PALLET NETWORKS\\\


Pallets to Germany - it’s an Exact science


It’s the little things that count when it comes to building an international pallet operation, says Adam Shuter, managing direct of Exact Logistics. “There’s a lot of investment in getting IT systems right, to ensure that you have got the postcodes right and that each system can deal with the other’s idiosyncrasies,” he explains. He knows more about these


sorts of issues than most, because Rugby-based Exact Logistics


is


not only the Palletways member for its area but is also the UK and Ireland member, shareholder and physical link for the CTL network of hauliers in Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Exact Logistics was set up in 2009 and operates a fleet of subcontracted medium-sized


collection


and delivery vehicles in the 17-18-tonne bracket. Although a small company, with just ten employees, Exact Logistics has also made a big investment in its presence in Germany itself, having translated its marketing communications into German, set up a German website and invested in a local sales organisation. It had also made it easy for German customers to trade with it by selling in Euros on delivered terms. “It gives us a benefit, because


the majority of our German freight – imports as well as exports – are controlled there. The Germans love to buy ex-works and sell delivered,” Shuter explains. They do this because they see it as a way of controlling freight costs, although he would always encourage UK exporters to offer their German customers delivered terms too. That way, exporters can control the transport process much better and the UK can also offer some very attractive freight pricing too. “Perhaps British exporters need to be a bit more assertive,” he suggests. Making sure that addresses


are correct, and ensuring that the the billing address hasn’t been confused with the delivery address is another small detail


that can make all the difference between a problem-free consignment and a big headache. Confuse the two, and your delivery driver may find himself expected to somehow get several pallet loads of goods to the 25th floor of a central London office block. Pallet networks are essentially


designed to deliver pre-labelled freight but the trouble with international operations is that goods arriving into the UK network from Germany – or vice versa – are to all intents and purposes unlabelled. Freight arriving from one country’s system has to be carefully processed to ensure that problems don’t arise. It’s also important to have


a grasp of the other country’s geography – be aware that there are two places called Frankfurt in Germany - and several Newports in the UK. Having people available to talk things through on the phone is vital too. As it is, Exact Logistics achieves


96-97% on-time delivery to and from Germany, which Shuter says is pretty much as good as it gets. The UK and Germany have


been trading with each other for centuries, but Shuter sees pallets as very much “a new market that is slowly being created.” The European Union has encouraged the development of trade, of course, but now there is a new trend towards smaller shipments, but


delivered much more


frequently. “It’s quite common for us to send two or three shipments a week to the same address,” he says. Exact Logistics sees itself


as very much a specialist in Germany. Shuter looked long and hard before selecting CTL as one of the best networks, covering not only Germany itself but also Austria and Switzerland. Customers on the Germany/


UK trade lane tend mainly to be manufacturers, with a few retailers. “Most of it is industrial – car and train parts, paper, distillery equipment and industrial plant,” says Shuter.


Issue 1 2014 - FBJ


UK still the focus for Pallet-Track


Europe has been a major focus for a number of the UK-based pallet networks, but


for Pallet-


Track it is still not an immediate priority. Managing director Nigel Parkes repeated his statement of 12 months ago (FBJ 1 2013), that Pallet-Track will only enter Europe when the time is right – and that time is when Europe has caught up with the UK. “Other pallet networks do


operate in Europe but with limitations as I believe generally across the Continent the palletised freight industry is not as sophisticated in terms of the technology and control that we offer here in the UK. I would say they are several years behind us, which is why I am keeping a watching brief and only launching there when I know there is a sustainable model


Pallet-Track can work with. We bucked the trend in the UK during the recession and from 2008 to 2009 we grew by 6.4%. I know we could do the same in Europe once the conditions are right for entry into that market,” he said. Parkes instead chooses to focus


Pallet-Track’s tenth anniversary year on further expansion in the domestic market through more added value solutions.


19


Despite recessionary times, the UK’s domestic pallet network is booming. This is in part due to the cost-effective hub and spoke operations across the country that are reducing fuel costs and ‘empty running’ while at the same time creating a buoyant market for the local haulier shareholder members as well as giving them a national voice and footprint, he says.


Adam Shuter with Karen Shuter, respectively, sales and marketing director at Exact Logistics.


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