yusen logistics - 1-stop connections and events/attachments...6 logistics yusen logistics the...

11SEPTEMBER/OCTOBER 2012 � The Australian Business Journal

YUSEN LOGISTICSwww.au.yusen-logistics.com

2 LOGISTICS � Yusen Logistics

YUSEN LOGISTICSForward thinking02


YUSEN LOGISTICSForward thinking

LOGISTICS AUB


Yusen Logistics offers a full spectrum of integrated logistics functions designed to give customers a better experience

JAPANESE-OWNED COMPANY YUSEN Logistics, which commenced operations

in Australia in its current form on 1 April 2011, is actually a merger of two

logistics companies that have operated in Australia for almost 25 years.

The merger between freight forwarder Yusen Air & Sea Service and domes-

tic logistics company NYK Logistics was simply the result of business sense

– it occurred when parent company NYK Group realised that, after 2008’s

global financial crisis, having one integrated logistics arm was better than

two competing ones.


The resulting contract logistics and inter-

national freight forwarding company offers a

full range of end-to-end supply chain solutions,

including ocean freight forwarding, air freight

forwarding, customer brokerage and tariff consul-

tancy, as well as supplier management. Its net-

work is similarly comprehensive, linked together

by operational bases in 36 countries worldwide.

General manager of business development Grant

Gurney has been with Yusen Logistics Australia

through the Yusen Air & Sea Service side since

1999 and thus seen it grow from being a “rea-

sonably small freight forwarding company” to a

“major player in the market place”.

“Yusen Air & Sea Service opened in 1988

as a fairly small operation in Sydney and Mel-

bourne, offering freight forwarding and customs

brokerage services,” he explains. “Since then

the business has grown mainly through organic

growth, to a stage where we employ close to 100

people in the freight forwarding division. We’ve

since opened in Brisbane and our turnover has

increased markedly.”

All in oneIn the spirit of being a combination of two ini-

tially separate companies, Yusen Logistics has

ensured none of its services are separate either.


www.1-stop.bizP 1300 881 055

E [email protected]

We take the pain out of tracking and managing your cargo, so that you can serve your customers better. We do this by providing specialist services for supply chain participants in the import and export of goods to and from Australian ports.

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We make it easy

Gurney claims Yusen Logistics’ “total integra-

tion of services” is one of its greatest points of

difference. “A number of our competitors have

the same range of services as we do, however in

many cases their different logistics functions are

run as separate companies under the one hold-

ing company,” he says.

“In Yusen Logistics, all of our functional

logistics services come from the one business.

This ensures better commercial offerings, bet-

ter operational service and better administrative

procedures, which lead to a better overall experi-

ence for our customers in all areas.”

Yusen Logistics’ complete management of

processes on the freight forwarding side is sup-

ported by 1-Stop Connections, who supplies the

information required for its import and export

operations. “Our use of 1-Stop includes an im-

portant software tool that allows us to make and

receive payments from fellow community mem-

bers, thereby speeding up the exchange of docu-

ments and funds without the need to physically

transfer paperwork,” Gurney says.

“Down to pressure from consumers to lower costs, a lot of businesses are transitioning from air freight to ocean freight movement”


Positive changeAnother of Yusen Logistics’ competitive advantages

is said to lie in following a philosophy originating

from the company’s country of birth. “Kaizen is

a Japanese word that, loosely translated, means

‘change for good’,” Gurney explains. “It is not just a

program that we run to fulfil our customer’s expec-

tations around continuous improvement, but a core

principle of the way we do business.”

In accordance with the philosophy of Kaizen,

Yusen Logistics staff are trained and encouraged

to look constantly for ways to improve efficien-

cies. “In this way we can assure our customers

that we are doing everything possible to help

them in areas including safety, quality, envi-

ronment, increasing efficiency and decreasing

costs,” says Gurney.

For several years now, Yusen Logistics has also

followed a “very strong” environmental policy. “In

terms of not just having an environmental policy but

in living by it, we would be at least the equal of our

competitors, if not ahead of them,” he adds.

Catching the waveOver the next three-to-five years, Yusen Logistics

will focus on further developing its ocean freight

forwarding services – a “growing area” according to

Gurney. “Down to pressure from consumers to low-


er costs, a lot of businesses are transitioning from

air freight to ocean freight movement – so a large

range of products that were formerly transported by

air are now moving by ocean,” he explains.

Using this strategy, and supported by its full

“In Yusen Logistics, all of our functional logistics services come from the one business. This ensures better commercial offerings, better operational service and better administrative procedures, which lead to a better overall experience for our customers in all areas”

spectrum of services and a dedication to con-

tinuous improvement, Yusen Logistics hopes

to weather increasing consumer pressure to

achieve “sustainable growth” across all facets of

the business. “Our overall objective is to become

a top-five international freight-forwarding compa-

ny within the next three years,” Gurney says. “And

it’s tracking in the right direction.” AUB

WWW.AU.YUSEN-LOGISTICS.COM


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