Thursday 25 September 2014

News Release: CARGO COMPLEX SHEREMETYEVO LAUNCHES NEW COLD CHAIN FACILITIES AND SERVICES TO SUPPORT AIRBRIDGECARGO’S GROWING PHARMA BUSINESS




Moscow Sheremetyevo International Airport temperature-controlled infrastructure will be enhanced at ‘Cargo complex Sheremetyevo’ in support of AirBridgeCargo Airlines’ (ABC) new Boeing 747F services from Basel in Switzerland, the home of many world’s leading life sciences organisations.

The new developments, effective from this month, are designed to ensure the airport maintains the integrity of temperature-controlled pharmaceutical products throughout the ground handling process.
   
Dmitry Sudosiev, Commercial Director of ‘Cargo complex Sheremetyevo’, said: “Our cargo terminal is a major hub for AirBridgeCargo Airlines. The sensitive nature of pharmaceutical products requires the airline to ensure the maintenance of the correct temperature regime throughout the transportation process in order to meet its customers’ strict requirements. As ‘Cargo complex Sheremetyevo’ provides an important part of this process on the ground, we also have a critical role to play to ensure the protection and continuity of the cold chain ABC has promised to its customers.”

‘Cargo complex Sheremetyevo’ has put in place refrigerated vehicles and a 580m² pharmaceutical warehouse to handle temperature-controlled products, including a unique laboratory to complete the obligatory procedures required to certify pharmaceutical products for importation into Russia. As well as maintaining the cold chain and supporting all regulatory requirements, this enhancement of the cargo terminal’s capability speeds up the delivery of goods to the consignee.
The airport has worked with several leading pharmaceutical companies to verify its cold chain capabilities. 

“For over 20 years, ‘Cargo complex Sheremetyevo’ has been one of the leading ground handling operators in the Moscow aviation market. This experience has enabled us to successfully implement this latest upgrading of our facilities to bring cool chain logistics in Russia to a new level,” added Dmitry Sudosiev.


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SEKO LOGISTICS INVESTS IN FULL SERVICE ECOMMERCE AGENCY TO SUPPORT GROWING RETAILERS



SEKO Logistics has acquired an equity stake in full service ecommerce agency, Metakinetic, in the company’s latest move to provide a complete solution for growing retailers.
Metakinetic has now joined forces with Red Hot Penny, another part of the SEKO Logistics group of companies. The unification of the two agencies under the Red Hot Penny brand combines  their extensive experience in creative design, ecommerce technology and digital marketing, with SEKO’s global warehousing and fulfilment operations, providing a truly end-to-end solution for retailers.
The new agency is concentrating its efforts on distinguished retail clients from a variety of sectors, including luxury goods, the arts and fashion brands. Already boasting a portfolio of clients that includes Rolex, Bodas, Claudia Schiffer, River Island, Merc and Larsson & Jennings, Red Hot Penny will tailor its offering to provide unique, high-performance solutions that challenge the boundaries of traditional ecommerce.
Darren Bull, Co-Founder of Metakinetic and Managing Director of Red Hot Penny, commented: “We are at the beginning of a new chapter for our business, which has historically been all about the technology. Combining our passion for tech with Red Hot Penny’s unrivalled creative expertise and SEKO’s logistics offering means that we are providing something quite unique in the industry.”
Jason Thomas, Creative Director at Red Hot Penny added: “We are already experiencing significant demand for our holistic approach to ecommerce; retailers want an agency that will grow with them as they extend beyond the UK market and capitalise on overseas opportunities. Our distinctive and agile offering allows us to support them throughout their journey.”

SEKO Logistics has established a leading position for providing solutions that enable retailers to fast track their businesses into the $1.5 trillion global ecommerce market. In the last 12 months, SEKO Logistics has launched a new integrated ecommerce and logistics division, SEKO Omni-Channel Logistics, and partnered with Secans Global to set up SEKO Store Development Services, a new joint venture that delivers project and process management solutions to help expanding retail businesses open stores faster, with greater control and cost efficiency, and increasing their sales weeks per store in new markets.
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About Red Hot Penny

Red Hot Penny is a creative ecommerce agency specialising in end-to end solutions for online retailers. Based in Wokingham, Berkshire, Red Hot Penny is part of the SEKO Logistics group of companies and provides consultancy, design, ecommerce web development, marketing and logistics services to a wide range of online retailers. Red Hot Penny has worked with clients that include M&S, River Island, Rolex, Claudia Schiffer, LowePro, Bodas and SanDisk. www.redhotpenny.com

About SEKO Logistics

We provide a suite of logistics services which enable you to use your supply chain as a competitive differentiator. As a customer centric organization, we are powered by the expertise of our people and our in-house-developed, best in class, customizable technology. It is this combination which gives SEKO its strength. With over 120 offices in 40 countries worldwide, SEKO’s unique shareholder management model enables you to benefit from our specific industry sector expertise, coupled with vital in-country knowledge and unparalleled service at the local level. This unique model provides you with:
• Hands-on service and support
• Personal relationships
• Creative, customized solutions
• Responsiveness and reliability
• Flexibility and consistence

We have a flat management structure, with just three layers between you and the CEO, making us ‘fast on our feet’ in delivering solutions that can meet your exact requirements. This lean and nimble structure increases our decision-making speed and gives us an ability to implement customized solutions which far exceed those of our competitors. For more information visit our website www.sekologistics.com

Tuesday 23 September 2014

A TRADITIONAL ‘WET WELCOME’ FOR ABC IN BASEL

The first ABC flight lands in Basel


AirBridgeCargo Airlines’ first ever flight to Switzerland touched down in Basel on 19 September to a traditional ‘water canon salute’ that welcomes new airlines to airports around the world.

The Boeing 747-8 freighter flight to EuroAirport Basel Mulhouse Freiburg signaled the start of ABC’s new weekly service to and from Basel every Friday, offering customers in Switzerland onward connections to major cities in Asia, including Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Zhengzhou, Chengdu, Seoul, and Tokyo, via the airline’s Moscow hub.

Robert Van de Weg, Senior VP Marketing and Sales at AirBridgeCargo, said: “Basel is the home of some of the world’s leading life sciences organisations and we are confident that the product we offer will meet the growing demand for high quality cargo transportation services for pharmaceutical products in Switzerland. Across our international network we have earned a strong reputation for the reliability and on-time performance of our services. These factors, alongside the temperature-control capabilities of our B747F fleet and at our hub in Moscow, will give pharma customers confidence in our ability to protect the integrity of their products to international regulatory standards throughout the transportation process.”  

AirBridgeCargo Airlines, part of Volga-Dnepr Group, is one of the world’s fastest-growing all-cargo airlines with its yearly tonnage compound growth rate of 39%. It connects the world’s largest cargo flows from Asia to Europe and the United States via Russia using a modern and efficient Boeing 747 all-cargo fleet of 12 aircraft, and maintains a high level of on-time performance averaging 78%. As an all-cargo carrier, ABC has the ability to temperature-control each of the Boeings 747’s four cargo compartments to between 4-29°C, ensuring a flexible, safe and reliable transportation environment for high value pharmaceuticals.

ABC is member of IATA, the Cool Chain Association, TAPA, and Cargo 2000. AirBridgeCargo is represented in Basel by its GSSA partner, RTW Air Services SA. 

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Monday 8 September 2014

AIRBRIDGECARGO TARGETS PHARMA BUSINESS WITH NEW BASEL FREIGHTER SERVICE





The transportation options for Basel’s thriving healthcare industry will be extended from September 19 with the launch of a Boeing 747 freighter service by AirBridgeCargo Airlines (ABC).   

Basel has one of the highest concentrations of successful life sciences businesses in the world, including pharmaceuticals, biotechnology and medical technology organisations.

ABC will operate its new Basel-Moscow Sheremetyevo service every Friday. The airline's high on-time performance and fast handling through Moscow will enable AirBridgeCargo’s customers to achieve less than 48-hour connections on O&D to major cities in Asia, including Shanghai, Beijing, Hong Kong, Zhengzhou, Chengdu, Seoul, and Tokyo, via ABC hub in Moscow.

Robert van de Weg, Senior VP Marketing and Sales, ABC said: “The healthcare industry relies strongly on the speed of air cargo and its ability to maintain the integrity of products through strict temperature-control services. Operating from Basel will enable us to provide a fast and reliable link into Russia and Asia for customers in the industry as well as the other industries that have grown up to support the healthcare market in Switzerland. This new route and the connections we can offer will facilitate further growth between both regions.”    

AirBridgeCargo Airlines, part of Volga Dnepr Group, with its yearly tonnage compound growth rate of 39%, is one of the fastest-growing air cargo carriers. It connects the world’s largest cargo flows from Asia to Europe and the United States via Russia. It operates a modern and efficient Boeing 747 all-cargo fleet of 12 aircraft and maintains a high level of on-time performance which averages 78%.

As an all-cargo carrier, ABC has an opportunity to adjust each of the Boeing's 747’s four cargo compartments between 4-29 degrees Celsius, therefore ensuring safe and reliable transportation for high-value pharma goods. ABC is a member of IATA, the Cool Chain Association, TAPA, and Cargo 2000.

AirBridgeCargo is represented in Basel by its GSSA partner, RTW Air Services SA. 


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Tuesday 2 September 2014

New Release: ‘CIGARETTE MARAUDER’ POWER BOAT SETS SAIL WITH VOLGA-DNEPR TO NICE



A ‘Cigarette Marauder’ power boat has arrived in Nice in the south of France onboard Volga-Dnepr Airlines’ IL-76TD-90VD freighter flight after its engineers devised a special loading solution to accommodate the boat’s length, weight and low ground clearance.

The 15-metre ‘Marauder’ was flown from Doha, Qatar, to Nice. The flight was operated on behalf of Volga-Dnepr’s longstanding charter partner Air Partner.     

The 14-ton boat was loaded onto a standard trailer for transportation. To ensure the boat could be loaded into the IL-76TD-90VD’s cargo hold, Volga-Dnepr Airlines’ experts had to develop a special loading solution because the size of the boat and the small amount of ground clearance meant it wasn’t possible to use the aircraft’s ramp and internal crane. Instead, the engineers installed an extension ramp normally used to load heavy and outsize cargoes onboard Volga-Dnepr’s An-124-100 freighters, the world’s largest series-produced cargo aircraft. The ramp reduced the angle that the boat and trailer had to negotiate as they were carefully loaded into the aircraft and meant the boat could be driven on its trailer into the IL-76. 

Rinat Akhmetov, Sales Executive at Volga-Dnepr, said: “Deliveries of yachts and boats always require an individual approach as these types of cargo are very bespoke. They are high value and custom-made and require very precise and delicate handling. Thanks to the size and capability of our An-124 and IL-76TD-90VD freighters, Volga-Dnepr is able to transport a wide range of yachts and boats, boosted by our in-house engineering and logistics capability. We have shipped yachts and boats all over the world from countries such as Canada, Belarus, Ireland, Pakistan, and Russia to destinations in the USA, the Philippines, Kenya, Tanzania, and the United Arab Emirates.”


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Monday 1 September 2014

WORLDWIDE FLIGHT SERVICES ACQUIRES SWISSPORT’S CARGO BUSINESS AT COPENHAGEN AIRPORT




Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) has signed an agreement to acquire Swissport’s cargo business at Copenhagen Airport, reinforcing its position as the largest independent cargo handler in Denmark.

Under the terms of the agreement, Swissport will transfer all business activities to WFS on 1st October 2014. WFS will take over Swissport’s 4,200m² cargo terminal at Copenhagen Airport, which handles 18,000 tonnes a year on behalf of leading international airlines.  
Marc Claesen, Regional Vice President, North Europe at WFS, said: “We are delighted to have successfully concluded this agreement. Copenhagen has been a big growth airport for WFS since we opened our operation in 2006 and this latest investment not only gives us potential for further expansion, it brings more leading international airlines into our portfolio in Scandinavia, that are also customers of WFS elsewhere in our global network.”  
Jos Roeven, Managing Director, Swissport Cargo Services The Netherlands and Area Director Nordics, added: “WFS is a major player in cargo handling and is therefore perfectly equipped to take over the cargo business at Copenhagen Airport.”
WFS provides services to 300 airlines globally, is present at 120 major airports in 20 countries on four continents, and handles four million tonnes of cargo a year. It commenced operations in Scandinavia in 2006 having been awarded a concession on land by Copenhagen Airport a year earlier and investing in the construction of a new cargo terminal. WFS also opened its own cargo business at Stockholm’s Arlanda Airport in 2012.
The new agreement with Swissport will take WFS’ total cargo volume at Copenhagen Airport to 100,000 tonnes a year. Its existing facilities at the airport include two cargo terminals with a total area of nearly 10,000of warehouse space and office accommodation. WFS’ airline clients at the airport include Singapore Airlines, China Cargo Airlines, Korean Air, British Airways, TAP PortugalIberia, Air Canada, Delta Air Lines, Turkish Airlines, Qatar Airways, Air Greenland, Cargolux and Icelandair.
The sale of the Copenhagen cargo business to WFS includes all business activities currently carried out by Swissport Cargo Services Denmark ApS as well as all assets. The exit process will start immediately and will be concluded 1st October 2014.
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About WFS

Worldwide Flight Services (WFS) was founded in 1983 and is a leading global provider of ground handling and technical services, and the world’s largest cargo handler. Today it is present at 120 major airports in 20 countries on four continents. WFS serves 300 airlines globally, including the handling of four million tonnes of cargo and 50 million airline passengers per annum. The company employs 10,000 staff worldwide and reported revenues for 2013 of €580 million.
About Swissport
Swissport International Ltd. is the world´s largest provider of ground and cargo handling services in the aviation industry. The company provides ground services on behalf of some 700 client-companies and handles around 224 million passengers and 3.9 million flights per year. The company operates 120 warehouses and moves approx. 4.0 million tonnes of cargo. With a workforce of around 55,000 personnel, Swissport is active at more than 260 stations in 45 countries across five continents, and generates annual consolidated operating revenue of CHF 3 billion. www.swissport.com