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Issue 4 2014 - Freight Business Journal


///FREIGHT BREAK Danger – shipbroker at work


It’s taken a chartered shipbroker to make the maritime world exiting and sexy. Shipping agent Nick Elliott – who started his career in the 1970s, in Leith, has put pen to paper to write Sea of Gold, a tale of danger and intrigue on the high seas. We haven’t had a chance to read


it yet so have to take the publisher’s word for it, but it promises intrigue, action and suspense in a gripping page-turner – perhaps not something you’d associate with putting in your eight hours in the dock office in Grimsby, though apparently the events described in Sea of Gold are inspired by his own experiences. According to the blurb: “When


instinct tells maritime claims investigator Angus McKinnon that a wave of frauds must be connected, he


thinks business as usual. it’s just Instead, he uncovers a ruthless conspiracy


born of greed and the lust for power. As he starts to unravel a trail leading from the post-Soviet drabness of a Black Sea port to a sweltering anchorage in the Gulf of Thailand, a devastating explosion in the Indian Ocean changes everything. “Facing down terrifying


childhood memories, torn between two very different women and doubting old friends, McKinnon must navigate a precarious path between secretive government agencies, shady syndicates and avaricious crime lords towards an unpredictable endgame. “Gambling everything on his


faith in one man, can McKinnon beat the odds and come out on top? “Sea of Gold draws the reader


into a world of extremes, the casual affluence of the super-rich contrasting with the dignified


poverty of the desperate. Meanwhile, McKinnon’s two loves – the enigmatic Claire and his devoted, long-term lover, Eleni, vie for his attention.” Well, some of us can relate to that at least, even if ours are called Doris and Brenda. If nothing else, as Nick Elliott is a


member of the Chartered Institute of Shipbrokers, all the technical details should be right.


Intermodal, Malta style... DHL breaks the gridlock


Green-minded folk please look away from the page now. Los Angeles, the city that was supposedly designed around the needs of the motor car, has now become so gridlocked that express delivery firm DHL has had to resort to a helicopter to ensure that urgent deliveries are made on time. The new service now provides


early morning delivery services for several major banking customers in the downtown Los Angeles area, guaranteing by- 9am delivery regardless of what the traffic is doing – or not - down below.


Initially introduced for


specific financial services customers, the service is being expanded to include additional customers in the Los Angeles area. It’s quite a complex operation:


International shipments arrive at the DHL Gateway at Los Angeles International Airport, with specific packages transported by helicopter to a dedicated heliport in the city center. A DHL courier meets the helicopter and provides the final mile deliveries. Air anoraks might like to know that the helicopter used


is a Twinstar Eurocopter AS355, operated for DHL by Helinet of Van Nuys, California, and can transport over 350kg of letters and packages. DHL also offers helicopter


services between its gateway atNew York JFK Airport to prime bank headquarters and Federal bank locations in central Manhattan and to New Jersey’s Teterboro Airport. Meanwhile, the rest of us


struggling to work on gridlocked highways and overcrowded buses can only look up in envy as DHL’s yellow machines streak swiſtly above us.


As tram drivers passing through the the stop serving Ikea in Croydon will testify, it is amazing what some people will try to take on public transport. But this snap from Malta suggests that Maersk is taking things to a whole new level. I only hope the container isn’t expecting to get a seat as well.


...and in Macclesfield


A truly multimodal effort spearheaded by Europa director Tim Doggett has raised £5,000 for Cancer Research UK. Aſter beating cancer 12 years ago, Tim, from Macclesfield in Cheshire was inspired to help others beat the disease; Europa’s UK Midlands hub is close conveniently close to a canal sidewhich gave him the ‘Float my Boat’ idea. Tim planned to kayak along the canal networks


between specific Europa branches for charity and, since 2012, has travelled over 170 miles of the canal network. A support team consisting of


Europa colleagues Mat Jobson made the journey on bikes along the towpath to aid Tim in the challenge. The ‘Float my Boat’ team have all been affected by cancer and feel that raising money for Cancer Research UK can not only


help, but inspire people to do the same. Tim said “This is the first time


I have dreamt up, arranged and completed an event like this. I really wanted to give something back to Cancer Research UK and thank everyone for their support and donations. It has been a fantastic experience and I hope our contribution makes a real difference.”


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