A Word From GPLN:                                                                                                       Newsletter Issue 88 / September-October 2022

Dear Reader,

Many links in the project cargo supply chain go towards decarbonising operations, and rail has been therefore in the spotlight as one of the cleanest modes of transportation. The European Union (EU) is targeting climate neutrality for the year 2050. A shift from road to rail is a relatively simple way to lower CO2 emissions for transportation of freight. Rail is also the greenest mode of transportation, and if the electricity is provided by water, wind or solar it could become more or less CO2 free. But we are wondering what the capacity would be for increased rail freight as the regular train schedule in some countries is already tight. Electric trucks would come as a close second, once they become widely available in the near future with a longer range. However, there are limitations in weight and size for both mode of transports compared to the inland barges and vessels which would be also a contender as the large number of units you can transport creates a low CO2 level. But considering that water levels across European inland waterways hit record lows during this summer period, operating at less than half capacity in August, commercial navigation on the lower Rhine was hit the hardest and the possibility of many more such dry spells has sparked some anxiety.

After the great success of our AGM in Rotterdam in May 2022, our next annual global conference will take place again at the Hilton Hotel in Rotterdam from June 3-5, 2023. Right after our AGM, on June 6, 2023, our renown Heavy Transport and Lifting Seminar will take place at the same venue which is also open for non-members. More details and delegate registration for both our AGM and Seminar are available on our dedicated websites.

Both GPLN events can be combined with Breakbulk Europe which follows from June 6-8, 2023 at Ahoy Convention Center Rotterdam. GPLN will exhibit at this event and has secured a prime location in the main hall with a 36 sqm booth (# 1A20) which is the equivalent to 4 regular stands. In the meantime, 12 GPLN member companies from different countries have already made a firm commitment to share our booth.

The GPLN team will exhibit next year also at Breakbulk Middle East in Dubai from February 13-14, 2023 at Dubai World Trade Centre, together with several GPLN members. Please visit our Booth #B01 which is located next to the main entrance.

Best regards,

Your GPLN team

GPLN Member Duo handles difficult task

Due to a production delay the client was looking for a fast solution and GPLN member Hisiang Logistics from China was finally chosen by the client as the shipping agent to take the delivery of three sets of compressors and some parts, totaling 238 pieces / 985 tons / 2985 CBM. The maximum single weight of each compressor was 120 tons.

After numerous exchanges of communication with the shipper, Hisiang finally received the firm order on October 10, 2022 to ship the cargo within October 20, 2022. Hisiang therefore started to look for carriers who can meet this deadline. Considering the volume of the cargo, including 3 heavy pieces of 120 tons, they had to urgently choose a heavy lift carrier within such a short time. Thanks to the excellent support by another GPLN member, Lysander Shipping from Italy, they proposed the vessel “AAL Kobe”. Although they faced some challenges such as shipping clauses like swell detention etc. from the carrier, Hisiang and Lysander decided to take the risk together to take this vessel for this shipment from Marina di Carrara port in Italy to Umm Qasr port in Iraq. Luckily the weather was good and the cargo ready for this delivery and after 2 days of loading, the cargo was on the way to Persian Gulf.

Conclusion: No matter how urgent and challenging a delivery is, you have to work together with a partner who is reliable and you can trust each other.

MOHAB delivers Skid Pipes

COMEXAS your trusted Vessel Agent in Ghana

SARR Freights transports Rail Coaches

Megalift transports Incinerator Units across 300 km

Total Movements transports 730-ton load

GPLN member Total Movements from India arranged recently a multimodal transportation of a 730 MT heavy lift cargo from the west coast of India for a refinery project in Thailand. The cargo measured 8 m wide and was moved from the supplier’s plant to the load port in India. Part of its scope was road transportation from the supplier’s works to the nearest jetty, barging to the nearest seaport on the west coast and feeding alongside the vessel. The nominated jetty was a tidal jetty, and due to this fact, the barging operation had to be accomplished in a particular time slot, which posed a significant challenge. The cargo was finally rolled on to the barge, lashed and secured as per the planned method statement. The cargo was safely barged to the load port and fed alongside the mother vessel. The engineering and execution team made site visits and detailed discussions with multiple stakeholders to execute this movement in a flawless manner.

PROTRANSER handles various projects during lockdown

GPLN member Protranser’s team from China delivered steel pipes from Taicang, Jiangsu province to Australia for a mining project. The length of each pipe was 12.25m. We arranged staff to pack the pipes in the factory with self-contained materials. The dimension of each package was LWH: 12.25*2*1.92 m, and the weight 12014 kg. The total volume was 5 packages, 60070 kg and 235.2 CBM. Working scope included: packing at factory, deliver to port in Taicang and chartering breakbulk vessel to Cairns, Australia.

Protranser delivered also medical equipment from Guangzhou to DRC. The total volume was 4*40’HQ, including a mobile PCR Nucleic Acid Testing Laboratory converted from a 40’HQ. Working scope was full transportation from Guangzhou port to door, the hospital, in Lubumbashi, DRC and customs clearance service at both sides. Furthermore, Protranser shipped 3 packages of stainless-steel seamless pipes from Lianyungang, Jiangsu province to Antwerp, Belgium. The total volume was 3 packages / 5766 kg / 9.824 CBM. The length of the longest piece was nearly 16m. Working scope was breakbulk vessel chartering service from Lianyungang to Antwerp.

Protranser arranged also 35 packages of seamless pipes from Shanghai to Guayaquil, Ecuador. The total volume was 35 packages / 77,700 kg / 92.81CBM. The length of the pipe was nearly 13 meters. Our working scope was chartering service of the breakbulk vessel. Protranser delivered also 605 CBM of cargo from Tianjin port to Iskenderun, Turkey. The cargo was a Buffer. The total volume was 22 packages / 58,690 kg / 605 CBM. Working scope included trucking service (pick up cargo from factory in Yingkou city, Liaoning province, around 580 km away from Tianjin port) and chartering service of breakbulk vessel. In another move Protranser delivered 2 units Photovoltaic (PV) inverter station from China to Europe.

The equipment was self-assembled into 20’HQ and 22 tons per unit. The road transport route was from Shanghai to the jobsite in Spain via Horgos in Xinjiang province, Kazakhstan, Russia, Belarus, Poland, Germany, and France. The full distance was 14,000 km and it took 19 days to the final destination. Our client needed the cargo urgently. But due to the epidemic prevention policy in China, vehicles were congested at the border. We fully prepared everything in advance to save time when the cargo was reloaded onto trucks from Russia at Horgos port and offered a solution of changing the truck head at the border between Belarus and Poland in regards to the conflict between Russia and Ukraine, because trucks from Russia and Belarus are not allowed to enter the Europe Union (EU). We therefore made sure that the cargo was sent to the jobsite in Spain on time.

Finally, Protranser delivered a set of machines from Dalian to Bangkok, Thailand, by sea. The cargo was a Continuous Casting machine. The total volume was 40 packages / 10,7520 kg / 370 CBM. All the cargo was stuffed into 1X20FR, 6X40FR and 1X40OT.
We received this inquiry from our client in the middle of August and planned to ship the cargo during the first half of September. But the Dalian Municipal Government announced that the whole city would be locked down for 5 days on August 29, and it continued unfortunately until September 19. Although the working speed was slowed down for booking space, releasing empty containers to stuffing during this period, so our team had to overcame the challenge and shipped the cargo successfully as planned.

Gruber Logistics and Universal Transport step into the future together

Two successful European logistics companies are joining forces: the integration of Universal Transport into Gruber Logistics will create a new European market leader in heavy- and specialized transport. The aim is to become a leading player in the overall logistics market in Europe in the coming years.

A major European alliance in the logistics sector has been sealed: the traditional company Gruber Logistics from South Tyrol (Italy) and the long-standing successful Universal Transport have decided on a joint path for the future. After final examination and approval by the antitrust authorities in Germany, the official closing of the partnership took place on September 19, 2022. The incorporation of the two successful companies by way of an integration of Universal Transport into Gruber Logistics is the next step on a major path of internationalization and growth. The existing management teams of both companies will be brought together and will work in the future as a four-man management board to drive Gruber Logistics forward on its way to becoming one of Europe’s leading logistics players.

“We are building a new European champion. The alliance with Universal Transport is a key step. And I don’t just mean that in terms of economic figures. The alliance will make the services offered by both companies even better and more comprehensive for our customers. Both companies and their employees stand for top quality and reliability and will continue to guarantee this on the highest level. The additional capacities and expanded regional availability are important steps in our European growth strategy. Germany is the central logistics market in Europe. From here we are ready to grow further and drive acquisitions throughout Europe,” says Gruber Logistics CEO Martin Gruber.

Holger Dechant, CEO of Universal Transport, adds: “We were re-thinking our long-term strategy and we found in joining Gruber Logistics a great opportunity for our company and employees. It is a partner who shares our quality standards, reliability and values. Moreover, with Gruber Logistics, we can expand our service portfolio including general cargo, parcel loads and logistics services. The entire Universal Transport team is looking forward to joining this international success story”.

With around 2,200 employees and total sales of around 650 million euros of transport and logistics activities, Gruber Logistics will take over the position of the European market leader in the field of heavy- and specialized transport after the integration. It is also aiming for a leading position in Europe in the general logistics market over the next years. In recent years, Gruber Logistics has already recorded an annual increase in sales of around 30 percent and has therefore significantly outperformed the European market as a whole. This path is now set to accelerate even further in the coming years.

For customers of both companies, the new alliance will enable an even more attractive offer and at the same time holistic range of services, as well as a bundle of know-how of the two successful providers, and thus expand them. The highly specialized employees guarantee maximum precision, as well as a further increase in the level of service thanks to greater proximity and faster response times. Indeed, the new alliance can count on a capillarity presence in Europe and abroad. It represents also a concrete answer to the crisis of transport capacity in Europe for the lack of drivers since Gruber Logistics can now count on almost 700 trucks being one of the most relevant fleets in Europe.

The aggregation is also seen as the best way to tackle the European challenges in the field of logistics such as digitalization and sustainability, where Gruber Logistics is already a pioneer being involved in some of the most relevant projects for prototyping the next generation of electric and hydrogen vehicles.

Especially in turbulent times, the reliability that already characterizes both companies is not only a key factor for customers, but also for employees – the new alliance will thus establish an even more stable foundation.

EGL opens a one million square foot logistics hub in Sokhna

GPLN member EGL from Egypt, a member of Kadmar Group has announced the opening of its new 100,000 m² (about 1 million square feet) logistics park in Sokhna, close to Cairo New Capital (Egypt), called DEPOT Sokhna.

Admiral El-Kady, the founder of the group, said: “Sokhna is a very important consolidation hub for ocean freight, especially for cargo from and to the Far East and the Gulf area. The nation-state is investing in the expansion of its ports such as Alexandria, Damietta, Port Said, and Sokhna. Cairo’s New admin Capital is just 60 km from the Kadmar Sokhna location. Therefore, it was the right time to concentrate our investment in Sokhna”.

Kadmar plans to offer value-added logistics services to companies, particularly in the energy, healthcare, high-tech, manufacturing, consumer goods, and retail, as well as fashion industries. Kadmar aims to use many new technologies in Sokhna, including the Internet of Things (IoT), augmented reality, and various automation systems. It is now offering a range of fully standardized logistics services under the name DEPOT. Its solutions help to create the momentum that allows offering a wide range of services to our clients. Along with logistics, this also applies to the customer platform. All customers have access to real-time reports and can view their orders timely.

A Kadmar spokesperson said the new product line targets a market segment that has so far not quite matched traditional solutions operations: businesses for which customized logistics concepts are not suitable due to low order volumes or financial circumstances. However, the site of about 100,000 m² with warehouses, E-commerce fulfillment centers, Sea / Air DC, container terminal, container repair station, heavy lift terminal, and a special vehicle logistics park will satisfy all the current and future demand in the area.

The new facility is a fully custom bonded area, connected to the highway between Cairo and Sokhna and located very close to the cargo railway station.

He added that the new facility will help to improve logistical solutions for clients in Egypt, resulting in better service with considerable cost savings.

The DEPOT is a green facility as it uses energy for lighting and operation from a solar station that is built on the roof of the warehouse and can provide considerable savings in CO₂ consumption and will help in charging cars with electricity.

Holleman handles impressive oversized transport in the petrol industry

The oversized transport industry is full of challenges. Some of them are more special because they lead us to find inventive solutions.

Recently, GPLN member Holleman from Romania received the biggest challenge in 25 years of activity in oversized transports: they had to transport two coking chambers, specific for the petrol industry but with impressive dimensions. The two pieces were produced by the Walter Tosto company and the final destination of the coking chambers was the Petrobrazi refinery. The transports were considered of national importance, so the loads were assisted by the Romanian Traffic Police, escort oversized transport vehicles and teams of specialists in the electricity and communication networks.

The dimensions of the coking chambers were as follows: 47 meters in length / 8.2 meters high / 7 meters wide and each chamber weighed around 185 tons. The weight of the total load was 364 tons (meaning the load with trailer and tugs). The impressive dimensions of the transport and its importance meant careful planning, and therefore started 3 months ahead of the operation.

The general director of Holleman Romania, George Nita mentioned that “the preparations for this transport lasted more than three months and required a technical route project, carried out by specialists in the field.” Regarding the complexity of the transport, the most complicated section was the crossing of the A2 highway, when traveling on the Ring Road. The transport needed a traffic management which was approved by the head of the Police Bureau, and other authorities in charge.

Holleman found and organized a possible route, which connects the industrial area of Bucharest with the Petrobrazi Refinery.The Holleman team was composed of 3 special drivers and a backup driver who had experience with heavy loads, 4 accompanying / escort drivers, 6 service people, 2 heavy equipment specialists, 1 forklift operator, 4 people for beaconing works and 2 managers. To carry out the transport, three Mercedes-Benz Actros Titan trucks and a trailer consisting of 2 trailers with a 14 x 8 configuration (224 wheels with a load of 1.2 tons/wheel) were used.

Star Shipping delivers Transformers to Central Punjab

MAMQ delivers Heavy-Lift Wartsila Engine

GPLN member M/s M. Amin M. Qaseem (Pvt) Ltd. (MAMQ) from Pakistan received a hook-hook delivery of heavy-lift “Wartsila Engine” (Weight 140-Tons) at Port Bin Qasim and delivered the aforesaid heavy-lift to the Job Site in Lahore.

MAMQ is recognized as one of the leading and pioneer of one-stop project logistics solution providers in Pakistan. They recently handled and delivered a heavy-lift shipment comprising of the Wartsila Engine onto Goldhofer Multi-Modular Trailer from Port Bin Qasim (Karachi) to Lahore Site in safe and sound condition.

MAMQ’s work-scope included the underhook receiving of the aforesaid Engine, weighing 140 tons, Dimensions: 12*3.65*4.57 Meter, onto Multi Axle Hydraulic Trailer at Port Bin Qasim and delivery of the same to the job Site in Lahore, Punjab. MAMQ provided its Goldhofer Multi-Modular (10 Axle Lines) Hydraulic Trailer at Bin Qasim Port (Karachi) prior to the arrival of the vessel for the safest & in-time under-hook receiving of the aforesaid heavy-lift. After the under-hook reception of the ODC package at Port Bin Qasim and customs clearance completion, the ODC shipment was dispatched immediately and delivered to its destination prior to the provided lead time without any discrepancy. MAMQ is optimistic for its consecutive achievements.

Green Expands Sustainability Solutions for Supply Chains Through Innovative Partnership with The Uplift Agency  

GPLN member Green Worldwide Shipping (Green) from USA, a leading provider of international logistics and customs compliance, and The Uplift Agency (Uplift), a sustainability and social impact consulting firm, are proud to announce a strategic partnership that will help U.S. companies improve the sustainability of their direct operations and global supply chains.

Currently, corporations patch together consulting firms, tech, and multiple external vendors to advance their environmental, social impact, and governance (ESG) goals. Through this partnership, which brings together two businesses with complementary expertise and state-of-the-art technology, companies are now able to streamline solutions and accelerate reaching their sustainability goals.

“Increasingly, our customers want to reduce their environmental and human rights risks across their enterprise, but it’s notoriously difficult to manage — especially in the supply chain,” said Thomas Jorgensen, president & chief executive officer of Green Worldwide Shipping®. “As a technologically advanced, global transportation & logistics provider, we already bring a unique perspective and supply chain insights for international businesses. Now, with the addition of Uplift’s ESG consulting expertise, we can offer customers the most extensive sustainability services in our industry.”

Uplift and Green will provide customers with access to sustainability experts, trade lane solutions, and comprehensive consulting. This includes:

• • Scope 1, 2, and 3 greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions tracking, management, reduction, and target-setting services including access to Green’s new software, which simplifies a company’s efforts to map, measure, and mitigate their Scope 3 transportation GHG emissions.
  • Sustainable supply chain design and optimization through improved routes, biofuel and electric options, and certified carbon offsets.
  • Human rights due diligence implementation through supply chain data collection, risk mapping, policies, and codes of conduct.
  • Human rights compliance with current and forthcoming international and U.S. law and disclosures required by various stakeholders, such as investor groups and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.
  • ESG and environmental strategy including materiality assessment and plans to reduce energy use, water, waste, emissions, and biodiversity impacts.
  • ESG and sustainability communications and reporting including building sustainable brand narratives, communications materials, and sustainability and carbon disclosure reports.

“Working together, we have a tremendous opportunity to help companies at every stage of their sustainable business journey,” said Corinne Graper, chief executive officer of The Uplift Agency. “By combining Green Worldwide’ s cutting-edge technology that maps and manages Scope 3 transportation emissions with Uplift’s sustainability