ISSUE 2 2011


IRELAND Trailer traffic in better balance


SkanTrans Ireland, which specialises in trailer services to and from Scandinavia, has seen imports of industrial equipment take “a bit of a hammering,” says director Conor Loughran. There is increasing activity in the renewable energy sector, including


heat pumps, being


retrofitted to industrial and residential premises, and wind


farm components. Yet SkanTrans now has five to seven trailers a week going out to Sweden and two to five coming in.


“Exports have held steady through


the He recession. We’re


sending a lot of milk powder to Sweden and Norway,” Loughran says.


believes Ireland’s


traditional imbalance of 2:1 or higher in favour of inbound


trailers has corrected itself as imports have slowed. VAT Logistics, the Dutch partner of SkanTrans and its sister company EFL, has expanded its


cross-docking facilities in


Rotterdam, helping to open up the east European market. Small loads from Poland are healthy but unit loads are “more challenging,” Loughran says. Competition from


and retention,” Loughran says. Ireland gets itself back on the rails


Rail freight traffic in Ireland, declared almost dead a few years ago, is enjoying a revival, despite the recession. The new 1.7 km rail spur into the Common User Container terminal in Dublin Port is due to open in April, which will in turn allow the Dublin/Ballina container


liner trains operated


by IWT to go up from four to five times per week.


Irish Exporters’ Association Howard Knott believes that the new terminal will be just the spur


that industry needs to start making increased use of rail. “Costs will come down, and this would make it viable to operate trains from Dublin to Cork and Waterford as well.”


While this has led to a bit of


tension with the other ports who fear that Dublin might as a result start to take a bigger slice of the Irish freight market, there is the potential for other ports to develop their own rail terminals too, Knott believes. The western


port of Foynes with its potential for biofuels traffic is a case in point.


Rail freight in Ireland has been hard hit in the last few years, first by the demise of major user Bell Lines, the extension of the motorway network, then the deterioration in the rail infrastructure and latterly the surge in passenger traffic during the Celtic Tiger years, which severely restricted capacity for freight. However, passenger growth has ebbed lately, which


has


created new opportunities for freight, Knott believes. “There is potential for other companies to operate their own trains to Dublin.”


At the moment, container trains have to be loaded on the Dublin port tramway, an operation that can only be done in the evening and also involves a long road shunt to the berth. The new terminal will remove this constraint and make rail much more competitive with road.


Belfast firm pulls out all the stops


Belfast-based All-Route Shipping has had to put on a night shift to ensure local manufacturers can make just-in-time deliveries into Europe.


Eastbound freight rates are


rising. “You can’t get a trailer,” says owner Carson McMullan. But he is concerned about impending government cutbacks, as 60% of Northern Irish jobs depend directly or indirectly on the state. All-Route delivers the Tesco products that are shipped into Northern Ireland but destined for the South to the supermarket group’s hub at Donabate near


Dublin. McMullan notices drink volumes are down – a sign that consumers in the Irish Republic are watching the purse strings. Timber imports have “disappeared off the radar” for Scotline, represented in Belfast by All-Route, but animal feed and fertiliser is still a good market. All-Route has some


history


in the project cargo sector, bringing in shipments such as wind turbines from north Europe and Scandinavia,


so McMullan


welcomes Belfast’s efforts to turn itself into a renewable energy hub.


The company holds stock in the


port for a number of Northern Ireland’s electrical fabricators and large industrial manufacturers, but logistics providers are having to work harder to keep the contracts, McMullan says. “You can’t rely on traditional forwarding business. You’ve got to get closer to the production line. They want you to pick and deliver in two hours. Sometimes you even have to go into the plant yourself and decide what they need, rather than waiting to be told. It’s a two-man job as you have to forklift the parts off the


vehicle and deliver them lineside. “You’re not rewarded with


longer-term contracts for this. If you make a mistake, you’re crucified. Your work over the previous 10 years is not taken into account.” All-Route’s international removals business is lively. “Emigration has started again,” McMullan says. People are moving to the old colonial countries such as Australia, New Zealand and Canada, and are trying to rent out their homes in Northern Ireland. Selling is not an option as prices continue to slide.


Pallets grow, but hauliers are up against it


The Pallet Network (TPN) in Ireland increased its traffic by 20% to 1,600 pallets a night last year and the first six weeks of this year saw a further 15% volume improvement.


The network has built up to 25 members and has split the Galway territory in two. Cork will divide


into three at the request of existing licensees. “They know a smaller territory can be more efficient,” says MD Seamus McGowen. TPN believes only 10% of business that could potentially move through Ireland’s pallet networks is currently doing so. Penetration is much lower than in the UK, McGowen says.


But hard-pressed hauliers in the provinces are struggling, and claim Eddie Stobart’s entry into the Irish market has helped depress already poor margins.


“Prices have come down substantially in the last 12 months despite a 30% increase in fuel. Those who have asked for a surcharge have


lost business,” McGowen says. “Hauliers haven’t adjusted costs


their and some can’t.


They will do anything to keep the wheels turning. Every time we quote a client for national distribution, the incumbent will come in and undercut us.” One indicator of the lengths desperate hauliers


will go to, We design a service to meet your individual requirements


Road Freight – throughout Europe and Scandinavia Ocean Freight – import/export LCL & FCL Air Freight – weekly consolidations worldwide


+353 1 886 7700 sales@uefl.ie


after taking work on at any price, is that four illegal fuel plants were closed in the last six months. Trailer height restrictions remain a contentious issue that could have serious implications for the Irish economy. Some 2,000 trailers on the country’s roads are 4.65 metres high but would be limited by the new EU regulation to four metres. Trailers in Europe tend to be longer and manufacturers have not built higher, as operators would be unable to negotiate many bridges and tunnels on the Continent.


Polish drivers hit SkanTrans’s direct groupage service from the Baltic states, for example, so this traffic is now routed via Gothenburg. The group was forced to lay people off during the downturn, but notes a recent upturn in activity. “We’re trying to retool our staff to focus them on customer service


Conor


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39