Friday, January 24, 2020

Weekly Run Down of Smaller Items Starts with the Need for More Women in Shipping

Some of the Logistics Items You May Have Missed
Shipping News Feature

DENMARK – Like most maritime nations, and indeed the logistics industry worldwide, female representation is sadly lacking throughout. Now Danish Shipping, the trade and employer organisation for more than 90 ship owners and offshore companies which control 95% of the country's home flagged merchant fleet, want to introduce more women to the maritime sector.

With currently around 20,000 male and only 3,000 female employees, Danish Shipping has launched a charter which companies can sign to show their commitment to redress the balance. Signatories will devise strategies to promote women throughout their activities, ensuring a senior member of staff is in place to see through the process.

BELGIUM – EUROPE – If you work in the breakbulk cargo industry and are under the age of 40, you have a chance to be celebrated at Antwerp XL, the world’s only event dedicated exclusively to maritime breakbulk set to be held 21 – 23 April 2020. Winners judged by a panel of industry experts will take a place in dedicated gallery on the Antwerp XL website and a special drinks reception held in their honour at the event itself.

Contestants who feel they have the excellence and commitment to make a real difference to their organisation and/or the wider breakbulk industry, can nominate themselves, or via a colleague in this link and entries close on February 28.

SINGAPORE – International software specialist Softship has been selected as a ‘pre-approved vendor’ under the Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore’s (MPA) Sea Transport Industry Digital Plan (IDP), a SGD3.7million fund to support ship agency and harbour craft businesses in Singapore to build stronger digital capabilities.

The programme was established to provide SMEs with step-by-step guidance to support them in the adoption of new digital solutions and provides a list of vetted and approved maritime-specific digital solutions which qualify under the grant, only one other company has been approved by the MPA in this category so far.

Singapore-based ship agency SMEs can access Sea Transport IDP funding for up to 70%, or up to SGD$30,000, of the cost of Softship’s Advanced Port Agency Solution (Softship.SAPAS), a cloud-based software solution designed specifically for ship agency businesses.

CHINA – Insurer TT Club says the establishment of its first Network Partner in the country where it already has its existing Shanghai corporate office is an important landmark for the Club. Now in Qingdao, through the appointment of Ever Faith Marine Service Co Ltd., as of 10th January, TT Club has a presence in three key locations. Qingdao joins TT Club’s management company Thomas Miller’s offices in Shanghai and its Asia-Pacific headquarters in Hong Kong.

Allowing TT Club Members, its insured, to access a unique network of freight transport experts across the globe, Network Partners provide claims assistance, loss prevention and risk management advice to container lines, freight forwarders and other supply chain operators who arrange their insurance cover through TT Club.

SWITZERLAND – DENMARK – WORLDWIDE – Panalpina, which was acquired by DSV in 2019, has been commended for its environmental action, achieving a place on non-profit CDP's ‘A List’ for climate change, based on the company’s climate reporting. The company was recognised for its actions to cut emissions and mitigate climate risks, based on the data it submitted through CDP’s 2019 climate change questionnaire. Panalpina is one of a small number of high-performing companies out of thousands that were scored.

Initiatives include Science Based Targets Initiative which DSV Panalpina recently announced its commitment to. As part of the initiative, DSV Panalpina will set targets for reducing CO2 emissions. There is a new partnership with Danish energy company Ørsted to investigate how energy production from offshore wind can be used to produce renewable hydrogen, whilst another project in this partnership explores how to develop large-scale aviation fuel and infrastructure in Denmark.

ASIA – Kuehne + Nagel has decided to combine its current pair of Asian operations into one with immediate effect, the new Asia Pacific region with about 10,000 professionals will be headquartered in Singapore. The move was seemingly a natural progression after it combined the former three European regions into ‘One Europe’, and what it says was the significant growth and successful integration of three major acquisitions in the North America region.

UK – Auditing is creeping into just about every facet of the shipping industry and any chance to reduce the cost is welcome. Now the price of a remote navigation audit for ship operators can be cut by 45% if they are insured with North P&I Club after it cut a deal with SureNav. The audits can reveal gaps in bridge team performance and compliance.

Failures in this area can result in groundings, collisions and other calamities and now North’s Members will be able to use their voyage data recorder (VDR) alongside supporting evidence such as copies of the charts used, checklists, log entries and voyage plans as well as evaluate compliance with procedures in the vessel’s safety management system. A full report, complete with supporting video evidence where required will be available after each audit.

US – Maria Christina ‘Meta’ Ullings, the former senior vice president of cargo sales and marketing for Martinair N.V. (Martinair Cargo) and a Dutch national, whose extradition to the US we wrote about earlier this month, has pled guilty to the charges against her.

Ullings pleaded guilty to conspiring with others to suppress and eliminate competition by fixing and coordinating certain surcharges, including fuel surcharges, charged to customers located in the United States and elsewhere for air cargo shipments.

Photo: In times of war women are always welcomed into the roles traditionally occupied by men.