ITALY\\\


FFG sends the tiles flying – by rail


Manchester-based Italian forwarding


ports specialist FFG is


introducing a more rapid service for groupage shipments for the tile trade from the Modena area, says managing director, Graham Martin. The Modena Flyer allows for late loadings on Fridays yet still allows delivery across the UK on Wednesdays. It mirrors the current tile operation from Spain which has seen 100% growth in the last four months. The Modena Flyer is a rail operation but will match road transits, says Martin, who adds: “Recently we introduced an enhanced rail product where we offer 20ft and 40ft containers on a one way basis from all main regions of Italy to the UK. Combining this operation with our four regional logistic centres, we are able to offer a devanning and delivery service by curtain sided trucks, Moffats, hiabs and tail-lifts.” In Martin’s opinion, though Italy remains rather


overall


static “with perhaps only the tile industry striding forward.” Regionally, the North remains


the key industrial area but the South is coming more into play, “helped we believe by more frequent and better regionally served intermodal operations linking to the vast number of departures from the north of Italy to the North Continent


of Zeebrugge and


Rotterdam. We look forward to Moerdijk being connected to these services in the future.” There are now effective ferry operations running from there to several UK ports. But the Channel Tunnel


operations remain a disappointment with very limited services available and usually only to the Birmingham area. Geographically, the Alps


remain the single biggest hindrance to overcome and although the Swiss and Austrian “are masters at keeping the routes free”, it does have a knock on effect at times especially for intermodal operations where trains are held up. Martin adds: “But this winter we have also seen


some heavy snowfalls


even in the middle of Italy which have caused some quite serious delays. In his opinion,


rail remains


the predominant way to transport goods from Italy to UK even though the majority of routes stop at either Zeebrugge or Rotterdam. More and more intermodal


operations have been introduced over recent years which not only operate from the North but often have connecting links to the Centre and South, such as Nola, Bari


and Pomezia. This reflects to some degree the development of the South of Italy. Sea services from La Spezia,


Naples, Salerno and Bari continue to offer low cost services predominantly for cheaper


products and are


an ideal way to keep costs down but with more and more importers wanting to unitise their products to save UK warehousing and distribution costs, the rail and road options continue to grow, which is largely down to the better use of palletwide containers or trailers. Most sea services are restricted to standard 20ft or 40ft containers and this can be a hindrance in minimising UK distribution charges. FFG International has


introduced a live track and trace platform via its website. Customers can not only view live status of their orders – filtered as necessary - but also down load documentation such as collection notes, proofs of delivery or commercial invoices, all password protected. Martin adds: “Moreover,


this facility also gives KPI (key performance indicator) reports such as on-time performance - all live, immediate and filterable by date range, supplier, order number and so on.”


Como coming on nicely for Bring Logistics


Bring Logistics’ partner in Como, Euronord International, has moved to a new larger depot in the Grandate area with cross-docking facilities – close to the motorway network and the Swiss border offering nationwide coverage of Italy for all collections and deliveries, says senior development manager, Allan Marsden. Euronord also operates


nightly trunk services from Como to Prato and Vicenza. In the UK, Bring’s new


Birmingham office is now a year old and is already running a twice weekly service to and from Italy. Marsden adds: “We are looking to re-locate to larger


office premises to accommodate further increase in staff.” Due to the current exchange


rates between the Pound and Euro, imports into the UK are particularly strong at the moment, he continues - fabrics, toiletries, cosmetics, dyes, clothing and packaging for the drinks industry. “The north of Italy is still the


industrial stronghold – however we are seeing growth in mid- Italy and the eastern regions hence our new trunk services to Prato and Vicenza,” Marsden explains. Working with regional


hauliers has proved to be successful for Bring, he adds:


“They call into our Como depot every aſternoon or evening to collect import freight for next day delivery and vice versa with export freight. We also use a pallet network. Plus we have our domestic fleet covering most of northern Italy.” For speed of transit to and


from Italy Bring’s trucks travel via Switzerland which does bring its own unique problems – especially in winter - and there are now new restrictions on carrying Limited Quantity ADR cargo via the country. “So we have had to adapt our service and send some trucks through France and enter Italy via the Frejus tunnel,” Marsden says.


Issue 3 2015 - Freight Business Journal


Tough times but great potential


The Italian freight sector “isn’t breathing the air of recovery just yet,” says Giovanni Pallastrelli of Pall-Ex Italia. The network and sales manager for the Italian version of the well-known UK and international pallet delivery system has seen prices decrease in the industry,


“and this could


be a warning sign that the Italian economy is heading towards deflation. It’s a delicate situation, despite Prime Minister Renzi’s confidence in the recently passed Jobs Act to give the country’s economy new drive. The Jobs Act should have


positive impacts on all of the economic sectors, and Pallastrelli expects to see tangible benefits in the second half of the year. The Act seeks to weaken


employment protection, so as to reduce unemployment and also reduce the marked ‘dualism’ in the


labour market, between employees on standard indefinite-term contracts and employees on any of over 40 other different categories of labour contracts, or working under informal arrangements. It also aims to strengthen social security through a wide, albeit not generalised, unemployment benefits programme and improve training and job-finding services. Northern Italy, with its high


concentration of industry, remains the ‘engine’ of the economy and therefore the primary exporting


force. The Centre and South of the country obviously have a lower concentration of industrial areas, “but there’s great potential due to the fantastic cultural opportunities in the individual territories, including the wines, cheeses, regional food produce and handcraſted products.” There’s evidence though that both public and private investments, especially in the South, are still slow since the beginning of the financial crisis, “and this is causing friction between the two zones.”


Serving up Italy on a pallet


The pallet, once a rarity in Italian industry and agriculture, has been catching on over the past twenty years – and this has boosted business for Palletways, the


country’s leading network


operators, says Palletways Italia president, Roberto Rossi. “Twenty years ago, it would have been difficult to convince small businesses to use them, but now it’s normal practice,” he told FBJ. This has helped contribute


to annual growth of 20-30% at Palletways Italia, many times the level for the rest of the transport industry. Other factors that have helped boost the business are a decrease in the number of full truckloads being moved around the country and a corresponding rise in part truckloads and a move away from own account operation by industry. “In Italy, it was quite normal for a producer to have its own distribution network, but that is less common now – and even where they do have their own operation, they tend to keep it for the nearer parts of the country and not use it for the smaller or more distant places,” Rossi explains. Pallet


networks great advantage have of the variable


costs whereas own account transportation is a fixed cost, he adds. There has also been a move to a


more supply chain management approach in Italy. “So overall, the economic conditions are actually very good


23


for us,” Rossi concludes. “We’ve been able to take advantages of structural changes, hence our very good growth lately.” Palletways Italia is now seeking


new vertical industries to enter, by offering new sizes and tariffs. Textiles/footwear


is one area,


in which it has not had a major presence in the past but is now making inroads, says Rossi. Both domestic Italian and


Italy/international business is increasing. Germany and France – just the other side of the Alps – are big markets. Palletways Italia has a queue


of would-be member hauliers waiting to join, Rossi continues. “At the moment, we don’t have any ‘white spots’, but we obviously would like to accommodate them rather than see them go to a competitor.” Palletways


Italia does have


many competitors, including other pallet networks and more traditional freight systems, but Rossi is confident that he can hold his own. “One strength we have is that we are very good in southern Italy, and we spend a lot of time


ensuring that our members have reasonably balanced traffic flows.” He adds: “I’d like to think we’re


more innovative, and we have a strong niche in the industrial segment with very focussed operations - for instance all our trucks have hydraulic tail liſt.” Palletways Italia currently


operates with a main hub in Bologna, plus two smaller ones in Milan and Avellini (near Napoli) with, respectively, 36 and 24 members feeding into them. The Milan hub is doing particularly well and has attracted a lot of smaller pallets and premium traffic and is currently the fastest growing. It will soon account for 30% of total business, Rossi suggests. Eventually, a fourth hub in the


Rome area will be considered, but volumes will need to build up first, he says, and there is no definite date yet. But when it comes, it will make Palletways more competitive


in some potential


markets in and out of the central regions of Italy, a combination of consumption areas, such as Rome, and industry intensive areas, such as the Adriatic coast or Umbria.


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