Business Focus Magazine - Issue 99

Issue No.99

SPECIAL FEATURE:

CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

DIGITAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Reshaping the world of commercial real estate.

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

Unlocking the UK’s full digital potential.

BROMPTON

WHEELS OF FREEDOM

Exclusive interview with CEO Will Butler-Adams OBE, on the bike that promotes sustainability and environmentally-friendly movement.

AFL | A Fibre Solution | Grimaldi Group | World-class Shipping & Logistics James & James | Ultimate Fulfilment | Mega Fortris | New Security Seal Palm Beach International Airport | Gateway to Dream Destinations

MDL MARINAS

Expanding to create a robust, sustainable leisure business.

FEATURE YOUR BUSINESS

With a global readership of over 290,000, Business Focus Magazine is the perfect platform to place your business in front of our Senior Executive level audience.

CONTACT SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR:

TREVOR GRETSINGER | t.gretsinger@ceomediagroup.com

PROJECT MANAGERS MARK BAILEY m.bailey@ceomediagroup.com

EDITOR’S NOTE

ANDREW BOURKE a.bourke@ceomediagroup.com DEAN BROWN d.brown@ceomediagroup.com CHRIS CONWAY c.conway@ceomediagroup.com DAVID GARNER d.garner@ceomediagroup.com TIMOTHY GARWOOD t.garwood@ceomediagroup.com DAVID HAYVIS d.hayvis@ceomediagroup.com JOHN HOLLIMAN j.holliman@ceomediagroup.com ROBERT NAPIER SMITH r.smith@ceomediagroup.com LIAM PYWELL l.pywell@ceomediagroup.com JAMIE SIVYER j.sivyer@ceomediagroup.com DAVID TAVERNOR d.tavernor@ceomediagroup.com HAYDEN TURNER h.turner@ceomediagroup.com RASH UDDIN r.uddin@ceomediagroup.com ALICE YOUNG a.young@ceomediagroup.com

DESIGN SCOTT ANDREWS design@ceomediagroup.com ADRIANA STROIA artwork@ceomediagroup.com

ACCOUNTS MIKE ASHER accounts@ceomediagroup.com

PRODUCTION KAMILA KAJTOCH production@ceomediagroup.com

EDITORIAL CHRIS FARNELL cfarnell@ceomediagroup.com JIM HUNTER editor@ceomediagroup.com

SALES & MARKETING DIRECTOR TREVOR GRETSINGER t.gretsinger@ceomediagroup.com

SUBSCRIPTIONS, PRESS RELEASES AND GENERAL ENQUIRIES: info@ceomediagroup.com

The content of this magazine is copyright of CEO Media Group.

Redistribution or reproduction of any content is prohibited. © Copyright 2022 CEO Media Group.

FOCUS ON

TRAVEL The sky is blue, the sun is shining, and while there is plenty of work to do you could be forgiven for imagining yourself somewhere else at this time of year. So why not let us fuel those daydreams with our profiles of international airports you might wish to fly to? We have been talking with Charleston International Airport, Richmond International Airport, and perhaps most evocatively, Palm Beach International Airport.

B

ut putting your holiday plans aside, for now, there is still plenty of work to do right here.

This month we have been taking a look at the vital role of infrastructure in building the Industry 4.0, Internet of Things environment.

This environment is not only our future but a reality in nearly every field of business you can think of. We have talked to companies as varied as Cold Chain Technologies and NICO General Insurance about the crucial tools digital solutions can provide them with. We have also been covering companies like LightSpeed Broadband and AFL who are building the infrastructure that makes these solutions possible.

Telecommunications rely on power, and we have been talking to Telemenia about that company’s fascinating work providing portable power solutions to the most inaccessible places on Earthincluding the largest isolated city in the world.

While the movement of data and power is becoming increasingly critical all the time, the movement of actual

objects remains a priority, and once again we are talking to leaders across the shopping and logistics sectors, including Strukton Rail, MDL Marinas, and the Grimaldi Group.

And sometimes the most important object to transport is yourself, and with the weather looking the way it does, Brompton Bicycles offers an appealing transport option, as we see in our interview with them in this issue.

Wherever you are going, enjoy your summer.

ON THE COVER Brompton Go to page 16

Issue No.99

CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

SPECIAL FEATURE:

Reshaping the world of commercial real estate.

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

DIGITAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Unlocking the UK’s full digital potential.

BROMPTON

WHEELS OF FREEDOM

Exclusive interview with CEO Will Butler-Adams OBE, on the bike that promotes sustainability and environmentally-friendly movement.

AFL | A Fibre Solution | Grimaldi Group | World-class Shipping & Logistics James & James | Ultimate Fulfilment | Mega Fortris | New Security Seal Palm Beach International Airport | Gateway to Dream Destinations

MDL MARINAS

Expanding to create a robust, sustainable leisure business.

EDITOR’S NOTE | 3

IN THIS ISSUE

8

13

16

EVENT

6th Aviation Africa Summit & Exhibition Radisson Blu Hotel & Convention Centre, Kigali, Rwanda | 12th – 13th September 2022 A major trade event for African Aerospace and Defence industries.

NEWS

Digital Business Solutions The Infrastructure of Industry 4.0

LEADING ARTICLE

Brompton Wheels of Freedom

AVIATION

26

Charleston International Airport Flying to New Heights

32

Palm Beach International Airport Gateway to Dream Destinations

40

Richmond International Airport The Best Little Big Airport

46 52

16

8

COMMUNICATION & TECHNOLOGY AFL A Fibre Solution

LightSpeed Broadband Delivering Digital Equality

26 62

Cushman & Wakefield Reshaping the World of Commercial Real Estate

70

Indef A Herculean Effort

76

Investec Property Unlocking the Potential of Space

80

Rotpunkt Küchen From Your Kitchen to the World

86

92

4 | CONTENTS

CONSTRUCTION

CONSULTANCY

NICO General Insurance Company Ltd Driving Malawi’s Market

ENERGY & UTILITIES Telemenia Remote Possibilities

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

ISSUE NO.99

62

158

164

98

FMCG

Fairafric Changing the Chocolate Industry

102

Montego Pet Nutrition Feeding Pets, Globally

108

Savola Food Company Innovation Founded in Intelligence

114

120 126

132

United European Car Carriers A Greener Fleet

TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS

Cold Chain Technologies Keeping a Cool Head

174

James and James Ultimate Fulfilment

180

Strukton Rail On the Right Track

132

GOVERNMENT

Ecolog Trusted Partner in Need

MANUFACTURING

Fablink A British Success Story Mega Fortris UK A New Security Seal

SHIPPING, PORT & MARINE

Grimaldi Group World-class Shipping and Logistics

138

Inchcape Shipping Services New Ownership, New Horizons

148

MDL Marinas More Than Marinas

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

180 CONTENTS | 5

Find your way out of a complex operating model.

Let’s talk.

Operations Strategy | Digital | Cultural Engineering

Global io

- integrated operations experts.

globalio.com

EVENT OF THE MONTH

WHEN: 12TH- 13TH SEPTEMBER 2022 WHERE: RADISSON BLU HOTEL & CONVENTION CENTRE, KIGALI, RWANDA

6 AVIATION AFRICA SUMMIT & EXHIBITION KIGALI 2022 TH

IN ASSOCIATION WITH RWANDA CIVIL AVIATION AUTHORITY AND RWANDAIR.

8 | EVENT OF THE MONTH

EVENT OF THE MONTH

Aviation Africa is a major trade event for the aerospace and defence industries. The 6th event is a 2 day summit and exhibition.

Speakers will include leaders from African airlines, civil aviation authorities, business aviation & support industries. The co-located exhibition will feature approx. 100 global aviation companies.

T

he 2022 summit & exhibition continues the work it has been doing for the past 5 events in building and shaping Africa’s aviation industry.

The summit will look at where we go from here - shaping the future for aviation in the wake of the coronavirus crisis.

As the African continent begins its slow climb into recovery, Aviation Africa brings together thought-leaders, practitioners,

operators and regulators to address the key challenges both short-term and long-term.

Undoubtedly, this has been the biggest hurdle in the development of the aerospace industry since it began more than 100 years ago - but the work done before the pandemic started may prove beneficial to Africa’s industry. www.aviationafrica.aero

EVENT OF THE MONTH | 9

lead wıth the leader Today, Internet is in our pockets; our virtual and real worlds are coming together. LTE offers you great potential to deliver a superior mobile broadband experience to your customers, but the stakes are high. Success in LTE means getting to market quickly, with services that offer subscribers more than what they have today, as cost efficiently as possible. With 60 live commercial LTE networks on all continents and about 50% of all smartphone traffic on LTE running through our networks, we have what it takes to support you.

ericsson.com/unplug

RELIABLE GEO EXPLORATION – THE PREREQUISITE TO SECURE YOUR INVESTMENT No matter whether in real estate construction, tunnelling, bridge building, exploration and evaluation of raw material deposits of any kind, further development of your mining operations or unveiling geothermal potential, precise and reliable knowledge of the nature of the subsoil always plays a decisive role.

Just call DMT. We know the world and its ground like no one else and offer profound insights based on 282 years of practical experience and foresight.

The broad range of services, innovative techniques, flexibility and solution orientation – all from one source – supports you to make the best out of your project.

We call this Engineering Performance DMT-GROUP.COM

Headquaters DMT Group I Am Tüv 1 I 45307 Essen I Germany I Phone: +49 201 172 1867 I Mail: info@dmt-group.com

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TÜV NORD GROUP

DIGITAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

INDUSTRY 4.0 IS HERE, AND IT IS HAPPENING, BUT TO BE A SUCCESS IT WILL NEED A COMPREHENSIVE NETWORK BACKBONE.

THE INFRASTRUCTURE OF INDUSTRY 4.0

T

he Internet of Things is no longer just a buzzword or vapourware. It is a reality across a host of industries.

People are getting around app-based electric scooters, signing car finance agreements supported by onboard telematics, supply chains are maintained by intelligent digital platforms and utility infrastructure is optimised through artificial intelligence. Surgeons are trained on remote simulators. Our phone talks to our tv talks to our laptop.

THE REVOLUTION WILL BE DIGITISED

Cold Chain Technologies, which we look at in more depth elsewhere in this issue, has been making important strides through its digital platform to manage cold supply chains.

“We’re helping improve tracking, tracing, and alerting along the last mile,” points out Ranjeet Banerjee, Cold Chain Technologies’ CEO. “We are not only alerting if something goes wrong but being predictive. If we expect a problem we can intervene proactively.”

It is a system that proves even more invaluable when you are talking about international supply chains for perishable or temperature-sensitive goods such as foods or medicines.

“Imagine you are transporting a vaccine from Texas to Narita, Japan in the summer,” Banerjee says. “The type of solution you would need in the summer could be different from if you are transporting it in mid-winter. We

have digital solutions to support our customers in optimising their packaging.”

As well as helping to keep track of supply chains, digital solutions are an increasingly integral element of customer relations, as we found in our discussion with Donbell Mandala, CEO of the Malawibased insurance company NICO General.

“It’s taken too long for our market to add digital solutions,” Mandala insists. “This year we are adding that to our portfolio. Our brokers will have a portal to access our system, check claims and enquire for a quotation. We are working on a solution to be able to show clients our modelling and allow

NEWS | 13

DIGITAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

them to pay monthly. This might seem outdated, but it has not happened yet in Malawi, and we are the first to be able to do it.”

All of these platforms are aside from the rise of a remote working culture that is now so omnipresent it is barely worth remarking on anymore.

AN ESSENTIAL UTILITY

Fast, reliable internet access has quickly become as vital to any business as electricity and clean running water, and for businesses to thrive the infrastructure that provides that must be available everywhere.

“High-speed fibre is now an essential utility that everyone relies on because of the way we now work today,” says Steve Haines, CEO of LightSpeed Broadband, which is profiled in this issue.

This is why LightSpeed Broadband exists- to ensure that infrastructure exists across the UK, not just in its largest cities.

“WE ARE NOT ONLY ALERTING IF SOMETHING GOES WRONG BUT BEING PREDICTIVE. IF WE EXPECT A PROBLEM WE CAN INTERVENE PROACTIVELY.” Digital equality is very important for the community.

It is a core policy of the UK government to level up the whole of the UK to make sure everybody has access to the gigabit services across the whole of the country,” Haines points out. “The reason that is important is that people need access to modern communications. A good example is the way the pandemic required people to have the ability to work from home and use all the rich tools that are available.”

14 | NEWS

DIGITAL BUSINESS SOLUTIONS

Virgin Business’s report, “Tackling Digital Inequality in Greater Manchester” published earlier this year, shows the impact that inequality can have.

The report documents the effects of Greater Manchester Combined Authority commissioning Virgin Media Business to connect over 1,500 public sites to full fibre in Greater Manchester as part of the UK’s largest Local Full Fibre Networks Programme (LFFN), and how it delivered economic benefits worth £11.8 million in the first year alone.

The investment programme provided funding to social value initiatives that supported Greater Manchester’s Digital Blueprint, and over 80% of the current LFFN workforce was hired from the Greater Manchester area, outperforming the initial local employment rate target of 50%, while Virgin Media Business itself funded three digital skills programmes with the Prince’s Trust and GMCA. It is a project that shows the ripple effect digital infrastructure investment can have.

How that infrastructure is installed is also an increasingly vital question. Traditionally the rule across the industry is that broadband cables with a higher fibre count take longer to install, with some providers taking as long as 20 hours to connect two cables. AFL, featured in this issue, have been introducing technology that can take that jointing time from 20 hours to just three, starting with imported products from Japan but now running a European facility to manufacture the new, easy-to-install cables, which it brands SpiderWeb Ribbon®, or ‘Air-Blown Wrapping Tube Cable with SpiderWeb Ribbon’.

“HIGH-SPEED FIBRE IS NOW AN ESSENTIAL UTILITY THAT EVERYONE RELIES ON BECAUSE OF THE WAY WE NOW WORK TODAY,” AFL is now serving many other UK customers and is moving into new premises to be at the vanguard of a sea change in how the UK regards its infrastructure.

“With energy markets becoming ‘smart’ and the telecoms operators rolling out more gigabit broadband we are very excited to be in our new premises to better serve these demands,” Bennett concludes.

A NEW KIND OF NETWORK

This infrastructure building is as much about how these networks are organised and

integrated as it is about how they are built, however.

LightSpeed Broadband has demonstrated a model for independent, decentralised fibre networks, but as those networks grow and connect, Haines is asking questions about just how they will connect with each other.

“There are several companies like LightSpeed and while we can all grow organically by building our own networks, at some point in the next 12-18 months there needs to be a coming together of companies like us,” Haines says. “If our mission is to be a high quality, regional player that provides continuous service in the East of England, there will be players like us in the West of England, the Midlands, up North. So, I foresee more collaboration between altnets in different regions to scale up towards a kind of national network.”

NEWS | 15

BROMPTON

16 | LEADING FEATURE

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

BROMPTON

A BROMPTON BIKE TICKS ALL THE BOXES – PRACTICAL, LIGHT AND DURABLE, IT PROMOTES SUSTAINABILITY AND ENVIRONMENTALLY-FRIENDLY MOVEMENT WHILE KEEPING THE BODY FIT AND THE SOUL HAPPY.

WHEELS OF FREEDOM PROJECT MANAGED BY: DEAN BROWN

The iconic bike was invented by young engineer Andrew Ritchie in 1975, but it took his invention ten years to be recognised and valued for its benefits for (not only) urban life; in 1987, he was persuaded to exhibit at the Cyclex Bike Show at Olympia, London, the Brompton folding bike won the coveted Best Product Award.

F

Will Butler-Adams, Chief Executive Officer, Brompton Bicycle Ltd.

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

rom then on, the business developed slowly but steadily.

The launch of the Brompton Superlight model in 2005, engineered with a lightweight titanium rear frame and forks, represented an evolutionary step for both the bicycle and the company. Shortly afterwards, Will Butler-Adams, one of the lead engineers on the project, took over the role of Chief Executive Officer.

“We make a little bicycle that makes life a little bit happier,” he summarises the core business.

“The bike folds and unfolds which is handy, particularly for urban living – it fits into small

flats and it’s great for commuting – you can ride it to work and stack it under your desk. And if you don’t feel like riding, you can fold it up and just take a taxi or jump on a bus. It really makes urban living a bit more joyful.”

THE RIGHT BALANCE

The idea of a foldable bike seems simple, but Will explains that the execution is quite tricky. To make something fold and unfold a countless number of times smoothly and easily, while ensuring light weight and structural robustness at the same time, requires serious engineering.

“Getting that balance right and producing something that lasts a long time is what is special about a Brompton bike.

Even though the idea as such is simple, the bikes consist of 1,200 parts and we have 380 people in our London factory carefully assessing the design, material, every manufacturing aspect and ensuring quality control and testing. It’s the detail that counts and where the value is added.”

LEADING FEATURE | 17

Take control of your supply chain.

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The capacity to grow Launch products with end-to-end supply chain control. Flexport’s reliable global logistics network and fast financing options bring new markets within reach.

www.flexport.com

BICYCLE MANUFACTURING REQUIRES GEARING-UP SUPPLY CHAIN VISIBILITY No other period than the last two years has the bicycle industry been met with such overwhelming demand. Since 2020, as people around the world were told they’d need to be staying indoors due to strict lockdown laws, sudden thoughts of how that’ll affect their fitness or boredom levels arose.

This created a massive surge in demand for bikes, putting pressure on the global supply chain for the components and raw materials necessary for the production of bicycles. Factories became backlogged, and order lead times extended dramatically as a result; consequently, bicycle retailers ran out of inventory to sell.

BROMPTON

HARD TIMES FOR SUPPLY CHAINS Supply chain challenges have been felt across many industries over the last 18 months but what exacerbated the problem for bicycle manufacturers, in particular, is that the sourcing for many of the critical components is concentrated within a small number of suppliers. For example, Japan’s Shimano controls an estimated 60 per cent of the global market for highend bicycle gears and brakes.

In response, the bicycle industry turned to air freight to accelerate the shipping time for these components and mitigate some of the production delays. What they encountered was a turbulent air market where rates skyrocketed to levels never seen before. The most significant contributor to this is the travel restrictions that interrupted the normal flow of passenger traffic because more than 50% of air freight moves in the belly of passenger planes. At the same time, as becoming more expensive, air freight reliability has declined.

REAL-TIME DATA LEVERAGE AGILITY AND FLEXIBILITY The increased complexity of modern supply chains also calls for better analytics to help you stay in front of future unknowns. Impending bottlenecks can’t hide when you have end-to-end visibility that allows for preemptive mitigation of potential disruptions.

In today’s environment, bicycle brands with better visibility into their supply chain and with more immediate access to accurate data are the ones that can adapt faster to changing situations on the ground and plan with greater resilience in the face of future disruptions.

Flexport’s technology platform offers a single, real-time supply chain source of information, with a dashboard that speeds workflows and surfaces insights: ■ By connecting all parties across the supply chain and providing a single source of accurate real-time data, disruptions can be better anticipated, and problems solved.

■ Powerful order and shipment level analytics can be fed into planning processes to better inform the right supply chain strategy to navigate the challenges.

■ Access to Flexport Capital solutions enables importers to reduce the cashflow exposure of extended order and transport lead times.

Supply chain issues and extended lead times on bike purchases are expected to continue until the end of 2022, if not into mid-2023. Having access to endto-end visibility of the entire supply chain will be key to responding faster to constantly changing needs. This allows setting customer expectations appropriately and that level of visibility also holds the potential to assist teams across the organization — beyond the logistics team. Customer service can have access to that real-time tracking data, allowing them to keep buyers apprised of their order’s precise location. Finance can see where their spending is going and make real-time adjustments. And marketing can make better decisions on which product to promote based on availability and expected warehouse delivery dates. Beyond those benefits, perhaps the single largest benefit of end-to-end visibility is the flexibility it can bring to your logistics operations. www.flexport.com

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

Will, who has spent two decades in the company and played a major role in its growth, reflects that witnessing the development of the business has been very rewarding: “When I started, there were 40 people turning over £2 million. Now the company has 800 employees and a turnover of £100 million.

The steady growth of around 20% a year for the past 20 years is a reflection of all the effort that we have put in – unique machinery, tooling, staffing, training and logistics.”

LEADING FEATURE | 19

BROMPTON

He points out that the attitude of urban dwellers towards the movement within the city has changed over the last decade, and this change has been further accentuated by the global pandemic. “For many, it is becoming clear that urban living with the dominance of cars is no longer viable. Cycling is one of the most efficient methods of transport in a city, good for the body and soul while generating no pollution.”

The growing sales of Brompton bikes on a global scale show that this belief is shared by an increasing number of people – today, the bikes are available in nearly 50 countries, and the universal appeal of the bikes

20 | LEADING FEATURE

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

BROMPTON

makes them an ideal export product: 75% of Brompton’s output is sold in foreign markets, the majority is going to Europe and Asia, followed by North America.

In order to support this continued growth, there has been a need to consolidate and expand Brompton’s logistics international footprint in key markets. The main operational focus has been on expanding warehousing, air, ocean and road freight capabilities to better meet unprecedented demand. Over the past 6 months Brompton has worked on specific tailored solutions in partnership with DSV & Flexport on a non-exclusive basis, to

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

LEADING FEATURE | 21

DSV Air & Sea Full load and consolidated services across the globe

Procurement Matters

With current challenges affecting global supply chains, it’s more important than ever to entrust an experienced freight forwarder to handle your global freight solutions.

Our global procurement team negotiate with all the major air and sea carriers to provide our customers the highest service quality, preferential space allotment and optimum pricing for their freight movements.

DSV are the third-largest transport and logistics company in the world, with over 40 years experience in international transport and logistics, and over 75,000 employees operating in 90 countries.

In the UK we provide coverage from Scotland to Southampton, and are with you every step of the way to handle your air and sea freight movements globally.

Helping your business is our business Your customers rely on you to deliver, and DSV helps you deliver those promises. For us, it’s about providing you with flawless service and intelligent solutions that constantly make it easier for you to meet your customers needs.

Contact us today on: contact@uk.dsv.com +44 (0) 844 880 0844 www.dsv.com/en-gb DSV – Global Transport and Logistics We provide and manage supply chain solutions for thousands of companies every day – from the small family run business to the large global corporation.

Our reach is global, yet our presence is local and close to our customers. More than 75,000 employees in over 90 countries work passionately to deliver great customer experiences and high-quality services.

Read more at www.dsv.com

BROMPTON

develop a customer centric and cost-effective logistics network, building the foundations for process and operational excellence, to meet our growing international demand in the most sustainable way.

MADE FOR ALL

As the largest bicycle manufacturer in the UK, the company is working hard to build a genuinely sustainable and accountable business. Will insists that the are no plans to outsource production to low-cost countries or even outside London, where it all started – this is where it was first designed and made and where the company staff are using their bikes every day.

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

LEADING FEATURE | 23

BROMPTON

“FOR MANY, IT IS BECOMING CLEAR THAT URBAN LIVING WITH THE DOMINANCE OF CARS IS NO LONGER VIABLE. CYCLING IS ONE OF THE MOST EFFICIENT METHODS OF TRANSPORT IN A CITY, GOOD FOR THE BODY AND SOUL WHILE GENERATING NO POLLUTION.”ADDED.” The product offering is kept relatively simple. The Brompton range of folding bikes comprises of five key product lines: A Line, C Line, Electric C Line, P Line and T Line. The specifications are designed to meet the needs of different riders. The most popular continues to be the C Line – the classic all-steel original design with the 3-part fold, handmade in the London factory since 1975, offered in the widest possible range of colours. For demanding customers, the company has entirely re-engineered the ultralight titanium frame (T Line) that weighs 37% less than the original all-steel equivalent and is just as strong.

The portfolio also includes an electric bike that offers all the benefits of a Brompton boosted with smart electric technology.

“We are not targeting the hardcore cycling population but trying to persuade the general public that cycling is a joy. Only about 3% of the UK population uses a bike as a mode of transport regularly. But 98% of the UK population knows how to ride a bike,” Will points out.

“We are not trying to preach to the converted minority. Our focus is the majority who know how to ride a bike but are not doing so, and the electric bike is the ideal solution for some

24 | LEADING FEATURE

customers who would not consider cycling for a variety of reasons.”

SOLID FOUNDATIONS

Over the last few years, the company has experienced record growth under extraordinarily difficult circumstances, from Brexit to the global pandemic. Great leadership and solid business partnerships have been some of the aspects that have kept the business not only afloat but flourishing.

“We never stopped making bikes for a single day within lockdown, and I was in the company every single day.

In a crisis, you need to have leadership. You need honesty and communication; to use your experience and your team’s experience to do what is right for the business, the staff and the customers.

We also have great relationships with our suppliers and our suppliers have been amazing during the difficult times, enabling us to grow very fast.”

Given the impressive performance during this challenging time, what’s in the pipeline for the future?

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

BROMPTON

“Well, we’re turning over £100 million. We’ve grown at 20% a year for 20 years. To sustain that rate of development for the next 20 years will suffice. It’s important to be just sensible. To build solid foundations, make a solid product, look after your customer and your staff over the long term.”

Will affirms that the business is driven by a team of people who genuinely believe in what they are doing, contributing to society and the environment.

“I think the old days when all businesses cared about was making shareholders lots of money have gone. You need to genuinely start with the customer, your staff and the environment. And if you do that, guess what? Your shareholders will see the value.”

“I THINK THE OLD DAYS WHEN ALL BUSINESSES CARED ABOUT WAS MAKING SHAREHOLDERS LOTS OF MONEY HAVE GONE. YOU NEED TO GENUINELY START WITH THE CUSTOMER, YOUR STAFF AND THE ENVIRONMENT. & IF YOU DO THAT, GUESS WHAT? YOUR SHAREHOLDERS WILL SEE THE VALUE.”

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

LEADING FEATURE | 25

CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT HAS EXCEEDED ITS PRE-PANDEMIC TRAFFIC LEVELS & IS SET TO EMBRACE FURTHER GROWTH TO THE BENEFIT OF BOTH PASSENGERS AND THE LOCAL COMMUNITY.

FLYING TO NEW HEIGHTS PROJECT MANAGED BY: RASH UDDIN

Charleston International Airport (CHS) is a joint civil-military airport located in North Charleston, South Carolina. The airport is operated by the Charleston County Aviation Authority under a joint-use agreement with Joint Base Charleston. It is South Carolina’s largest and busiest airport.

A

lthough founded nearly a century ago in 1928, CHS started to experience a real boom only over the last decade. Since 2010, new services, established by additional airlines along with increased services from legacy carriers, have contributed to this growth. As of 2019, the airport is the only facility in South Carolina to offer regular flights to destinations in all four time zones in the contiguous United States.

In October 2018, British Airways commenced a direct route from London Heathrow for the summer season, becoming the first scheduled transatlantic flight to operate from Charleston. In 2021, the newly established Breeze Airways announced that Charleston

26 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

would serve as a focus city for the airline and launched service to 11 cities.

STRENGTHENED BY CHALLENGE

In July 2020, in the middle of the global pandemic, the Charleston County Aviation Authority welcomed a new Executive Director and CEO, Mr Elliott Summey. Under his management, not only did the airport survive the challenge in a robust shape, but it also emerged from the difficult years in a smart, modernized form.

“I have been blessed with a team of individuals who are willing to think outside the box, willing to take on new challenges, and who are also very community-minded. The challenge of Covid brought out

Elliott Summey, Executive Director & CEO, Charleston County Aviation Authority.

CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

WE DELIVER WOW

Proud business partner of Charleston International Airport At Hudson, we turn the world of travel into a world of opportunity. We set the bar high for our team, customers, landlords, vendors and partners — and leap over it.

Because we’re the traveler’s best friend.

To learn more, visit us at www.hudsongroup.com

HUDSON_BUSINESS FOCUS_half page.indd 1

4/18/22 7:50 PM

HUDSON Hudson is a travel experience company turning the world of travel into a world of opportunity by being the Traveler’s Best Friend in more than 1,000 stores in airports, commuter hubs, landmarks, and tourist attractions. We operate travel convenience, specialty retail, duty free, and food and beverage locations.

As an industry leader, we are anchored by the iconic and most recognized travel retail brand in North America – Hudson News. Our innovative travel retail concepts include Hudson Nonstop, Evolve by Hudson, and Hudson Automated Specialty Retail.

Our specialty retail portfolio comprises over 100 local and global brands.

We also offer an assortment of exclusive specialty retail brands, including Brookstone, Ink by Hudson, Hudson Booksellers, and 5th & Sunset.

We are the largest operator of duty free stores in North America, leveraging the tremendous scale and scope of our parent company Dufry, the world’s largest travel retailer.

In food & beverage, we offer top brands ranging from quick service to restaurants and bars. Fan-favorite brands include Dunkin’, Baskin Robbins, Starbucks, Joe & The Juice, and Plum Market. We also offer our signature “Traveler’s Best” line of healthy Grab & Go meals and snacks in our travel convenience stores.

Hudson strives to be a responsible corporate citizen for the communities it serves by partnering with local and national organizations and fostering a diverse and inclusive environment for all.

To learn more about Hudson, please visit us at hudsongroup.com, subscribe to our press releases, and follow our journey on LinkedIn, Instagram, and Twitter.

28 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

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CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

the best in our people, who embraced the opportunity to give back to the community when it needed it most,” Elliott Summey says.

He explained that the airport implemented a set of health and hygiene practices to improve staff and passenger safety and opened a free-of-charge Covid testing facility serving not only passengers but also the general public. Once vaccines became available, space was provided for a vaccination centre.

“Covid also made us think unconventionally in terms of airline recruitment. And we really took that opportunity – we welcomed America’s newest airline, Breeze Airways, here

last year, another milestone for the Charleston region. And oddly enough, in the middle of a pandemic, we had the largest growth in the history of any airport in South Carolina, adding 22 new destination cities over the last 18 months. All because we were willing to roll up our sleeves and think differently.”

SERVING THE COMMUNITY

Elliott affirms that in line with the development of general aviation, environmental protection has been a major topic and is embedded in all airport expansion projects.

Aiming for carbon neutrality, the airport has launched several initiatives, including solar

power as well as the use of LNG and CNG, in order to minimize its environmental footprint.

He further points out that being engaged with the local community has always been high on the company’s agenda and an area where the Authority is very active. “This airport doesn’t exist without this community. Being a part of the community is vitally important for us.”

To promote small and niche local businesses, the company has introduced a Kiosk Program, also known as the Specialty Leasing Program (SLP), developed for local small and niche businesses, aiming to complement existing food, beverage and retail concessions with culturally oriented and regionally unique products and services. Similarly, a Small Business Development initiative has been set up to promote minority and womenowned small businesses.

“THIS AIRPORT DOESN’T EXIST WITHOUT THIS COMMUNITY. BEING A PART OF THE COMMUNITY IS VITALLY IMPORTANT FOR US.” It is not only small local businesses that benefit from Charleston International Airport’s support. The hub is home to the Boeing facility that assembles the 787 Dreamliner and also serves the Daimler Mercedes facility.

“These companies are not only the top producers for our people, but they also provide the opportunity to incubate

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AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 29

CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

tier one, tier two and tier three suppliers for this market while creating an economic development opportunity for the region. Getting aggressive on adding destination cities, we provide those suppliers with the opportunity to connect to other potential customers around the country,” Elliott notes.

TIME OF GROWTH

In line with the increased traffic levels, the airport has undergone major changes over the last few years. In 2016, the airport

30 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

implemented a three-year $200 million redevelopment project which added five gates and significantly renovated the interior appearance of the facility. Elliott revealed that just recently, the Aviation Authority Board authorized another $18 million to add three new gates to the airport’s existing concourse A, to be completed

by August 2022.

The increased capacity is much needed. In April 2022, the airport processed 54,000 passengers more than in April

2019. “We don’t compare ourselves with 2020 as some, for us the bar was set in 2019, pre-pandemic. In 2019, we handled some 4.7 million passengers, the biggest-ever figure then. Our projections indicate that we’re going to reach more than 5 million in 2022.”

Elliott explains that to further boost capacity, the airport has changed the way it operates, switching to ‘Common Use Gates’, i.e., assigning gates based upon airline schedule,

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CHARLESTON INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

as opposed to having gates dedicated to certain airlines. This would increase the capacity of existing gates by 20-30% without swinging the hammer, he says.

“It is important to show that we are making the most of the existing assets before we spend another $250 million on a new concourse, which we plan on doing as well, with a view to promoting further economic opportunities,” he continues.

“Ultimately, the airport development, both for tourism and business, aims at securing

quality-of-life opportunities for our citizens.”

“However, there are also wider implications. In some regard, we are the first and last impression someone may ever have of Charleston, and how people perceive Charleston, South Carolina, is extremely important to me. We want to create a wonderful lasting impression of Charleston, named one of the most beautiful and friendliest places in the world, and we are going to do everything we can to make it happen.”

“ULTIMATELY, THE AIRPORT DEVELOPMENT, BOTH FOR TOURISM AND BUSINESS, AIMS AT SECURING QUALITY-OF-LIFE OPPORTUNITIES FOR OUR CITIZENS.” BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 31

PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL, THE AWARD-WINNING AIRPORT IN SOUTH FLORIDA, IS PREPARING TO EXCEED ITS PRE-PANDEMIC TRAFFIC LEVELS, AS IT INVESTS IN FURTHER SERVICES & FACILITY ENHANCEMENTS.

GATEWAY TO DREAM DESTINATIONS PROJECT MANAGED BY: RASH UDDIN

Palm Beach International Airport (PBI), located in West Palm Beach, is the primary airport for Palm Beach County and the three counties to the north of West Palm Beach and boasts many distinctive advantages that many larger airports cannot provide.

Y

ou can expect to be on the beach within minutes of arrival,” says Ms Laura Beebe, director of airports for Palm Beach County.

“We have world-class resorts and beaches, golf courses, arts and entertainment. We are in an urban location and yet very close to the beach and the resorts. So, you are literally on vacation the moment you land.

And on the way back, while passengers can also enjoy all the same facilities larger airports offer, they can be at the gate from their parking spot in 15 minutes or less.”

“We are centrally located, with a nearby high-speed rail connection to Fort Lauderdale, Miami and eventually to Orlando, so you can visit all of those locations and actually stay in the best destination in the region, Palm Beach County.

We have experiences and

32 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

activities everyone can enjoy, beyond the theme parks.”

AWARDED PERFORMANCE

PBI is operated and maintained by Palm Beach County through its Department of Airports and is conveniently located to serve Palm Beach County and the four surrounding counties. The airport is just 2.5 miles west of downtown West Palm Beach and 3.5 miles west of Palm Beach.

PBI is classified as a medium hub airport that serves both air carriers and general aviation aircraft, providing a yearround service for major airlines such as Delta, American, United, Jet Blue, Southwest, Frontier and seasonal service with Air Canada, Sun Country, and others.

Ms Laura Beebe, Director of Airports for Palm Beach County.

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The fuTure has landed Meet the strongest and most advanced fleet in Gulfstream history.

With the addition of the all-new Gulfstream G800™ and G400™, our expanded portfolio offers an aircraft for every mission.

PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Solar Trees welcome guests, showcasing PBI’s commitment to sustainability.

The general aviation traffic at PBI has a choice of three fixedbase operators, Signature Aviation, Atlantic Aviation and Jet Aviation. Private general aviation generates a substantial part of the business and is one of the factors contributing to PBI’s returning to pre-pandemic traffic levels now.

“One of the things we pride ourselves on is that we are very well received by our customers.

We are considered the easiest, most convenient, and stressfree airport in South Florida,” says Laura Beebe.

During the pandemic, PBI was named the 3rd Best Airport in the US in the prestigious

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Conde Nast 2020 Traveller Readers’ Choice Awards 2020.

That award came on the heels of ranking second highest amongst medium-sized US Airports with J.D. Power and being named 9th Best Domestic Airport in 2020 with Travel + Leisure.

Recent awards include 8th Best Domestic Airport in Travel + Leisure Magazine’s 2021 World’s Best Awards and 7th Best Airport in the U.S. by Conde Nast Traveller’s 2021 Readers’ Choice Awards. PBI continues to exceed expectations for checkpoint wait times, being ranked #1 across the US for the shortest overall wait times at its TSA checkpoints.

“WE ARE CONSIDERED THE EASIEST, MOST CONVENIENT, AND STRESS-FREE AIRPORT IN SOUTH FLORIDA.” WITHSTANDING THE CHALLENGE

Having worked for Palm Beach County for over two decades, Ms Beebe is a true professional in her field, contributing to the business’s development as a deputy director of the airports since 2007. She assumed the role of airports director for Palm Beach County in 2019, the year before the pandemic, thus experiencing the all-time highs as well as alltime lows, as she puts it.

AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 35

PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

“It’s been kind of an interesting development. In 2019, we had just hit the highest volume of passenger traffic in our history. And then, in 2020, we hit the all-time low. However, business started to steadily increase through 2021, and now we are very close to our 2019 levels again.”

Not only has PBI managed to withstand the pandemic, but during the challenging times, the airport has added new nonstop service to destinations that had not been traditionally served in the past, as well as new carriers, such as Breeze Airways and Avelo Airlines.

“Obviously, Covid-19 has created a lot of challenges for travel and the aviation sector as a whole, but it has also created new opportunities. For example, the ultra-low-cost carriers started to fly to smaller destination airports rather than focusing only on the large hubs.”

Ms Beebe points out that the pandemic has not affected their focus on sustainability and environmental measures either.

“Sustainability continues to be a very big topic with airports.

We’re completing our firstever Sustainability Master Plan for PBI, and sustainability is something that we are including in all of our projects; it is and will remain at the forefront of what we do.”

The Escape Lounge at PBI offers travelers a premier experience before their flight.

ENHANCING COMFORT

The airport is currently in the final design stages of a very large expansion project for one of its concourses, which will add more than 50,000 square feet of space, including new passenger waiting areas, concession, restroom and circulation spaces and another secure connection to the Federal Inspection Services area.

36 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

The Gallery at PBI features artists local to Palm Beach County.

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AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 37

PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

The plan is also to expand the security checkpoints and the existing post-security space in a future project.

Within the new expansion projects, the airport is going to redefine its food, beverage, and retail agreements to focus more on local and regional concepts, as opposed to generic concepts.

“We are also adding new amenities that are available at larger airports such as a sensory room for individuals with sensory disorders like autism and integrated breastfeeding stations, all these little but important extras that people expect nowadays,” says Ms Beebe.

She further acknowledges that the airport is a proud member of the local community, participating in various events

and initiatives, including coordinating with Southeast Florida Honor Flights to assist their efforts to honour local veterans with trips to Washington, DC, Art in Public Places to showcase local artists, and hosting local autism schools to provide on-site airport experiences to their students.

“We are already a popular, award-winning airport, and we are going to take it up another notch,” she affirms. “We are very close now to 2019 traffic levels, and I’d really like to exceed those levels during the next high season. With all the activities that are happening at the moment, the new services and the new airlines, and the facility enhancements, we are set to meet and further exceed passengers’ expectations.”

Post-security pet relief areas make traveling with pets easy and convenient.

38 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

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PALM BEACH INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

World-famous PBI Putting Green.

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AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 39

RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

SERVING THE CITY OF RICHMOND AND THE SURROUNDING REGION OF CENTRAL VIRGINIA FOR ALMOST A CENTURY, RICHMOND AIRPORT HAS SUCCESSFULLY BALANCED THE SOPHISTICATION OF A LARGE AIRPORT AGAINST THE CHARM AND CONVENIENCE OF A SMALLER ONE.

THE BEST LITTLE BIG AIRPORT PROJECT MANAGED BY: RASH UDDIN

Photo Credit: Richmond International Airport/Todd Wright

40 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Richmond International Airport’s history officially began in October 1927, with Charles Lindbergh & The Spirit of St. Louis serving as the airport’s first official visitors.

Mr Perry Miller, President & CEO, Richmond International Airport.

In 1975, a Capital Region Airport Commission was created as a political subdivision of the Commonwealth of Virginia by an act of the Virginia assembly, assuming ownership and control of Richmond International Airport. Ever since then, the airport has been selfsustaining, becoming one of the most modern and wellequipped airports in the eastern United States.

The airport’s vision is to move people, businesses, and commerce to advance the

Richmond region. To that end, eight major passenger airlines and four dedicated cargo carriers offer domestic service from Richmond International Airport (RIC) with connecting options to points around the globe. Airport activities create nearly 16,000 jobs and contribute $2.1 billion in economic activity annually to the Richmond region.

STRONG MANAGEMENT

In 2019, just before the onset of the global pandemic, the airport received a new President and CEO – Mr Perry Miller, who brought decades of aviation experience with him and has led the airport through these two challenging years.

AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 41

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IDS is a Specialty Contractor with 40 years of experience designing systems that are unique to each customer’s needs, priming large design-build transportation construction projects, providing specialty systems integration services, and providing 24x7 on-site/on-call support services.

IDS is committed to professional and personal customer service. Our history and success as a company is based upon the satisfaction of our clients. As a result, we have retained most of our clients for decades.

IDS is a financially strong corporation. We have a fully unencumbered $4 Million Line of Credit with Fifth Third Bank and a $30 Million Aggregate Bond-Rating with the A+ Rated “The Atlantic Specialty Insurance Company.”

We also meet and/or exceed all General and Professional Liability Insurance requirements.

IDS is a safe corporation. Our EMR ratings historically and for the last three years average 0.84 annually. All our Field Service Managers, Engineers, and Technicians are OSHA-10 Certified.

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RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Christian & Barton congratulates

Perry Miller and

the Capital Region

Airport Commission

He says: “I was fortunate to have a very supportive Board that enabled me to present methodologies to project several scenarios that would impact operations. As a result, we were able to remain operational during the very difficult time when we went from seven to ten thousand passengers a day, down to our lowest of 234 per day.”

on the continued success of the Richmond

International Airport.

www.cblaw.com

Photo Credit: Richmond International Airport/Todd Wright He affirms that the airport is now back to almost 95% of pre-pandemic levels, although the former 50/50 business to leisure travel mix has swerved towards leisure. “There is a lot of hybrid travel these days and it is hard to differentiate between business and leisure as businessmen now often combine the two, taking their families with them.”

He explains that the airport is also a cargo facility for Central Virginia with integrated project package operators which include FedEx, UPS, and DHL, and provides an e-commerce service that supports Amazon.

A less-known fact is that the airport is also a Foreign Trade Zone.

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AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 43

RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

Photo Credit: Richmond International Airport/Todd Wright “Richmond International Airport is a gateway for Virginia’s capital region. We welcomed about 4.4 million travellers in 2019, which was on about 29 consecutive months of record-breaking traffic. The airport currently serves United States domestic traffic but once the current expansion of our Federal Inspection Services facility is complete, we’ll again welcome visitors from international points of origin.”

LEADER IN GREEN TRAVEL

Over recent years, the airport has strived to improve the travel experience.

During the pandemic, one of the concourses was expanded, with 5 new gates added, and the airport is engaged in a number of further construction projects, as well as environmentally related activities.

In April, The Capital Region Airport Commission, owner, and operator of Richmond International Airport, received the Virginia Green Travel Leader Award for its concerted efforts

44 | AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE

to reduce its environmental impact.

The airport specifically focused on its recycling programme, including the purchase and placement of upgraded collection containers.

In 2021, collections saved more than 33 tonnes of recyclable materials from going to landfill.

“We have been recognised as a leader in the Virginia Green Travel initiative for a number of consecutive years.

In addition to the airport-wide recycling programme, we’ve converted the parking shuttle fleet from diesel to compressed natural gas, we participate in the resource conservation schedule, and the management continually reviews operations for innovative approaches to sustainability and efficiency.”

SENSE OF PLACE

As one of the key contributors to the region’s development, local communities play a significant part in RIC’s strategy and actions. “One of the things that I really am proud of is the

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RICHMOND INTERNATIONAL AIRPORT

focus on incorporating the local community to establish a sense of location, a sense of place in that airport. We partner with concessions to make sure that they are reaching into our community, to make sure that when people visit our airport either coming in for the first time or on departing, they have a Richmond region experience,” says Mr Miller.

This experience has been enhanced by engaging local artists. Visitors in Concourse A can now view the new “Welcome to Richmond” mural by Gate 11 and the Market on Broad store.

Created by local artists Paris

Allen and Christian Kyle Harrell, the new mural spotlights an element of the local art scene and helps fuel curiosity about attractions across the Richmond region.

Supplier diversity is also a priority, and it is the airport’s policy to promote, facilitate and aggressively seek the participation of small, local, minority and women-owned businesses in contracts and procurements.

“We implement community programmes and equip our suppliers with information and resources in an effort to create a transparent environment for

Photo Credit: Richmond International Airport/Todd Wright

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airport contracting, and we are committed to implementing practices that are fair, inclusive and accessible to the community. That is very important to us,” affirms Mr Miller.

PLAYING A VITAL ROLE

While the airport is busy continuing its expansion and enhancement projects, such as the renovation of the Federal Inspection Facility to welcome international traffic again, and the consolidation of the two concourses’ checkpoints, human resources remain one of the priorities.

“We are recognised as an employer who creates an outstanding environment for the employee, and we will continue to strive to sustain that reputation. We are also recognised for our efforts to engage minorities and I think that we need to place a lot of emphasis on partnering with some of the HBCUs (Historically Black colleges and universities) that offer aviation programmes,” says Mr Miller. “I myself graduated from Texas Southern University which has a sound aviation programme that prepared me well for work in this industry.”

“And it is not only specific aviation disciplines. There are many professions needed at an airport – accountants, lawyers, procurement specialists, so it would be good to draw from an HBCU in a number of areas to find the right talent for our environment.”

This would be of great importance specifically now – as passenger traffic recovers and cargo capabilities grow to meet the demand for essential supplies and e-commerce – so that the airport continues to play a vital role in the regional economy for Central Virginia.

AVIATION, AEROSPACE & DEFENCE | 45

AFL

46 | COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

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AFL

A FIBRE SOLUTION THIS CABLE MANUFACTURER HAS INVESTED TO SUPPORT THE TELECOMS INDUSTRY.

PROJECT MANAGED BY: DEAN BROWN

AFL’s origins lie in North America, where it began as a joint venture between Alcoa, and the Japanese company, Fujikura Ltd, to manufacture fibre optic cables for power lines.

T

he joint venture, originally named Alcoa Fujikura Ltd, has grown a lot since then. Today the company is a global fibre optic cable manufacturing firm with 11 manufacturing locations and is wholly owned by the $7 billion Fujikura Group.

Providing a full turnkey service from technical design and manufacturing to installation services, AFL serves the energy, enterprise, hyperscale, service provider and industrial sectors.

The Swindon branch of AFL was founded to manufacture SkyWrap®, a solution for installing fibre optic cables onto existing ground wires or phase conductors. Even today it remains a unique supplier of this product to global markets, but this branch of the company recently relocated to larger premises to meet the needs of its evolving role and diversified offering.

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“Last year, following investment from our Japanese parent company, we moved to larger premises,” Paul Bennett is the General Manager for AFL’s arm of the business in Swindon.

“Existing cable production lines were moved to the new location whilst installing a new production line. The move took place during the pandemic and was a huge challenge.”

HARD WORK AND DETERMINATION

Achieving this move was the result of “Sheer hard work and determination,” according to Bennett.

“We planned it as much as we could, but you will always have challenges and barriers,” he says.

To carry out the change in premises without halting the company’s day-to-day operations, employees each took on a second role associated with the move. As well as requiring

a huge effort from its staff, AFL also needed to ensure it had the necessary expertise in place, and so where necessary, training was given to reinforce the skills of its staff. While some skills could be contracted, skills also needed to be developed in-house so that they could oversee those contractors.

“If you’re moving production lines, which we hadn’t done in 30 years, you can bring in a contractor to move the equipment, but you need to ensure they do that properly,” Bennett says.

AFL’s new location is near Swindon’s old Honda manufacturing plant.

Until recently, the plant had been a large employer in Swindon, so by relocating within the town, AFL was able to provide opportunities to people with technical skills who had been left unemployed by the plant’s closure.

NURTURING AMBITION

This was fortunate for the people AFL hired, but it was also a valuable opportunity for AFL to source skills in a

COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY | 47

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SERVING AFL GLOBALLY FROM SWINDON TO SHENZHEN As one of the World’s longest-running manufacturers of fibre-optic cables, AFL is a veritable force in the fibre optic cable industry. Providing highscale networking solutions for multiple industries, including power utilities, telecoms operators, military, medical and mining, the company commands a Worldwide presence, a storied legacy and multiple industry awards – not to mention contracts with leading international providers.

AFL Telecommunications Europe Ltd is the company’s UK cable manufacturing arm of fibre optic cable, operating within Swindon’s resilient industrial hub.

Due to modernisation and the increase in demand for fibre optic cabling specifically from the Internet Service Providers AFL decided to relocate its factory.

Having been the company’s dedicated managed IT provider for over 10 years and working with AFL within the UK for 20 years, IT Support 365 were more than familiar with AFL Telecommunications’ IT estate, and on hand to make the move manageable. Nonetheless, a migration of this scale would require planning, strategy and a keen eye for business continuity.

As consultancy experts, IT Support 365 were involved at every level – from planning to implementation. This included a full logistical breakdown of the existing infrastructure, vital technologies, sensitive business data and potential progress inhibitors. This would lay the groundwork for a steady, sequential migration in the 12 months leading up to their relocation to a new office while maintaining production from across the business.

A full itinerary of technologies was compiled, detailing software, hardware and server considerations. It wasn’t only the technical infrastructure that required such diligent planning, but the premises too; with IT Support 365 providing an overview of the cabling and communications, everything had to connect logically within the boundaries of the new premises.

Over the 12-month migration period, IT Support 365 successfully migrated AFL’s existing IT services – including a migration to Microsoft Teams VoIP telephony, Cisco infrastructure, Servers and workstation hardware.

“Relocating a factory whilst maintaining production is a significant challenge under normal circumstances, and we did this during a pandemic. Maintaining communications across the existing site, whilst installing infrastructure in the new facility to provide a common ERP platform environment was crucial in allowing us to operate effectively as each process line was transferred and brought online. The adoption of creative solutions to avoid duplication of expensive (and as it turned out unavailable) rack mounted equipment was also crucial to the success of the project. All this was possible due to IT365 working as a trusted partner with our Corporate IT department to deliver these solutions.” Mark Turner, Operations Director, AFL Telecommunications Europe Ltd The combined success of AFL Telecommunications, IT Support 365 and Swindon’s robust manufacturing industry have not gone unnoticed.

AFL Telecommunications is now a dedicated investor in the town, with their Swindon plant the first in Europe to manufacture these new ultra high density, high fibre count easy to install fibre optic cables. This milestone achievement was marked by a visit from the Japanese Ambassador to the UK. As the UK continues it drive towards a fibre-connected future – and as internet providers battle for contracts over city-wide fibre installation – AFL Telecommunications delivers an unprecedented boost to the Worldwide fibre industry. IT Support 365 since securing contracts with AFL for multiple locations in the UK is now expanding the Global Support Services internationally, specifically the Americas and Asia pacific regions.

IT Support 365’s expansion into the Americas and APAC regions has allowed for the development and implementation of a ‘follow the sun’ 24 x7 manned support service. The 24 x 7 service is lead from the UK supported closely by its strategically placed site in Australia.

Paul Bennett, General Manager, AFL Swindon.

challenging and competitive employment market. Following the pandemic, many companies have seen rapid growth, leading to a jobseekers’ market.

“We make sure we take time to hire the right people, going through many interview cycles looking for people who are the right fit,” Bennett tells us.

“We are a small company and are looking for people with a ‘can do’ attitude. We can offer a variety of roles and teamwork goes a long way here!”

Once people become part of AFL, the company takes a personalised approach to developing each employee’s ambitions, competencies, and aptitudes to offer them career development which matches their own, and the company’s needs. While some employees are extremely ambitious from the start and want a career path with lots of mobility, others are happy to find job satisfaction in a role they can work in long term.

“We have some people with 20 years’ experience looking for security and job satisfaction; not just a financial reward,” Bennett points out.

www.itsupport365.co.uk

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COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY | 49

AFL

AFL is undergoing a significant growth cycle at the moment, opening up many new roles within the company and allowing it to offer progression.

Throughout the business, there is a real sense that the company’s journey is also the journey of its people.

“Every employee participates in and can contribute to the overall success of the company,” Bennett says.

SPREADING THE KNOWLEDGE

The latest cycle of growth is fuelled by ongoing advancements in the utility market.

50 | COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY

“With the ongoing expansion of offshore wind power and the electrical vehicles roll out, we will see huge requirements for flexibility in the power network,” Bennett observes.

As this demand rises, the electrical network in the UK and around Europe will need to be modified, adapting to changing inputs and outputs alongside the ongoing implementation of the “smart grid” concept.

For AFL, however, the most immediate area of growth, as well as the company’s reason for relocating in Swindon, is the booming telecoms market.

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AFL

AFL’s new facility has been built with enough capacity to accommodate the business’s new production line, which has two unique features. The facility produces a very high-density fibre optic cable for telecoms customers such as Openreach, which allows them to maximise their existing networks. As well as being of high quality in and of themselves, they can also help providers avoid the expensive and slow work of digging up the street for installation. Instead, these cables can be installed by blowing in through existing ducts.

Traditionally, in the industry the rule is that the higher the fibre count of a cable, the longer

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it takes to install. For example, it can take up to 20 hours to join two cables, but AFL’s approach can take jointing time from 20 hours to just three.

AFL now runs the first European facility to manufacture this new cable, ‘Air-Blown Wrapping Tube Cable with SpiderWeb Ribbon®’. AFL has gone on to serve many UK customers, following the market. “With energy markets becoming ‘smart’ and the telecoms operators rolling out more gigabit broadband, we are very excited to be in our new premises to better serve these demands,” Bennett concludes.

“WITH THE ONGOING EXPANSION OF OFFSHORE WIND POWER AND THE ELECTRICAL VEHICLES ROLL OUT, WE WILL SEE HUGE REQUIREMENTS FOR FLEXIBILITY IN THE POWER NETWORK.”

COMMUNICATIONS & TECHNOLOGY | 51

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND IS WORKING TO ENSURE THAT ULTRAFAST INTERNET ACCESS IS NOT THE EXCLUSIVE PROVINCE OF BIG CITIES.

DELIVERING DIGITAL EQUALITY PROJECT MANAGED BY: ANDREW BOURKE

From its very beginning, LightSpeed Broadband was a company with a mission- to contribute to digital equality in Britain by unlocking the country’s full digital potential. It is contributing to this goal by serving as a full-fibre internet service provider to communities across the East of England. It is what is called an altnet provider, in that it provides an alternative broadband network to the one provided by companies such as Openreach or Virgin, offering services to underserved communities that are over 20 times faster than the existing services provided.

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Steve Haines, Deputy Chairman of LightSpeed Broadband.

he existing service is usually fibre to a cabinet at the end of the street, where the service is then provided over copper at 50 megabytes,” says Steve Haines, Deputy Chairman of LightSpeed Broadband. “What we provide is gigabit speeds, 20 times faster.”

That speed is more critical than it has ever been before.

“High-speed fibre is now an essential utility that everyone relies on because of the way we now work today,” Haines tells us. “The pandemic, in particular, has impacted the way we work from home.”

However, Haines insists that LightSpeed’s business is not just about providing fibre. It is about providing the entire customer experience.

“It is about the complete experience in the home with your Wi-Fi. Every part of your home, the bedroom, the kitchen, in your garden shed, wherever you are you can still get that high-speed internet experience,” Haines says. “You can watch anything from anywhere from any device in your home.

Bringing that complete end-toend customer experience is the thing that LightSpeed brings to the communities we serve.”

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Be Smarter with your Fibre Testing Fast, easy to use tools you can rely on to get the job done right first time.

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VIAVI With the UK government targeting 85% full-fibre coverage of the country by December 2026, deploying FTTH at speed is critical to enable customers to buy into the many benefits offered by gigabit services. However, to ensure long-term viability for investors and customers alike, providers and network managers need to look beyond simply passing homes by the 2026 target.

DEPLOYING AT SPEED & WITH QUALITY – THEY’RE NOT MUTUALLY EXCLUSIVE As with any major deployment, building a solid foundation is key to the long-term success and financial viability. FTTH service providers, and the investment companies enabling their growth, need to ensure that they build with quality not only to attract and retain customers, but to certify the physical network being laid in the ground is built to last for decades to come.

BUSINESS & TECHNICAL CHALLENGES – AND HOW TO OVERCOME THEM There are several challenges that providers need to overcome to win the FTTH race, as speed alone does not guarantee success – you need the right equipment, the right processes, and the right teams of people.

Business challenges include high targets for homes passed (HP), skillset shortage (especially if there are high failure rates and revisits), lack of visibility into HP/day.

Technical challenges on the physical fibre include, but are not limited to: • NO LIGHT: Broken, degraded and/or dirty connections • LOW LIGHT: Dirty connectors, tight bends • WRONG LIGHT: Wrong connection (no service) • IN HOME ISSUES: Poor/no end-user service: e.g. provisioning issues The potential impacts include increases costs of time, money, and the environment, as well as high service failure rates which some providers have seen more than 30% failures for first time installs.

MAXIMISING YOUR NETWORK’S ROI There are a number of simple steps that providers can take to be ready for the digital connectivity of today and for future generations.

For FTTx networks to maximise RoI, full visibility and operational excellence are needed across the whole deployment: • Fast, easy to use tools and test equipment • Technicians with right tools & best processes • Ops team analysing the right test data

LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

LightSpeed Broadband has chosen trusted partners to provide the technology for its efforts, working with industry leaders such as SalesForce, Depotnet and Jorvik Design Group, Mills, Prysmian and Nokia as a prime technology partner.

Haines adds, “Viavi Solutions have worked collaboratively with us to provide and help set up monitoring systems that ensure our network is running efficiently and always providing the best possible customer experience.”

“It is Nokia’s equipment we are using in the telephone exchange.

From end-to-end, we are using the best technology available and a very high-quality network,” Haines points out. . “As the largest privately-owned supplier of digital infrastructure, Mills are the ideal partner for LightSpeed, providing exceptional service and a ‘one-stop shop’ for digital infrastructure requirements.

We want to build a robust and reliable network for the future, so we have chosen Prysmian fibre optic and connectivity equipment because they use leading-edge technology to create first-class quality products.”

LightSpeed backs up that technological capability with the best service it can provide.

Lightspeed Broadband have invested in the VIAVI centralised PON test system (ONMSi) to help accelerate their FTTH deployment and ensure quality from the start of the network’s lifecycle. This allows providers like Lightspeed Broadband to have the right focus on their test processes to ensure they have clear, quick and easy to follow end-to-end automated procedures.

For the build phase, VIAVI ONMSi allows the provider to certify if their network is built correctly and to efficiently fix any faults along the way.

During the activation phase, this means correctly installing the hardware, testing, and recording to ensure the end user speed is correct.

This is all working towards the goal of getting FTTH deployment right the first time, every time.

By implementing automated test processes and systems throughout the network lifecycle, you are investing in the foundations to set your network up for success in the short and long term. www.viavisolutions.com

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LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

“We provide an online service as well as a local call centre in the region to look after that vital customer experience,” Haines explains. “Customers can carry everything out as a digital endto-end journey, but we also have local centres to serve our customers.”

“HIGH-SPEED FIBRE IS NOW AN ESSENTIAL UTILITY THAT EVERYONE RELIES ON BECAUSE OF THE WAY WE NOW WORK TODAY.” DIGITAL EQUALITY FOR ALL

But what does digital equality mean? Why is it so important?

“Digital equality is very important for the community.

It is a core policy of the UK government to level up the whole of the UK to make sure everybody has access to the gigabit services across the whole of the country,” Haines says. “The reason that is important is that people need access to modern communications. A good example is the way the pandemic required people to have the ability to work from home and use all the rich tools that are available, such as this very video call.”

But as Haines tells us, in the 2020s one video call at a time simply is not enough.

“Children need it for schooling, there may be a working couple in a family, so having that digital access

Earlier this year, the UK Government published its targets and policy for ‘Gigabit Broadband’, recognising the need for faster, more accessible broadband across the country. Its ambitious target to roll out full fibre broadband to every home nationwide by 2025 is making good progress. The latest report from Ofcom reveals that over eight million UK homes now have access to full fibre broadband , but there is still a lot more to be done, particularly in rural areas.

Gigabit broadband is being built using private investment, with private companies deciding when and where to build infrastructure based on a number of commercial factors.

Smaller operators are focusing on homes and businesses in particular geographical areas, for example, those in and around their local area.

Prysmian Group, world leader in the energy and telecom cable systems industry, has developed a new range of connectivity products and solutions, and is heavily investing in telecommunications innovation. As part of the company’s drive to improve connectivity, it will be supporting Spalding-based internet service provider LightSpeed Broadband who are aiming to serve local communities in the East of England with ultra-fast and reliable full fibre broadband.

Prysmian Group is supplying, via its distributor Mills Ltd, a range of Prysmian’s fibre optic cables and connectivity solutions, including its CBT product (drop cables included), joint closures from the xMJ range such as the LMJ and CMJ, as well as the Mobra kits. Working alongside Mills Ltd, who are also supplying their own extensive range of telecoms tooling and overhead and underground infrastructure equipment, the collaboration aims to provide a one-stop shop solution for full fibre roll-out.

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and that equality across the country means that nobody is discriminated against because of where they live,” he says.

“We will bring that service not just to big cities but market towns, and eventually villages as well. It is important nobody is disadvantaged by their postcode.”

Currently, market towns across the East of England are the frontier LightSpeed is expanding into.

The company is building out to 32 market towns in Lincolnshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Cambridgeshire, and Rutland, with populations averaging around 15,000 homes but without the high-speed broadband infrastructure to effectively serve them.

“We want to build a robust and reliable network for the future,” says Steve Haines, Deputy Chairman of LightSpeed Broadband. “So, we have chosen Prysmian fibre optic and connectivity equipment because they use leading-edge technology to create first-class quality products.

“As the largest privately owned supplier of digital infrastructure, Mills are the ideal partner for LightSpeed, providing exceptional service and a ‘one-stop shop’ for digital infrastructure requirements.”

Carlos Lopez, Telecom Business Director, Prysmian UK, commented: “We are proud to provide our partners Mills, and Lightspeed with the sustainable fibre optical cables and connectivity products they need to build a reliable and future-proofed network.”

Elliot Mills of Mills Limited commented: “Mills are delighted to be working with our partners at Prysmian to support Lightspeed state-of-the-art full fibre network across the East of England.”

As well as providing the country with faster and more reliable broadband, a nationwide, full fibre network could turbocharge the economic bounce back from the pandemic, levelling-up rural and urban communities, delivering up to £59 billion in increased productivity every year and enabling a million people to get back into employment.

For enquiries please contact the sales team: Sales@millsltd.com

millsltd.com

0208 833 2626

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Building connections: Prysmian Group and Mills to support LightSpeed Broadband’s full fibre roll-out

CM J

LMJ

CBT

PIA

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uk.prysmiangroup.com

PROVIDING THE HIGHEST QUALITY FTTP SURVEY & DESIGN SERVICES ACROSS THE UNITED KINGDOM

WHO ARE JORVIK DESIGN GROUP

Jorvik Design Group was set up to provide the highest quality survey and design services to the telecommunications industry.

A combined experience in design & planning, fibre and civil construction has enabled Jorvik Design Group to stand out from the competition.

We look at every aspect of each project, with the ultimate goal of providing a service which is second to none.

Malvern Rd, Knottingley WF11 8EQ, UK

www.jorvikdesigngroup.co.uk

+44 (0)1977 671 168

JORVIK DESIGN GROUP Jorvik Design Group was established in July 2019 with the focus and vision being on providing the best design and surveying services to the telecommunications sector. The company quickly established itself in its own right as one of the leading design, planning, and surveying companies in the UK, working for a wide range of medium and large companies such as LightSpeed, Virgin Media 02, City Fibre, Gigaclear, and Airband. Jorvik Design Group has grown from an initial team of five employees to more than one hundred in the space of just under three years. This has enabled Jorvik to open a large second office based in Portugal, where resources and knowledge have been instrumental in successfully growing the business and client base.

Our experienced team of surveyors all have extensive telecoms knowledge and come from both a civil and telecoms background.

They work closely and collectively with the planning and design team to establish the best and most cost-effective designs which are also buildable. All Jorvik surveyors follow the latest standards and training in the market, allowing Jorvik to stay one step ahead of its competitors.

Jorvik recently established itself within the wireless telecommunications sector, carrying out design work in the USA for clients such as T-Mobile, Verizon, and AT&T across New York, New Jersey, and Washington, incorporating rooftop designs and rawland designs.

In an industry that is very fast-moving and ever-changing, Jorvik Design Group continues to adapt to client expectations and ensure that projects are not only delivered on time every time but are the most cost effective and competitive in the market. www.jorvikdesigngroup.co.uk

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LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

The plan is to cover 200,000 homes over the next 12 months, on top of the 50,000 homes, LightSpeed has reached so far in only a year.

“Our real purpose is to empower these communities to reach their full potential through this digital communication,” Haines says.

While LightSpeed has noble goals, from the start it has faced obstacles in achieving them, as a brand-new company that is

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relatively late to the broadband market, arriving in the middle of a pandemic, it has been quite the journey.

“So, the first challenge was to get investment. Fortunately, enough we had great investors including AtmosClear Investments and Kompass Kapital. Then subsequently we have had further funding from Sequoia Capital,” recalls Haines.

“The second challenge was turning money into resources,

bringing people on board.

We went on a big recruitment campaign and built up our leadership team and delivery teams to a point where we are employing over 120 people, over half of them locally. We created a service centre and a network operations centre in the heart of our region.”

All of this was done under the conditions of Britain’s first and most stringent lockdown.

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LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

“We bootstrapped a new business in a pandemic, so we did everything virtually,” Haines tells us. “We’re living proof that businesses can use the technology, and the network to create value and serve the communities.”

THE LIGHTSPEED WAY

LightSpeed Broadband has been able to do this because even as it has been working remotely, the firm has quickly established a firm, and unifying culture throughout the business.

“One of our aims from the beginning was to not only create a high impact team but to empower them to make decisions in the interests of customers and the business,” Haines says. “We have not been frightened of making mistakes.

We have no blame culture.

We enable people and give them the resources to deliver against the business plan. We captured it in what we call the Lightspeed Way. Creating a positive, empowered workforce is very important when starting

up a business, and we are really pleased we’ve been able to manage that.”

Another facet of the LightSpeed way has been a foundational commitment to environmental sustainability.

“OUR REAL PURPOSE IS TO EMPOWER THESE COMMUNITIES TO REACH THEIR FULL POTENTIAL THROUGH THIS DIGITAL COMMUNICATION.” “The way we are building the network, we are not trying to dig up roads. We are trying to reuse existing telephone exchanges, telegraph poles, existing power sources and green energy,

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LIGHTSPEED BROADBAND

wherever we can” Haines explains. “Our principle from day one was to do this in the most environmentally conscious way we can, with a high degree of health and safety as a nonnegotiable method of working.”

NETWORKING THE NETWORKS

LightSpeed Broadband has been making astounding progress, connecting the East of England, but what is interesting is what is going to happen when it has achieved that goal.

“There are several companies like LightSpeed and while we can all grow organically by building our own networks, at some point in the next 12-18 months there needs to be a coming together of companies like us,” Haines says. “If our mission is to be high quality, regional player that provides continuous service in

the East of England, there will be players like us in the West of England, the Midlands, up North.

So, I foresee more collaboration between altnets in different regions to scale up towards a kind of national network.”

It could start with strategic partnerships, mergers, and acquisitions. Haines compares it to the consolidation of the cable TV franchises 20 years ago.

“I recognise that we have choices to make,” he says. “We could stay as a really good regional operator, or merge with other operators to become a

hyper scaler of broadband and compete with OpenReach and other national fibre players.”

However, LightSpeed eventually ends up interacting with the wider network, what it has achieved here is unique.

“We are building in a regional, contiguous way, plus we are vertically integrated. We are not just selling the network, but the end-to-end customer experience,” Haines says. “It’s unusual for an altnet to focus exclusively on a region but we believe that’s what customers want.”

“WE ARE BUILDING IN A REGIONAL, CONTIGUOUS WAY, PLUS WE ARE VERTICALLY INTEGRATED. WE ARE NOT JUST SELLING THE NETWORK, BUT THE END-TO-END CUSTOMER EXPERIENCE.”

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CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

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CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

FUELLED BY IDEAS, EXPERTISE AND EXPERIENCE, CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD HARNESSES THE BEST TALENT, TECHNOLOGY, AND FORWARD-LOOKING INSIGHTS TO PREPARE ITS PEOPLE AND CLIENTS FOR WHAT’S NEXT.

RESHAPING THE WORLD OF COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE PROJECT MANAGED BY: ALICE YOUNG

Cushman & Wakefield, headquartered in Chicago, is one of the world’s largest commercial real estate services firms. The company operates from over 400 offices in 60 countries, has around 50,000 employees and manages about 4.8 billion square feet of commercial space. In 2021, the firm generated a record revenue of US$9.4 billion by providing clients with the full array of commercial real estate services, everything from leasing, capital markets and project management to valuations, facilities and property management.

Matthew Bouw, Chief Executive Officer, Asia Pacific, Cushman & Wakefield.

W

hat began as a small family business in New York more than 100 years ago, is now a global player that was created from the merger of three large firms in 2015, and another 30 firms since then.

Cushman & Wakefield today has established itself as a fullservice global platform that can support clients in every corner of the planet. Asia Pacific has played a key role in the success of Cushman & Wakefield since the merger, with the company experiencing significant growth to become one of the largest commercial real estate services firms in the region.

This has been under the leadership of Matthew Bouw who became Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Cushman & Wakefield for Asia Pacific in late 2017 and has led the business through a number of major

changes and challenges. He says: “It has been an amazing and exciting ride. If anything, we actually see growth accelerating across Asia Pacific for the remainder of this decade due in large part to the enormous demographic and economic tailwinds propelling the region.”

SOUND LEADERSHIP

Matthew has been with the company for 11 years, following a diverse career across multiple continents and different industries, spanning from professional services to financial services, engineering to construction and mining services before finally coming to the commercial real estate sector. During his career, he has worked for some of the largest global and multinational firms in the world including PwC, Aviva and Orica.

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CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

Matthew Bouw (seated front row, third from right) with his Asia Pacific leadership team.

As the CEO for Asia Pacific at Cushman & Wakefield, Matthew is now leading a diverse team of about 10,000 professionals working across 55 offices in 14 countries in the region, and together, they have contributed to the company’s impressive growth and strong financial performance in Asia Pacific.

He says: “I love the job and I love the people I work with.

When I first became CEO, I spent a huge amount of time building a world-class leadership team.

That was my number one priority – to have the best athletes, who are self-motivated, operating in the right positions, and working together as a high-performing team. Generally speaking, if you get that right, the rest tends to look after itself.”

He explains that over the last four and a half years, the main focus has been on building an integrated full-service platform across the Asia Pacific region.

“The world is shrinking, and the demands of our clients are becoming more globalised in

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their nature. So, a big part of what I have been focused on is building a full-service end-toend platform across Asia Pacific to support the global business, and to embed a digital ecosystem to capitalise on changing buying behaviours.”

“We have also focused on building infrastructure and capability within our platform to leverage the secular mega-trends which are having a huge impact on the demand for commercial real estate. As an example, e-commerce, supply chain and logistics with 5G technology, the Internet of Things, online streaming and shopping are driving unprecedented demand for data centres, distribution centres, robotic warehouses and last-mile logistics. We have very intentionally positioned Cushman & Wakefield so that we can benefit from and leverage global megatrends such as these to service our clients.”

Speaking about the firm’s differentiators and key strengths, Matthew highlights the aspects

that have propelled the business’ growth over the last decade.

“Unlike a number of other sectors, commercial real estate as an industry was late to globalise.

There are really only three global commercial real estate firms that offer the full suite of services, and between us, we account for less than 20% of the global revenues for commercial real estate services. Consequently, this fragmentation will likely see the large global firms such as Cushman & Wakefield continue to grow rapidly.”

“THE WORLD IS SHRINKING, & THE DEMANDS OF OUR CLIENTS ARE BECOMING MORE GLOBALISED IN THEIR NATURE. BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD TECHNOLOGY-DRIVEN

“Our industry is consolidating quickly and demand for commercial real estate continues to grow each year. You need to be able to service clients locally, nationally, regionally, and globally across all asset classes, supported by a strong technology backbone, with market-leading thought leadership and insight generated from property data and analytics. All of these elements form part of our global platform, which is a competitive advantage for us.”

“As a firm, we are also deeply client-centric – which is a core part of our DNA. I have been lucky to visit a large number of our offices across the world, and every employee I meet is myopically focused on bringing the best of Cushman & Wakefield to our clients. It might sound corny but it is a consistent thread across the firm that binds us all together, to be better, faster and smarter for our clients every day.”

The C&W Services office in Singapore is a ‘living lab’ where Smart Facilities Management applications are tested such as the security robot.

The Remote Operating Centre in Singapore provides real-time oversight on the company’s portfolio of managed facilities across the city and serves as a data and analytics hub for the region.

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As technology plays such a significant part in the company’s development, Cushman & Wakefield has entered into strategic partnerships with a number of companies that are at the forefront of technology. For example, the partnership with Matterport Capture Services, the market leader for spatial data capture, enables Cushman & Wakefield to offer clients a turnkey solution for scanning commercial properties in 3D. “Put simply, this technology provides the opportunity to showcase properties to prospective tenants and buyers in a virtual environment with dimensionally accurate digital twins. This has numerous benefits, including huge savings in terms of travel costs. Just think of a client sitting in San Francisco who can view office space in Sydney or Shanghai without leaving their desk.”

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A partnership with FairFleet, a full-service provider for dronepowered solutions, has also enabled Cushman & Wakefield to offer drone services to its clients across the world. Through FairFleet’s worldwide network of certified local drone pilots, as well as its processing and analysis capabilities, Cushman & Wakefield professionals have quick access to drone footage and the ability to analyse the technical condition of individual properties through inspection services. This solution enables property and facility teams to provide building owners with an alternative to rooftop inspections to support ongoing and preventative maintenance.

“Drones are providing enormous savings in terms of cost and efficiencies, not just for our industry but others too. One great example of this is the time-saving benefits from using drones to conduct a stock take. A recent study estimated that it takes approximately 80 people with

handheld scanners and forklifts three days to complete a typical stock take of an average-size uniform warehouse. One drone can complete the same job in two days on its own without forklifts.”

Other technology partnerships that have been instrumental in strengthening Cushman & Wakefield’s service delivery platform include MetaProp, Plug and Play, Fifth Wall and Pupil.

The company has also formed an exclusive strategic partnership with WeWork to deliver innovative flexible space solutions to landlords and businesses of which technology is a key component.

THE CORE ASSET

While technology is a clear enabler, it is people who ultimately drive the growth and success of the business. This is another area that Cushman & Wakefield has invested heavily.

“Talent management strategy and infrastructure is critical for the retention, development, Cushman & Wakefield is the inaugural access & inclusion partner for this year’s Wild Lights at Taronga Zoo festival in Australia.

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and motivation of our people.

We have a diverse employee population, from unskilled, semiskilled, skilled to professional.

Each area requires a bespoke strategy for training and development. Ultimately, we want every employee to have the tools, opportunities, and support to reach their individual potential, which includes helping an unskilled worker to become semiskilled, then skilled and, assuming that is their goal and preference, to then move into a professional role.

Seeing an employee progress is hugely rewarding, not just for the employee but for everyone involved in their development.”

Another area that Cushman & Wakefield has invested heavily in is the health and wellness of its employees and all things DE&I (Diversity, Equity & Inclusion). “We have a broad lens on DE&I, but we have a particularly strong focus on gender, Indigenous and LGBTIQA+ equality, disability, mental health and wellbeing.”

A good example is the company’s global employee resource group ‘Leading with Education and Awareness of Disabilities’ (LEAD).

LEAD’s mission is to support colleagues affected by disability through peer-to-peer conversation, community building, opportunities encouraging networking and career growth, education, and awareness of resources. It also strives to support the recruitment of people with disabilities to bolster a more inclusive workplace benefitting from diverse life experiences.

Other initiatives include a global Women’s Integrated Network (WIN) that develops and supports the talents of women across the firm by providing a platform that values diverse perspectives and leverages leadership skills to benefit the firm, its clients, and

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CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

the industry as a whole. There are currently 48 Cushman & Wakefield WIN chapters across the world, of which eight are in Asia Pacific. Additionally, Cushman & Wakefield continues to sponsor the CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) network, whose mission is to transform the commercial real estate industry by advancing women globally. CREW is the largest network of women in the world and back in October 2016, Cushman & Wakefield sponsored CREW to expand its membership outside of the United States for the first time.

For the second consecutive year, Cushman & Wakefield was recognised for its efforts to advance gender equality, being named to Forbes Best Employers for Women 2021.

Across the company, women represent 42% of people managers, 40% of new hires, 39% of the total workforce and 33% of the Board of Directors.

“We also have a Cushwake Cares programme focused on the wellbeing of not just the employees but also their families, dealing with issues like stress, anxiety, healthy lifestyle and other similar issues which were especially important during the pandemic.”

As a responsible member of the communities in which it operates in, Cushman & Wakefield is also actively involved in local programmes that support its inclusivity agenda. In Australia, the company has been a strong supporter of Vivid Sydney, an annual festival of lights, music, and ideas. This year, Cushman & Wakefield partnered with Taronga Zoo as the inaugural access and inclusion partner for the Wild Lights at Taronga Zoo festival, where it showcased four purposebuilt light installations and hosted a special event for 3,000 visitors, including children with special needs and their families.

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Latika Roy Foundation in India provides specialised services to disabled children, adults and their families.

Bringing joy and meaning to disabled children at Latika Roy Foundation in India.

In India, Cushman & Wakefield is a financial sponsor for the Latika Roy Foundation, an Indian not-for-profit organization that provides specialised services to disabled children, adults, and their families. The company is also the lead partner to project manage the build of their new, state-of-the-art school for

“WE HAVE A BROAD LENS ON DE&I, BUT WE HAVE A PARTICULARLY STRONG FOCUS ON GENDER, INDIGENOUS AND LGBTIQA+ EQUALITY, DISABILITY, MENTAL HEALTH AND WELLBEING.”

children with special needs in Dehradun, India.

The company’s commitment to inclusion is also alive in Singapore, through its partnership with SG Enable, an agency dedicated to enabling people with disabilities.

“We firmly believe that wonderful programmes such as these are an important ingredient for the type of culture we want for the organisation. Not only do we want Cushman & Wakefield to be a fun place to work, with abundant opportunities for our people to work across multiple service lines in 400 different offices across the world, but we also want to be a firm that goes the extra mile to support its people, their families and the communities in which we operate in,” says Matthew.

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OFFICE OF THE FUTURE

The company’s approach to deploying the latest technologies with a heavy emphasis on human wellbeing has been well reflected in its latest milestone – the launch of its new office premises at CapitaSpring, a new integrated development located within Singapore’s Central Business District, and the opening of C&W Services Singapore’s newly-transformed office at ESR Business Park in May and March 2022, respectively.

Both offices showcase the future of the workplace with an emphasis on sustainability, smart technology, and DE&I as well as the requirements of a post-pandemic office.

Matthew says: “The design and fit-out of our two new offices in Singapore put our people at the centre. By incorporating the feedback and findings from our bespoke ‘Experience per SF™’ tool, we have built a workplace that addresses the changes in the post-pandemic business environment and the evolving needs of our clients and the next-generation workforce.”

He further affirms that Cushman & Wakefield is embracing sustainability. With roughly 40% of global carbon emissions coming from commercial real estate (CRE) buildings, sustainability has become not only a priority but a mandate, for many companies.

As a top CRE services firm, Cushman & Wakefield is leading the way with its pledge to reach net zero emissions across its entire value chain by 2050, and a 50% reduction in scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions across its corporate offices and operations by 2030.

Interestingly, Cushman & Wakefield has been providing sustainability related services to its clients for more than 20 years.

In Asia Pacific alone, the firm now has 60 dedicated sustainability

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The new Singapore office at CapitaSpring was inaugurated

by Matthew Bouw (third from left), Global President Andrew McDonald (third from right) and four of the company’s longest-serving employees – (L-R) Jesslyn Chia, Rashmi Deepak, Jessie Puah and Chew May Yenk.

With magnificent views of the Singapore skyline, the new CapitaSpring office is a destination office with a hospitality-driven theme.

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CUSHMAN & WAKEFIELD

C&W Services office in Singapore has barrier-free accessibility features that include ramps, automatic doors, and power-assisted height-adjustable workstations.

Mural contributed by The Art Faculty, a social enterprise by The Autism Society of Singapore and Mural Lingo, dons a communal area wall. professionals. This area of the business is growing rapidly as more and more clients seek Cushman & Wakefield’s help to evaluate the carbon footprint of their property portfolios, and then develop strategies to reduce emissions.

LOOKING AHEAD

Since Cushman & Wakefield merged the company back in 2015, it has been active in the M&A (mergers and acquisitions) space. Last year, the company invested US$650 million and continues to assess further opportunities in what is a highly fragmented market.

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Speaking about acquisitions, Matthew says: “We are very selective when assessing a potential acquisition target.

Amongst other things, the company must be marketleading in its field, with the right cultural attributes, whilst meeting a strategic area of focus that further strengthens our platform.”

Apart from acquisitions, there are two other areas of substantial investment: technology and people. “Recruiting talent for a business such as ours is hugely important. Our approach to talent acquisition has changed over the last four years to

become a well-oiled machine built on best practices. As a result, we can assess and hire the best talent quicker and more effectively than ever before.”

Confirming his words, last year, Cushman & Wakefield was named World’s Best Real Estate Advisor and Consultant

by Euromoney for the fourth consecutive year. The same accolade was also won in the Asia Pacific region. “The recognition from Euromoney is a fitting reward for our teams’ ongoing commitment and laser focus as they support and service our clients, whilst raising the bar for professionalism in our industry,” he acknowledges.

“I would like to offer a huge thanks to both our teams in recognition of their hard work and our clients for their ongoing support and the trust they place in us every day. Our wins in Asia Pacific and globally underscore our approach to providing best-in-class quality client services across all markets worldwide.”

“WE ARE VERY SELECTIVE WHEN ASSESSING A POTENTIAL ACQUISITION TARGET.”

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INDEF

BY DRAWING FROM A DIVERSE MIX OF EXPERTISE, INDEF IS THRIVING IN AN INCREASINGLY COMPETITIVE MARKET.

A HERCULEAN EFFORT PROJECT MANAGED BY: LIAM PYWELL

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INDEF

LR+ iCrane – Best Light Rail Cranes that improves efficiency.

The Indef brand name was created in 1962, when Indian firm Hercules Hoists Ltd partnered with German company Heinrich de Fries, and its brand, Hadef.

W

e wanted to adapt that brand name for Indian customers,” says Amit Bhalla, Indef’s CEO. “The key strengths that the brand evokes are innovative design, rugged products, and ease of use. That is what the brand signifies.”

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It is a brand that has been in the market for 60 years, and people have shown immense trust in the brand making it synonymous with chain pulley blocks (manual hoist category).

“That has made us the national market leaders in hoisting solutions. If you ask customers who have used the product in the manufacturing industry they recognise us as kind of a cult brand,” Bhalla tells us. “That brand image stands with those attributes as we continue to serve the customer

in every industry, wherever there is a need of lifting heavy loads - automotive, engineering, petrochemical, industrial, renewables and many more.”

Indef stands for rugged, time-tested designs, while also carrying with it the reputation of the much larger Bajaj Group that it is a part of.

“We are aligned with the core values of the Bajaj Group in terms of sustainability, social contributions and making sure the value proposition to the customer is right,” says Bhalla.

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DUBAI | AFRICA | INDIA | EUROPE | CHINA

your preferred p����� for industrial spare parts

sales@kginternational.com

SCAN TO DISCOVER MORE

KG INTERNATIONAL KG International is a leading global private Bearing brand and is a key distributor for many leading automotive and industrial brands spanning many products such as Bearings, Auto Spares, Industrial Spares, Filters, Lubrication, and Material Handling Solutions.

KG started its journey 53+ years ago and is the pioneer for transforming Dubai into the Global Bearing Hub it is today.

Through our journey, we have developed markets for a variety of brands and have learned a myriad of lessons along the way to better serve our customers and suppliers. Today, we have 80+ team members around the world, we operate out of a 250,000+ sqft facility which holds 24m+ items, and we serve customers across 14+ industries. We have achieved this position by working with a strong ecosystem of suppliers across many products and geographies, for whom we maintain a strong stock position. KG also commands market strength and trust by having a range of fit-for-purpose products/brands, committing to only genuine parts (and making active investments to battle counterfeiting), enforcing a strong QC framework to ensure that only the best products reach our customers, and continually increasing our global footprint of 50+ countries.

Today we are globally renowned for: • A quality price balance to make our customers more competitive, productive, and profitable.

• An ever-expanding product range with the world’s leading brands.

• Continuously improving technology to drive efficiency and customer satisfaction.

• Thought leadership that helps customers solve problems and improve decision-making.

KG is laser focused on making our customers’ liver easier by having a one-stop-shop for many spare part requirements, and leveraging a global ecosystem to place and execute orders with maximum efficiency and satisfaction. If you would like to streamline your procurement and work with us, please visit our website to learn more and reach out through our various customer channels!

www.zasche.de Your specialist in industrial handling solutions.

ZASCHE handling develops & supplies customized, ergonomic solutions that cater to every industry & application.

The company’s products include manual & semi-automated manipulators, jib cranes, light crane systems & lifting devices.

This wide-ranging portfolio reflects ZASCHE handling’s rich 90-year-old history in steel & crane construction & also its deep expertise as an industrial handling specialist.

Through its strong network of sales & service stations worldwide, ZASCHE handling offers quality service & support to its customers.

Markham-Str. 13, 86720 Nördlingen, Germany +49 9081 80170 info@zasche.de

“WE’LL BE A CUSTOMER CENTRIC COMPANY, DIFFERENTIATING OURSELVES THROUGH DESIGN. WE FORESEE SIGNIFICANT BUSINESS COMING NOT JUST FROM INDIAN MARKET BUT INTERNATIONAL MARKET AS WELL”, SAYS AMIT BHALLA, INDEF’S CEO.

www.kginternational.com

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INDEF

President & CEO, Mr. Amit Bhalla.

With that name behind it, Indef has established itself nationwide.

“Our distributors also coined as our authorised business partners are a critical part of our business, ensuring our products and services are available across the length and breadth of the country,” Bhalla explains. “They are in every major city and zone in India, working with customers to ensure products and services are delivered to them while anticipating customer needs and wants. They are providing value to meet customers’ productivity needs today.”

Most recently, Indef has introduced two new products, a compact chain block that can operate at any angle, and an Indef powered crane kit that can help build cranes 40% faster using Indef’s technology.

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“WE LOOKED INSIDE THE COMPANY, CREATING CROSS-FUNCTIONAL TEAMS TO LOOK AT OUR VALUE PROPOSITION.” GROWING COMPETITION

Indef needs every bit of that innovation and quality, as the market sector is becoming increasingly competitive.

“Over the last decade, we faced new competition coming from many continents,” Bhalla observes. “European players have started aggressively expanding in India. Japanese companies have taken some market share with very premium products and technology.

Chinese imports are at the

other end of the spectrum, with products available at a very low price. Some customers in this economy are very costconscious and moving to these suppliers. So that took market share and flattened our growth.”

At the same time, the market growth has been kind of stagnant, demand has been suppressed by a lack of CapEx infrastructure investment in India over the last seven or eight years.

“Projects got delayed, and our products are commonly used in CapEx investments, so those decisions delayed and impacted our business growth because of demand suppression,” Bhalla acknowledges. “Some of the challenges we face are more related to supply because of Covid-19. The whole world had those issues. Some of the smaller vendors have availability issues and recently we have seen an increase in raw material prices. Our costs have gone up by 25%. You can pass on the prices to the market, but only partially.”

Indef’s response to these challenges has not been to dwell on what it cannot change but to look inward for solutions.

“We looked inside the company, creating crossfunctional teams to look at our value proposition,” Bhalla says.

This cross-functional approach arrived at a model called ‘CCDV’Create, Communicate, and Deliver Value to customers.

“For ‘Create’ we look at how well our products are differentiated. ‘Communication’ is for our customers. What industries are they in? What are their issues and what channels of communication do we have?

We invested heavily in digital marketing, social platforms, and lead generation,” Bhalla says.

“We have relooked at our value

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INDEF

proposition. We looked out for our competition’s strengths and weaknesses, and our products’ strengths and weaknesses.

We ensured our products were correctly priced and served the market promptly. We went to the market with this revised energy and value proposition to help us grow over the last year, taking back the lost market share.”

As well as collaboration within the company, Indef has also been working closely with its suppliers.

“With the cost challenges we looked inside the company once again, assembling a team of supply chain, design, and finance specialists looking at value engineering and improving key products,” Bhalla says. “This involved discussing our plans with supply partners, establishing strategic partnerships and strategic cost management. I am very happy these partners have cooperated with us.”

Indef is now upgrading, putting new systems and processes in place, and implementing CRM, Advanced Design Software, Cloud Telephony, and Loyalty Platforms internally.

All of this is driven by Indef’s intensely loyal team that is highly experienced.

“The people who join the company stay with the company for a very long time. Maybe it is because of the market leadership we have, particularly as a Bajaj Group company,” Bhalla reflects. “People like our culture and working style. Our upskilling and remuneration are benchmarks for the industry, and that attracts the right talent. We have a good mix of technical, non-technical and financial expertise and we retain them for a long time.”

Most of all, Indef’s staff see the company’s success as their own success.

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“We transformed the company culture, and our success as a company is directly linked to employee success. That is the culture we want to build,” Bhalla insists.

That success looks to only build at the moment. Bhalla tells us about a selection of plans that come together to form what he calls “HHL 2.0”.

“We will be a customercentric company, differentiating ourselves through design. We

foresee significant business coming not just from the Indian market but international markets as well.,” Bhalla says. “Indef in the future is an organisation that is very agile in its functioning, aligned to sustainability practices and equipped with industry 4.0 standards. We will be driven by a growth-orientated, winningteam culture. We will learn from our failures without getting bogged down by them.”

Wire Rope Hoist Production Line, Khalapur Manufacturing Facility, India

Next Generation iR Series Wire Rope Hoist for your material handling requirements.

CONSTRUCTION | 75

INVESTEC PROPERTY

INVESTEC PROPERTY HAS MADE A NAME FOR ITSELF BY DEVELOPING & INVESTING IN QUALITY PROPERTY ASSETS THAT DELIVER ATTRACTIVE LONG-TERM RETURNS WHILE UNLOCKING MAXIMUM VALUE.

UNLOCKING THE POTENTIAL OF SPACE PROJECT MANAGED BY: DAVID GARNER

Investec Property is a company driven by one goal, to find space with unrealised value, and then unlock that value.

As part of Investec Specialist Bank, Investec Property can invest in, acquire, develop, and manage a wide range of distinctive properties. For over 40 years the company has been maximising long-term wealth creation by extracting real value for its stakeholders.

B

y working with investors, developers, brokers and tenants, Investec Property creates spaces that match the intuitive expectations of its occupiers, meeting their particular and changing needs.

This is not only about what a space is, but what a space can be, and what value it can bring to people’s lives when used effectively.

By analysing the potential of a space, Investec Property is able to see what value it can unlock by adding to it so that every one of its developments complements and brings value to surrounding communities.

THE HUMAN CONNECTION

This is done by analysing several factors, the first of which is, as the saying goes, “Location,

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location, location.” Location is the fundamental everything else is built on. Investec finds the right location, works to understand the context of the space, and then imagines how it can be repurposed to unlock its full potential. From here Investec Property can create an environment that is sought-after by users and complements its surroundings. It is an approach that results in quality assets that hold their value, delivering attractive long-term returns.

Investec Property does not do this in isolation. There is an ongoing engagement with its stakeholders and tenants to understand their requirements both now, and how they might develop in the future. Having gathered this information, Investec Property evolves the

INVESTEC PROPERTY

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INVESTEC PROPERTY

+27 31 581 1500 info@sivest.com www.sivest.com • Engineering: Civils, Structural, Electrical, Industrial & Mechanical • Project Management: Industrial, Mechanical, Building & Infrastructure • Environmental Consulting • Town & Regional Planning • Management Systems Consulting

www.mlc-group.com In association with MLC Botswana | Mauritius | Dubai | Montenegro JOHANNESBURG OFFICE:

+27 11 283 1500 info.jhb@mlc-group.com

CAPE TOWN OFFICE:

+27 21 673 5800 info.ct@mlc-group.com

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+27 31 940 7783 info.kzn@mlc-group.com

5th Floor, 57 Buitenkant Street Cape Town, 8001 South Africa E: connect@rlarchitects.co.za

architects interiors

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T: +27 (0)21 465 9702

www.rlarchitects.co.za

spaces they develop so that they work optimally for their occupiers. This evolution will prioritise the preservation of sound covenants to ensure a low proportion of vacancies.

At the core of this approach are human connections, which Investec values and invests in.

From those connections, including collaborations with new partners, Investec looks to realise the potential value of its space through innovation. This innovation means that Investec focuses not on assets, but on the experiences of its occupiers to meet client needs.

A SPECIALISED PORTFOLIO

Over the previous four decades, Investec Property has built itself strong portfolios across a range of specialised sectors.

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INVESTEC PROPERTY

This includes development, where Investec can unlock the value of spaces through mixeduse, retail, office, and industrial property development, not only responding to, but anticipating market demands, sourcing land, and developing properties to meet the latest trends.

This is an approach that Investec brings not only to development but also to sourcing, refurbishing, and developing land for industrial, mixed-use, and residential purposes. The company’s urban planners can zone, re-zone and obtain approvals wherever necessary, using an in-house team of architects, engineers, and development managers.

Again, this comes back to the human connections Investec Property buildings, and the network of distinctive relationships Investec has founded through equity and development transactions with a range of partners has given the firm access to some attractive property opportunities.

As David Rosmarin, joint CEO of Investec has explained, “We take pride in the relationships we have built. For more than 40 years we have worked with key stakeholders to provide property solutions that suit their requirements. Our goal is to develop bespoke properties and unlock maximum value.”

“We invest in partnerships and relationships that create a wealth of property opportunities,” added Gavin Bernstein, Investec Property’s other joint CEO. “We focus on unearthing potential in strategic locations resulting in long-term sustainable returns for our clients.”

A RANGE OF DEVELOPMENTS

Perhaps the best way to understand Investec Property’s approach is to look at the end result of its work. The

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firm works across the retail, office, industrial and mixed-use developments, each requiring its own approach.

In the retail sector, Investec has strategically established landmark shopping malls, community centres and lifestyle parks across South Africa.

Through astute choices and land purchases, Investec has developed, built, refurbished, and managed a number of shopping malls. The company then realises the potential of those malls by selecting tenants that fit the needs of the local community, creating spaces that brands, retailers, and shoppers enjoy.

Investec Property’s office developments provide a welldesigned and executed work environment that promotes employee wellbeing and productivity. At the centre of each of these developments are the needs of Investec’s corporate tenants, which are taken into account whether the company is repositioning its buildings and landholdings or pursuing new development opportunities. The focus of Investec’s office developments is to create a space that intentionally enhances wellbeing and productivity but is also sensitive to the environment.

Meanwhile, in the industrial sector, Investec deploys a specialised team to develop some of South Africa’s most prominent and progressive turnkey or traded industrial properties. This team has accumulated a pool of knowledge that gives Investec Property a solid understanding of its tenants’ complex warehousing, manufacturing, distribution, and security needs.

Investec has used this understanding to retain its diverse tenants over the long term. It has allowed Investec

to create spaces which not only answer those needs but anticipate new challenges as things change.

The development company can responsively create advantages for occupiers to realise the potential of industrial space.

Lately, this can be seen in the development of a 157-hectare site to create one of KwazuluNatal’s largest business and logistics parks.

All of this knowledge and this deep portfolio of experience and expertise is brought together in the development and refurbishment of land for mixed-use and residential purposes. Investec Property can convert large-scale tracts of land for future retail, office, and residential developments by carefully considering the value potential of each project.

Urban planners, architects, engineers, and development managers work together to not just build sought-after properties that reward users but also respect the natural environment.

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ROTPUNKT KÜCHEN

THIS GERMAN KITCHEN MANUFACTURER EXPORTS WORLDWIDE WHILE REVOLUTIONISING ITS APPROACH TO SUSTAINABILITY.

FROM YOUR KITCHEN TO THE WORLD PROJECT MANAGED BY: DEAN BROWN

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ROTPUNKT KÜCHEN

Rotpunkt Küchen is defined by a dedication to design, function, and quality with an innovative and sustainable focus in partnership and collaboration with kitchen dealers. Founded in 1930 by Heinrich Rabe and Wilhelm Meyer as the box factory Rabe & Meyer. From there it evolved into a fast-growing kitchen company that has established trading relationships all over the world. Two years after the company celebrated its 90th anniversary, today Rotpunkt Küchen GmbH is managed by its managing partners Heinz-Jürgen Meyer and Andreas Wagner alongside Sven Herden, the firm’s Manager of Sales and Marketing. Together this leadership team has leveraged a unique production structure and efficient fleet of machines, alongside a diverse portfolio of products and reliable delivery to fuel continuous corporate growth.

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I

ndeed, Rotpunkt intends to continue that growth long into the future through ongoing investments in its machine fleet, advanced technologies, and an expanding network of trading relationships nationally and internationally.

The firm does all of this from its 15,000 square metres headquarters in the EastWestphalian town of Bünde, which was expanded over the last couple of years in

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Engineering progress.

Enhancing lives.

Since 1948, REHAU has been delivering furniture components to satisfied customers all over the world, from major industrial companies to independent joiners.

With a passion for innovation, reliability, and “Made in Germany” quality standards, the company has established itself as one of the world’s leading providers of furniture and kitchen components. From edge bands to surfaces and roller shutters to complete storage solutions, all REHAU products are developed with a clear focus in mind: the optimal combination of quality and perfectly coordinated designs, without compromising on the processing options.

In collaboration with its partners, REHAU continually develops new products and solutions and ensures that customers can enjoy safer, higher-quality, and more efficient production.

www.rehau.com/noblematt

REHAU

ATTENTION TO DETAIL RESULTS IN COORDINATED DESIGNS FOR SEAMLESS FURNITURE Matt is the new gloss. REHAU’s noble matt collection encapsulates precisely this trend, plus much more. The perfectly coordinated design concept includes the surface, edge band, and storage, enabling designers and industrial partners to create seamlessly integrated furniture and rooms. And the best thing is that there’s no minimum order quantity for the individual products.

THE NOBLE MATT COLLECTION: THE TOUCH OF BEAUTY The noble matt collection by REHAU incorporates a wide range of products. Two elegant surfaces form the heart of the collection. The first is the HPL RAUVISIO noir, which boasts a silky matt finish and extremely high resistance, be it on a front or worktop. The second is RAUVISIO brilliant noble matt, which is on par visually and can be used as a matching supplementary material for vertical surfaces that are less exposed to heavy wear.

As well as contributing to the visually coordinated design, this next member of the noble matt collection also helps with another hot topic in furniture construction: ‘small spaces’, where available space needs to be used smartly and preferably with no big compromises. The new RAUVOLET noble matt complete tambour door system offers optimal use of space and material that integrates perfectly with modern, matt furniture – without breaks in material or colour and with a smooth-running mechanism. And for a seamless design throughout the entire room, the REHAU noble matt collection is rounded off with a wall seal and, of course, matching noble matt edge bands.

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ROTPUNKT KÜCHEN

recognition of Rotpunkt’s position in both the kitchen industry and the region as a whole.

A PHILOSOPHY OF DESIGN AND FUNCTION

At the heart of everything Rotpunkt does are the twin values of design and quality.

While innovation is the cornerstone of the company’s design approach, Rotpunkt is also clear that tradition is in no way a contradictory value to hold. On the contrary, tradition and innovation can frequently inspire one another.

This is the knowledge that Rotpunkt’s clear kitchen designs are based on, with a hybrid design approach of long-standing tradition and state-of-the-art technology that is perfectly expressed in Rotpunkt’s planning and production methods.

The company will not simply follow whatever the latest trend is, but observe new developments, listening carefully before making the crucial decision of whether to expand its product range.

It is a design philosophy that leads to kitchens which are not only visually appealing, but are also functional and user-friendly and, importantly, built to last.

Quality runs through everything that Rotpunkt does to create kitchens that boast last value and durability alongside aesthetics and functionality.

At the same time, a high degree of individualisation means Rotpunkt’s customers receive the perfect kitchen that they have come to expect from the brand.

But this design philosophy goes deeper than surface level.

Rotpunkt’s kitchen aesthetic is built to impress at every level, including innovative storage solutions and a catalogue

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of luxury finishing touches including pull-outs, pan drawers and accessories in styles such as warm wood, carbon, or elegant noble zirconium. Its floating kitchen cubes system opens up countless possibilities,

letting customers fully design their kitchen to their own requirements, in the size and colour they desire. These cubes allow for standing worktops or dedicated wall spaces, granting a new level of design freedom.

“AT THE HEART OF EVERYTHING ROTPUNKT DOES ARE THE TWIN VALUES OF DESIGN AND QUALITY. WHILE INNOVATION IS THE CORNERSTONE OF THE COMPANY’S DESIGN APPROACH, ROTPUNKT IS ALSO CLEAR THAT TRADITION IS IN NO WAY A CONTRADICTORY VALUE TO HOLD.” CONSTRUCTION | 83

ROTPUNKT KÜCHEN

GREENER KITCHENS

These values are what have driven the company to push the envelope in terms of innovation and sustainability, making Rotpunkt’s production 100% climate-neutral through green electricity and investments in sustainability projects. Every year Rotpunkt reviews its CO2 emissions, looking for new measures to continuously reduce its carbon footprint.

For a long time, Rotpunkt Küchen has concerned itself with the questions and issues surrounding sustainability, CO2 reduction and climate protection.

While the kitchen company has never averted its gaze from the issues surrounding sustainability in its industry, it has also been the first to admit it can do more to look at the consequences of its work and decisions. This is why, a few years ago, the company began to differentiate the questions it was asking about sustainability.

Rotpunkt began to ask, “How can a producer of kitchen furniture reduce its carbon footprint?” “How do you reduce the use of virgin wood in order to save valuable resources?” and “How do you make a positive contribution towards climate protection?”

In 2017 Rotpunkt began working continuously to answer those questions and many more, drawing inspiration from the 17 global goals of the UN for sustainable development of the Agenda 2039, the so-called Sustainable Development Goals.

Already, Rotpunkt has changed a great deal to improve the world and living climate, while setting still bolder goals for the future.

It has meant applying a process of constant evaluation to Rotpunkt Küchen’s production environment. It has meant optimising old processes and structures, looking for ways

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ROTPUNKT KÜCHEN

of reducing how much fresh wood is used in Rotpunkt’s chipboard or innovative new uses for production waste.

These are all areas that the kitchen company has looked at more closely than it did even a few years ago. Already, Rotpunkt has brought a host of great ideas to light, including cutting edge technological innovations.

It includes developments such as the ability to produce a batch size of one at the company’s Getmold production site, significantly reducing the volume of material waste.

A SUSTAINABLE WORK ENVIRONMENT

But sustainability does not just refer to technology and carbon footprints. It also refers to the daily interaction of staff with their personal environment.

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It also extends to how Rotpunkt treats its staff, offering them a healthy working environment. Even now, it seeks out new ways to support its teams in production and administration to work in a healthier way. It has even resulted in using technology such as passive robotic exoskeletons for its shipping staff, to reduce the physical strain of performing heavy repetitive or overhead tasks.

Rotpunkt’s team have access to numerous offers within the company’s health management framework.

Every day Rotpunkt works to make its kitchens a bit better, tailoring its variety of fronts to the tastes of its customers while optimising its technology for convenience, aesthetics, and sustainability.

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NICO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

Donbell Mandala, CEO of NICO General.

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NICO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

AFTER 50 YEARS IN THE MARKET, NICO GENERAL INSURANCE IS BRINGING MALAWI’S INSURANCE MARKET INTO THE 2020S.

DRIVING MALAWI’S MARKET PROJECT MANAGED BY: HAYDEN TURNER

In 1971 Malawi’s National Insurance Company Ltd, now NICO Holdings Plc, incorporated NICO General Insurance Company Ltd as a composite insurance company. Originally the firm was only a short-term division of its parent company, before being incorporated and then, later, being restructured as a stand-alone general insurance company in 2002. It has grown to become a true leader in the industry.

N

ICO General is a current market leader in insurance in Malawi, commanding a 36% market share,” says Donbell Mandala, CEO of NICO General. “NICO General currently manages the biggest portfolio in Malawi, employs 93 members of staff and operates in four districts or cities. It is a subsidiary of NICO Holdings, which own 51% of NICO General and was founded in 1970, so have been in the Malawi market for 50 years.”

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NICO Holdings Plc has an investment portfolio spanning from life insurance, pension services, hotels, real estate, banks, shopping malls, hospitals to telecommunication. The other 49% of the company is owned by Sanlam Pan Africa (SPA).

NICO General has set itself apart from the pack as a leading company in the sector, but as Mandala points out, differentiating yourself is a challenge in the insurance sector.

“Insurance is an intangible product, so the evidence of your quality is in how you pay out claims,” he explains. “We have a strong balance sheet that allows us to pay promptly.”

Indeed, NICO General’s balance sheet is the strongest general insurance balance sheet in Malawi. The company has been rated by the Global Credit Rating of South Africa (GCR) and has attained a claimspaying ability rate of AA for the 2021/22 financial year.

But a strong balance sheet is still only a part of the company’s offering. It has set itself the mission to provide innovative and general insurance products and services in niche markets and is committed to customer service excellence. It might be the leader in Malawi’s insurance market, but Mandala will settle for nothing less than world-class General Insurance products and services in Malawi. In achieving those stands, the company is driven by values of collaboration, professionalism, transparency, excellence, innovation and integrity.

“Being a market leader, it’s our responsibility to drive how the market is operating,” explains Mandala. “We are engaging our regulator to ensure we meet the standards being set in other countries, not just in terms of innovations, but also regulatory protections, and how to protect the market as well. If the market falls, then everybody loses.”

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MANAGED BY:

A VOLATILE CLIMATE ICON PROPERTIES

BUILDING BETTER FUTURES A leading property investment company aiming to transform the infrastructure landscape in Malawi by developing high-quality ‘ICONIC’ properties that create value for all stakeholders. Through its overarching strategic manager, Eris Properties, a leading specialist property services company, ICON has access to a wealth of industry research which informs its development strategy and ensures the company maintains relevance to the market.

T: +265 (0)1828012 • E: info@eris.co.mw

www.iconproperties.mw

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While the company certainly holds a strong market position, the market as a whole has been weathering increasing challenges.

“We’re facing a lot of challenges from the current economic and market environment,” Mandala admits.

Although the challenges the firm is facing also emerge from the environment itself.

“The biggest is inflated liability claims and the increase in weather-related claims due to the increasing climate conditions around the world,” Mandala says.

“We are making settlements on a regular basis, and customers are bringing in bigger claims.”

It is not a challenge that will be going away in the foreseeable future, and one that may get more severe, so NICO General is working to adapt.

“BEING A MARKET LEADER, IT’S OUR RESPONSIBILITY TO DRIVE HOW THE MARKET IS OPERATING. WE ARE ENGAGING OUR REGULATOR TO ENSURE WE MEET THE STANDARDS BEING SET IN OTHER COUNTRIES.” “Obviously, we have to adapt to how the market is changing,” says Mandala. “What we are doing now is adapting our whole model to predict asset claims when they arise. We are pricing our products properly to ensure we create a buffer to pay for any claims. The other solution is managing the process of putting up excesses to limit what you are paying for.”

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NICO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

NICO General is able to adapt rapidly to large shifts in the economic environment like this thanks to a pool of expertise unparalleled in the country.

“We have 93 members of staff and being, an insurance company, we look for professionals, some come to us, but many are trained in-house,” Mandala tells us. “We have close to 40 chartered insurers to ensure we bring quality to the market. We have a mix of experienced staff who have been here for about 25 years as well as upcoming talent. Our mix of experienced and innovative young staff gives us an edge to develop new products and solutions. We command a great number of qualified employees at chartered accountant level.”

PROMOTING MALAWI’S GROWTH

As well as supporting itself through these challenges, NICO General’s parent company, the NICO Group, continues to serve an essential role in Malawi’s growth and development through its corporate social responsibility drive.

The Group has sponsored activities in health, sports, education, and other sectors of national importance in all its operating countries.

“Most of the projects we handle are carried out within the NICO Group, with six companies, each with different projects,” Mandala says. “A critical project we have been engaged in recently is the construction of a primary school. We have

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NICO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

NICO GENERAL INSURANCE COMPANY LTD

also invested in many different safety projects. It all depends on the needs of the community and the country.”

Not surprisingly, over the last couple of years a big part of Malawi’s needs have been due to the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. In 2020 the NICO Group took part in a range of industry initiatives to fight the spread of the pandemic.

To support the Government’s efforts in responding to the pandemic, the NICO Group has committed MK100 million to anti-Covid efforts. It is a donation that is driven by the Group’s values as a responsible and responsive corporate citizen.

Looking forward, NICO General is planning to take Malawi’s insurance market to the next level- the digital arena.

“It’s taken too long for our market to add digital solutions,” Mandala insists. “This year we are adding that to our portfolio. Our brokers will have a portal to access our system, check claims and enquire for a quotation. We are working on a solution to be able to show clients our modelling and allow them to pay monthly. This might seem outdated, but it has not happened yet in Malawi, and we are the first to be able to do it.”

“IT’S TAKEN TOO LONG FOR OUR MARKET TO ADD DIGITAL SOLUTIONS. THIS YEAR WE ARE ADDING THAT TO OUR PORTFOLIO.” CONSULTANCY | 91

TELEMENIA

REMOTE POSSIBILITIES TELEMENIA BRINGS POWER TO PLACES OTHERS CAN’T REACH.

PROJECT MANAGED BY: JAMIE SIVYER

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TELEMENIA

“We don’t say no to any type of challenge,” says Amir Kurz, Deputy CEO of Telemenia. “We are creative in finding solutions, and with our experience from an operations and maintenance perspective, we know how to build the best solution for our client.”

T

elemenia is the lead company of the FK Group, a group of companies that have been working on energy projects since 1990.

The FK Group is a family-owned business with vast experience in carrying out energy projects in all kinds of situations and locations. Its projects range from simple diesel generators

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and temporary power plants that can be built in a very short period, going all the way to permanent power plants running on natural gas, HFO, DDO and even biogas.

Through its subsidiaries, FK Group also provides a wide array of services in the field of energy and infrastructure worldwide, including EPC

and O&M services for Solar Power Plants (through Inbar Solar Energy), Energy Supply (Various IPP projects and a dedicated supplier’s licence owned and held by AUA Energy), EPC substations and HV transmission lines, as well as EPC and O&M services for dedicated microgrid projects which incorporate energy storage and photovoltaics with Telemenia’s speciality – high efficiency and low emissions cogeneration and trigeneration power plants.

ENERGY & UTILITIES | 93

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TELEMENIA

AS BIDUD AS Insulation and Tinsmithing Ltd was established in 1982 as a contracting company for the performance of insulation works and Tinsmithing for all types of infrastructure. Since then, the company has specialized in the establishment of power plants (private and governmental) in various capacities in Israel and worldwide by “key” methods, welding for all infrastructures in European and American standards, and production of insulation systems for the petrochemical industry.

As a part of the natural gas revolution in Israel, the company was one of the leading companies in the establishment of various cogeneration stations and the conversion of gas to plants in all industrial areas. In recent years, the company has been involved in major Power plant construction in Rwanda 70MW, Iquitos, Peru, South America 80MW, Gabon 70MW, Burkina Faso 50MW, etc., and humanitarian water projects in Africa.

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“We specialize in projects in remote areas and challenging locations. We do that with a very good track record for quality, timely completion, high availability and high efficiency,” explains Kurz. “Our projects are completed with satisfied clients who frequently go on to do other projects with us.”

Telemenia’s trademark is to provide facilities that are economical and provide a good return on investment. The company is able to be involved in each project’s development, licensing, permitting, construction, commissioning, as well as its operation and maintenance.

“We provide after-sales technical support and guidance to the local team that will run the facility and provide full O&M solutions as needed,” Kurz says.

NEW FRONTIERS

The other thing that defines a great deal of Telemenia’s work is the remote locations its projects are executed in. Perhaps

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Amir Kurz, Deputy CEO of Telemenia.

the most remote location the company has worked in so far is the city of Iquitos, on the Amazon in Peru. The largest isolated city in the world, Iquitos has no road connections-, and it can be reached only by river or by air.

“The logistical challenges with regards to construction were high, but we gladly took on the challenge and transported the main equipment required for the Iquitos 80MW power plant (Approx. 1,400 Tons) through the ever-changing Amazon River, on dedicated barges, through timing the Tide and other crucial variables,” says Kurz.

The end result is one of the few energy projects in Peru to be delivered on time and with no delays.

“It was a very challenging project,” Kurz admits. “We had a similar experience in Burkina Faso when we built there a 50MW power plant. We had to reinforce bridges and fix roads, and all of that was done without one day of delay.”

Of course, there is a reason why on-time delivery is so important to Telemenia.

“When you speak about energy projects, on-time delivery is extremely important to reduce the cost of temporary solutions which have higher fuel consumption and are more expensive,” Kurz insists. “The availability of the grid and the energy system relies on the delivery of projects on time. So, we make sure our clients will have the facility linked to their master plan for energy in the region.”

MAKING CONNECTIONS

Of course, when your trademark is doing technical work in hardto-reach places, you need strong incentives to attract that necessary talent.

“It is very challenging to find people with the necessary experience and background, but we’ve been in this market for more than 30 years, developing good relationships with human

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TELEMENIA

resource companies that provide great candidates,” Kurz tells us. “We have good connections to engineers leaving the marine industry, which is similar to the power plant sector. We establish an ecosystem, with tools such as “friends bringing in friends,” which is a good tool for bringing in people who know this sector and don’t have any problem working remotely. Additionally, we are also internationally diverse, as our team members come from many different countries and cultures.”

Once that talent is brought in, the challenge is to keep it, creating the right conditions to make them feel at home, no matter how far away from home they are. Telemenia also offers them space to grow.

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“We provide development by sending them to courses increasing their abilities, their engineering skills, and bringing them to a higher professional level,” says Kurz. “Obviously, the human touch is essential.

We know everyone by name, we speak with them and make sure everyone is comfortable.

Motivation is very important for us. People see that we maintain a good relationship with the client, we create a good environment to work in, and our employees feel comfortable here.”

“WE ARE SPECIALISTS IN PROJECTS IN REMOTE AREAS & CHALLENGING LOCATIONS.” BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

TELEMENIA

VALUE FOR MONEY

Right now, it seems that everyone is running on a tight budget, particularly when it comes to public works.

However, Kurz makes the case for the lifetime cost of Telemenia’s projects.

“We see our competitors trying to reduce the cost of the CapEx when they are making their offers, and we believe that at the end of the day it always comes at the expense of something else, usually the quality of the product,” Kurz says simply. “We believe that you sometimes have to increase the CapEx a bit, but as a result - reduce operational costs. You will suffer less from unexpected events or mechanical failures. You will guarantee higher availability and make sure you have the best efficiency you can get from the power plant.”

Kurz argues that maintaining a power plant that will operate as the client expected in its financial model and guarantee a faster return on investment, is something that Telemenia has the experience, and the abilities to provide.

“Quality international suppliers aren’t something you can find without experience,” Kurz points out. “We know how to get competitive prices from our suppliers, but even if they’re cheap it will not impact the quality of the product for the end client. As prices increase and there is strong competition, it is important to have a long-standing relationship with a partner that will provide the solution you need.

This is something that makes Telemenia special. Our numbers speak for themselves.”

Kurz is not wrong. There are power plants Telemenia has built that have been in operation since 2013, averaging more than 99% availability, a very special achievement in this market.

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“In Iquitos, which is being rated annually by the credit rating agency Fitch Rating, we’re providing 100% of the power for their isolated grid, with approximately 99% availability, which is very uncommon in today’s energy market,” Kurz says.

Telemenia has some impressive achievements behind it, but Kurz believes the best is yet to come.

“What we are doing today is making sure that the Group capabilities combine through synergy, all in order to provide the best, most innovative and modern solutions for our clients.

When we’re speaking about modern solutions, we mean we want to combine the ability to offer a power plant to a client with the ability to make it a hybrid power plant,” Kurz says.

“We integrate energy storage solutions, renewable energy solutions and “conventional,” low emission and highefficiency solutions, all in order to create micro-grids and hybrid power plants which will deliver the optimal energy solution

to our clients, based on their requirements and actual needs.

We’re making sure our product will be relevant to the direction the industry is going at. As we’re going towards a zerocarbon emissions economy and want to reduce the carbon footprint, we make sure not only that we’re suitable and aligned to that target, but that we are at the spearhead of this process.”

Kurz recognises the limits of current technology, but he is also keen to push those limits.

“Today’s technology can’t allow an energy network based 100% on renewables. You need a traditional powerplant as a backup. Nonetheless, there is a lot that can be done to make it more efficient with fewer pollutants,” he says. “You need the storage and as many renewable components as possible (and economically sound) to minimize carbon footprint, which is what we are all aiming for. We are currently developing special skills and expertise required to make sure our solutions are highly efficient and environmentally friendly hybrid solutions.”

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FAIRAFRIC

FAIRAFRIC, THE YOUNG GERMAN-GHANAIAN SOCIAL BUSINESS, IS REVOLUTIONISING THE CHOCOLATE WORLD BY TURNING ATTENTION BACK TO CHOCOLATE’S COUNTRY OF ORIGIN.

CHANGING THE CHOCOLATE INDUSTRY PROJECT MANAGED BY: CHRIS CONWAY

Although 70% of the world’s cocoa comes from West Africa, less than 1% of the world’s chocolate is made in that region.

Fairafric, a young progressive enterprise, is changing this system – its premium-quality organic chocolate is produced from tree to bar in rural Ghana, greatly increasing Africa’s share of the value chain in the chocolate industry.

F

airafric’s founder Hendrik Reimers had always toyed with the idea of adding value to Africa’s agricultural produce, instead of just shipping it to Europe, and when he met Yayra Glover, a Switzerlandtrained Ghanaian lawyer, the idea took clear shape. Their meeting created a partnership that led to launching production of Ghana’s first organic chocolate products in 2016.

By shifting the entire value chain to the cocoa-growing country, local income per tonne of cocoa is quadrupled: instead of paying only the cocoa price, Fairafric supports the development of local economic structures and creates midmarket jobs in the sector.

“In order to achieve this goal, we produce world-class chocolate in Ghana – from tree to bar. In doing so, we create

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jobs outside agriculture and multiply local income in cocoa’s country of origin. With every purchase of a Fairafric product you help to create qualified jobs in Africa, which in turn lead to higher income, better access to higher education and health care,” says the company.

NEW FACTORY

Last year, the business achieved a major milestone – its very own, solar-powered organic-chocolate factory was commissioned in the midst of a global pandemic.

Michael Marmon-Halm, the Managing Director of Fairafric Ghana Limited, says: “Increasing demand in Europe required new capacity and better operations control.

Taking charge of the entire production process, which before was subcontracted, was

the only solution if Fairafric was to grow to its fullest potential.”

He admits though that it was not all plain sailing: since the project commencement coincided with targeted lockdowns in Ghana aimed at curtailing the spread of the coronavirus, airports were closed and purchased equipment and installation teams could not arrive.

The challenge did not lessen Michael’s dedication – he asked Ghana’s president himself to intervene and allow the country’s main airport to stay temporarily open for a small installation team to arrive and help with setting up its production facility. This has been achieved, and the construction was completed in a record six months.

Michael, who had been working with the company both indirectly and directly before becoming Managing Director, reflects that Fairafric is one of a kind for a number of reasons – not only because of its first-ever Ghanaian chocolate-making operations.

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FAIRAFRIC

Michael Marmon-Halm, Managing Director, Fairafric Ghana Limited.

FAIRAFRIC

The factory is powered by renewable energy and operates in a highly environmentally friendly manner. Fairafric is the only factory in Ghana, and perhaps in the whole Africa, which packs its chocolate in 100% biodegradable material, using not aluminium foil but fully biodegradable film. At the repeated request of its customers in Europe to buy its chocolate without packaging, Fairafric also decided to join the zero-waste movement and to supply zero-waste stores.

FOR LOCAL DEVELOPMENT

But it is its social impact that is a clear differentiator, says Michael. “Most businesses in Ghana prefer to be located in the capital for the obvious reasons – infrastructure, energy networks, the internet... We felt

that if anybody should feel the full impact of the business, it should be the cocoa farmers and the growing community. For this reason, we set the factory up in a rural location.”

He explains that Fairafric is currently owned by 360 individuals.

The main shareholders are the founders, who decided early on that they wanted customers, employees, and suppliers to be shareholders in the company. The key idea here is to be sustainable not only from a social and environmental perspective but from a financial one as well.

“We hire locals within the community, and the factory now employs 85 people, of whom a high percentage are women. We really push for gender equality, which is not that common in the manufacturing sector in Ghana.”

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Partnership with the farmers is key, and supporting that partnership is one of the company’s priorities. “We work closely with a cooperative that brought together around 5,000 farmers, and we make sure that we identify the areas where we can help the farmers the most.”

“We are buying the beans and paying an extra premium for growing the beans in an organic way. This will help change the economic status of these farmers. We pay the highest cocoa premiums in West Africa: $600 per tonne of cocoa. Thus, the farmers can finance secondary and tertiary education for their children,” Michael acknowledges.

SWEET SUCCESS

Fairafric exports 90% of its output to Europe, to Germany, Switzerland, Austria, and France (soon to be followed by more) where demand for high-quality organic chocolate is significant.

Organic dark 70% chocolate with tiger nuts and almonds is particularly popular, and Michael explains that most of Fairafric’s consumers love the particular African ingredients, including tiger nuts, which are not so common in standard chocolate products.

“We are also seeing increasing sales of our artisan chocolate products like pralines. These, as well as chocolates that include fruit such as mango, pineapple, baobab, moringa and more recently, fruit balls chocolate are all experiencing massive demand.”

He reveals that such massive demand calls for expansion of the business and the company has clearly defined plans going forward. “The next step would be a ‘backward integration’. While we buy the beans, processing of these is subcontracted to a partner who supplies the

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FAIRAFRIC

factory with a semi-finished product. The aim is to have our own primary processing line to have the complete process under control, from raw beans to flavour development and final product shipment.”

This will call for increasing staff numbers and the company has already engaged in the process. By the end of 2022, the management plans to double the number of employees to 150 and it will not stop there.

“We are planning to expand the premises to include a restaurant for our staff as well as for outsiders who want to have a good meal and develop the business in line with the current global trends of healthy living. With every bar of chocolate we make, Fairafric has a tremendous social impact, and we intend to keep it that way.”

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MONTEGO PET NUTRITION

MONTEGO PET NUTRITION IS TAKING THE BEST OF INDEPENDENT AND CORPORATE SCHOOLS OF BUSINESS TO BE A POWERFUL COMPETITOR IN THE PET NUTRITION MARKET.

FEEDING PETS, GLOBALLY PROJECT MANAGED BY: JOHN HOLLIMAN

Montego Pet Nutrition is the largest independent pet food manufacturer on the African continent. As both a manufacturer and a brand owner, the company is dominant in its operating channels in South Africa while also selling to almost 20 other countries, primarily in Africa and the Middle East.

S

ince its foundation, Montego has undergone a series of growth and development milestones. The company owns nine brands beyond its mother brand, each achieving widespread market recognition. The company has invested US$5 million in upgrading the firm’s existing facilities since 2018 and implementing sustainable manufacturing assets such as a reverse osmosis water purification plant and a solar plant.

The pet nutrition company has also heavily invested in its supply chain in South Africa, purchasing nine depots around the country.

By the end of this year, Montego Pet Nutrition plans to have three major manufacturing facilities, growing its staff from its already impressive 800 employees.

The brand has been able to secure this dominant market position in its chosen channels thanks to a selection of unique selling points.

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“It is an innovative company that stays ahead of new developments and happenings in the industry,” says Sakkie Luther, head of Montego’s International Business Development. “From an international point of view, our competitive advantage is that we have a product in each category. We can cover the whole range with our product offering.”

Luther is passionate about expanding Montego’s international reach and is extremely active in getting out there and meeting potential customers and distributors face to face.

“We’re travelling,” he says.

“We go to the different markets, talk to the general consumer, and we are sitting in the distributor’s office drinking their coffee while we talk to them and that’s very different to what’s happening from a pet food producer’s point of view to what other players do.”

Montego is active in visiting expos and looking at the latest trends across the sector.

“We did a lot of that preCovid, and we will be exhibiting at Interzoo in Nuremberg next month as an opportunity to display who we are and what we are all about,” Luther says. “It is important for us to be there, as one of the top hundred pet food manufacturers globally.

We are a serious contender among the top contenders. We are positioning the African pet producing industry as a player in the global arena.”

Maintaining the Supply Chain While Montego’s reach is continuing to grow, it is doing so at a time when supply chains across the world are being stretched.

“I think our biggest challenge is the same one the entire global pet industry has been facing and that’s a supply chain issue,” says Luther. “With all the delays we have been seeing in China and the effect they have on our total supply chain, some of the factors we do not have any control over are making things difficult. I think those are our biggest challenges.”

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MONTEGO PET NUTRITION

Sakkie Luther, Head of International Business Development, Montego Pet Nutrition.

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MONTEGO PET NUTRITION

While there is a range of macroeconomic and supply chain issues that can have an impact on the sector, Luther is optimistic that Montego is concentrating on the issues that it can control.

“The important point is to focus on the things we do have control over, which is maintaining a consistent supply to our customers,” Luther tells us. “We can try to overcome or manage supply chain issues as best we can by making sure we are supplying our distributors on a regular basis. If we make sure there are products en route. It means that if there are issues, we already know the next shipment is already on the way. We focus on ensuring there is always a consistent supply.”

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This is made possible by the great team Montego Pet Nutrition has put together.

Across the company, there is a strong emphasis on training and development.

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MONTEGO PET NUTRITION

“We are training people in the basics of everything from finance to working as a receptionist to supply chain to merchandising,” Luther says. “We have a training centre in place to develop our staff as best we can, while recruiting to ensure we are only employing the best staff.”

For Luther this is not just about having the right skills, it is about making sure new candidates will align well with the company culture.

“It’s important to employ people who are a good culture fit, but are able to work independently,” he explains.

“We appreciate people with enquiring minds. We are trying to employ people that can complement our ability to grow and strengthen our strategy.”

Montego’s culture walks a fine line, taking the best of both independent and corporate culture.

“We are an independent company with a minority share investor, we all know it is important to leverage the position that we are in now to position ourselves for future growth,” Luther says.

Luther explains that being an independent company gives Montego Pet Nutrition the flexibility to make quick decisions.

“I think there is a lot that is good in corporate business models and in independence,” he tells us. “We try to align those two approaches to get the benefits of both sides. We can make quick decisions and move forward and be on top of changes in the market, which puts us at an advantage.”

At the same time, Luther recognises the importance of structure.

“For a big multinational, listed corporation there is a structure in place. Montego’s growing years have outlined the foundations of that as well,” points out Luther. “There are other elements we still need to work on to drive our company into the future It is a unique position to be in. We know where we want to be in the future, so the question is how do we lay our foundation now?

We are working towards still being a sturdy company even 15 and 20 years from now.”

“OUR PRIMARY OBJECTIVE IS TO GROW AFRICA AND THE MIDDLE EAST TO ENSURE WE HAVE A DECENT FOOTPRINT THROUGHOUT ALL THOSE COUNTRIES.”

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TAKING OVER THE WORLD

It is a very long-term perspective for any company, but Montego has big plans for the future.

“We are quite an ambitious bunch,” says Luther. “We want to take over the world.”

While Montego’s ambitions are lofty, it is taking a practical outlook on how to make those ambitions a reality.

“We obviously know that to achieve those goals we need to take it in manageable sections,” Luther points out. “Our primary objective is to grow Africa and the Middle East to ensure we have a decent footprint throughout all those countries. We have ambitions to grow in Asia, and at some point, we would like to grow in Europe and the Americas, but we are trying to do it in phases.

We are prioritising our approach to make sure we do not take on too much too fast.”

Currently, the company is looking at having its products registered in China, the first South African company in the market to do that.

“We also have plans to expand further into Africa, but the international side of our business will also be a bigger contributor to our overall growth,” Luther says.

Montego XenPet is the 9th and most recently launched range under the Montego stable, positioning the Montego brand in a new category of pet care.

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MONTEGO PET NUTRITION

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SAVOLA FOOD COMPANY

Adil Walanshira, General Manager, and Head of Business-to-Business Development at Savola Foods.

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SAVOLA FOOD COMPANY

SAVOLA FOODS IS A GREAT PLACE TO WORK THAT IS PUSHING INNOVATION THROUGHOUT THE FOOD INDUSTRY.

INNOVATION FOUNDED IN INTELLIGENCE PROJECT MANAGED BY: JOHN HOLLIMAN

When we speak to Adil Walanshira, General Manager, and head of Business-to-Business Development at Savola Foods, it is immediately clear that he is pleased.

He has every right to be as well. His firm has just been awarded the title of ‘A Great Place to Work in Saudi’. It is an award that Walanshira obviously agrees with.

I

t is a people’s company, and people are our most valuable asset and resource,” he insists. “This is exactly what drove the passion that formed the first generation of Savola 40 years ago. It drove us to start investing in food production.”

Savola Foods started out as a small edible oil company, going on to become a multinational player in the categories of edible oil, sugar, pasta, nuts and spices, vegetable fats, seafood, and bakery, not only in the Saudi market but also in regional markets.

Savola Food Company today owns operations in nine countries, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Turkey, Algeria, Morocco, Sudan and UAE. It

manages a broad portfolio of food brands, including many market leaders across multiple countries. Brands like Afia, Al Arabi Oil, Al Osra Sugar, Ladan Oil, Yudum Oil, Al Malika Pasta, Culina Fat and Rawabi Ghee.

LED BY THE MARKET “We are building food security concepts in existing markets, maintaining strong brand equity and achieving the highest market shares while gaining consumer and customer trust,” Walanshira tells us. “As a local supplier in nine countries, Savola Professional is the right business partner for all B2B Customers, offering just-in-time delivery, high-quality products and competitive pricing.”

It is a position that Savola Food Company has been able to maintain thanks to an ongoing focus on innovation, itself built on a foundation of customer and market understanding.

“In addition to all of that Savola is trying to be very close to its consumer and its customers and that differentiates us,” explains Diaa Rashwan, General Manager of Strategic Marketing Services & Innovations at Savola Foods and Head of Marketing in the B2B arm. “We have an in-depth internal consumer understanding centre focused on comprehending the market, the trends, what the latest customer needs are and what the competition is offering.”

This knowledge base directly informs Savola’s innovation pipeline.

“We build on that good understanding of the markets and try to provide our end users with a differentiated product that gives them a real benefit, different from what

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AT SUCDEN WE CREATE OPPORTUNITIES

WE DO MORE THAN SOURCE AND DELIVER SOFT COMMODITIES. As innovators, creators and constructors of opportunities we connect resources and client needs across time and space, at every product level, in a sustainable way.

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Sucden is an independent market leader in soft commodities and operates across the value chain from production to processing and logistics.

Its activities are in sugar, cocoa, coffee, ethanol and futures/options brokerage.

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Sucden is principally a major trading house engaged in the softcommodities supply chain. We facilitate exchanges between producers and consumers worldwide. To do so, we trade on the world’s major exchanges in a wide range of products and services, including sugar, coffee, cocoa, ethanol, and ocean freight, as well as undertaking futures and options brokerage. To support this, we are active in agriculture and sourcing, processing, logistics, distribution, merchandising, financing, research, and risk management. We combine global know-how with local expertise to connect supply and demand in a sustainable way.

We are an independent company with 70 years of experience in the commodities markets. We analyze all opportunities from a long-term perspective, always considering the constraints or expectations of our business partners and the local authorities.

As a Group, Sucden operates in over 25 locations over the world, with 5,900 employees dealing with sugar, cocoa, and coffee trading, agroindustrial sugarbeet production, brokerage, and shipping whilst operating 4 breakbulk vessels. Sucden ships about 10 million tons of agricultural commodities every year.

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SAVOLA FOOD COMPANY

our competition is offering,” Rashwan says. “We have a central innovation team that supports our different business units across all markets, with smaller teams in each market, and a central team in Egypt. We work together to deliver product and packaging solutions.”

Innovation and market understanding are more essential now than ever, as the industry, and food security across the board are undergoing a volatile period.

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“AS A LOCAL SUPPLIER IN NINE COUNTRIES, SAVOLA PROFESSIONAL IS THE RIGHT BUSINESS PARTNER FOR ALL B2B CUSTOMERS, OFFERING JUST-IN-TIME DELIVERY, HIGH-QUALITY PRODUCTS AND COMPETITIVE PRICING.” ADAPTING TO NEW CIRCUMSTANCES “We are seeing increasing commodity prices, which is leading to volatility in selling prices,” says Walanshira.

“We are also facing a lack of supplies in certain products, due to Russia and Ukraine War.” The challenges are particularly evident around Savola’s original lead product, edible oils, demonstrating just how fragile food security can be.

“For example, look at edible oils, the main ingredient for the majority of our products.

We import crude oil and refine it and fill it into our bottles to sell in the business-to-business format, and to consumers. Now there are huge challenges in that supply chain from different countries,” Walanshira tells us. “Several months ago, with effects from global warming, Canada was not able to supply canola oil. Argentina couldn’t provide soya and we were left with two main types of oil, sunflower and palm oil. 70% of sunflower oil comes from Ukraine and Russia. That meant they couldn’t supply us, so we had palm oil imported from Indonesia, but then inflated prices to local consumers meant the Indonesian President banned exports. That created a big challenge to countries all around the world, as Indonesia commands around 60% of the exports of palm oil.”

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SAVOLA FOOD COMPANY

Savola Food Company has responded by implementing new procurement strategies, such as hedging, to avoid buying risks, and has diversified its sourcing to include new international imports.

“We are expanding our sourcing to include new countries. We have begun bringing sunflower oil in from Romania and Bulgaria,” Walanshira explains. “We can also blend different types of oil to

112 | FMCG

get a final product that suits our customers in the Saudi market.”

MANAGING TALENT Throughout any changes or volatile behaviour in the markets and the food chain, Savola relies on its dedicated and talented staff.

“Generally, Savola recruits fresh management trainees and builds their knowledge to be future leaders in the companies they

own, in addition to injecting our teams with experienced leaders.

Clear SMARTS, cross-functional projects, and on-the-job training,” Walanshira says “We are also implementing a variety of retention programs to keep high calibre staff within the organisation.”

Because of the company’s international reach, Savola has a wide pool of talent to draw from.

“Working in the countries that we do means we have access

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SAVOLA FOOD COMPANY

to top-tier talented people. We have been in this field for quite some time, we have our own academy, our own programs with universities geared to attract high calibre staff,” Walanshira explains.

“We have a clear system that measures performance, we run cross-functional projects between departments and provide on the job training. Together this helps us know exactly how people perform based on our standard operating systems. We have an internal auditing system to make sure other departments are performing to the standards we are measuring them by.”

A key aspect of Savola’s approach is that people tend to modify their behaviour depending on how they are measured, and so it is important to measure what matters. Staff perform based on these clear SMARTs, or “Specific, Measurable, Achievable, Relevant, and Time-Bound” criteria throughout the year.

“Everyone in the company knows what they need to do to be among our top talented managers and what they need to do to achieve a higher rating year on year,” Walanshira explains.

Moving forward, Walanshira expects Savola Food Company to have a bright future, with its business-to-business vertical identified as a key growth pillar and priority for the company.

Savola has set a clear target to be the dominant player in MENAT by 2026, winning through innovations of relevant solutions and excellent customer service.

“This is why Savola has launched its new arm, Savola Professional to address the increasing demand in this important channel, in eight regional countries,” Walanshira points out.

It will be exciting to see how this new branch of the company evolves.

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Diaa Rashwan, General Manager of Strategic Marketing Services & Innovations at Savola Foods.

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ECOLOG

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ECOLOG

HELPING CLIENTS TO FOCUS ON THEIR OPERATION BY TAKING CARE OF THEIR NEEDS IS THE KEY PHILOSOPHY OF ECOLOG INTERNATIONAL, A GLOBAL PROVIDER OF SERVICES IN A WIDE RANGE OF ENVIRONMENTS.

TRUSTED PARTNER IN NEED PROJECT MANAGED BY: DAVID TAVERNOR

Ecolog is a leading provider of integrated solutions for supply chain and logistics, technology, construction, facility management as well as environmental and health protection.

It provides turnkey and customised solutions and services to governments and defence organizations, to commercial clients in the energy, oil & gas, mining and infrastructure sectors, as well as humanitarian organizations.

I

ncorporated more than two decades ago, Ecolog has now completed over 1,100 projects, some of them in the most remote places of the planet, and is active in over 40 countries, leveraging a pool of nearly 12,000 committed people in more than 150 locations around the globe.

All of Ecolog’s activities relate to supporting its clients in mitigating the consequences of crises, in making life as normal as possible in some of the most difficult situations, be

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it in a conflict-ridden remote area or a safer region hit by an unexpected challenge.

READY TO SERVE ANYWHERE, ANYTIME

The company was established in 1998 in the Balkans during the Kosovo conflict by Nazif Destani, who set up the basis for a professional organisation with the aim of providing logistics and transport services first to the German troops in the local area but soon to be expanded beyond his native region.

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ECOLOG

In the early 2000s the company was asked to support the International Security Assistance Force (ISAF) NATOled mission in Afghanistan, followed by a major engagement in the Middle East, and later on in Africa, with contracts awarded in Mozambique, Mali and the Central African Republic.

The company’s determination to create and maintain comfort, even in a daily changing environment, drove Ecolog to expand its portfolio from a single service provider to a full-fledged integrated and smart service provider for large operations.

While the business started by providing support services in a man-made crisis, today

Ecolog supports authorities, governments, NGOs as well as the public in any challenging environment.

With excellent top-quality services, Ecolog has become a member of the UN Global Compact and is TRACE certified.

These initiatives are the most recognised in the industry as setting the standards for commercial transparency.

In recognition of the company’s efforts in terms of health and wellbeing, last year Ecolog was awarded the Royal Society for the Preventions of Accidents (RoSPA) Gold award for its high level of performance, well-developed occupational health and safety management systems and culture.

“ECOLOG HAS NOW COMPLETED OVER 1,100 PROJECTS, SOME OF THEM IN THE MOST REMOTE PLACES OF THE PLANET, AND IS ACTIVE IN OVER 40 COUNTRIES.”

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A HEALTHIER SOCIETY

In recent years, the company has been handling crises related to the environment as well as population health and wellbeing, and needless to say, the global pandemic meant the company was very busy. In its response to the Covid-19 crisis, Ecolog’s EcoCare division intensified its work.

Since the outbreak of Covid-19, EcoCare has been offering specialised healthcare services connected to the fight against the pandemic, and over the last two years has become one of the largest test centre providers in western Europe. These test centres were rolled out gradually from the beginning of 2020 at European airports and other public facilities.

It has been not just the pandemic that has kept the company occupied; environmental protection has remained top priority even during these challenging

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ECOLOG

times, as demonstrated in 2020 by Ecolog International signing a strategic cooperation agreement with Siemens Energy to provide industrial customers in the energy and petrochemical sectors with a solution to locally treat industrial wastewater containing spent caustic and hazardous waste.

The partnership aims to identify and develop projects where technology can make a difference in terms of reaching low pollutant discharge levels or for water reuse, and giving customers the option to outsource the plant integration, build and operation.

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ECOLOG

TO THE BENEFIT OF MANKIND

Although active on many fronts, Ecolog International remains loyal to its old clients.

Ecolog is a long-time trusted partner to NATO and has been supporting the organisation in its missions across Europe and other international tasks for two decades. In October last year, Ecolog supported the joint multinational Exercise NightHawk 2021 in Denmark as a contractor of the NATO Support and Procurement Agency (NSPA).

The camp, set up in ten days, was the largest since Exercise TRIDENT JUNCTURE in 2015 in Spain, which Ecolog also

118 | GOVERNMENT

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ECOLOG

supported. The life support the company provided to the participating Special Forces troops included catering, power generation, cleaning, pest and vector control and infrastructure operation and maintenance.

Closer to its birthplace, last year Ecolog International supported the Prespa Forum Dialogue (PFD) – a platform created by the Government of the Republic of North Macedonia to strengthen partnerships between countries, leaders and organizations, and to promote the stability and development of the western Balkans region on its way to European Integration.

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The region, close to the founder’s heart, has remained in the company’s focus all through the years of international expansion, and continues to enjoy Ecolog’s valued support. In September last year, in a ceremony organized at Ecolog International’s premises in Tetovo, North Macedonia, the company donated ten ambulances to hospitals with the aim of strengthening capacity and providing better emergency services when most needed by the citizens.

In his speech, the representative of Ecolog, Seid Jusufi, said: “Activities in the

field of social responsibility have been an integral part of our company for decades. In recent years, we have devoted more attention and resources towards health matters than ever before as our obligation as human beings who care deeply about making sure others can live their life as best as possible!.”

He added that working as one, Ecolog is determined to deliver best-in-class services to its clients and is focused on its mission of becoming the leading global provider of intelligent and integrated services and solution for the benefit of mankind.

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FABLINK

WE LEARN ABOUT THE CONTINUOUS IMPROVEMENT OF A BRITISH SUCCESS STORY.

A BRITISH SUCCESS STORY PROJECT MANAGED BY: MARK BAILEY

Fablink was established in 2005 as a privately-owned company with only a handful of employees. Over the 14 years the company has grown, with its staff now numbering 700 people that have proven to be the key to its success. It has become a tier-one manufacturer supplying steel and aluminium products to global OEMs including CAT, DAF, Jaguar Land Rover and JCB.

T

he company has established a strong focus on continuous improvement in every aspect of its business, with a dynamic environment, employee development and progression, and the ability to push boundaries to reach their full potential.

Fablink offers a wide range of services from design to development and production across 500,000 square feet of manufacturing space across its sites in County Durham, Luton, Northamptonshire, and the West Midlands. The company has dedicated CI resources at each of those sites to ensure process improvement remains integral to Fablink’s approach.

The company has demonstrated its ability to handle one-off and small-batch

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build runs all the way up to an annual volume of over 50,000 units.

GOING ELECTRIC

The latest project Fablink has taken on is to use its state-ofthe-art manufacturing facilities to produce the new electric MOKE cars.

The company is perfectly positioned for the job, as its Northamptonshire headquarters are in the centre of Britain’s automotive heartland, which attracts some of the industry’s most talented manufacturing, technical and engineering professionals.

An expert team of Fablink staff will handcraft the electric MOKEs, drawing on their extensive experience providing design, manufacturing and engineering services to the

FABLINK

MANUFACTURING | 121

WITH OVER 45 YEARS EXPERIENCE IN THE WELDING INDUSTRY

SUPPLYING A FULL RANGE OF WELDING EQUIPMENT AND CONSUMABLES: -

WELDING EQUIPMENT (MIG- TIG -MMA) EXTRACTION PLASMA CUTTERS P.P.E CONSUMABLES ABRASIVE DISCS HIRE OF WELDING & EXTRACTION EQUIPMENT SERVICE & CALIBRATION SECOND HAND EQUIPMENT ELECTRCIAL TOOLS PLUS, MUCH MORE!

PROUD TO BE ASSOICATED WITH FABLINK GROUP FOR 17 YEARS

EMAIL: SALES@NWSWELLINGBORO.CO.UK

122 | MANUFACTURING

TELEPHONE:

01933 224614

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FABLINK

world’s leading automotive manufacturers, including Morgan and Jaguar Land Rover.

With government grant funding from the Niche Vehicle Network, the electric MOKE marks a longterm strategic commitment to UK manufacturing, bolstered by a recent trade deal which allows tariff-free access to EU markets

by UK automotive businesses, based on defined rules of origin. MOKE has reaffirmed its commitment to the UK with the creation of a number of key jobs in commercial functions.

As Isobel Dando, CEO of MOKE International has said, “MOKE going electric secures the appeal of one of Britain’s

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best-loved marques for many generations to come. MOKE’s marriage of fun, personality and open-air thrills will only be enhanced through the performance and silent running of an electric powertrain. We are proud to write a new chapter in one of British automotive folklore’s best love stories.”

“WE ARE PROUD TO WRITE A NEW CHAPTER IN ONE OF BRITISH AUTOMOTIVE FOLKLORE’S BEST LOVE STORIES.”

LASER FOCUS

Fablink has been undergoing a continuous process of improvement, including significant investments in its own equipment, such as two Amada Ensis 3015 lasers purchased by the company last year.

The two Amada ENSIS-3015 AJ lasers, paired with towers, are based at Fablink’s Wolverhampton site, where the firm cuts millions of parts every year.

The new lasers boast unique, variable beam control for higher productivity, new Auto Collimation technology that allows laser beam spot control, high-speed piercing, reducing processing times, and automated systems, enabling continuous production. These lasers will also reduce power consumption. The two lasers bring Fablink’s total number of lasers (2D & 3D) to 14 across the Group, enhancing its capabilities as laser cutting specialists. This is just one of the investments the company has made to support its ongoing improvement strategy, bringing benefits to the company and its customers alike.

While Fablink’s improvement is an ongoing process, it is one that was given new life as the Fablink Group has undergone a complete brand relaunch over the last couple of years.

The rebranding started with the relaunch of its website in April 2019 and continued with new branding and a refreshed logo to reflect Fablink’s growth intentions within a fiercely competitive manufacturing industry.

The rebranding, engineered

by Digital PR and Brand agency, Bottle, has also involved an extensive photography project to capture images that depict all elements of Fablink’s brand and

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FABLINK

so it was important to find a way to represent that effectively.

Encapsulating these elements equally within a simplified logo took time, but we feel the new design has subtly captured what Fablink represents, and we are really pleased with the outcome.” its sites. The rebranding has involved an in-depth workshop to delve into the brand, its markets, key competitors and its core messages, developing a brand-new identity for the company.

Becky Dickson, Group Marketing Officer at Fablink who worked closely with Bottle on the rebrand, has said, “Once a decision had been

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made to refresh our branding, we focused on how we could best represent the brand. This proved to be a challenge due to our diverse product portfolio; our business manufactures a range of products, from metal pressings through to heavier products such as cabs and chassis assemblies. It also has to demonstrate a high level of precision, accuracy and control,

MOVING FORWARD

As well as new equipment, and new branding, Fablink has also sought to augment its leadership capabilities with the appointment of Steve Hemming as Chief Operating Officer.

Hemming will work to further strengthen Fablink Group’s market-leading position across the automotive, transport and off-highway sectors. Hemmings

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FABLINK

brings 30 years of wide-ranging knowledge and expertise from his previous OEM Tier One roles, which will help steer Fablink Group towards the target of operational excellence across all its sites.

Richard Westley, CEO of Fablink Group has said of the appointment, “We are delighted to secure another significant industry talent to the Group and further strengthen and expand our senior management team. Steve’s three decades of experience with leading OEMs speaks for itself and will play a key role in supporting our customer base across the automotive, transport and offhighway markets. We have recently secured a number of

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key contracts in these sectors, and I have no doubt that Steve will support in driving this momentum forward.”

Hemmings himself is optimistic about the opportunity, saying, “I have long admired what Richard and his team have achieved over the past 15 years to establish the Group’s concrete reputation as a frontrunner in the industry.

I’m a strong believer that the key to achieving operational excellence is by involving the total workforce, and I look forward to engaging with Fablink Group’s 700 highly skilled staff and production colleagues which will no doubt be the key to the continued success of the business.”

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MEGA FORTRIS UK

SINCE WE LAST SPOKE WITH MEGA FORTRIS UK, THEY HAVE MADE INVESTMENTS IN SUSTAINABLE MATERIALS THAT ARE EXEMPLARY OF THE COMPANY’S APPROACH TO RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT.

A NEW SECURITY SEAL PROJECT MANAGED BY: DAVID TAVERNOR

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MEGA FORTRIS UK

It has been roughly a year and a half since we last spoke with Mega Fortris UK, the British arm of the Malaysian firm that is the market leader in the security seals sector for the logistics, food and beverage, chemical, pharmaceutical, and retail industries, amongst others, as well as load-securing equipment such as lashing systems. It is a full-service solutions provider offering a full range of products, and things have been going well for the company since we last looked in on them.

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I

t has been an eventful 18 months since we last talked with the firm.

“I would say that the last year has been very good from a sales side. We hit a springboard coming out of COVID, quickly getting back to pre-covid levels, and sometimes even surpassing that. We are still looking at double-digit growth,” says Keith Edgar, Managing Director of Mega Fortris UK. “On the flipside, container prices and carriage prices have been difficult to work with, but we have changed a lot of our processes compared to where we were two or three years ago.

We are adapting and minimising our exposure to higher transport costs by changing the way we purchase.”

Talking with Edgar, it is clear he is proud that Mega Fortris

has both maintained its largest existing contracts and brought in some new ones. As well as growing, the company has also been adapting, which is essential in the face not only of rising material costs but also new legislation.

“All of our plastic seals, throughout our range, have 30% recycled material. Some have more than that,” Edgar tells us.

“That means we have faced zero exposure to the new plastic tax, and on top of that our plastic seals can be biodegradable.”

This has been made possible

by Mega Fortris’s ongoing investment in Research and Development.

“The Covid pandemic has not stopped or slowed down our Research and Development.

If anything, we have done more,” Edgar says. “We have

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MEGA FORTRIS UK

used a two-pronged approach, allowing us to conform to the new packaging legislation so we didn’t have to pay the packaging tax while continuing to enhance our green credentials.”

While these developments will put Mega Fortris UK in a strong position in the wake of the new taxes, the company has been working on them since long before this new legislation was announced.

“We have always emphasised our Research and Development,” Edgar says. “We want Mega Fortris to be market leaders, and we are continuing our processes of optimisation to maintain our lead.”

“THE COVID PANDEMIC HAS NOT STOPPED OR SLOWED DOWN OUR RESEARCH AND DEVELOPMENT. IF ANYTHING, WE HAVE DONE MORE.”

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MATERIAL CONCERNS

That head start proved invaluable, as the technical challenges involved in developing such a product are many and varied.

“A number of factors needed to be considered before making the changes,” explains Jason Francis, Mega Fortris Group Director of Production.

“Critically, the functional integrity o f the unit could not be compromised in any form-locking, laser marking, durability and general aesthetic appearance. In addition to this, we needed to consider the production processes themselves.”

Mega Fortris UK’s resin formulas comprise a number of inputs, all of which are aimed at specific achievements within the product itself. The challenge is that when using recycled products, the inputs used in the original manufacturing of those resins are not always known and can inadvertently affect other functional areas along the product production process.

Changes in material input can lead to moulding issues, poor laser marking quality, or functional failure (tensile, pull back or otherwise).

“Within the production plant, plastic waste from the production process is easily controlled – we know the inputs and the ratio of the inputs within the by-product of the production,” Francis says.

“This makes it easier to reuse within our facility. However, when accessing external sources of recycled resins, very special care has to be taken as to the consistency of the supply.

Contaminated resins pose a host of concerns ranging from product failure and poor product quality to mould and machine damage.”

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MEGA FORTRIS UK

As Francis explains, fundamentally the challenge is consistency, and many recycled resin suppliers are unable to provide consistency of product over multiple deliveries.

“That’s not to say the quality is poor,” Francis emphasises.

“But often different batches behaved differently in moulding or production conditions. In mass production where small changes in any number of variables can adversely affect the production, consistency is absolutely fundamental.”

Fortunately, solving problems like this is a day of the office for Mega Fortris’s Research and Development Team.

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“WITHIN THE PRODUCTION PLANT, PLASTIC WASTE FROM THE PRODUCTION PROCESS IS EASILY CONTROLLED – WE KNOW THE INPUTS AND THE RATIO OF THE INPUTS WITHIN THE BYPRODUCT OF THE PRODUCTION.” EVERY LINK IN THE SUPPLY CHAIN

“FMEA (Failure Modes and Effects Analysis) sessions were held with key department functions to identify potential pitfalls or areas that needed to be monitored closely,” Francis tells us. “Once these were identified, success objectives were established for the project

team to understand what we wanted to achieve with the potential changes. In this case, our objective was a minimum of 30% externally supplied, post-use, recycled resin inputs with no impact on quality of the product and with a limit of 5% or less effect in the output of the production facility.”

It was not just a process of research and development, trial and error. It was also a question of careful procurement, communication and building relationships.

“Vetting potential vendors became the central focus of the design and procurement teams.

Suppliers were identified and then subjected to vigorous checks,” Francis explains.

“Quality control systems, supply chain management and supplier

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MEGA FORTRIS UK

“Only samples that met or exceeded existing standards were selected for full production testing,” Francis says.

THE FINISHED PRODUCT

ISO certifications, all formed the basis of our evaluation of potential vendors. Once we shortlisted suppliers that met our selection criteria, sample batches were provided for the Design and Development and Technical teams to test.”

Specific seal types were selected based on varying moulding conditions, marking requirements and functional expectations.

Mega Fortris UK’s production team drew on its extensive historical data to

compare new test resins – and used this as the benchmark for evaluating possible recycled resin inputs.

Recycled resins were then used to produce the selected range of products– using various ratios of recycled resin to virgin mix, testing the products with the use of specific additives, and then subjecting the products to the full range of internal functional tests, as well as ISO17712:2013 Clause 6 tests.

“VETTING POTENTIAL VENDORS BECAME THE CENTRAL FOCUS OF THE DESIGN AND PROCUREMENT TEAMS. SUPPLIERS WERE IDENTIFIED AND THEN SUBJECTED TO VIGOROUS CHECKS.” 130 | MANUFACTURING

Moving to full production testing was a much bigger project and required a larger initial recycled resin order to be run in full production mode.

“Full production mode” means uninterrupted production over a week-long production cycle.

“This allowed for the effects of possible external variations to be measured, such as changes in ambient temperature, production mixing methodologies and production consistency and quality,” says Francis.

Even when the final sample resins were confirmed suitable for production, the process was not yet over. All the seals in Mega Fortris’s plastic seal range were then tested before being approved by its Design and Development department.

Only then, finally, did they take the final step of updating the SKU formulas and BOMs. It is a long, in-depth, and sometimes difficult process, but it is also essential. This Research and Development cycle lays the foundation of Mega Fortris’s business.

“Our core business is security seals,” Edgar says. “We are one of the largest manufacturers of security seals in the world, with synergy in the load secure products sector. We sell devices which protect loads while monitoring them for shock, temperature, humidity, and light.”

At a time when the supply chain is at the forefront of people’s minds, it is a capability that is essential to businesses across the board.

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Flexi Klick

Flexi Klick

052LCM

KLICKER MCL250

Prevention Protection Peace of Mind Mega Fortris UK is the global leader of security solutions providing an extensive range of seals and load securing products.

We pride ourselves on supplying the largest range of ISO certified and UK customs accepted seals with a great and reliable service to match. As a business, we are at the forefront of the security market, being the world’s first to develop a full range of biodegradable seals. This is part of our ongoing commitment to developing a sustainable future and helping the environment.

Mega Fortris UK Ltd Unit 18 Cinder Road Zone 3 Burntwood Business Park Burntwood, Staffordshire, WS7 3FS, UK

T: +44 (0)1543 677 256 E: sales@megafortris.co.uk

www.mfsecurityseals.uk

BIODEGRADABLE MF G

GRIMALDI GROUP

GRIMALDI GROUP, A STRONG MULTI-NATIONAL SHIPPING COMPANY, REMAINS RESILIENT IN THE WAKE OF THE GLOBAL PANDEMIC, STRIVING TO HELP SECURE A MORE ENVIRONMENTALLY FRIENDLY MARITIME SECTOR.

WORLD-CLASS SHIPPING & LOGISTICS PROJECT MANAGED BY: LIAM PYWELL

Naples-headquartered Grimaldi Group is a private group of companies operating worldwide, specialised in the operation of roll-on/roll-off vessels, car carriers and passenger ferries and lines, and in providing integrated logistics services for the world’s major vehicle manufacturers.

T

he Grimaldi family’s ties with the sea date back to long before the Group was created. The first records of their involvement in maritime shipping are from as early as 1348, when the chronicles of the Kingdom of Naples recount that the brothers Rajinerio, Richerio and Perino de Grimaldis were given a precious relic in solid gold by Queen Giovanna I, as a guarantee to charter three of their ships.

Six centuries later, in 1947, Guido and his brothers Luigi, Mario, Aldo and Ugo Grimaldi set up their own business by purchasing a Liberty vessel, a type of cargo ship used by the U.S. fleet during the Second

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World War that gave rise to one of the largest privately-owned European fleets.

Today, the Group consists of over 50 companies that employ more than 17,000 shoreside and shipboard people around the world. Every week, the Grimaldi Group’s fleet call at more than 120 ports in the Mediterranean and Baltic regions as well as in Northern Europe, West Africa, and North and South America.

In recent years, the Group has invested heavily in the renewal and strengthening of its fleet, firstly by designing and commissioning the construction of new high-performance units with a reduced environmental impact. At the same time,

numerous ships already in operation have undergone important green conversion works. As a result, Grimaldi today operates one of the youngest, most modern, and environmentally friendly fleets in the world.

SAFELY THROUGH STORMY WATERS

Mr Emanuele Grimaldi, the Group’s Managing Director, admits that not all has been plain sailing over the last two years. “As you know, Italy was amongst the first countries after China to be severely hit by Covid-19, and the crisis affected us gravely. This related, first of all, to our staff. Only a minimum number of people stayed in offices, with about 90% of our people working from home, and the situation was the worst for the seafarers who in many cases could not go home and were left stranded on board their vessels.”

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GRIMALDI GROUP

Emanuele Grimaldi, Managing Director, Grimaldi Group.

Sustainability is going further with less fuel Intersleek 1100SR • Independently verified fuel and emission savings of up to 9% • With over 6000 coating applications world wide, Intersleek® reduces environmental impact and saves fuel for ship owners • Premium biocide-free solution contributing to a sustainable shipping industry

international-marine.com

INTERNATIONAL MARINE COATINGS - AKZONOBEL GRIMALDI AND INTERNATIONAL PAINT WORKING TOGETHER TO REDUCE ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT Reducing environmental impact and operating costs are a major focus for shipping companies globally. Selecting the right underwater coating technology is critical in reducing costs and environmental impact, while maintaining vessel efficiency.

International Marine Coatings from AkzoNobel and Grimaldi have been working together to optimise hull efficiency through advanced coatings for more than 30 years.

through the marine industry’s first carbon credit methodology with the Gold Standard Foundation. The peer-reviewed methodology is based on ship operators converting existing vessels from biocidal antifouling system to biocide-free Intersleek® foul release system. A baseline emission level is determined for the vessel prior to the application of Intersleek® with the same data source then used to determine the emission savings after application of Intersleek®. The carbon credits generated are directly related to reduced emissions from reduced fuel consumption. Carbon credits are awarded based on vessel data that is collected, analysed and submitted to the Gold Standard Foundation for validation. To ensure rigour and transparency, fuel savings that are generated are verified by independent UNFCCC* accredited organisations. After carbon credits are issued, they can be sold at current market price and shared with customers.

In 2016, Grimaldi was presented with a total of 109,617 carbon credits through the award-winning program, which rewards ship owners for converting to sustainable hull coatings. Each carbon credit represents the avoidance of one ton of CO2 being emitted to the atmosphere. The credits can either be sold on the carbon markets, can be used to offset emissions from other parts of an organisation.

This close cooperation has resulted in Grimaldi being the first RoRo operators in the world to extensively adopt Intersleek biocide-free foul release technology on most of the fleet. The first vessel coated was Eurostar Roma in 2005. Following evaluation of performance, Grimaldi applied Intersleek to a further 52 vessels over the next 15 years. The Intersleek technology has a very low hull roughness, reducing hydrodynamic drag and reducing fuel consumption. Additionally, no biocides are released into the water, reducing overall environmental impact.

To quantify fuel savings from Intersleek technology, Grimaldi verified fuel savings

“The closure of most car production facilities meant no work for many of our ships, and closed borders and limited international travel had a major impact on the passenger segment. On the other hand, the crisis also brought with it some opportunities. Ultimately, we achieved good results and our companies proved to be extremely resilient.”

The challenging times did not prevent the Group from further expansion. In July 2021, Trasmed GLE, Grimaldi’s new Spanish company, purchased from Armas Trasmediterránea Group five ferries for the transport of passengers and freight and other assets.

The agreement also covered the acquisition of a terminal in Valencia, various warehouses and offices in Valencia, Palma de Mallorca, Mahón and Ibiza, as well as the rights to operate on the shipping lines dedicated to the transport of passengers

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Grimaldi have also been a partner in the development of Intertrac HullCare.

Intertrac® HullCare combines high-performance hull coating technology from AkzoNobel’s International® range, cutting-edge ROV (remote operating vehicle) inspection, and big data performance monitoring with proven hull cleaning techniques aligned with the BIMCO industry standard - resulting in the industry’s most environmentally sustainable hull management package to date. Over a 10year period, Intertrac HullCare can help operators achieve step-change reductions in CO2 emissions in comparison to a typical five-year fouling control system, by ensuring that smooth, clean hulls are maintained.

For more information on Intertrac HullCare please visit: Intertrac® HullCare Marine Coatings - AkzoNobel (international-marine.com)

and freight between mainland Spain and the Balearic Islands.

As noted by Mr Grimaldi, the Group is also aiming at acquiring the remaining stake in the Antwerp Euroterminal, spread over 1.5 million sq. m, and further fleet expansion, with 12 ships currently under construction.

STRONG LEADERSHIP

Emanuele Grimaldi has long been a prominent figure in the shipping sector, having assumed various roles in international maritime groups including that of President of the European Community Shipowners’ Associations. Last month, he was named Chairman of the International Chamber of Shipping, after serving as its Vice-President for many years.

“These associations are doing extraordinary work and it is really important for the shipowners to join, particularly in these revolutionary times

of transitioning to new fuels.

Shipowners and entrepreneurs in general have shown immense responsibility towards the environment, raising the bar to exceed the framework of the Paris Agreement, striving to achieve carbon net-zero by 2050. This is a unique commitment.”

And Grimaldi Group leads the way. Grimaldi was among the first shipping companies to install lithium battery systems onboard its most modern roro and ro-pax vessels; these recharge during navigation and are capable of powering onboard systems with the stored energy during port stopovers, thus achieving the goal of “zero emissions in port”.

On a different front, to tackle the growing amount of microplastics in the world’s seas, Grimaldi, together with Finnish technology group Wärtsilä, has developed and patented a system that filters out microplastics from the openloop scrubber wash water.

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“THE GREEN TRANSITION REQUIRES GREAT COMMITMENT AND CONTINUOUS INVESTMENTS, AND IN THE SHIPPING INDUSTRY OUR GROUP HAS BEEN MOVING DECISIVELY AND QUICKLY IN THIS DIRECTION FOR YEARS.”

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GRIMALDI GROUP

“Reducing microplastic pollution in our world’s oceans is an important challenge, and we are pleased to provide a solution for the shipping industry. The idea for this innovative technology originated from recognising that open-loop exhaust gas cleaning systems can draw seawater for exhaust scrubbing and simultaneously collect microplastics present in the oceans as part of their normal operation”, Emanuele Grimaldi points out, adding that the company has completed a pilot testing of this system onboard one of its vessels deployed between Civitavecchia and Barcelona, with promising results.

GREEN TRANSITION

Other eco-friendly initiatives include the testing of hydrogen-powered handling equipment ashore, as well as the construction of a new series of cutting-edge ro-ro hybrid vessels, characterised by record-low CO 2 emissions.

In recent weeks, the Grimaldi Group took delivery of Eco

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Malta, the sixth of twelve stateof-the-art units ordered from the Chinese Jinling shipyard located in Nanjing. Thanks to their unique design, GG5G ships are not only the largest ro-ro units in the world for short sea shipping but also the most eco-friendly.

For example, Eco Malta consumes less fuel and is, therefore, able to halve CO 2 emissions per unit transported.

In addition, during port stays, GG5G vessels are capable of cutting emissions to zero by using the electricity stored in mega lithium batteries.

“The green transition requires great commitment and continuous investments, and in the shipping industry our Group has been moving decisively and quickly in this direction for years,” says Emanuele Grimaldi.

“True sustainability requires us to effectively meet the needs of the market by minimizing the environmental impact: this is the result we are aiming for by adding ships to our fleet that are both more capacious and more eco-friendly, just like Eco Malta.”

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INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES

WE TAKE ANOTHER LOOK AT INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES AS THEY ENTER A BOLD NEW ERA FOR THE COMPANY.

NEW OWNERSHIP, NEW HORIZONS PROJECT MANAGED BY: DEAN BROWN

It has been a little while since we spoke with Inchcape Shipping Services. While even today the company is at the forefront of the shipping industry, its origins go back to 19th century India, when the company was founded in 1847 by a Scottish merchant to serve the British East India Company. From those beginnings the company grew, developed, and changed hands until it eventually employed over 3,000 people across offices in 60 countries, covering operations at over 2,200 ports. Indeed, between Inchcape Shipping Services itself, and the company’s wide network of partner agents, the business covers operations at every major port on the planet.

O

ne thing that has not changed is that Inchcape remains ready to provide any services that a ship could require when it comes into port. Whether they need cargo-related services like customs clearance or arranging cargo movements or services related to the maritime asset itself such as repairs, spares for maintenance, surveys and inspections, Inchcape Shipping Services is ready to help. The firm can also offer support

with soft assets such as crew changes or getting people from their home country to their port of embarkation.

Its services are available to all kinds of vessels, from military to cruise ships to tankers to container ships.

Inchcape Shipping Services is one of the largest ship agents in the world, handling close to 70,000 port calls a year, and it has the capabilities in place to meet that demand.

SMART SERVICE

The reason Inchcape occupies the market position it has maintained for so long is not just the wealth of resources it has to apply, but the tactical way it applies them. On top of its impressive core services offering, Inchcape also boasts a selection of services it calls simply “Smart.”

What this amounts to is the intelligent use of information, which Inchcape regards as fitting into three categories.

These include “static information” the data on a port’s infrastructure which for the most part will not change over time. Information like the depth of draft at a port facility, for instance. The next category is a market intelligence, covering which ships are calling at which

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7 LAUNCHES • 3 SATELLITE LANDINGS

Belle Chasse Marine Transportation, LLC, is a familyowned and operated business, founded more than 45 years ago. Headquartered in New Orleans, Belle Chasse Marine has grown into the largest launch service on the lower Mississippi River. It is able to efficiently serve its customers by utilizing 35 launch boats, seven launches and four smaller-foot docks.

In addition to launch services, Belle Chasse Marine delivers marine lubricants to deep-draft vessels along the lower Mississippi River and in the Houston Ship Channel and Galveston Bay. Belle Chasse Marine delivers these lubricants using a fleet of 20 trucks, six oil barges and one offshore oil tanker. Belle Chasse Marine employs more than 225 employees and operates on a 24/7 schedule, 365 days a year.

5813 Citrus Blvd, Suite 200, Harahan, Louisiana • (504) 837-3125 • office@bcmt.com

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E M

AR

ARBA Maritime is now at the forefront of Albania’s maritime, and with our port agency services, we are fully committed to providing first-rate quality service to business partners and customers 24/7. Our port services include maritime agency shipping, cargo handling, pilotage, mooring services, motorboat services, safe anchorage, bunkering, crew changes, fresh water supplies and many other required port services. Our main area of expertise is Tanker ships, General Gargo, Cruise ships, and Yachts. During your ship’s stay in port, we provide a full-time agent on hand, ready to handle any pre-determined requests or manage any risks. We aim to minimise port expenses and costs to protect shipowners’ and charterers’ interests while maintaining a total commitment to providing unrivalled professional services.

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BLUE MARINE TRANSPORTATION, INC.

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T: +355 33 608 800; +355 69 404 0633; +44 747 080 7552 E: arbagent@arbaship.com | www.arbaship.com

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For more information, please visit our website: www.bluenola.com or contact us on T: +1 (504) 366-5321 / E: bluenola@bluenola.com

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ports, what those ships are doing, and how commodities are flowing in and out of ports.

The icing on the cake is the “dynamic operational data”.

Capturing this is the real trick.

It means retaining formation on all the timings and events that take place during a port call. If you have methods to capture and store this data it can be invaluable to the shipowner or operator, providing a way to see why one ship is performing better than another while helping to resolve disputes between interested parties where there is conflict.

This information is coordinated between shipowners, charterers, pilots, and port authorities.

It is what Inchcape calls its “Smart Sight”. Captured and managed through proprietary technology that Inchcape

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built and developed itself, this information offers capabilities simply not replicated anywhere else. At will, Inchcape can pull this data from a global network of port agents, alongside AIS data, analytics, and open-source web scrapings.

“INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES IS ONE OF THE LARGEST SHIP AGENTS IN THE WORLD, HANDLING CLOSE TO 70,000 PORT CALLS A YEAR, AND IT HAS THE CAPABILITIES IN PLACE TO MEET THAT DEMAND.”

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INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES

It is a technology that places Inchcape as the only players with eyes, ears, and boots on the ground to capture information that otherwise would not be publicly available.

But the goal here is not just to gather information and make it accessible. That information can help to streamline processes, leveraging technology to save time and money for customers.

The other area where Inchcape makes use of Smart processes is in what it calls “SmartPay”, which allows it to procure services on behalf of ship operators or owners.

Inchcape will make payments

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Superior Launch Services Throughout the Gulf of Mexico

You move the world.

We’re here to help.

Kenny, Warehouse Manager Horizon Air Freight Warehouse, New York, USA

Global, cost-effective, time-sensitive marine supply chain solutions.

CONGRATULATES

Inchcape Shipping Services successful years! on

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Horizon Air Freight is a proud partner of Inchcape Shipping Services. Providing door-to-deck delivery and last-mile logistics, Horizon shares Inchcape’s commitment to do whatever it takes to keep ships sailing safely and on schedule.

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SHIPS WASTE OIL COLLECTOR B.V. Reliable and durable!

We are one of the largest & leading collectors of ships waste at the port of Rotterdam, Amsterdam & Antwerp in the field of liquid & hazardous waste from Annex I to Annex VI. Because of the strategic alliance with port reception facility MTD in Antwerp, we are able to operate in the entire port area of Rotterdam, Amsterdam & Antwerp. This allows us to work efficiently & environmentally friendly.

For the collection of liquid hazardous waste, we use the most modern vessels & highly trained personnel. We are the only collector in the port of Rotterdam, Amsterdam & Antwerp, which features 3 C type barges. Therefore we are fully equipped for future legislation & regulations in our field, our total collection capacity is 8,500 tons.

We always try to bear in mind the requirements & needs of our stakeholders, we find it very important to work closely with our clients. For the collection as well as with our outlets to make sure waste processing takes place efficiently & in an environmentally responsible manner.

+31 10 295 7154 | info@shipswaste.nl | www.shipswaste.nl

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INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES

to port authorities and local vendors on behalf of its principles by establishing a smart way of handling payments that is far more costeffective for the customer.

This single, fully integrated, multi-currency, transparent, digitally empowered platform enables Inchcape to channel all transactions through one portal so that customers can take advantage of very favourable FX rates and banking charges.

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“GOAL HERE IS NOT JUST TO GATHER INFORMATION AND MAKE IT ACCESSIBLE. THAT INFORMATION CAN HELP TO STREAMLINE PROCESSES, LEVERAGING TECHNOLOGY TO SAVE TIME AND MONEY FOR CUSTOMERS.

A NEW AGE

As we return to look at Inchcape once again, we can see that the company is undergoing another major change, as it has been purchased by the Londonbased private equity firm, Epiris for an undisclosed sum from its former Dubai-based owner, Istithmar. This is the tenth such investment made by Epiris’s second fund, marking a serious investment by the company.

“This investment is emblematic of our approach: backing a global market leader with untapped potential and where our experience in strategy, operational excellence and M&A can be used to help the team transform the business,” said Alex Fortescue, managing partner at Epiris.

This is the first change of ownership for Inchcape since Istithmar purchased the company in 2006 from the Electra Investment Trust for $285 million.

Inchcape’s Chief Executive, Frankl Olsen, who we spoke with last year, has been enthusiastic about the change in ownership, describing it as one that will “enable us to take our marine services and digital solutions to the next level as we transition into the future.”

The sale marks Inchcape’s 175th anniversary, a landmark in the history of the company.

“Epiris is now making a transformational investment in our successful business that will establish a new platform for customer-focused growth,” Olsen said.

Charles Elkington, a Partner at Epiris, said of the acquisition, “ISS is a global leader in a resilient market experiencing long-term growth, driven by ship owners’ and operators’ focus on cost-effectiveness, sustainability, and compliance.

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“EPIRIS IS NOW MAKING A TRANSFORMATIONAL INVESTMENT IN OUR SUCCESSFUL BUSINESS THAT WILL ESTABLISH A NEW PLATFORM FOR CUSTOMER-FOCUSED GROWTH.”

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INCHCAPE SHIPPING SERVICES

Frank and his team have made great strides towards building on this favourable backdrop – initiatives they have introduced include, for example, the SmartPay international payments system – and we look forward to working with them to grow the business further.”

While Inchcape’s history is a long and proud one, Olsen argues that a big part of the incentive for the purchase was the company’s use of its “Smart” digital technology in port agency services in support of improved operational efficiency, transparency, compliance, and environmental, social and governance principles towards the goal of sustainability.

“Our ambition is to be a holistic custodian and provider of shipping data as part of our mission to make the whole supply chain work more efficiently for the benefit of people and the environment,” he said.

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MDL MARINAS

AFTER THE COVID PANDEMIC, MDL MARINAS IS EXPANDING ITS OFFERING TO CREATE A ROBUST, SUSTAINABLE LEISURE BUSINESS FOR TOMORROW.

MORE THAN MARINAS PROJECT MANAGED BY: MARK BAILEY

MDL Marinas has been in business for over 45 years as a wholly-owned subsidiary of Yattendon Group PLC. The company operates 19 of the most premium marinas in the UK, as well as another marina in Spain between Barcelona and Valencia. The firm’s facilities occupy one of the highest price points in the industry while offering perhaps the most attractive product proposition on the market. But currently, the company is expanding its areas of operations.

T

hrough strategic development, we’ve branched out into new markets, expanding our holiday and holiday park offer as well as launching our first gym, a green gym brand that’s very exciting and complements our core business,” says Michael Glanville, Managing Director of MDL Marinas.

As MDL Marinas moves into new markets, it is looking to bring its customers with it through “Otium” (“leisure time” in Latin), a points-based loyalty scheme that allows customers to choose which benefits they take from regularly using MDL’s services.

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“It generates points from the services customers buy and uses them against future purchases such as fuel and boat lifting services, Holiday Park stays and Gym membership,” says Glanville. “We just expanded that to allow customers to use those points against other thirdparty services with preferred suppliers, so for example, if you’re a motorboat owner who wants to try a sailboat for a day or weekend, you can use those points to do that. It helps to keep customers within our network, which gives us a competitive advantage.”

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MDL MARINAS

Michael Glanville, Managing Director of MDL Marinas.

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Work safer, be better…

We help protect people in port & at sea with best-in-class PPE, workwear and safety equipment.

Harnessing decades of experience, we consult on what and how you buy to enhance safety in dangerous working environments.

That’s why we’re so much more than a supplier.

Tower Supplies Yarrow Road, Poole, Dorset, BH12 4TS, UK

E: marine@towersupplies.com T: +44 (0)1202 718000

Partner with Tower to: Get the best safety products Achieve safety excellence Receive expert advice Benefit from innovative solutions Working in partnership with MDL Marinas.

wearetower.com

TOWER

MDL MARINAS

FIVE BENEFITS OF USING A SINGLE-SOURCE SUPPLIER

By Chris Silverwood, Divisional Managing Director – Marine One of the most important choices facing procurement managers and directors is whether to use multiple suppliers, or just one single-source supplier.

We believe that as a single-source supplier we can offer more. From developing bespoke solutions and delivering new ways to save time and costs, to helping with sustainability.

Tower have worked with MDL Marinas for over 5 years, providing PPE, janitorial supplies, and workwear. But how do they benefit from partnering with a single-source supplier?

SINGLE POINT OF CONTACT An obvious benefit of partnering with a single-source supplier is having a single point of contact. Knowing that all your requirements are handled and managed in one place, with a person you can reach quickly and easily, is a source of major reassurance.

With a dedicated account manager just a call away, there is no waiting in line, listening to a voice repeating “press 2 for accounts”, or dealing with multiple people. Your time is only spent on what matters. And when you need an answer, you get it right away.

BESPOKE SUPPORT With a partner that intimately understands your needs means you only get solutions that match your business. All our advice and support will be tailored, and our ability to respond to your needs quickly and effectively is crucial just when it matters.

Partners can also benefit from Ctrl Cloud, our bespoke online ordering platform. Clients that use Ctrl Cloud find it easy to navigate and a great way to buy PPE from a BSiF Registered Safety Supplier, control costs, and drive operational efficiency. For many clients it has been an absolute gamechanger.

SAVING TIME AND COSTS Costs are a major factor when deciding which supplier to do business with.

We work with clients to calculate and measure cost-in-use, to ensure we provide the best solution.

We save time as well. Our partners only need to worry about one invoice per month, so they don’t spend time matching invoices to POs. REASSURING RELIABILITY When procuring PPE and safety equipment it’s important to know it meets a standard. As a member of the BSiF, we only supply products that meet the required standards. We also help you understand how to use and look after your PPE to keep people safe.

Having a reliable and consistent source guarantees that all your requirements are delivered to the right place at the right time. There is no chasing of suppliers to make sure it’s all where and when you need it to be.

CUTTING DOWN CARBON Sustainability is a big concern. We’re proud of what we do to be more sustainable, such as offering secure garment disposal, more sustainable clothing, and PPE options, and working with manufacturers to bring the source closer to home.

A single-source supplier also means less deliveries. Instead of multiple vans showing up at different times to deliver your requirements, you only get a single delivery to deal with, further reducing your carbon footprint. wearetower.com

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CHANGING CURRENTS

It is a time for companies like MDL to engage in adventurous thinking and expand into new markets, as the aftermath of the Covid-19 pandemic has already had a widespread impact on the leisure and hospitality sector.

“Like most companies, we have seen the effects of Covid, not just the early-stage impact on customer operations but also longer-term operations on increasing costs,” Glanville explains. “Marina businesses are capital intensive. It is a huge investment maintaining the assets we’ve got with costs like dredging, pontoon infrastructure, and steel piles, and prices are rising there like everywhere else. That’s difficult for us because it’s difficult to balance maintaining our margins with a price increase while being able to deliver a competitive price offering.”

Facing this new environment, Glanville adopted a threepronged strategy to help MDL thrive.

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“We started out being clear and transparent about tariff increases. We are building more effective procurement, using our big buying power to pre-buy steel piles and bulk buy pontoons for better prices, while finding general business operating cost savings,” Glanville says. “We’ve switched the way we manage our labour, moving to a more holidayfocused labour resourcing model to be more flexible. We are bringing in a huge amount of summer staff which is good for the market. It increases service for customers when they are around but gives us the flexibility not to have to use those staff through the off-peak period. We have a much more holiday park focused model. It means we can be more agile, labour being one of our largest operational costs.

It is a model of human resources that relies on rigorous training, and a foundation of core, experienced staff.

“We’ve got a significantly comprehensive training programme, with additional training for full-time staff members,” Glanville explains.

“Much of our customer service training is undertaken in-house with plant, safety other more specific training undertaken by a range of high-quality training providers such as GAR and the RNLI. We are always focused on developing our core team, we’re hugely fortunate to have a lot of long-time staff members.

Some of our staff have been with us for 40 years. I am proud to say that eight of our team have successfully taken on more senior roles including general management roles since the pandemic. Our team have built up a huge amount of experience, so new recruits learn a huge amount in their induction.”

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MDL Marinas manages its recruitment through its internal HR department, which advertises for roles and then initially assesses candidates through an online interview.

Glanville observes that recruitment has been easier this year than last, when there was a post-pandemic gold rush for customer-facing staff.

“Last year we had huge challenges in getting enough labour because we were fighting with the restaurant world opening up and wages increasing fast,” he recalls.

“This year we’ve attracted a lot more candidates.”

This is good news, because above all Glanville emphasises the importance of his team,

from front-facing staff to the company leadership.

“I’m really proud of all of the MDL team but in particular my senior leadership team, for all we have achieved so far and for helping me steer the organisation through the pandemic and in new directions,” Glanville says.

“We’ve just had our first company conference for three years, around 150 people focusing on teamwork and working together to get the very best for our customers. We had Graham Gooch come and talk to us about teamwork, and I’m proud of the awards we were able to give out reflecting how flexible and agile the whole MDL team has been through Covid. The business is doing well with marina occupancy

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MDL MARINAS

continuing to rise and a strong leisure marine market.”

BROADENING CHOICES

Moving forward, MDL Marinas is planning to offer its customers more choices and opportunities than ever before. It is streamlining customer service with partners such as HUB Parking to provide a completely frictionless experience, while also working to broaden its offering.

“We are making a shift towards being a much more leisure-focused business, with luxury floating and static lodges, growing our holiday park brand and investing in new units for that,” Glanville says. “We are offering different holiday propositions including camping, bell tents and glamping, floating holiday homes which are proving popular, and we want to expand the gym brand.”

“WE ARE MAKING A SHIFT TOWARDS BEING A MUCH MORE LEISURE-FOCUSED BUSINESS, WITH LUXURY FLOATING AND STATIC LODGES, GROWING OUR HOLIDAY PARK BRAND AND INVESTING IN NEW UNITS FOR THAT.”

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HUB PARKING TECHNOLOGY HUB Parking Technology is the FAAC Group Business Unit that develops smart software and mobile solutions for the parking industry manufactures and installs parking revenue control systems and provides before and after-sales services.

Our backbone is a combination of unique skills, network, and strength of a global player, with the flexibility, professional expertise, and close service of a local organisation.

HUB’s focus is to deliver a seamless, compelling, and secure experience.

Easy and user-friendly: parking should never be a stress!

The entire Jupiter range of equipment complies with the essential health and safety requirements set out by worldwide organisations such as CE and cULus. Jupiter is designed to adapt to complex systems incorporating contract parking, credit card in/out parking, pre-paid parking online, license plate recognition, or a combination of these.

Digital platforms and flexible solutions offer the unique opportunity to meet the ever-increasing safety requirements within customers’ facilities immediately. For brand new car parks and the upgrade of existing ones alike, the digital alternative to “old” buttons are Jupiter’s embedded touchless sensors that enable ticket issuing, on entry units - the wave-andgo sensor is activated when the driver’s hand is at 5 cm or closer, avoiding incidental readings.

With a wealth of experience in the Marina sector, HUB has worked with organisations such as MDL to deliver car park systems with the latest technology. Our parking systems are intuitive and straightforward solutions that can be totally cashless, making transactions quick, and contactless. For marinas, due to their mixed-use nature, the systems can cater to a mix of permit holders and transient visitors. Combined with the latest technology from HUB gives the operator great data to analyse to adapt tariffs to maximize revenue. Our technology is easily integrated with client 3rd party partners’ technology such as ‘Paxton’ The JPASS app software offered by HUB provides a seamless and touchless parking experience to the drivers while supplying operators with valuable user data and a low cost of ownership. Customers can not only pre-book and use ANPR, Bluetooth, or QR codes for entry but also pay by mobile, giving even further flexibility to the end-user and removing the need for a physical ticket, reducing paper waste. There is the option to “white label” the app, White label allows our customers to use their branding within the app to provide a seamless parking service to their customers.

MDL MARINAS

The gym, MDL Fitness in Plymouth, has been put together through a partnership with leading green fitness partner SportsArt. The gym features exercise machines that use your exertion to generate electricity, which can then be put back into the local grid.

The gym is only part of a broader commitment to sustainability by MDL, alongside a green marine technology show the company launched last year, working with various partners in the green marina sector.

“We are not just looking at energy generation and removing costs but also increasing awareness in customers about Aqua Superpower, which puts high voltage supercharging boat chargers into marinas,” Glanville says. “We just got one installed in Plymouth, effectively a Tesla supercharger for boats. We’re very focused on supporting the development of alternative sustainable propulsion systems in the marine sector.”

Validation solution Janus for Merchant (J4M) is an ideal answer for complex environments such as shopping malls, train stations, marinas, and other mixed-use facilities which offer a shopping experience to travellers, commuters, visitors, and employees.

Through local teams, professional training, and corporate service staff, we support our customers through professional applications, first-class service, and reliable local assistance. Being close to our customers in all respects is our top priority Cutting-edge and reliable customer support has been the foundation of our approach since the beginning, and we aim to continue it with additional service and expertise.

HUB’s local experts here in the UK can plan and tailor your installation to meet all your requirements in a cost-efficient way. We handle everything from parking systems, intercom, license plate recognition, variable message signs, and many other subsystems to deliver a total parking solution designed to meet your specific needs. www.hubparking.co.uk

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MDL MARINAS

MDL also has some great projects in the pipeline focusing on using more wind and wavebased power generation. The company is a big property owner with lots of buildings, and has been expanding its solar cells across those buildings with plans to develop further going forward.

“We are building a wider, broader ESG strategy for our next five-year plan coming up later this year,” Glanville tells us. “We want to make sure we have a long-term sustainable business with owners who are in it for the long term. We have great support from shareholders and great support from the board to invest in the customer experience and product development. We are working with boat manufacturers and other partners, with lots of opportunities to expand the core product we’ve got.”

“I AM REALLY PROUD OF ALL OF THE MDL TEAM BUT IN PARTICULAR MY SENIOR LEADERSHIP TEAM, FOR ALL WE HAVE ACHIEVED SO FAR AND FOR HELPING ME STEER THE ORGANISATION THROUGH THE PANDEMIC AND IN NEW DIRECTIONS.” 156 | SHIPPING, PORT & MARINE

MDL MARINAS

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UNITED EUROPEAN CAR CARRIERS

SINCE WE LAST SPOKE WITH UECC THEY HAVE TRAVERSED SOME STORMY SEAS BUT HAVE GRAND PLANS FOR THE FUTURE.

A GREENER FLEET PROJECT MANAGED BY: ROBERT NAPIER SMITH

It’s been just over a year since we last talked with United European Car Carriers (UECC), a leading provider of short sea transportation for the automobile sector. When we’re reintroduced to CEO Glenn Edvardsen it is clear he has lots of news for us.

L

ots of positive things have happened since we last spoke,” Edvardsen says.

“We have been positioning ourselves as an environmentally friendly company with a lot of focus on sustainability moving forward. That’s an important part of our operations, ensuring we are environmentally sustainable.”

UECC has some ambitious goals, but it is pursuing them while ensuring it remains a viable business.

“Obviously, it has to be financially sustainable too, but we’re prepared to go the extra mile for the environmental aspect of our work,” Edvardsen says. “We take a long view, but we believe it makes sense to act as soon as possible.”

This ambition is embodied in the three new vessels UECC has commissioned since our last conversation. These ships will represent the ambitious, technically advanced, fully sustainable outlook that UECC has adopted.

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“We took delivery of the first three months ago,” Edvardsen says. “The second will arrive this month and the final one is due in July. Each of them is a highly sustainable, environmentally friendly vessel using dual-fuel, LNG, and battery hardware solutions. That’s the heart of the company.”

These new, sustainable ships reflect values that can be seen throughout UECC. “Everyone is working to get us to zero emissions,” Edvardsen says. “Many companies have a zero-emissions strategy but wait until the last possible moment to put it into action, but we believe if you have that as a goal you need to start now. Sit and wait is not a good strategy.”

Acting fast comes with its own costs and challenges, and Edvardsen is the first to point out that when it comes to combatting climate change, a flawed but immediately available solution is preferable to an ideal response that may never come.

“We say we can’t wait for perfect to come along, because it can be the enemy of the good,” he points out. “LNG is not a perfect solution, but the fact is it reduces CO2 to 25%, so this is not a small thing.”

A QUESTION OF SUPPLY

Climate change is an issue that UECC is adapting to address, but it is far from the only global challenge the company has faced in recent years. Logistics and the automotive sector both took a hit from the pandemic and UECC’s work cuts across both sectors.

“We reacted relatively quickly, adapted to the change and by doing so we managed well. The biggest challenge of the pandemic was the fact that we have a certain capacity in place to fill,” Edvardsen says.

“When the floor of the market disappeared overnight, we lost all that revenue because many companies, through lack of labour and so forth, disappeared overnight.”

The pandemic has been accompanied by another challenge that has hit the automotive sector across the world, a shortage in

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UNITED EUROPEAN CAR CARRIERS

Glenn Edvardsen, CEO, UECC.

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semiconductor materials that are essential for a vast range of electronicsincluding car components. The car transportation company has had to survive periods where there simply were not any cars to transport.

“We have a contractual portfolio. There are different customers using one ship and between them, they cover the cost of that shipment to get from A to B,” Edvardsen explains.

“But with the semiconductor shortage, there’s nothing there to be shipped because of the lack of parts. Difficulties arise when the customer doesn’t tell us about cancelled shipments until it is one day too late rather than one day before. We need to address that from a financial point of view.”

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UECC uses a mixture of its own vessels and chartered ships, meaning that the cancelled shipments placed pressure on the company’s accounts.

“If customers tell us their factory’s closed and they do not have the parts, we still have a vessel charted to take that particular order. Then equally suddenly they will have lots of cars and we have to deliver a vessel,” Edvardsen says.

“We need to have that flow of merchandise going. It started as a challenge, but it soon became a problem because it was not only one or two customers- it was all of them, all experiencing the same problem. We have a definite issue with adjusting capacity only to find that within a week the requirements have changed wildly.”

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Despite these challenges, UECC has risen to the occasion, an achievement Edvardsen puts down to his people.

“We’re an incredible organisation here and everyone understands what challenges we need to overcome and pulls in the same direction,” he

says. “Everyone’s committed and understands what we need to do. The people in the organisation are a dedicated, loyal, good group of people.

Our biggest achievement is that we’ve kept them going despite the challenges we’ve encountered. That’s really taken

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UNITED EUROPEAN CAR CARRIERS

us through this. We’ve taken delivery of vessels. We have a course and we have kept to that course. Just keeping going is the cornerstone of the UECC. As we say here, none of us is as good as all of us.”

What comes across most in our conversation with Edvardsen is how excited he is for the next stage of the company’s development, particularly concerning the environment.

“We are already looking at the future. We’ve got three new vessels already, and we’re constantly evaluating new technology and how to improve on where we are now,” he says.

“We have lots of plans in place.

We are looking for the next

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environmental breakthrough and that is not an easy task these days because there are lots of possibilities on the table.

It has to be available, scalable and financially sustainable.”

Edvardsen is sceptical of the idea that there is a “silver bullet” solution to the problem.

“It won’t be one single fuel.

It’s going to be more diversified.

Maybe one region will find it makes sense to use one fuel, where another will use another type of fuel,” he reflects. “We need to make a strong point of using these goals to not just meet requirements, but to exceed what’s there. We want to exceed future regulations.

We always like to be a little bit ahead.”

“WE NEED TO MAKE A STRONG POINT OF USING THESE GOALS TO NOT JUST MEET REQUIREMENTS, BUT TO EXCEED WHAT’S THERE. WE WANT TO EXCEED FUTURE REGULATIONS. WE ALWAYS LIKE TO BE A LITTLE BIT AHEAD.”

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COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES

THE LAST FEW YEARS HAVE HIGHLIGHTED THE IMPORTANCE OF MAINTAINING A ROBUST, SUSTAINABLE COLD CHAIN FOR THE PHARMACEUTICAL SECTOR, AND COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES IS INSTRUMENTAL IN ACHIEVING THAT.

KEEPING A COOL HEAD PROJECT MANAGED BY: DAVID GARNER

When we talk with Ranjeet Banerjee, CEO of Cold Chain Technologies, there is one word that keeps coming up.

“Assurance”. More than the state-of-the-art technologies, products, innovation and services his company provides, Banerjee argues that “Assurance” is the most important thing Cold Chain Technologies can offer.

W

hen pharmaceutical companies are making drugs, biologics and vaccines, these have to be stored and transported within a certain band of temperatures and conditions,” Banerjee explains.

“Where we come in is that we are global leaders in making sure these products are transported from the point of manufacture to distribution and then to the final point of use, the patient and recipient of the vaccine, always maintained in the right conditions.”

That assurance comes in the form of thermal assurance packaging and solutions to the pharmaceutical and life

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sciences sectors. This means more than just temperaturecontrolled storage. It is about placing that in the context of the full supply chain.

“With the complexity of ensuring that hundreds of thousands, sometimes millions of these movements of drugs and vaccines take place, we offer a very strong assurance that when it arrives the drug is safe,” Banerjee says. “There can be no compromise to the effectiveness or efficacy of the drug, and that’s where we do well. We design these solutions, and we test them very thoroughly.”

COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES

Ranjeet Banerjee, CEO of Cold Chain Technologies.

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COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES

Cold Chain Technologies can deliver this because it runs the largest testing facility of its kind in the world. The firm manufactures its products under stringent conditions, ensuring the highest quality, accompanied by a digital platform that will track and trace each product through last-mile delivery.

It is essential work, and work that has only become more

important over the last three years, highlighting areas where the industry as a whole needs to improve.

“If you look at vaccine transport, unfortunately, a lot of vaccines have historically been wasted and that’s a shame. This happens because of deviations in temperature,” Banerjee tells us. “More recently, Covid vaccinations have pushed capabilities to the limits.”

“THERE CAN BE NO COMPROMISE TO THE EFFECTIVENESS OR EFFICACY OF THE DRUG, AND THAT’S WHERE WE DO WELL. WE DESIGN THESE SOLUTIONS, & WE TEST THEM VERY THOROUGHLY.” With up to 50% less volume and volumetric weight than existing single use designs, CCT Advanced SU48 represents a substantial step forward in freight efficiency for the transportation of temperature sensitive product.

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BUILDING THE CAPACITY WE NEED

These are challenges that Cold Chain Technologies has responded to quickly and effectively.

“We had to build capacity very quickly. It was a whole new need, but our company met it,” says Banerjee. “In September and October 2020, we rapidly constructed a massive new automated manufacturing facility in Tennessee. We applied all our capabilities, including technologies, testing, highspeed manufacturing, bringing up capacity quickly but with an extremely robust product.”

It is a challenge that has had to be addressed with more than sheer brute force capacity, however. Cold Chain Technologies has had to pay close attention to the surges, waves and trends of the pandemic.

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COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES

CCT’s world-class thermal testing lab in Franklin, Massachusetts, USA.

“How do you predict demand?”

Banerjee asks.

“How do you make sure, in this environment of huge need, that you ensure consistency and very high quality?”

The answer was to apply a vision across the firm’s leadership.

“We formed a solid seniorlevel team that I was personally directly involved with. This was about more than just supplying solutions,” Banerjee recalls.

“We were part of a major global initiative to combat Covid-19.

As we set up the facility in Tennessee, we had solid support from distribution partners, and government officials.”

ATTRACTING TALENT

It was a response that necessitated nurturing a powerful pool of talent, within and outside the company.

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CCT employee from the newly opened facility in Lebanon, Tennessee, USA, preparing shipments for COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

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“We need solid capabilities in thermal design and engineering and testing. We are constantly making sure we have the best people there,” Banerjee says.

“We not only have very talented people in-house but connect with experts in academic institutions or external leaders in the field, the biggest and best talent in design and engineering.”

Materials are one area that has been a particular focus for the firm lately, acquiring talent

Preparation of shipments for COVID-19 vaccine distribution.

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View from inside the worldwide headquarters of CCT, Franklin, Massachusetts, USA.

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and technology at the cutting edge of the field.

“We are constantly looking to bring in proprietary or general market materials (like phase change materials) that are very good in terms of thermal performance, insulation & sustainability benefits,” says Banerjee.

Beyond the materials field, Cold Chain Technologies is also making important strides with its digital platform.

“We’re helping improve tracking, tracing, and alerting along the last mile,” Banerjee points out. “We are not only alerting if something goes wrong but being predictive. If we expect a problem we can intervene proactively.”

SUSTAINABILITY

Cold Chain Technologies’ primary purpose is to keep things in the right temperature range, so it is not surprising that climate change is a big concern for the company.

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CCT employee working with some of CCT’s award-winning phase change materials (PCMs).

“It’s a very important area of focus for us. It’s not just another thing we do, we ask how to bring it front and centre to our products and solutions,” Banerjee insists.

Recently, the firm has been promoting sustainable solutions across three key areas. The first of these areas is in packaging, with a new line of reusable packaging transport solutions.

“Our reusable product line, EcoFlex, can be used over and over again. That has been

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very successful with customers because it saves on landfill and has huge sustainability benefits while being very high performance and effective from a cost of ownership perspective,” Banerjee says. “Over 90% of our products for Covid vaccines distributed in the US used that product. Imagine the amount of landfill avoided because of that. We have done a life cycle analysis to independently quantify the landfill and carbon dioxide savings.”

“THE CONCEPT OF TRANSFORMING THIS INDUSTRY TO FOCUS ON ASSURANCE, BRINGING OUR PRODUCTS AND RELATED SERVICES TOGETHER UNDER ONE UMBRELLA IS WHAT WE’RE FOCUSING ON.” BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

COLD CHAIN TECHNOLOGIES

At the same time, Cold Chain Technologies’ digital platform can be a valuable tool for sustainability.

“Imagine you are transporting a vaccine from Texas to Narita, Japan in the summer. The type of solution you would need in the summer could be different from if you’re transporting it in mid-winter,” Banerjee says. “We have digital solutions to support our customers in optimising their packaging.”

One sure thing is that the Covid pandemic has shone a bright light on the importance of, and vulnerabilities in the pharmaceutical supply chain, and Cold Chain Technologies is working hard to learn from those lessons.

“This whole area of creating value in the last mile was always there, but it didn’t draw widespread attention until the Covid pandemic. We have billions of drugs, vaccines, and lifesaving medicines, and the waste is high. Covid put a spotlight on the last mile,” Banerjee insists.

“If you have a vaccine but can’t start vaccinations it doesn’t

help. Covid emphasised that and our company is now working on how to move from just creating products to focusing on delivering assurance to our customers.”

There it is again. Assurance.

Assurance provided through the design, selection, delivery, and monitoring of quality products, putting the patients’ safety above all else.

“The concept of transforming this industry to focus on assurance, bringing our products and related services together under one umbrella is what we’re focusing on.”

It is a monumental task, and not one Banerjee believes Cold Chain Technologies can do alone.

“We are always open for collaboration with other stakeholders in the space,” he tells us. “The need for this last mile assurance has become so great when it comes to life science products. We are already working along those lines forging partnerships with other Life Science organisations.”

The award-winning TRUEtemp Naturals® Line, first launched in 2018, utilizes proprietary design and manufacturing technologies to provide pharmaceutical-grade, time-temperature performance in an eco-friendly, 100% curbside recyclable and repulpable solution.

Reusable packaging is the ideal, but where that is not possible Cold Chain Technologies still offers a solution in the form of new cellulose-based technology to replace fossil fuel-based materials.

“It is plant-based, curbside recyclable and repulpable,” says Banerjee. Rather than the whole product being reusable, you use it once but can recycle the materials. It allows for a singleuse but not landfill product.”

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JAMES AND JAMES

JAMES AND JAMES, THE FIRST DIGITAL-NATIVE FULFILMENT HOUSE IN THE UK THAT HAS DISRUPTED THE ECOMMERCE INDUSTRY, CONTINUES TO CHALLENGE THE NORM, CREATING SOLUTIONS TO SCALE UP THEIR CLIENTS’ BUSINESSES.

ULTIMATE FULFILMENT PROJECT MANAGED BY: ANDREW BOURKE

Established just over a decade ago by two Cambridge University graduates, James and James has changed order fulfilment services with their innovative cloud-based technology, enhancing online stores’ performance and making eCommerce customers happier.

J

ames and James was officially born in 2010, and success was almost immediate. Just two years into its operation, the business secured 300% year-on-year growth. In 2018, the company ranked on the Fast Track 100, a prestigious league table of Britain’s fastestgrowing private companies, as well as on the FT1000 – the Financial Times’ list of Europe’s fastest-growing companies in 2018, 2019 and 2021.

The company also boasts two Queen’s Award accolades - having grown export sales 1,700% over five years, James and James won its first award for Innovation in 2016 and a second in 2020 – this time for International Trade, following a first for Innovation in 2016.

TECHNOLOGY BUSINESS

What is behind this remarkable development? Order fulfilment, defined as the process of

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receiving, picking, and packing, and delivering orders to customers, may sound simple, but it is about more than just putting products in the post – it is about creating a good experience for customers, says the company.

This is what triggered the establishment of the new business: when James Hyde and James Strachan realised that the traditional technology behind order fulfilment was not good enough, they decided to design their own.

“We decided to build a software platform that would enable the fulfilment of orders in the cloud.

So that everyone, whether the end customer, the retailer or the fulfilment centre, would be looking at the same data at the same time,” says James Hyde.

Emma Dempsey, who became the company CEO last year, affirms that it was

Emma Dempsey, CEO, James and James.

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JAMES AND JAMES

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Custom solutions we develop for Retail, Distribution & E-commerce: Digital transformation Supply chain management Logistics solutions Customer engagement E-commerce development

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JAMES AND JAMES

the technology that has made the company unique, and it is still one of its distinguishing features. “We are a technology business that does fulfilment, rather than a fulfilment business that has its own technology. And this will remain so: our global expansion will be technologyled, but it will not be about more fulfilment centres. It will be about taking our technology and installing it in an existing operation. And then helping our customers to grow in the new territory.”

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Unlike traditional logistics providers, James and James’s product fulfilment service is built specifically for direct-toconsumer, eCommerce brands.

The company builds its order fulfilment software in-house, (supported by technology partner DataArt) from scratch, to bridge the gap between hightech eCommerce platforms and traditional delivery networks.

It combines the features one would usually find in separate operational and planning

systems into one, helping businesses to be run more efficiently.

James and James develop both the software and the process, based on the understanding of what happens in operations. “People in operations actually take part in the product design sessions, to make sure that the software is really designed around the people doing the job. So, it is a technology that is designed by the job,” says James.

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JAMES AND JAMES

THE RIGHT PLATFORM

Today, James and James provide order fulfilment services to retailers of all sizes.

With a network of fulfilment centres in the UK, US and EU, the company’s clients can reach customers locally and globally.

James and James’ s fulfilment centres take care of everything – from the storage of products to the pick, pack, and despatch of online orders, to the handling of any returns.

This enables businesses to outsource the order fulfilment process to the experts and focus their time and energy on other things. All of the fulfilment centres run on ControlPort – the company’s award-winning order fulfilment software, which enables clients to manage their global operations from one simple, cloud-based platform.

James and James also enable its clients to licence the software for their own operation if required, while also using any of the James and James sites – a unique setup in the industry.

Talent acquisition and hiring the best employees from across the sector play an important part in James and James’s growth plan. Emma, who prior to James and James held leadership roles at third-party logistics providers including Clipper Logistics and Unipart Logistics, as well as at Marks and Spencer, affirms that getting the right people is key.

“Labour availability, particularly post-Brexit, when we lost some fantastic European colleagues who did great work in our industry, is certainly a challenge.

However, we faced the challenge with a positive attitude – reached into marginalised communities, such as people with mental health issues, people who are care leavers, and all those who may find it difficult to find work.

We help them help us in the workplace, and it is great for

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JAMES AND JAMES

morale and engagement. On the other hand, we also address the labour shortage by making the technology more efficient. And we are succeeding.”

SEAMLESS EXPERIENCE

“Although eCommerce volumes have now normalised after peaking during the pandemic, the market is set to continue to grow organically with new brands coming to the market designed purely for online B2C rather than for traditional retail,” Emma says.

“We are finding that there’s plenty of opportunities out there, specifically as we work with a lot of brands which sell through social media. Any product that is going to be sold through those platforms creates a great growth opportunity for us.

“Demand is coming from customers who have been working with us in the UK and growing, as well as from those who have gone with us to different locations: we continue to grow in the UK, but the international business is showing the same kind of demand at the moment.”

James explains that the company is planning to open on the US West Coast this year and is looking at Canada and Australia for its possible next step. “We are investing in people, in platform technology as well as in new locations to roll out our services and help businesses to grow. Ultimately, it’s about providing a seamless experience for our customers; one set of reporting for their global fulfilment.”

“Our whole mission is not just to be a fulfilment business with the technology but to help customers grow faster than they would have done without us,” Emma concludes.

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STRUKTON RAIL

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STRUKTON RAIL

STRUKTON RAIL, USING ITS CENTURY-LONG EXPERTISE IN RAIL SYSTEM CONSTRUCTION & RENEWAL, IS COMMITTED TO MAKING RAIL TRANSPORT READY FOR THE FUTURE - SAFE, SUSTAINABLE, AVAILABLE.

ON THE RIGHT TRACK PROJECT MANAGED BY: DAVID HAYVIS

As part of a larger Strukton Rail BV group, one of the largest rail contractors in Europe headquartered in the Netherlands with branches in Denmark, Sweden and Italy, Strukton Rail Belgium is one of the principal rail contractors in Belgium. Thanks to the Group’s knowledge and experience in heavily used rail networks, the company is also in Belgium set to build and maintain future-proof rail networks.

W

e are a reliable partner for the construction, maintenance and renewal of tracks, crane rails, signalling and catenary,” says company CEO Ms Dominique Vleminckx, pointing out that the combination of several rail divisions within the company makes Strukton more or less a one-stop-shop to accommodate a wide spectrum of clients’ needs.

“Apart from our three main railroad activities, i.e. track, signalling and catenary, we are also renowned for our inhouse, extensive geomatics engineering department. In addition, over the last two years, we have increased our profile as a fibre optic project specialist.

Innovative focus is another strength - last year, Strukton developed a measuring robot that can be operated remotely in order to measure crane rails safely, accurately, and efficiently.

“High quality and innovation are in our DNA, and therefore, we are competing in the more technical and complex tender projects.”

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AutoSeal moulds are our newest aluminothermic welding innovation and serve to streamline the entire welding process. With a built-in felt that expands during the preheating phase of welding, this technology creates a tight seal between the mould and rail, completely removing the need for paste or sand luting, all while preventing leaks. The world’s first self-sealing moulds bring numerous benefits, including faster welding speeds, enhanced welder ergonomics, increased reliability and reduced waste.

Discover more information about Pandrol’s innovative products at: www.pandrol.com

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STRUKTON RAIL

Ms Dominique Vleminckx, CEO, Strukton Rail.

KEY PARTNER

Unshaken by the unprecedented market developments of the last few years, the company has been busy: as Strukton’s main customers in Belgium, the public companies Infrabel and TUC Rail, that build, operate and maintain the Belgian rail infrastructure for the Belgian government, decided to outsource projects requiring the deployment of the contractor’s large renewal machines, Strukton Rail seized the opportunity and won the majority of these tenders, already having completed some of the projects.

Strukton’s previous track record includes highly important railway projects such as the construction of the first high-speed railway line in Belgium between Antwerp and the French border and the installation of railway structures in the Diabolo tunnel complex leading to Brussels Airport.

More recently, Strukton Rail took the lead in the deduplication of an important part of railroad

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

line L50A, which is the main axe in Belgium, linking the Belgian coast to the capital. The company is also one of the leading contractors in the construction of the Regional Express Network around Brussels, intended to reinforce public transport around the capital, & is considered one of the most important current projects of public transport in Belgium.

Ms Vleminckx says that as a Class 8 contractor, Strukton focuses on major projects, which are fundamental for the maintenance and expansion of the Belgian rail network. “All of

our projects are important and it is not really fair to name just a few. Generally speaking, as a result of our expertise and capability, we tend to engage in large, complex projects, many of which are of national importance.”

BUILDER OF SUSTAINABLE INFRASTRUCTURE

As the railway sector was recognised as essential during the pandemic, Strukton Rail continued to work over the last two years, and, unlike other traditional construction companies, was able

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STRUKTON RAIL

to limit the damage. Spreading the operations across several countries within the Group also helps to balance turnover fluctuations resulting from the fact that the company funds depend directly on the government’s budgets.

However, as with any company in Europe these days, Strukton has not been spared the issues of the technical skills shortage - a challenge that has been handled.

“Not only finding the right people but also retaining them is very important for the business - to this end, we have internships and staff development programmes in place to develop committed employees,” says Ms Vleminckx.

“I always say to my managers “the people make a company”.

There would be no company, no projects without people. It is very important to keep employees happy and motivated, as well as recognised for the work they

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STRUKTON RAIL

do, at weekend, and at night.

Making sure we are regarded as a good and attractive employer is very important to us.”

The focus on technological innovation, coupled with the rail being promoted as the green mode of transport of the future helps to enhance Strukton’s reputation and position as a forward-thinking company.

CONTRIBUTING TO THE MODAL SHIFT

Speaking about the future she affirms that Strukton Rail monitors market development closely and is committed to expansions that fit within its business, while not losing sight of safety and quality key aspects in the sector and fundamental for both staff and the rail system.

Right now, the company has been working on acquiring certification for machine transport

BUSINESSFOCUSMAGAZINE.COM

- a new area of business in Belgium for Strukton Rail.

“A first expansion will be the transport by rail of rail-related machines and materials in the context of large railway projects. We are committed to achieving our recognition as a rail transport company. This should enable us, as the only rail contractor in Belgium, to be responsible for our own railrelated transports.”

“In this way, we can transport our fleet of machines more smoothly and economically throughout Europe, and achieve higher deployability of our fleet across the different borders. In

the long run, we want to offer our services to our competitors and attract new customers.”

“In the coming years, we will also focus on sustainability and wish to use the so-called ‘CO2 performance ladder’ to put our ‘green’ stamp’ on the Belgian rail market. Rail transport is the greenest transport system.

Battery-powered machines, lower CO2 emissions, and fleet electrification are all topics for the coming months and years. The modal shift, which is to be achieved by 2030, is a major challenge for Belgium. As a rail contractor, we want and must contribute to this,” reflects Ms Vleminckx.

“RAIL TRANSPORT IS THE GREENEST TRANSPORT SYSTEM. BATTERY-POWERED MACHINES, LOWER CO2 EMISSIONS, AND FLEET ELECTRIFICATION ARE ALL TOPICS FOR THE COMING MONTHS & YEARS.” TRANSPORT & LOGISTICS | 185

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