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Issue 1 2020 - Freight Business Journal


training and IT and robotic


systems. The consortium now consists


of 25 members, said Hardy, most of them forwarders or logistics companies along with a small number of traders that operate their own transport. Hardy explained that while


the government had in the run- up to Brexit tried to empower traders to carry out their own customs clearances – for example, introducing the Trade Simplifi ed Procedures (TSP) and allowing direct access to HMRC’s computer through the Government Gateway - in practice most companies had asked their forwarders of logistics service providers to fi x


the problem on their behalf. CCC, based in Worksop in


the East Midlands, is able to attract graduates from local universities and can carry out customs clearances anywhere in the UK and Ireland. It has also signed agreements with soſt ware providers ASM in the UK and ThymeIT for Ireland. However,


said Hardy, he


estimated that it would only have the capacity to handle around 1% of the total customs clearances needed aſt er Brexit. He added that the Consortium could add further UK members although some segments, notably Irish Groupage with its time-sensitive and complex needs, had already reached full capacity.


Letter to the Editor


carelessness costs container firm a fortune


Shipping line


My recent experiences might prove interesting, particularly when your paper is rightly giving so much space to the ongoing the


undoubted


Brexit saga and need


for


many more experienced professionals across the board to compensate for the forthcoming upheaval. The first shipment


comprised five 40-foot open top empties across the North Sea from Rotterdam to Grangemouth. But as a result of the line inputting “laden” instead of “empty” into the port


system,


in error the


containers in question were blocked and then earmarked for inspection by Border Force, no doubt


suspecting drugs Hardy further said that he


would welcome the setting up of other, similar consortia, but warned that it was not easy to fi nd people with the necessary expertise and knowledge. A large proportion of the


Consortium’s clearances will be for food consignments, as these tend to be more complicated than for other goods, and are also oſt en more time-sensitive. However, other industries such as automotive are also well- represented. The names of CCC’s members


are not for the most part being disclosed for the time being, but one recent recruit is Lithuanian- based Girteka Logistics. “We are delighted to have Girteka Logistics as a founder


or similar; the end result was £600 in wasted haulage cost to me and in view of a four-day delay the subsequent loss of my sale contract in Scotland. But the line could not care less, no doubt denying any claim and keeping the sea freight. The second shipment


was a single 40-ft high cube empty brand new reefer container from Shanghai to Southampton with a major carrier; like the move above we were given a “pin number” by the line so that we can collect. The trucker went to the port in the morning and was told: “No you cannot have it, it is being transhipped to Dublin by feeder”. Another


member of the consortium


and will be working closely together over the coming months to stress test our plans for ‘frictionless’ freight fl ows no matter what shape Brexit fi nally takes,” commented Hardy. Girteka Logistics’ director of


strategic partnerships, Kristian Kaas Mortensen, added: “We are proud of being a founding member of


the Customs


Clearance Consortium, at a time when future UK customs regime expertise is in short supply. We in Girteka Logistics wanted to not only solve the problem but also excel in doing so, with the support of Robert Hardy and his colleagues we believe we have found the best possible solution.”


obvious human error which, after escalating threats of “contingent damages”, was corrected and the container released. Had the false “transhipment”


happened at


a weekend our customer`s brand new reefer would have moved to Dublin and no doubt the line would have simply said “hard luck”! The point I am trying to


make is that if shipping lines cannot get simple empty containers moves right, with appalling levels of customer service thrown in, what chance do we have after Brexit? Phil Brewer, Titan Containers, Grays


News Roundup


Wallenius Wilhelmsen has started a new monthly ro ro service from Europe to the west coast of South America. Load ports include Southampton and the service discharges in Callao in Peru, and the Chilean ports of Iquique and San Antonio. The service also calls at Santa Marta and Cartagena in Colombia.


///NEWS Sea


DP World’s London Gateway port handled its first call on the IEX service from India on 27 January. Calls include Vizag, Krishnapatnam, Chennai, Tuticorin, Colombo, Cochin and Damietta. Previously cargo had to transship in Colombo, Sri Lanka. IEX is a collaboration between COSCO, Hapag Lloyd, Yang Ming, ONE and OOCL and operates nine 6,500teu vessels on a weekly fixed rotation. Unifeeder is also adding London Gateway to its service from Antwerp, which also serves Grangemouth and Teesport.


The chief inspector of marine accidents said that weather conditions had not been considered and cargo was not lashed properly in a report into the accident to European Causeway on 18 December 2018. Freight vehicles shifted inside the vehicles deck of the ferry en route from Larne to Cairnryan. The inspector has also written to the senior management of short sea ferry companies around the UK to highlight the dangers posed by freight drivers remaining on vehicle decks, and to encourage them to take a collective approach to eliminate this dangerous practice. In addition to work already undertaken, the inspector also recommended that P&O Ferries enhances its safety management system and give crews better guidance on stowage and lashing of freight vehicles in adverse weather.


Brittany Ferries is to replace its existing Cork-Santander route with one between Rosslare and Bilbao but will maintain its existing service between Cork and Roscoff from 28 February. The line said that its customers sought better road connections and reduced driving distances and while passenger numbers had been encouraging, freight traffic was not sufficiently robust. Like the current Cork-Santander sailings, the new Rosslare-Bilbao sailing will be twice-weekly. All customers already booked on affected sailings from Cork will be given the option to transfer their booking to the new route and a full refund will be provided to those who choose to cancel.


DP World’s shortsea-shipping operator Unifeeder has acquired a 77% stake in Singapore-based Feedertech Group, a feeder and shortsea operator. The Group’s chairman, Ali Maghami, will retain the remaining 23% shareholding. Established in 2003, the group operates the Feedertech service and the Perma regional shortsea network, both on the Asia-Middle East via the Indian Subcontinent trade.


Hamburg Süd and Maersk are offering their customers remote container management (RCM) technology for their reefer container shipments. RCM monitors parameters such as temperature, relative humidity and the concentrations of O2 and CO2 within the reefer container in real time, including data cargo probe data. The whole 380,000-strong reefer container fleet of Hamburg Süd and Maersk has been fitted with the technology. A journey log shows all important events, such as delivery to the terminal or loading onto and discharging from the ship.


The Freight Transport Association is supporting the 2020 Coastlink Conference to help logistics leaders to identify new, innovative means of sea transport on 13 and 14 May at The Port House in the Port of Antwerp, Belgium. There will be presentations from expert speakers and panel discussions, with a focus on building connectivity between short sea shipping and intermodal networks. www.coastlink.co.uk


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