SCOTLAND\\\
Issue 1 2012
29 Scots freight industry
puts its best foot forward There may be talk of independence in the air, but the Scottish freight industry has long had a history of doing things differently. Scottish operators are a diverse bunch, handling anything from microchips to oil rigs – washed down with copious amounts of whisky. And while the rest of the UK grapples with low growth, exports continue to flow from north of the border.
Thistle buy gives TPC new fields for growth
Fresh from his purchase of old- established Scottish freight company Thistle International in February 2012 and with operations in Sweden, Russia, Estonia and Dubai, Grant Stupart is still in an acquisitive mood. “We’re talking to two companies here in the UK – a forwarder and a trucker – and we’ve also put ourselves on the list of companies looking to buy in Sweden,” says the CEO of TPC Freight Management. “We think this is the right time to buy.” However, the plan is not to turn TPC into a so-called global forwarder with people in every part of the world. “We want people who share our values,” Stupart explains. “Centrally-controlled groups are oſten full of flaws.” TPC owns its operation in Sweden, while in Russia and Estonia it has partnered with a long-term supplier. In Dubai it has set up Momentum TPC in partnership with Momentum, a subsidiary of the giant Gulſtainer group.
Back in the UK, TPC is also looking to recruit a Russian speaker. Thistle International’s roots are
in the ship management industry including the airfreighting of ships’ parts; the company came up for sale aſter the previous owner died. As well as the ability to handle its own airfreight business, it brings to TPC a 12,000sq ſt warehouse, in addition to the parent company’s existing 60,000sq ſt of warehousing in Renfew, about five miles away. What will probably happen, says Grant Stupart, is that TPC will move out of the Renfrew site and acquire a similar-sized site adjacent to the Thistle International warehouse at Paisley near Glasgow Airport. “There’s plenty of warehousing available here at the moment – the airport is having quite a lean time,” he explains. “We would be creating almost a freight village here.” TPC is currently deciding
whether to recreate the full bond that it currently operates at Renfew. It would certainly set up a Class A
licence, which allows suspension of duty on all goods except spirits, but the full licence may not be worthwhile. “The problem is that HM Revenue & Customs don’t make it easy to apply for the full licence. When you apply, you have to list who your customers are, but if you’re looking to develop a business, you don’t necessarily know who they will be at that stage,” Stupart explains. Business overall is brisk at the
moment, he adds: “We’re 24% up in the year and last year profits grew three-fold, so we’re not seeing any recession effects yet.” Russia is a big part of TPC’s
business, including wines and spirits and machinery exports along with some exports, shipped either direct or via the Baltic countries. Contrary to what some people say, it is not a difficult area to do business with, says Stupart - other than the fact that it is a vast country. “We achieve 99% KPIs for on-time delivery and have done
for years,” he says. It helps to talk to the Russian
receiver as well as the exporter to ensure that things run smoothly. Russian customs can make an issue of things that would not considered a major problem in the UK, but generally most problems can be ironed out. Russia has been in the
process of centralising its customs clearance for many years and is also setting up a common customs IT system with neighbouring CIS countries. This should reduce the amount of goods that enter the country under duty suspension and then go ‘missing’. “But it’s a huge market, especially when you consider all the cities outside Moscow and
St Petersburg,”
Stupart points out. “We’re only scratching the surface at the moment.”
Somebody is even
shipping the legendary Scottish soſt drink Irn Bru to Moscow in concentrate form.
It’s Pandair – direct from China to Edinburgh
Not many passengers get to fly direct from China to Edinburgh airport but Sweetie and Sunshine managed the feat on board their own chartered plane, courtesy of FedEx. Sweetie (aka Tian Tian, an eight year-old female panda, and eight-year old male Sunshine (aka Yang Guang) arrived on board the specially panda- decalled FedEx Express Boeing 777F. They are also the first giant pandas to take up residence in the UK for 17 years, the country’s last giant panda, Ming Ming, having left London Zoo to return to China in October 1994.
On board the Boeing 777F aircraft the pair travelled in two custom- built transport containers provided by FedEx Express. Local agent Extrordinair handled clearance formalities.
Tian Tian and Yang Guang
have moved into Edinburgh Zoo’s specially-built giant panda enclosure. They are part of global giant panda conservation programs, designed to increase the population – so perhaps FedEx will one day have more pandas to fly out of Edinburgh.
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 |
Page 40