Forwarder Continues Building Freight Facilities Whilst Winning Logistics Contracts

WORLDWIDE – Much happening again this month within the DB Schenker group as plans for yet another new freight terminal are announced plus news of further inroads into the world of automotive logistics support. The new facility, once again to be constructed within BREEAM (Building Research Establishment Environmental Assessment Method) Good and Very Good standards will also hold TAPA ‘A’ security certification and will be situated in Vantaa, the capital area of Finland with completion due by July 2015.

The terminal will operate land transport, parcel services and home deliveries as well as air and ocean freight and all operations will be combined under one roof in a warm terminal hall of 25,200 square metres plus there will be an additional unheated terminal of 3,300 square metres. Schenker says it continues to seek even more environmentally friendly modes of operation and currently is examining the possibilities of recharging fork lifts using solar energy. Göran Åberg, CEO of Oy Schenker East Ab commented:

"This new facility of DB Schenker in Finland is one of the largest investments of DB Schenker globally and one of the largest land transport terminals in Europe. In November 2012 we opened a brand new logistics centre of 24,500 square meters in Nurmijärvi, in the capital area of Finland, focusing on the automotive industry. Together these investments of DB Schenker in logistics services in Finland will be approximately €76 million."

The country is providing rich pickings for the freight forwarder with Oy Roberts Ab, a century old, family-owned company producing and providing food products appointing DB Schenker Logistics a contract to provide it with a comprehensive logistics package. Roberts products will be stored in a dedicated facility located in the DB Schenker logistics centre complex in Turku utilizing its 2,600 square metres of temperature controlled warehouse.

The automotive connection mentioned by Göran Åberg is a field which Schenker is actively pursuing globally. This week BMW entrusted DB Schenker with the operation of a new warehouse on Japan’s main island of Honshu. Schenker-Seino Co., Ltd. combines the global network and knowhow of DB Schenker with the domestic state-of-the-art infrastructure of Seino Transport and is one of the major transportation and logistics service providers in Japan.

Under the name Osaka Regional Distribution Center, the new 8,000+ square metre facility provides all BMW dealers in the Kansai area and beyond with spare parts. Inbound restocking parts are received from the existing distribution center near Tokyo via multiple daily trucks, which are also managed by Schenker-Seino. Located at the southern tip of Kyoto, away from the coastline and 15 metres above sea level the location lessens the risk of Tsunami damage, an ever present fear of commercial interests in the region.

Meanwhile in Brazil another big gun from the industry, DAF Trucks, has announced DB Schenker as their chosen provider of export consolidation, supply-chain visibility and import logistics in support of DAF Brazil’s new truck assembly plant in the city of Ponta Grossa in the state of Paraná. Schenker will be responsible for the door-to-door air and ocean transportation between DAF Brazil’s European supply-base and the Brazil assembly plant plus customs clearance and final deliveries.

According to Tim Horton, Global Account Manager for PACCAR (DAF’s parent company), DB Schenker will also provide the DAF Brazil materials planners with a purchase order management solution and detailed supply-chain visibility utilizing the premium Integrated Cargo Management tool, ‘Scout’. He pronounced that the supply-chain visibility tool was a key factor in PACCAR’s decision to choose DB Schenker as their preferred logistics service provider for the new plant.

The announcement came following some industrious work by the Schenker team which participated in the DAF Brazil European Supplier Days Event in Eindhoven in the Netherlands, the world headquarters of DAF in October 2012. For five days, DB Schenker and DAF presented Brazilian customs and documentation requirements to more than 180 European suppliers ‘kicking-off’ the logistics implementation for the new plant. To manage the entire import process, DB Schenker will provide a dedicated team to meet the needs of DAF Brazil in Ponta Grossa.

Photo: There won’t be many of these heading for Japan! A BMW concept car to end all – read the story of the project HERE.