fig magazine june 14
DESCRIPTION
Conference EditionTRANSCRIPT
magazine June 2014
FIG Annual Conference 2014 Cape Town
TEN
TH
AN
NIV
ER
SARY
!
We are delighted to re-
port on a very successful conference to celebrate our 10th ANNIVERSARY!
For all FIG Partners un-able to attend our Cape Town Conference, we will try to convey, in this spe-cial edition, a flavour of events and discussions during our short stay in this amazing country.
Aside from enjoying great company and a hectic so-cial schedule, our dele-gates made a great con-tribution to the future development of our FIG family through practical suggestions and initia-tives .
SEE YOU ALL NEXT TIME!
FIG annual conference March 28-30 2014
feedback...
Picture (left): Vanessa Lim and hus-
band, Raymond (FIG Indonesia)
enjoy the giant ‘puppets’ during our
city tour and dinner at ‘Gold’ restau-
rant - Cape Town
YOUR FIG FAMILY NEEDS YOU! 1 LATEST FIG PARTNERS 2 / 3 CONFERENCE GALLERY 4 –6 FORBES ‘FACE to FACE’ 7 FIG WEBSITE - UPDATES 8 HOW TO STAY AHEAD 9-11 VOTE FOR NEXT VENUE 12 EMERGING MARKETS 12 FEATURE UAE 13 FEATURE CHINA 14 FEATURE POLAND 15-17 INTERFORWARDER 18 MESSAGE FROM CEO 19 GOODBYE CAPE TOWN! 20
the network that just keeps growing...
your chance to
page
page
4
conference pics
YOUR FIG FAMILY NEEDS YOU!
page
1
delegates propose to grow our fig family
by recommending NEW members...
for our next fig annual conference venue
in this issue...
12
page
18 JOIN THE REVOLUT ON!!!
Feature... FIG Poland - page15.
magazine june 2014
HOW DO
YOU RATE
YOUR FIG
PARTNERS
? page
8
Latest FIG Partners... Can you recommend a new FIG Partner ? ...
During our Cape Town Conference, our members pro-
posed that each delegate would recruit ONE new excep-
tional FIG Partner and bring them to our next FIG Annual
Conference...
We have already received a number of recommendations
and we would like to extend this promotion to all FIG
family members.
Algeria - Burma (Myanmar) - Cambodia - Chile - Denmark
Dominican Republic - Ecuador - Egypt - Finland - Haiti
Israel - Jamaica - Jordan - Kuwait - Laos - Oman - Peru
We have opportunities to join FIG in the following countries...
Our first RECOMMENDED FIG Partner...
FIG France CFMI
Consolidated Freight Monitoring International - (CFMI) has been rec-ommended by FIG Netherlands - Martin Deventer (Trustful Logistics).
Positioned in Roissy CDG, CFMI is ideally placed to manage your air freight. Ocean, Road freight and Customs capabilities completes the full package!
Talk to Frank! [email protected] www.cfmi.com
Allez CFMI!... CFMI Team
1.
FIG Poland Pekaes SA
FIG Pakistan Swing Logistics
Vanessa Lim (pictured) joined our FIG Annual Conference in Cape Town just two weeks after joining our FIG family.. With branches in Jakarta & Semarang and with 60+ well-trained staff, PT Yudhanusa is a highly professional orgainsation with a prestigious client list to match.
Vanessa Lim - Managing Director [email protected]
Website: www.yudhanusa.co.id
FIG Indonesia PT Yudanusa Ekspresindo Caraka
Say hello...
Please take the time to welcome our most recent FIG Partners...
The largest 3PL operator in Poland with 20 offices in 17 cities, 8 logistics warehouses, 1000 employees, Pekaes SA is a powerful addition to our FIG family. Pekaes has been quoted on the War-saw stock exchange since 2004, offers a full range of forwarding & customs services specialising in groupage throughout Europe.
Kajetan Jaglowski - Sea Freight Director [email protected]
Website: www.pekaes.pl
Wave goodbye...
Swing Logistics has offices in Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad, Sialkot, Peshawer and Faisalabad and offers a transit service to Afghanistan via Karachi / Peshawer as bonded cargo. FIATA accredited and with a strong reputation in Project Handling, we are delighted to welcome Ashar and his team to the FIG ‘family’.... Ashar Khan - CEO [email protected] www.swinglogistics.com
Sadly, our long-standing FIG Partner in Denmark - Transocean Shipping Agency, will not be joining us on our continuing journey. We wish Jan, Anni, Susanne & team every success for the future and thank them all for their invaluable support over the years...
2.
FIG China Shanghai Standard Logistics
With a network of offices throughout China including Shanghai, Shenzen, Beijing, Guangzhou, Tianjin, Chongqing and Dalian plus a branch company in Zhang Jiagang Free Trade Zone, our new FIG China member, SSL offers a full range of services and is keen to develop business throughout the FIG network.
Victor Chang - Deputy General Manager [email protected]
Website: www.s-s-log.com
Say hello...to a few more...
Established since 2000, Katcargo offers full range of services at all ports and airports in Venezuela including inland transportation trans-shipments and project cargo. Yesikat Lazo - General Manager [email protected]
Website: www.katcargo.net
FIG Venezuela Katcargo International CA
FIG Annual Conference 28-30 March 2014
FIG Partners recently celebrated our TENTH BIRTHDAY in the amazing city of Cape Town, South Africa.
During our short stay we covered many topics related to business development and future direction of fig-group. We also covered a great distance in physical terms with a short city tour and dinner in Cape Town followed the next day by a trip on a vintage steam-train to the most southerly train station in Africa (Simonstown) then an evening of dinner & dancing with a few ‘low key’ performances by our multi-talented FIG Partners...
Massimo (FIG Switzerland) & Shehan
(FIG South Africa) with Entertainers
‘Gold Restaurant’ Cape Town
3.
FIG Partners and entertainers at ‘Gold Restaurant’ in Cape Town
‘A picture in ‘pink’...
Peter (FIG Thailand) and ‘CT’ (FIG Taiwan)
at ‘Gold Restaurant’ - Cape Town...
‘Old Friends’
Yaniny (left) - FIG USA meets up
with Kim - FIG Vietnam at the FIG
Evening Reception
Guisella (left) - (FIG Colombia) meets delegates from
FIG Vietnam - Kim, Thi, Son...
Mr Tan
Singapore
Samuel
HongKong
‘CT’ Taiwan
Vanessa & Raymond
Indonesia
Simona & Reinhard
Austria,Hungary,Slovenia
‘Sto
ub
is’
- F
IG G
reec
e
‘Ro
hit
’ -
FIG
Ind
ia
4.
Mr
Tan
- F
IG S
ing
apo
re
All Aboard!... FIG delegates let the train take the strain!
Leaving Cape Town for Simonstown - the most southerly train station in Africa...
Massimo (FIG Switzerland)
‘Ro
hit
’ -
FIG
Ind
ia
Nis
hit
h’
- F
IG Q
atar
Beautiful coastal scenery en-route
To Simonstown...
5.
Patric - FIG Switzerland
Martin - FIG Netherlands
Bernard - FIG UK
Delegates enjoy lunch at Boulder’s Beach...
Hi Guisella!
FIG Colombia
Open top bus back to our hotel ready for Gala Dinner...
Beautiful coastal scenery en-route
To Simonstown...
6.
Since the onset of the recession, companies have increasingly resorted to cutting travel budgets in favour of technology as a means to conduct meetings. While virtual meetings are indeed useful for certain purposes (i.e., to save time and money, for greater flexibility with regard to location and timing, etc.), the results of this study show that the majority of executives polled believe face-to-face meetings are still crucial for building stronger, more meaningful and profitable business rela-tionships. This study, conducted by Forbes Insights, surveyed more than 750 business executives. 34% re-ported they are travelling much less frequently for business since the beginning of the recession in January 2008; 42% reported their company’s use of technology for remote business meetings has significantly increased since January 2008; and yet more than 8 out of 10 said they prefer in-person, face-to-face meetings to technology-enabled ones.
http://www.forbes.com/forbesinsights/StudyPDFs/Business_Meetings_FaceToFace.pdf
8 out of 10 Business Executives
Prefer ‘Face 2 Face’ Meetings... (and 100% of FIG delegates)...
The dancing was not always ‘pretty’ but ‘full
marks’ for enthusiasm... faces blurred to avoid any
embarrassment...
Bernard Lavery (FIG UK) giving virtuoso
performance... With our band ‘5 Levels Up’!
Above: Nelson Mandela’s ‘Marimba
Band’ with Afraimm on saxophone...
Left: Our own songbird... Kim (FIG
Vietnam) - album release at next AGM.
As our conference came to a close with our Gala
Dinner, we were lucky enough to be entertained by
a local band ’5 Levels Up’ and musicians playing
marimba & saxophone who played for Nelson
Mandela at all State functions. We also had our
‘traditional’ performances from our own FIG stars!
7.
Updates on FIG Website... During our Cape Town Conference, FIG Admin explained that we were updating and improv-
ing a number of resources on the FIG website. We are pleased to announce that all updates
are now in place. Please login to your ‘Members Area’ to see these useful additions...
Quotation Requests: Previously, members had to login to check for any ‘external’ enquiries (non-
members). Now, when an external enquiry is received, members will be automatically notified by email (both POL and POD). They should then login to retrieve details of the enquiry. NB: We expect members to use a FIG Partner at POD where appropriate.
FIG Partners: We have now introduced our previously announced, FIG ‘Gold Standard’. All FIG Partners
have received a ‘preliminary’ rating of Gold, Silver or Bronze based on FOUR criteria - Speed of Response, Competitive Rates, Helpful & Courteous Staff and Prompt Payment. These criteria include dealings with FIG Admin and are further affected by attendance at our FIG Annual Conference. NB: A FIG ‘Gold’ Standard can ONLY be achieved by attending our FIG Annual Conference and meeting all other measurements. Members who fall into the ‘Bronze’ rating may be considered for replacement. Please note that ‘Gold Standard’ rat-ings are also shown in the public area of the FIG website under ‘view all FIG offices’.
Member Rating: This new addition to your menu offers a facility to provide ‘feedback’ on your experience
with other FIG Partners. FIG Partners are required to ‘submit’ this completed form every three months. All responses are anonymous (there is no reference as to who has made the rating or left comments) although FIG Partners can see how their service has been measured by other members. These ratings will also be used when ‘rating’ our members using the FIG ‘Gold Standard’. Please take the time to provide feedback on your trading experiences within figgroup.
Downloads: We have added two MS ‘Word’ documents to this section. FIG Agency Agreement and FIG
Overseas Agent Protocol. If members have not yet downloaded and completed these forms, please make this a priority. NB: FIG Agency Agreement requires insertion of your company name at various places within the document. Completed forms should be signed, scanned and emailed to FIG Admin. Those members who have completed these documents will be displayed in ‘FIG Partners’ list in members area.
For any new members... In this section we have an option to add the FIG logo to your website or email sig-nature. HTML code is included for your convenience.
“FIG Admin is dedicated to our policy of constant improvement”
8.
Global Freight Forwarders: How to stay ahead in global trade
article re-produced from Logistics Management Magazine - Oct 2013 By Patrick Burnson Executive Editor
9.
10.
11.
Where in the world will our
next fig annual conference
be held?... Each year our FIG Annual Conference is held in a different country. Our venues generally alter-nate between northern & southern hemi-spheres. Delegates from our last conference have TWO votes to determine our next venue whilst all other members have ONE vote.
Previous Destinations... LONDON, UK KUALA LUMPUR, MALAYSIA BARCELONA, SPAIN BANGKOK, THAILAND NEW YORK, USA SINGAPORE, SINGAPORE ISTANBUL, TURKEY HOI-AN, VIETNAM VIENNA, AUSTRIA CAPETOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
CLICK HERE TO VOTE
Suggested destinations so far include SRI-LANKA, DUBAI, BALI, FLORENCE (ITALY), SHANGHAI You can view pictures from our previous conferences on the FIG website >> click You can also view and add pictures to our facebook page
How FIG can help to... ‘stay ahead in global trade’?
FIG is designed to offer members a global network of reliable partners to increase the strength and global capabilities of each and every member. After ten years hard work we have grown to become one of the world’s largest ‘exclusive’ freight networks represented in appx. 100 countries and still growing.
As shown in the previous (Logistics Management) article, in order to grow business, FIG Partners should keep a watchful eye on the many developing economies. Whilst some of these countries may have a degree of political instability, we have trusted and reliable FIG Partners in most of these countries to help mitigate any risk.
Emerging markets have been variously listed and labelled:- BRIC - Brazil, Russia, India, China MIKT - Mexico, Indonesia, South Korea, Turkey CIVETS - Colombia, Indonesia, Vietnam, Egypt, Turkey, South Africa BEM - (Big Emerging Mkts) Brazil, China, Egypt, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Philip pines, Poland, Russia, South Africa, South Korea, Turkey Others - Argentina, Chile, Hungary, Israel, Slovenia, Thailand, Taiwan
We have highlighted a few of these countries on the following pages complete with pro-files of our FIG Partners in those countries.
12.
FIG UAE
Click pic to view video
Meet the workers...
Shiyas ‘PK’ at the ‘end of the world’
Mr Shiyas Poovankavil Managing Director
Email: [email protected]
Mobile/Cell: +971 55 2246155
Website: www.masstrans.ae
Offices: Dubai Abu Dhabi
Certifications: ISO 9001:2008 FIATA NAFL IAM PAIMA IELA
Languages: English Indonesian Tagalog Hindi Malaysian Mandarin
Areas of Expertise: Freight Forwarding Project Handling Marine Operations Removals Fairs & Events Heavy Lift
“The completion of major infrastructure projects and the preparations to host the Expo 2020 should keep economic growth in Dubai above 5% in the coming years. In the context of moderating growth rates in emerging economies and relatively slow growth in the developed economies, the UAE growth rate ranks among the most robust in the world,” said Garbis Ira-dian, Deputy Director of IIF, Africa/Middle East. [Source-Gulf News]
The Gulf Widens...
13.
Crowning the dragon... China will become world’s largest economy
by the end of the year
FIG China - Shanghai Standard Logistics
14.
SSL is one of our latest FIG Partners (see page 3). Victor Chang is keen to offer FIG Partners a personal service in this exciting (and still growing) country... [email protected]
Polish economy set to resume
fast growth...
Pekaes SA, one of the world’s leading logistics operators, based in Poland, has become a member of Freight International Group. The company has ambi-tious plans to build a stronger logistics and intermodal group offering a comprehensive logis-tics service to both national and international clients.
Pekaes has 17 branches throughout Poland, 4 key railway terminals , 8 logistics storage facilities and has almost 1000 employees. Having invested heavily in technology and infrastructure, Pekaes is ready to grow their business further through expanding their global reach...
Most of Europe has spent the past five years swinging in and out of re-cession, as waves of troubles have buffeted the continent’s economies. During this time, Poland has survived without single contraction and now looks set to resume significantly faster growth.... [Source: Financial Times]
15.
Joining figgroup, will allow us to establish
relationships with operators around the world
and build new channels for existing customers...
Kajetan Jaglowski Sea Freight Director PEKAES
PEKAES SA... at a glance
17 Offices throughout Poland 4 Major Railway Terminals 8 Logistics storage facilities 1000 Employees $548m Revenue (+5%) $11m Net Profit
Quoted on Warsaw Stock Ex-change since 2004.
Developed in-house ‘Customer Zone’ connecting clients to the supply chain including e-invoicing and tracking.
Pekaes participates in the UN led UN Global Compact initiative.
16.
We offer our clients a comprehensive service including air,
ocean and transportation between ports and airports, cargo
handling, customs clearing, dangerous goods as well as a
number of additional services including palletization and
storage...
Maciej Furman Air Freight Forwarding Manager - PEKAES
Through the innovative Pekaes ‘Customer Zone’, clients are able to access all appropriate handling docu-mentation, e-invoicing, tracking , claims and communication. Along with a re-designed ‘client-focused’ web site, Pekaes has a similar strategy to figgroup based on automation and communication through technology.
The company is not resting on it’s laurels and is taking further action aimed at increasing the area and scope of it’s activities. “Joining Freight International Group will allow us to establish relationships with operators around the world and build new channels for existing customers, which will strengthen our existing market position. As a member of the group, we can gain access to markets which so far have been absent, offering a much broader range of services to clients in global markets” says Kajetan Jaglowski, Sea Freight Director.
100+ FIG
PARTNERS
‘EXPERT’ GROUPS
MY GROUPS/
NETWORKS SEARCH & BE FOUND
INVITED AGENTS COMMUNICATE!
LOGIN + 10 STAFF LOGINS
ADD EXPERTISE.REACH YOUR SUPPLY CHAIN.COMMUNICATE IN REAL TIME.BUILD & GROW...
MY PROJECTS
MY SUPPLY CHAIN
17.
the revolution is coming...
At our Cape Town Conference, delegates were introduced to the ‘beta’ version of Inter-forwarder... Our ground-breaking platform to revolutionise the way forwarders work to-gether!
First... The thinking behind Interforwarder. Most forwarders today belong to a freight network or alliance. These ‘groups’ are designed to help small and medium-sized companies compete with ‘so-called’ multi-national forwarders. But do networks and alliances really ‘met the brief’? There are ‘exclusive’ networks who appoint only ONE for-warder company in each country (like FIG) - these are in the minority as most group owners prefer to maximise returns. Then there are ‘non-exclusive’ groups where multiple (sometimes unlimited) com-panies can join. There are advantages and disadvan-tages for both business models. For example, as a member of a ‘non-exclusive’ group you will have to compete with other ‘country members’ for business from other members. As a member of an ‘exclusive’ group, members may not offer the full range of ser-vices required by certain members. The ideal sce-nario is a ‘hybrid’ of both systems - offering the best of both worlds...
Secondly... How do you find EXACTLY the overseas agent you require? Every single freight forum is lit-tered with forwarders seeking overseas agents! There are numerous freight directories - but these generally just offer contact details - how can these agents be trusted?
Thirdly... When you have decided which group to join or have found the agents you wish to work with, how do you communicate? Send an email and hope for a prompt response?
Interforwarder offers the solution to all these issues and is set to revolutionise the way for-warders work together...
Interforwarder is a detailed search-engine & directory which allows users to search for EXACTLY the type of agent required by geographical location and by areas of expertise...
FIG Partners will be granted FREE listings on Interfor-warder and will ALWAYS appear at the top of all rele-vant searches bringing additional business opportuni-ties...
Interforwarder users (Premium) can build their own groups and networks, selecting agents that match their requirements EXACTLY! Users will also be invited to join other groups/networks offering even more op-portunities to grow your business. Invite agents from outside Interforwarder to join your group... to join the revolution!
All users can communicate in real-time using Messag-ing, ‘Instant’ Messaging, Video Chat, Shout-Box, Video Broadcast, Whiteboard, Screen-share, Chatrooms and more... Each registered company will receive TEN log-ins to be shared between their own employees, clients or other elements of their supply chain. These logins are managed by the account holder and will allow ‘out-based’ employees or members of a project team to stay in touch in real time even on mobile devices. Send files and even share documents on the move! No more waiting for email responses! All Interforwarder sys-tems are encrypted - no spam - no phishing - no re-jected mails - just business - fast!
Our developers are working around the clock on this project and expect to launch Interforwarder in mid-June 2014.
18.
19.
The FIG Train Keeps On Rolling...
Having celebrated our TEN YEAR anniversary, our FIG group continues to grow in strength and global reach and shows no signs of slowing down. In fact, our members will see increased activity and significant advancements in capabilities during the coming months.
FIG Admin will continue to invest in technology and resources following our policy of constant improvement. We take great pride in the general standard of our ‘exceptional’ forwarders and have taken steps to ensure that all members have a chance to influence and maintain these standards.
We thank all FIG Partners for their support and contribution to our continued growth and success and look forward to seeing you all next year!
CHRIS HUMPHREY CEO– figgroup
Yaniny (FIG USA)
Let’s Dance!
Rohit (FIG India)... Checking the itinerary
Chris Humphrey
FIG Conference 6:00am
Where IS Everyone?...
Dawn & Chris Humphrey - FIG Admin
“no really... Who’s buying the drinks?”
Chris & Dawn Humphrey... Testing the menu...
Shehan - FIG South Africa
It’s been a long day..
Chris Humphrey shares a joke with
Jali (FIG Australia SYD, BNE)
Penguins at Boulder Beach...
FIG Bus Stop... All Aboard!
Whoops!...
20.