can only be supplied by the shipper.
     “Once again, this comes down to de-fragmentizing our industry and ensuring the requisite data is available upon demand to those that need it.
     “Again it is up to the solution providers to work closely together to ensure seamless integration.
     “I also think that we may see a new flavor of stakeholder come into the business: the virtual freight forwarder.
     “This could be a company that buys in all services such as warehousing, packing, transportation, etc., and all he is responsible for is the AWB execution and the financial arrangements.
     “With very few overheads, the profit margin of such an operator could be very high.
     “We may also see some consolidation and partnerships between suppliers as pressure builds to achieve better sharing of data amongst the key stakeholders.
     “I think that this will be a very positive move.
     “At CALOGI we have simple edicts to stay profitable during these times.
     “Keep it cost effective and charge what the market will bear.
     “Make money on an increase in volumes rather than high prices.
     “Listen to your customers, develop it once, and make it available to the community.
     “As part of our international roll out, we are developing additional features for each community.
     “These can subsequently be re-used by our existing subscribers at no extra cost.
     “Given the expansion in our home market we expect to see some growth here, but our focus is on the international markets.
     “I mentioned earlier that solutions providers need to view themselves as business partners rather than suppliers and this is where we want to position ourselves.
     “We have devised a program whereby we will absorb some of the costs if a customer is willing to partner with us to expand our network.
     “For instance, if an airline or GSA, is willing to support our worldwide roll out by subscribing to a branded version of the portal, we will offer free messaging for shipments executed through the portal.
     “A real win-win situation and a great bonus for SMEs who wish to have a web presence, global reach, and a great deal.
     “We fully support the e-AWB and it comes as part of the package.
     “We have several companies who are particularly interested in this feature and we anticipate that it will help boost our penetration.
     “We even have an e-AWB solution for the ground handling companies.
     “Finally we have an excellent and committed team who are as passionate about the product as I am.
     “This has an incredible impact on the productivity and motivation.
     “As a result we are able to keep our costs very low.
     “I could not ask for more.”
Geoffrey

Dear Reader, If you missed any of the previous installments in this series, here they are again:

Oliver Evans
Chief Cargo Officer
SWISS World Cargo

Karl Ulrich Garnadt
CEO & Chairman
Lufthansa Cargo

Joseph Czyzyk
CEO & Founder
Mercury Group

Kenji Hashimoto
President
American Airlines Cargo

Issa Baluch
Professor
Harvard University

     As police clash with demonstrators in Greece, anti-austerity protest strike actions and work stoppages have impacted European ocean shipping operations.
     This week Union CGTP backed strikes in Portugal, but they have not been officially backed by the UGT, leading to uneven success for the action.
     In Lisbon, where stevedores are on strike, container terminals and depots stopped this week.
     However it was business as usual in Leixoes this week.
     At Aveiro & Figueira da Foz: stevedores are on strike and the container terminals and depots have also stopped.
     But in Sines, everything is up and running.
     At the Setubal and Margueira Lisnave Drydock, stevedores are on strike and the container terminals, depots, and drydock are closed.
     Looking at Spain, pilots in Algeciras are operating at 50 percent capacity.
     There are no picket lines in Algeciras Port yet, but sporadic trouble has been reported in different locations, including Vigo and Valencia.
     Trucks and trailers are also not working in ports.
     In Greece a general three-hour strike took place from 1200-1500 hrs. On Wednesday November 14 ports stopped operating fully, but all operations were planned for before or after the stoppage.

     DB Schenker Global Chairman Thomas Lieb said falling productivity on Australia’s Fremantle docks, including slow container movements through WA’s biggest port, is pulling down DB Schenker’s local operations.
     “In Fremantle... when it comes to movement of containers, there are tremendous detention charges (payments for ships being unnecessarily delayed), so that is an area of concern,” Dr. Lieb noted.

RE: Istanbul Logitrans This Week

Dear Geoffrey,

     Good morning to you and your team.
     Just for your information:
     Center right is Guido Westerwelle and on the left is Tayyip Erdogan!

Best regards and have a nice day,
Klaus
Klaus Lueck@ fraport-cargo.

Dear Klaus,

     PT Barnum, who founded the Ringling Brothers Circus in the U.S., said: “I don’t care what you say about me—just spell my name right.” Add “identify me correctly in the picture” to that sentiment!
     Thanks Klaus—Good catch!

Geoffrey
     

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     As President Obama toured storm damage in New York City this past week, people in Germany showed their love and concern for communities around John F. Kennedy International Airport devastated by Hurricane Sandy.
     In Berlin, Kitchensurfing, a chef service, is preparing a traditional harvest feast to be served to Berlin locals this Thursday during the traditional Thanksgiving Holiday in the U.S., with all proceeds going directly to New York Kitchensurfing chefs who have been at work, preparing and delivering food for people left homeless in towns like the Rockaways.
     “Thousands are homeless and haven’t had a hot meal in a week,” Kitchensurfing said.
     “This project is about getting them the warm food they need.”
     You can help too.
Donations to American Red Cross in any amount are welcome, Click Here.
Geoffrey

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