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Partner Logistics is a European
integrated logistics provider
specialising in sustainable frozen food
warehousing and distribution solutions.
Headquartered in The Netherlands, it
operates 6 strategically-placed cold
storage facilities in 3 countries: 2 in
the UK, 3 in The Netherlands and 1
in Belgium. Its frozen storage site
in Bergen op Zoom is the largest in
Europe and its cold store in Wisbech,
Cambridgeshire, is the largest in the UK.
1.
How would you describe the
current temperature-controlled
storage market?
I think that the cold storage market
across Europe is best described as
‘scattered’. In each country we see
a large number of smaller logistics
providers but only a handful of big
players. These bigger providers often
only focus their operations in one
country and thus they don’t have a
presence to support cross-border
operations. Partner Logistics is in
a strong position as we don’t limit
ourselves to Holland and also operate
in the UK and Belgium.
2.
What challenges lie ahead
for the industry?
One of the biggest challenges is the
increase in overseas exports due to
frozen food market growth in emerging
markets such as Africa, the Middle East
and Asia. European frozen potato and
vegetable products are increasingly
popular in these regions because
of the growing middle class and
globalisation of brands. However crops
can’t be harvested there in the same
fashion as in Western countries so they
need to be shipped from the US or
Western Europe.
Another challenge will be
accommodating the increased demand
fuelled by these emerging markets.
Producers will need to boost their
production levels and this will lead
to an increase in the need for cold
storage facilities in certain regions and
means that logistics providers must be
able to handle and process a higher
volume of pallets.
3.
What notable changes have
you noticed on the part of
consumers and their demands?
In the UK and Europe we are seeing
a rise in e-commerce. At the moment
it doesn’t have a big impact on third
party logistics providers as it is being
serviced by the existing retail chains
who use their current warehouse
and distribution facilities. However,
with more and more online retailers
entering the grocery market, we will
see changes to how traditional retail is
organised in the future.
Existing retailers also have to offer
additional services such as home
deliveries alongside their current
business (which is already expensive),
so they will also need to develop an
‘express’ version of their traditional
business model. This will affect our
customers, and logistics providers in
general, as retailers may request a
specific service for their traditional and
express routes.
The online share of the frozen food
market is currently very small but it
will grow and have a significant impact
on the market, changing how third
party logistics providers need to work,
although the full impact cannot yet be
predicted.
4.
What are your thoughts on
supply chain integration?
If manufacturers choose to outsource
each link of their supply chain
separately they often
struggle to achieve
full optimisation
and express
concern that they
have growing
management
overheads and
less time to focus on core areas of their
business. By becoming an integrated
logistics provider, we are able to fully
service our customers and meet their
specific needs.
By working with a logistics provider
that offers multiple services such as
warehousing, transport and value-
added services under one roof,
manufacturers and producers can
benefit from increased flexibility, better
efficiency and significant cost savings.
5.
What are the priorities for Partner
Logistics for the next 12 months?
The core aim for Partner Logistics
in 2016 is to continue to support the
growth of our customers, working
in partnership to identify areas in
which they can gain a sustainable
competitive advantage and stand out
from the crowd. This is supported by
our ‘Customer 360’ programme, a
series of regular strategic, operational
and tactical meetings between us and
our customers, designed to analyse
performance, optimise services
and maintain client satisfaction. In
addition, we will be focusing on adding
additional value-added services to our
portfolio at every site.
Cold Chain View
Q&A with Eelco Schnabel, Commercial Director at Partner Logistics.
32
Logistics Business Magazine | November 2015
COLD SUPPLY CHAIN