Search Results for: sme

Leading logistics solutions specialists P&O Ferrymasters and the Transmec Group are partnering to expand their intermodal operations with the launch of a regular rail service linking Italy and Romania.

Using private rail operators under a dedicated company train concept, the service starts on June 1 with two departures per week each way between Piacenza and Oradea, leaving every Wednesday and Saturday. An additional weekly departure is planned within a few months.

The collaboration provides a major new freight transport option for companies serving markets in southern and eastern Europe. Key features also include a fixed terminal-to-terminal transit time of 40 hours, up to 80 weekly slots, an own-asset fleet of 300 Huckepack trailers and more than 2,500 45-foot containers, forward shipments/collections and an extensive office network with dedicated staff.

Responding to increasing customer demand, the launch follows the success of the intermodal operation between Zeebrugge (Belgium) and Romania launched by the companies in 2014.

Coinciding with the new service, P&O Ferrymasters and Transmec have invested 50/50 in the Oradea facility to set up their own private terminal – replacing the current Romanian railhead in Curtici – and are now upgrading the infrastructure. Future operations and marketing will be geared towards providing terminal services to third party rail operators as well as hosting the partnership’s own trains from Zeebrugge and Piacenza.

Uncategorised - May 25, 2016;

Logistics BusinessLeading logistics solutions specialists P&O Ferrymasters and the Transmec Group are partnering to expand their intermodal operations with the launch of a regular rail service linking Italy and Romania. <br src=

Dust, debris, dirt – the deadly 3Ds for those working environments where cleanliness is most certainly next to godliness.

In food and drink factories, cosmetics manufacturing, health-focused facilities or pharmaceutical environments, the constant drive for improved hygiene goes right alongside ever-better product purity and quality. Which means every product application within that working environment must adhere – and contribute to – the strictest demands of hygiene.

The Society of Food Hygiene and Technology notes: “Poor equipment design may lead to an unacceptable build-up of debris or by allowing untreated ingredients to accumulate to a level at which they may cross contaminate the processed food.”

Fear of contamination is a constant threat – one that could potentially cause a full-scale shutdown of an entire facility and heavy loss of reputation – so products that are fit-for-purpose, but also contribute to the hygienic demands of a facility, are essential. And in turn, those deadly 3Ds, which need constant monitoring, can be kept in check.

Add, then, to those perilous 3Ds the Food Standard Agency’s (FSA) number one hygiene problem in food manufacturing: moisture.

Wetted zones encourage bacteria, including the Contamination Alert’s most frequent unwelcome visitor, listeria. Good food and drink manufacturing practice will involve the cleaning of lines and areas for about one-third of every 24-hour cycle. Therefore, products with a water-resistant tolerance to the necessities of the wipe-down and the jet-wash are also essential.

In the past, the barriers used in sensitive environments had the potential to cause more problems than they solved. Take a steel barrier: when brand new it is strong, shiny and aesthetically pleasing. But over time it will corrode, it will flake, it will become abrasive and untidy-looking. Add a watery wash-down to the steel mix and, of course, you have a fast track to rust and a hazardous new contamination threat to a sensitive environment.

Polymer-based barriers solved the rust problem over a decade ago. They were wipe-clean, non-toxic and chemically-resistant, so boosted industries where steel barriers were almost too problematic to deal with.

The polymer barriers had instant appeal and real success. The Senior Maintenance Manager of Haribo said in 2011: “We like the hygiene aspects of the barriers as well as its strength and good looks. The metal barriers currently in use in the dispatch areas have nooks and crannies which could harbour dirt.”

But the new polymer-based barriers weren’t yet a perfect solution from a hygiene point of view. There were still some ingress points where the 3Ds could collect. There was still a possibility of water infiltrating an unsealed system. And wherever water collects inside a system it soon becomes stagnant – and a breeding ground for dangerous microorganisms.

So the secret code for barriers that could truly be called hygienic was a difficult one to crack. Hygienic facilities required an absence of ingress points, sealed joints, water resistance, a tolerance to wash-down chemicals and the wipe-down, non-toxic surfaces that did not corrode, flake or require repainting. All these factors had never before been combined into a single barrier system.

Design Engineer at A-SAFE, the inventors of the world’s first polymer-based barrier system in 2001, Tom Costello takes up the story: “Old polymer-based barriers definitely performed better than standard steel for sensitive environments, but the old-style products weren’t the ideal solution in these areas.

From our point of view, we knew we had to somehow solve the issue of dirt and debris collecting in ingress points and water infiltrating the product. So over a two-year period we developed complex hygiene seals and reduced water ingress points through the use of strategically placed rubber seals.”

The new hygienic barrier system, released in 2015, was called iFlex. Existing A-SAFE customers, such as Thomas Roh, the Occupational Safety Specialist at confectionery experts, Ritter Sport weren’t resting on their safety laurels and were highly expectant of the new system: “We highly appreciate the quality of A-SAFE products. They are easy to install and very durable. Barriers that were installed eight years ago in our transit area show no signs of erosion. This is an area with lively forklift traffic where the barriers are often hit. Since the installation of A-SAFE barriers damages are decreased in the building and at our facilities. Now we are looking forward to the new iFlex Barrier Range, of which we have heard a lot recently. Especially for us as food manufacturers, the hygiene sealing of the new barriers is particularly important.”

Since the launch of iFlex, a host of blue chip companies have benefited from the specific hygiene advantages of the system, including: United Biscuits, The Body Shop, Sainsbury’s, Nestlé, McCain Foods, Mars, L’Oreal, KP, Dr Oetker, Coca-Cola and more.

The hygienic supply chain is an ever-improving, ever more sophisticated part of food, drink and pharmaceutical logistics. Intelligent companies are constantly focusing on tweaking best practice and asking for more from their suppliers. And where hygiene is concerned, iFlex proved that any barriers can – and must – be overcome.

Uncategorised - April 14, 2016;

Logistics BusinessDust, debris, dirt – the deadly 3Ds for those working environments where cleanliness is most certainly next to godliness. <br src=

Global provider Imperial Logistics International has announced two new key appointments. Marc-Oliver Hauswald (46), pictured, becomes Director Business Unit Shipping, Dry from 1 April onwards. The graduate in business management will provide dual leadership in this position with Thomas Küpper (50), who is also Director Business Unit Shipping, Dry. Both men will gear this line of business towards the challenges of the future.

Before joining Imperial Logistics International on 1 February this year, Hauswald worked as manager of the internationalisation, corporate development and finances departments at the port services company, Buss Port Logistics (Hamburg). Prior to this, he held various management positions at logistics companies with international operations. He is also co-managing director of the Buss Imperial Logistics (BIL) joint venture, a company, which guarantees supplies of raw materials and aggregates for the Krupp Mannesmann (HKM) smelting works in Duisburg and operates the works port there.

The Dry business is still one of the segments that generates the highest turnover in the Imperial Transport Solutions division. Using its own fleet of motor vessels comprising about 200 units with subcontractor owner-operators, which makes it one of the largest push-boat fleets in Europe, the company specialises in transporting coal and ores, metals and steel products, cereals, fertilisers and timber products. In geographical terms, the company covers the complete river Rhine area, including its tributaries and canals, France, the Benelux countries and the states bordering on the rivers Main/Danube. The company also provides logistics solutions particularly geared to meet the demands of the steel, aluminium and power station industries – and plant construction.



Uncategorised - April 4, 2016;

Logistics BusinessGlobal provider Imperial Logistics International has announced two new key appointments. Marc-Oliver Hauswald (46), pictured, becomes Director Business Unit Shipping, Dry from 1 April onwards. The graduate in business management will provide dual leadership in this position with Thomas Küpper (50), who is also Director Business Unit Shipping, Dry. Both men will gear this line of business towards the challenges of the future. <br src=

Sexify Logistics

AGV, AMR & Robots, AI & IoT, Automation & Handling systems, Cold Chain Logistics, Distribution Centre Property, Haulage & Freight Forwarding, IT in Logistics, Jobs & Training, Materials Handling & Warehousing, Storage & Racking, Transport & Distribution, WMS & SCM Software - February 23, 2024;

Logistics BusinessSexify Logistics

Red Bull’s Formula One HQ in Milton Keynes is an appropriate and impressive backdrop… Read more »