Kuehne+Nagel has been selected as a preferred partner to operate IDA Foundation’s healthcare hub for the Middle East and Africa region, located in Dubai. IDA Foundation, an independent social enterprise headquartered in Amsterdam, provides medicine and medical goods to healthcare organisations worldwide in over 130 countries. The IDA Foundation hub at the Kuehne+Nagel facility at Dubai South, will serve as a centralised kitting and global health logistics centre. A dedicated pharmacist will ensure compliance with regulations.
World Courier opens US pharma sites
Pharma solutions organization Cencora’s World Courier arm is to open transport stations in Denver, Indianapolis and San Diego to delivery specialty products, including those that require cryogenic storage. The Indianapolis site will be equipped with liquid nitrogen.
They extend World Courier’s network of facilities in North America to 17 sites.
It also recently launched a Container Freight Station at its New Hyde Park facility in New York. The US Customs and Border Protection-approved facility allows it to store shipments instead of having them remain with the airline while awaiting customs clearance, enhancing temperature control management.
World Courier earlier this year completed the implementation of a real-time location monitoring solution on all of its multi-use packages
It is also expanding its cold chain and cryogenic storage capabilities in Denmark and Germany.
Tower Cold Chain takes Chinese partner
Temperature-controlled packaging company Tower Cold Chain has partnered with Shanghai-based Tower & Winner Solutions (TWS) to increase its penetration of the Chinese passive containers market.
TWS has been created specifically to provide the local Chinese market with an efficient means to access Tower containers, which are used by pharmaceutical manufacturers, airlines and 3PLs to deliver medicines and life science products.
TWS will manage all customer communication, business development and local billing. Tower Cold Chain’s team in the APAC region will work closely with Daniel Liu, Business Development Manager, China for TWS, to develop new customer opportunities.
While Tower products are already available from its existing hub in Shanghai, TWS has been tasked to identify new projects, with a view towards opening additional hubs across China in the future.
(Pictured: Tower chief executive, Niall Balfour, (left) and Henry Ang, director, TWS)
EVs diversify the air supply chain
Broker Air Charter Service says that it has been using a much more diverse spread of airports for automotive charters following the rise of the electric vehicle since the start of 2020. The company is arranging charters from or to more than 100 new airports.
Group cargo director, Dan Morgan-Evans, commented: “Purchases of electric vehicles have more than doubled in the past two years and production has obviously been ramped up to cope with this fresh demand. The EV market has not only led to major manufacturers opening up new plants specifically for EVs, but also a huge amount of new suppliers in locations that we previously haven’t flown from, so we are seeing a large number of new destinations popping up for our just-in-time automotive charters.
“In a normal year, we would arrange charter flights to around 350-400 airports for automotive charters, including many familiar destinations, multiple times. But, since 2020, when EV production really started to step up, our charters have flown from and into more than 100 new airports, that weren’t even on the map for traditional car manufacturers beforehand. “To put that into perspective, that figure of new airports is higher than the entire destination network of major airlines such as Air India, SouthWest Airlines and China Airlines.”
FedEx expands German sites
FedEx Express (is to open a new logistics facility northwest of Leipzig and an expanded, modernised facility in Karlsruhe in the first quarter of 2024. The new facilities will significantly improve sorting capacity.
A new building is being constructed for the 27 team members at Kabelsketal next to Leipzig/Halle Airport. The 17,000sq m site has warehouse space of around 3,400sq m with six truck loading bays, 63 for vans and six for 7.5-tonne trucks. Twelve charging stations will be installed for electric vehicles. Sorting capacity will double compared to the previous set-up and a new loading and unloading concept will reduce traffic in the warehouse to improve safety. The site is also close to a rail station with good connections to Leipzig and Halle.
The location in Karlsruhe will be expanded and modernised on the existing 3,600sq m site to give more handling capacity, doubling the size of the warehouse to about 2,500sq m and with a 24-bay truck loading ramp. Sorting capacity is automated and almost doubled.
It follows opening of a facility in Nufringen in summer 2022 and expansion of its Stuttgart air gateway in 2023.
Acquisition makes GSA a major force in the Americas
ECS Group has acquired Latin American specialist Americas GSA. With the purchase, it gives the global general sales agency company a presence in 16 countries across the Americas, and puts on track to achieving full coverage of the two continents, from Canada to Chile.
ECS gains a first-time presence in Bolivia, Costa Rica, El Salvador, Guatemala, Nicaragua, and Panamá, alongside its existing network of Argentina, Brazil, Canada, Chile, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Mexico, Peru, and the US.
The agreement covers 42 staff across 13 Americas GSA offices who will join ECS Group’s existing 80-strong workforce in Latin America. They bring long-standing contracts with airlines such as LATAM Airlines, MAS, Turkish Airlines, Lufthansa, Swiss, Korean Air, and Ethiopian Airlines, pushing the group’s airline portfolio up to more than 40 airlines.
Managing partner and chief executive of Americas GSA Pablo Canales, said: “Our vision is to become one of the largest air cargo GSAs in Latin America, not just in terms of network, but specifically as the GSA of choice for comprehensive international solutions delivered with local finesse.
“This partnership with ECS Group brings together a highly professional air cargo organization with a strong global vision, and an established team with in-depth knowledge of the Latin-American market and close relationships with the largest customers in the region.”
Executive chairman of ECS Group, Adrien Thominet (pictured) said that Americas GSA: “not only greatly augments our coverage in Central America, significantly adding to our strong network of committed, local air cargo experts operating across the continent, but since it shares a very similar corporate culture and likewise places great value on professional expertise, it offers a highly promising basis for solid organic growth. Together, we are well poised to shape the future of air cargo in Latin America and have a considerable and positive impact on the success of our customers.”
IAG opens Constant Climate station in Cape Town
IAG Cargo has opened its fifth Constant Climate station in Africa, in Cape Town, approved for temperature-sensitive healthcare products. It will handle pharmaceuticals including vaccines and medicinal components to support. And will offer connections via London Heathrow to over 100 approved stations worldwide.
IAG Cargo sees South Africa as a critical market for pharmaceutical products to meet the healthcare needs of its population, which relies on imports.
, Head of Pharmaceutical, Jordan Kohlbeck said: “Adding Cape Town to our Constant Climate is an exciting moment as it strengthens our cold chain offering, and shows our commitment to serving the pharmaceutical, bioscience and healthcare industries. For many customers this will support the increasing demand for transporting pharmaceuticals globally, specifically to the African market.”
With the opening of Cincinnati in September, Cape Town is the second Constant Climate station launched in 2023.
((Pic Cape Town))
WFS to handle China Cargo freighters in Miami
Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), a member of the SATS Group, has won the contract to handle China Cargo’s freighter flights between Miami and Shanghai Pudong due to launch in January. International Airport. The thrice-weekly Boeing 777 freighter service will be the first by a Chinese airline to the Florida airport.
Expected traffic includes e-commerce traffic, perishables, seafood and general cargo.
WFS has handled China Cargo in Los Angeles since 2006 and now handles 18 freighter services a week, along with its all-cargo services to New York JFK from 2022, now served by seven freighter flights per week.
The handling partnership also extends to Seattle, a technical stop for China Cargo flights where WFS handles more than 20 flights, as well as an extra 30 to 50 charter services annually during the peak season for cherry exports.
US gateways spearhead Menzies green plastics move
Menzies Aviation is switching to biodegradable plastic in its cargo operations. M&G Packaging’s BioNatur Plastics will first be used in its cargo operations at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), San Francisco International Airport (SFO) and Miami International Airport (MIA), where the switch will reduce long-term plastic waste by the equivalent of over 5 million water bottles each year. Plans to continue rolling out the sustainable material will follow across all US cargo operations, and into Europe and the UK.
BioNatur Plastics are fully recyclable in normal waste collection streams and biodegradable in a landfill environment, speeding up the process from 1,000 years to less than 8-12 years. It leaves no trace of microplastics when it degrades and reduces the reliance on fossil fuel-based plastics, which contribute to greenhouse gas emissions.
Menzies adds that products made from BioNatur Plastics also outperform regular plastics with the same thickness as a result of its superior elongation and puncture resistance. With added strength, the plastics can be used in thinner amounts, minimising the quantity of plastic waste overall.
Menzies Aviation head of sustainability and corporate responsibility, Katy Reid, said: “Waste is a top priority for many of our stakeholders, and the introduction of BioNatur will not only help make our cargo operations more sustainable, but also ensure we’re working in partnership with our customers to meet their own ESG goals.
“Our cargo operations utilise various packing materials and our priority is to continue reducing the volume of plastic use and waste, increase recycling, and source materials that minimise any impact on the environment. Adopting BioNatur represents a key milestone for our cargo operations as we continue to grow our business responsibly and sustainably.”
Global head of cargo, Beau Paine, added: “Our cargo business has expanded rapidly, growing from 49 locations in 2021 to 75 this year, and we have ambitious plans to take this even further. Our cargo operations utilise various packaging materials and replacing our cargo-use plastic products with BioNatur Plastics will not only dramatically reduce waste levels but supports our long-term sustainability targets.”
Angel Rodriguez to run ASF Air
Charleston, South Carolina-based logistics company ASF has appointed Angel Rodriguez as president of its Air arm.
He brings over 30 years of supply chain experience and in his most recent role at Flexport, delivered airfreight solutions to meet the needs of Fortune 100 and 500 clients and delivered the highest tonnage and revenue contributions by anyone in the history of the company. At Panalpina, he spearheaded solutions for all modes of transport with a focus on consumer and retail clients worldwide.
He said: “I’m thrilled to join ASF, a company with strong values of putting people first, honor, integrity, and unmatched customized services. ASF’s expertise and personalized service is a welcome capability for the shipping industry. Our clients benefit from our trusted, transparent way of doing business, and deserve the best service possible.”