WCN Dec Front page - WorldCargo News Online

TANK CONTAINERSWorldCargonewsmanagement under one roof,”explained M Gopal, one of company’smanaging officers.“We have expanded our tankoperations to encompass the ArabianGulf in the west and SouthEast Asia in the east, as well as thesubcontinent. Our Bulk LiquidsDivision also offers other transportoptions like flexitanks andintermediate bulk containers(IBCs). As a part of Goodrich’sforward integration, we have securedstorage tank space in theMiddle East to enable us to offerfull supply chain solutions to ourcustomers.”As India’s chemical industrydevelops, so does the potential fortwo-way trade in tank containers.In recent years the traditionalexport commodities of castor andlinseed oils have been augmentedby petrochemical products whichare being produced locally at lowcost and sold onto world markets.Imports, too, are rising to meetthe country’s growing demandfor industrial and foodgradechemicals and edible oils.“In addition to the developingtwo-way trade flows, there area number of other factors whichbode well for the future use oftanks in our region,” Gopal said.“Joint ventures and other collaborationsbetween local manufacturersand global chemical companiesare promoting increasingtraffic, much of which is moresuited to intermodal tanks thanchemical parcel tankers and tanksare also continuing to gain favourover smaller packages, such asdrums, due to the economies ofscale and the environmental constraintsplaced on disposal of usedpackaging. The strong economicgrowth in the Indian subcontinent,South East Asia and the ArabianGulf also reinforces our optimism,”Gopal said.Bertschi and EuropeCompared to other chemicalproducingregions around theworld, Europe faces a number ofserious disadvantages, not leastrelatively high feedstock and labourcosts, rigorous environmentaland other regulatory controlsand mature markets. In the yearsahead European chemical manufacturerswill face increasingcompetition from lower-cost producersabroad. A number ofsmaller chemical plants have alreadyclosed.In addition to a shrinking customerbase and low-growth productstreams, tank container operatorsserving Europe’s chemicalproducers must contend withcongested roads, archaic rail systemsand intense competitionfrom numerous other LSPs.In such a marketplace, it is theLSP that can think more quicklyand intelligently and move moreassertively than its many rivalsthat is the most likely to be successful.Bertschi AG of Dürrenäsch inSwitzerland keeps one step aheadby working with its customers onthe development of tailor-madecontract logistics arrangements.Bertschi, through its ContractLogistics Group, has worked witha number of chemical producersto develop bulk chemical logisticsprojects in which tank containersare integrated into thewhole supply chain.In this way tanks can be usedfor both product storage and distribution,resulting in considerablesavings in fixed storage tankinvestment. A number of solutionshave been developed, in tandemwith chemical producerpartners, in both the liquid andsolid bulk sectors of the business.“We have successfullylaunched two such contract logisticsprojects using tank containersrecently,” said BertschiCEO Hans-Jörg Bertschi. “Wehave also launched new subsidiarycompanies for intermodaltransport in Hungary, Poland andIreland in the last 12 months.Bertschi now has a presence, withtrained drivers and owned equipment,in 16 European countries.“The past year has been a particularlysuccessful one for us interms of tank container activities,especially during the second halfof 2003. The total Bertschi tankcontainer fleet has grown by approximately400 units in 2003,most of which are 31-35,000 litreswap tanks - sizes which allowus to maximise payloads. Inaddition, several hundred silocontainers have been added to thefleet,” Bertschi added.Bertschi is tackling the currentchallenges facing the industryboth through its own individualefforts and, for industrywideissues, through organisationslike ECTA. The company is introducingbehaviour-based safetytraining for all its drivers on apan-European basis in 2004,while its Contract LogisticsGroup continues to develop newsolutions for receptive customers.Strengthening the company’scommitment to Eastern Europehas also been identified as a priority.With the imminent enlargementof the European Union to25 nations, Bertschi has beenbuilding up its knowledge of thisnew regional market with a viewto establishing subsidiaries inEastern Europe in due course.Contank on the moveAnother part of Europe wherethe use of intermodal tanks hasbeen growing is the Iberian peninsula.Contank SA of Barcelonareports that its tank container activitiesin 2003 are 30 per centahead of those for 2002. Part ofthe growth stems from the roleplayed by Contank as the Iberianpartner in cooperative ventureswith LSPs in Northern Europe.The Spanish operator has purchased70 tank containers overthe last six months in response tothe specialist needs of its customers.The new units include tankscapable of carrying chemicalproducts at high temperatures andmulti-compartment tanks.“In addition, we have openeda new 25,000 m 2 tank depot onthe outskirts of Barcelona,” saidIsrael Lago, European logisticsmanager for Contank. “This facilityenables us not only to consolidateall our own vehicle andtank servicing activities at a singlesite, but also to offer thirdpartyservices at a strategic location.”The terminal offers storage,tank cleaning and intermediaterepair services as well as a fuel stationand parking for ADR andnon-ADR vehicles.Contank points out that theBarcelona location is good for railand shortsea connections, and hasassisted its own expansion effortsas more shippers in Spain wakeup to the multimodal advantagesoffered by the tank containercompared to a road barrel. “Weare able to offer a wider range oflogistics solutions to our clients,in terms of intermediate storage,just-in-time deliveries, and, insome cases, the carriage of greaterquantities of product than wouldbe possible with a truck,” Lagosaid.Meurer mergerTwo German intermodal tankcontainer operators that have recentlyexperienced, like the restof the industry, increased volumesand reduced margins are Lanferand Meurer. The two companiesdecided to do something aboutit and about 12 months agoagreed to merge their respectiveoperations under the MeurerIntermodal banner.“We expect rates to remainunder pressure in 2004,” said PeterDannewitz, a joint managingdirector of the merged operationalong with Hermann Lanfer. “Inour new alignment we will bebetter placed to serve the growingpan-European market and theincreasingly sophisticated demandsof our customers as a reliableand competent partner.”Meurer Intermodal has recentlytaken delivery of series ofswap body and 20ft ISO tankcontainers from Belgian manufacturerVan Hool and is proceedingwith further orders for similarunits over the next year. Themain emphasis has been on lightweightequipment, particularlyinsulated tanks to meet the requirementsof particular customers.“We see strict cost managementand control and good communicationswith our clients askey elements of the MeurerIntermodal service package goingforward,” explained Dannewitz.“The merged operationimproves our ability to tailortransport solutions to the preciseneeds of the shipper, whilst at thesame time also maintaining theflexibility needed to deal withunforeseen circumstances.” ❏The merged Meurer Intermodaloperation has facilitated a greater degreeof supply chain integrationBy working together with LSPs in northern Europe, Spain-based Contank hasseen a 30 per cent increase in its tank container activities this yearDecember 2003 31