Subscribe

Tag: sustainability

DHL Supply Chain develops carbon neutral warehouses

Posted on by Keith McKinley

The real estate experts of DHL Supply Chain, the global contract logistics provider, have developed a carbon neutral real estate portfolio of 400,000 sq m to support customers’ growth requirements across six European Tier 1 markets. Located in central logistics areas, all sites will benefit from excellent multi modal transport connectivity, designed to serve customers across different sectors.

All buildings will have modern technical specifications, reflecting a campus concept and become mission-critical hubs for DHL Supply Chain and its national and international customers. The 14 units, constructed across 10 development sites, are located across major logistics markets in Germany, Netherlands, Sweden, Finland, Italy and Poland. All buildings will meet key sustainability criteria such as BREEAM Excellent and EPC A, comply with EU taxonomy and undergo a Carbon Risk Real Estate Monitor (CRREM) assessment.

“The development of 400,000 sq m of carbon neutral warehouses is an important strategic step as we aim to meet our customers’ growing demand for more sustainable warehouse space in strategic markets,” says Hendrik Venter, CEO DHL Supply Chain EMEA. “All assets we develop are underpinned by excellent fundamentals; be it sustainability, digitalisation, location, demographics or tenure. Connectivity or proximity to key sales markets help us improve delivery times for our customers, while a close eye on the surrounding social factors and communities in which we operate help us to generate attractive jobs and ensuring us access to a loyal and capable workforce. These factors help us and our customers to be even more successful and lead the way into a more sustainable future.”

DHL Supply Chain finds strategic partner

For a first tranche of this 400,000 sq m warehouse portfolio, DHL Supply Chain has already found an investor and strategic partner. Allianz Real Estate, acting on behalf of several Allianz Group companies, and DHL have entered into a purchase agreement for the sale of the first half of the portfolio. The warehouses, which are set to be completed between Q1 2023 to Q1 2024, will represent one of Allianz Real Estate’s largest single logistics sector acquisitions, in terms of gross leasable area, to date: in total the five facilities will cover over 200,000 sq m.

DHL Supply Chain will occupy at least 85% of the facilities developed for Allianz Real Estate on long-term leases post completion.

“We are very proud to be able to offer our clients effective growth opportunities, with warehouses that are not only located in core markets and fulfil our clients’ needs, but also meet the highest ESG and sustainability criteria,” says Joe Mikes, Global Head of Real Estate Solutions at DHL Supply Chain. “This enables us and our customers to create business opportunities that are compatible with our Sustainability Roadmap, which aims to make every aspect of the supply chain more sustainable which of course also includes our real estate. We are very much looking forward to many more such projects in the future.”

www.dhl.com/us-en/home/supply-chain.html

Goplasticpallets.com makes key senior appointment

Posted on by David Priestman

Goplasticpallets.com, the responsible plastic pallet company, has made a key senior appointment to help facilitate the next chapter of the organisation’s growth. Lee Denyer has joined the company as Finance Director.

In this newly created role, Denyer’s remit will encompass all financial aspects of company strategy, monitoring business performance, optimising existing processes and developing new ones. He arrives at goplasticpallets.com after spending 12 years at aerospace and defence giant L3Harris, where he most recently held the role of Head of Finance. Earlier in his career, Denyer enjoyed spells at food manufacturer Kate’s Cakes, as well as Parker Hannifin, a global leader in motion and control technologies.

Denyer completes a strong senior leadership team – spearheaded by Managing Director Jim Hardisty – who will focus on overseeing goplasticpallets.com’s future development plans, which includes adding to its existing portfolio of innovative and sustainable products. The company already supports a number of household names across multiple sectors – including retail, food and agriculture, automotive and pharmaceuticals – whilst also working closely with supply chain and automation professionals to increase efficiencies.

Commenting on the appointment, Hardisty said: “We are thrilled to add someone of Lee’s calibre and experience to our senior management team. After a period of sustained growth, we have a number of exciting plans in place that will push the business forward even further. Lee will play a fundamental role in helping us to achieve our goals as we embark on the next chapter of goplasticpallets.com’s journey.”

Denyer said: “This is a fantastic time to be joining the talented team at goplasticpallets.com. I will be responsible for ensuring the company is in the best position possible to take advantage of new opportunities and that our internal processes and systems match our ambitious growth plans. I cannot wait to get started and make a positive impact across the business.”

 

Partnership increases transparency of shipping emissions

Posted on by Keith McKinley

PortXchange Products B.V., one of the leading tech start-ups in the maritime domain for predictable and sustainable shipping, has formed a long-term global partnership with BigMile, supplier of software for calculating and analysing transport-related CO2 emissions. Through their combined efforts, the two companies will provide digital solutions to increase transparency of shipping emissions in port areas.

With the growing pressure on the shipping and logistics industries to reduce the emissions footprint, ports are emerging as critical players to drive sustainability efforts. However, most ports currently lack the necessary means to track emissions, which is the first step in developing decarbonisation strategies to meet the ambitious reduction targets set by the International Maritime Organization (IMO).

By working together, PortXchange and BigMile are ideally positioned to equip ports worldwide with a unique digital service that will allow them to monitor emissions from vessels, road, and rail transport, and help them quantify the impact of their sustainability programmes. “We are excited to partner up with BigMile – the leader in CO2 footprint standardisation – and to contribute our vast experience in the maritime industry to this collaboration,” said Sjoerd de Jager (pictured, right), Managing Director of PortXchange.

Enhancing decarbonisation through digitalisation

Although most shipping emissions occur during the voyage, their negative impact is most directly noticeable in ports because these are usually located close to cities. In fact, around 230 million people are directly exposed to shipping emissions in the world’s top one hundred ports. Digitalisation can significantly enhance decarbonisation efforts by providing means to  calculate and monitor emissions and subsequently implement measures and interventions to reduce emissions.

“With our flagship product called PortXchange Synchronizer, we offer a solution that allows vessels to optimise their sailing speed for just-in-time (JIT) arrival at the port. This reduces fuel consumption during the voyage and avoids unnecessary waiting time at anchorage, which leads to lower emissions in the port area,” continued de Jager.

“Port authorities can play a significant role in facilitating JIT arrival by supporting data-sharing initiatives and offering incentive schemes such as JIT-induced port fee discounts. There are several examples of such schemes currently being trialled, including at the ports in Rotterdam, Los Angeles Long Beach, Singapore, and Esbjerg. Thanks to the insights provided by the combined digital service from BigMile and PortXchange, the effectiveness of these measures becomes transparent. These insights are critical to underpin the investment strategies for these measures,” he added.

Supporting targeted decisions

“In this collaboration, our aim together with PortXchange is to encourage and facilitate ports worldwide to map their current footprint so that they can then make targeted decisions to reduce emissions in and around the port. These measures can be either operational, such as optimising the sailing speed as Sjoerd already mentioned, or strategic in nature, because the multi-modal split of emissions creates a more comprehensive picture of where transport emissions come from. This allows ports to take a holistic approach to port call decarbonisation,” stated Jan Pronk (pictured, left), Managing Director of BigMile.

Strategic measures could include electrification and the construction of shore power systems, he explains: “Shore power systems can potentially be an important part of the energy transition. If ships turn off their generators and use shore power when they are at the quay, they are a lot less polluting. The BigMile and PortXchange platform can provide insight into how much air pollution a shore power connection can prevent. Right now, ports are facing strategic choices about whether – and if so, where – to install shore power systems.”

BigMile and PortXchange are currently working on their first implementation of this digital service in the Port of Rotterdam. The service will also become available to other ports by the end of 2022.

Oakland appoints operations director

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Total supply chain solutions provider Oakland International has announced the appointment of Jas Sittre as Operations Director. Previously General Manager for transport and warehouse operations at DHL, Sittre has a wealth of operational experience having held a number of senior roles within the logistics sector.

Oakland International Chief Operating Officer Lee Whiting said: “I am delighted to welcome Jas as Operations Director. His sector knowledge and experience will be put to good use supporting our strategic long-term growth plans and I very much look forward to working with him.”

As a leading D2C/B2C/B2B specialist in contract packing, storage, picking, food distribution, Oakland International has taken the first step to becoming B Corp certified, a fast-growing movement using business as a force for good, with the company also working to becoming the first business within their sector to achieve net-zero. BRCGS AA accredited, and a double Queen’s Award for Enterprise recipient for International Trade and Sustainable Development, Oakland is a brand development support provider for ambient, chilled, and frozen food to the retail, convenience, discount, wholesale and food service markets in the UK, Ireland and via their partner in Spain.

Commenting on his appointment, Sittre said: “I am really pleased to join Oakland International, a well-established business who are driving their innovative agenda and providing their clients with sustainability solutions.

“I have always worked within operations, and I am very much looking forward to meeting and working with a great team of people. I am also looking forward to working with Lee Whiting along with the board to grow the business even further over the coming years.”

 

Dover spells out green ambitions

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Speaking recently on a panel of governmental and industry maritime experts at COP27, Christian Pryce, chief commercial officer of the Port of Dover, said: “Decarbonising the world’s busiest maritime corridor will deliver a seismic boost to the UK’s recently announced green shipping ambitions that include the US, Norway and the Netherlands.”

He continued: “One year on from the Clydebank Declaration, in which the UK and 23 other states set out their ambition to collaborate on green shipping corridors, it is encouraging to see progress being made and we are determined to deliver even more. We want to secure meaningful decarbonisation for the UK and international supply chains and so have made it our mission to work with our partners on both sides of the Short Straits as together we fully commit to achieving a high-volume green shipping corridor with France.”

The Port of Dover handles 33% of the UK’s trade in goods with the EU, 59% of UK-EU ferry journeys and 2.4 million freight vehicles annually.

Having unveiled its ambitions to the Government in May 2022, the Port of Dover took a significant step forward in becoming the UK’s first high-volume green shipping corridor when, in September, the Government awarded it funding for the Green Corridor Short Straits consortium’s feasibility study to establish a zero-carbon trade route, a partnership which also includes French sister ports, Calais and Dunkirk.

Pryce continued: “Spurred on by the Government’s recent backing of our efforts to develop a high-volume green shipping corridor, we will progress our work with France and look forward to it being included in the nations with which the UK is formally collaborating. Given the urgency to reduce maritime emissions, there needs to be the greatest possible ambition in how this task is pursued. A high-volume green shipping corridor delivering 130 ferry movements each day across the short straits being included with other shipping routes will be a transformative win for the UK. We are leading the charge, working together across the public and private sector with government, industry and academia.

“We will work together for a single joined-up solution. We’re a proud maritime nation in the UK and we want to be able to enhance and share our learnings as much as possible.”

The importance of the UK’s role as a leader and source of knowledge was echoed by Baroness Vere on the panel, who commented: “The UK will continue to lead and take an enlightened and forward-thinking view. We want our ports to work with other ports and share knowledge.”

The Short Straits is the busiest maritime corridor in the world, carrying a significant emissions footprint. Upcoming progress is set to include cleaner tonnage, particularly two new hybrid ‘super ferries’ that will be an important step forward towards decarbonisation of this critical route. This could also be supported by improved infrastructure, including making greater use of the Port of Dover’s topography, which allows for new bespoke solutions, such as energy storage (battery and hydrogen) and new power connections and links.

“A high-volume green shipping corridor with France will not only help reduce the stubbornly high emissions from the UK transport sector but will also display British-led global best practice when it comes to decarbonising not only shipping and maritime but the wider UK supply chain. With volume on this route set to grow – the market wants and chooses Dover over other options – it is vital that we take meaningful action now, and we are doing so with our partners as this can only succeed through strong and continuing collaboration,” concluded Pryce.

Calor wins industry award

Posted on by David Priestman

Calor has been awarded Supplier of the Year at the UK Material Handling Association (UKMHA) Awards for Excellence – The Archies. Chosen by the membership of UKMHA for the quality of its support for the industry, the Award was presented at a special evening held at the Hilton Metropole in Birmingham.

The Archies celebrates the best and brightest in the forklift industry, recognising teams and individuals that have innovated, raised standards and helped forklift truck operators work more effectively and safely.

The Archie was awarded to Calor for delivering the highest quality of services and products over the course of the year, as voted for by the UKMHA’s members.

With a commitment to safety and best practice, Calor continued to set the standard in 2022 by regularly sharing safety guidance, videos, and other safety training materials for the forklift truck industry through its own channels.

Stuart Viney, National Account Manager for FLTs at Calor, said: I’m delighted and incredibly proud of the Calor FLT team for achieving this accolade from the UKMHA. We have a fantastic group of colleagues at Calor who are constantly innovating and pushing for the highest standards in our industry, so it’s great to be recognised for that.”

As part of its commitment to a sustainable future, Calor has pledged to offer 100% renewable energy solutions to all customers by 2040. In 2018, it introduced Futuria Liquid Gas (previously BioLPG) – a sustainable fuel made from a blend of waste, residues, and sustainably sourced materials.

Using a mix of 40% Futuria Liquid Gas and 60% conventional LPG, FLT businesses can reduce carbon emissions by up to 48% (kgCO2e/kWh) compared to using diesel and 33% when compared to conventional LPG.

First Hydrogen unveils green vans

Posted on by Keith McKinley

First Hydrogen, an automotive and energy developer, has revealed its first zero emission light commercial vehicles (LCVs) after commencing track-based testing.

The First Hydrogen fuel cell-powered vans (FCEV) have commenced performance tests at the HORIBA MIRA Proving Ground, located near Birmingham, UK. These track tests will confirm the safety and performance of the LCVs prior to handover from powertrain specialists AVL to First Hydrogen. In October 2022, the vehicles were certified for UK road use ahead of a series of road trials with major UK operators, which start in January 2023. The vehicles will undertake final testing designed to fine tune operational performance, before they will be available for fleet operator trials to commence in the New Year.

The company’s inaugural vehicles have more than five times more range capability than their battery electric equivalent – achieving 400-600km range on a single fuelling compared to the 115km range of the battery electric van running at the same maximum speed. With a refuelling time of approximately five minutes, the time required to power First Hydrogen’s FCEVs dramatically undercuts the five hours it takes to recharge a battery electric van.

Created to encourage adoption and whet the market appetite, the company’s vehicle demonstrator program will inform development for future vehicle trials in European Union, United States and Canada. Feedback and high-level purchase commitments will also support the design and development of First Hydrogen’s next generation of vehicles, which it plans to bring to market in the next few years. The global light commercial vehicle market is projected to reach $786.5bn by 2030. These vehicles, together with First Hydrogen’s complete Hydrogen-as-a-Service (HaaS) solution, which supplies green hydrogen fuel, distribution and complementing vehicle management services, will help the sector meet zero emission targets.

 

Avery Dennison saves on supply chain packaging

Posted on by David Priestman

Avery Dennison Labels and Packaging Materials (LPM) has partnered with Tosca, a global leader in reusable plastic packaging and pooling solutions for the supply chain. The partnership means Avery Dennison LPM is aiming to switch a substantial portion of its product distribution across the continent to plastic pallets with a goal to save over 800 tonnes of CO2 emissions from its European supply chain annually.

Plastic pallets have many advantages. Since they are more durable than their wooden counterparts they can be re-used more often and are less prone to breakages which can help reduce the risk of damage and waste in the supply chain. In fact, Tosca estimates that its plastic pallets can be used over a 100 times and at end of life, are recycled.

The collaboration with Tosca will cover the distribution of materials from Avery Dennison factories and distribution centres across the EU as well as the UK, Norway, Switzerland, and Turkey. Deployments will gradually phase in over the course of 2023. The agreement allows Avery Dennison’s network of partners to also join the pooling programme under favourable terms to cover the onward freight of finished materials to brands and other end users.

Tosca operates a pooling model and delivers clean empty pallets from its service centres located across Europe, to Avery Dennison sites. The service is fully managed with pallets inspected and washed after every rotation by Tosca. At the end of every year, Avery Dennison and its customers that take part in the pooling programme will receive a CO2 emissions reduction certificate. Tosca predicts that Avery Dennison alone could save 819 tonnes of CO2 emissions annually by switching all its Euro-sized wooden pallets (1200x800mm) to Tosca.

The pooling programme has been trialled for almost 12 months for shipments from Avery Dennison’s distribution centre in Dublin to customers in Ireland.

Violeta Gómez, Central Packaging Leader at Avery Dennison, comments: “The pooling programme has been a massive success in Ireland and is helping us to reduce our carbon footprint and eliminate waste within the supply chain. Customers appreciate the fact that plastic pallets offer standard quality: they are cleaner (dust-free) and with less risk of damaging their products.

“Avery Dennison’s and Tosca’s plastic pallet pooling vision doesn’t stop after the pallets arrive to the customer. We encourage customers to take the chance to extend the pooling programme further down the supply chain to end-users and help grow the eco system further.”

Felix Van Ouytsel, Business Development Manager at Tosca, comments: “Tosca provides solutions that enable companies across the world to eliminate wasted materials, miles, space and labour to make the entire supply chain more sustainable. As the largest pooler of plastic pallets in Europe, we deliver a combination of reusable products, a flexible global service network and a committed partnership which will benefit Avery Dennison and its customers. We look forward to this partnership and are very happy to welcome Avery Dennison to the Tosca family.”

Sustainable plastic pallets for chemical industry

Posted on by David Priestman

Cabka, a specialist for load carriers made of recycled plastic, now provides two new pallets: the Eco CP3 and the Eco CP9. These are designed to make the logistics of the chemical industry more efficient and at the same time meet the requirements of the circular economy. The two pallets are on a similar economic level to the wooden pallet solutions but with the advantages of a plastic pallet. Cabka is thus pursuing its goal of combining economic efficiency with ecological sustainability.

Cabka has numerous pallets in its range for the chemical industry with different designs, sizes and specifications. “We improved the design for the next generation of Eco CP3- and Eco CP9- pallets. With the input of the world’s leading chemical companies, we have made these sustainable load carriers more reliable and safer than existing solutions on the market,” explains Jean-Marc van Maren, Chief Product Officer at Cabka.

Plastic vs. wood

The use of plastic pallets in the chemical industry is becoming increasingly popular – until now, the industry usually transported its containers on special wooden pallets. However, these have some disadvantages: Their heavy weight is a double burden – resulting in difficult handling and rising transport costs. The wood is susceptible to moisture and contamination which can also affect the cleanliness of the items stored on it. Broken or splintered pallets can injure employees as well as damage packaging and often need to be repaired.

In addition, irregularities easily cause disruptions in automated storage and transport systems which are increasingly used in the chemical industry. Another aspect is that wooden pallets are often not available in sufficient quantities in times of a prospering economy, resulting in delays and bottlenecks. In order to improve logistics processes, alternative solutions are therefore increasingly coming into the focus of users.

Plastic pallets have many advantages: they are extremely dimensionally stable and have a long service life. Shrinkage or breakage play no role with them. Exact dimensions and shapes ensure a high level of process reliability and enable precise adaptation to automated storage and conveyor technology. Their low dead weight relieves employees during manual handling and saves costs, fuel as well as CO2 during transport. The robust and pest-free surfaces are easy to clean, achieving the highest hygiene standards. Nestable pallets also reduce floor space and storage costs. Users thus benefit from numerous functional and economic advantages.

More sustainability, safety and process reliability

The Eco CP3 and Eco CP9 pallets are equivalent to the standard CP3 and CP9 pallets, offering numerous advantages for the users as they are made of recycled plastic and not wood. They are sustainable like all Cabka products – the company uses 100% recycled materials that are themselves 100% recyclable for all its transport solutions.

The pallets are safe, since they prevent injuries caused by splinters, rotten wood, but also packaging damage such as torn big bags and sacks. The load carriers offer consistent dimensions and impact resistance, helping to reduce stoppages when working with automation systems. The pallets carry loads safely also in high racking. All these advantages help save costs.

The pallets for chemical industry producers, suppliers and companies, which export products to customers with high hygienic standards, are now even more user-friendly: Cabka increased the number of ribs at the runner and the corner radius runners-feet in order to make the bottom deck more resistant. The corners are also reinforced to improve impact resistance.

The Eco CP3- and Eco CP9-plastic pallets are very light yet robust and shock-resistant. The CP3 is a three-runner pallet made from recycled polyolefin with 1,140 x 1,140 x 150mm (w x l x h), and a weight of about 12.5kg. The pallet is designed for dynamic loads of 1,400kg. At a weight of 14kg, the CP9 is similar in design to the CP3. The difference is that this pallet has a double-deck design. Due to the five runners, this pallet is even more stable than the CP3. Its design makes it particularly suitable to block stacking, as the support frame optimally distributes the weight over the load underneath.

 

Meachers collaborates to reduce emissions

Posted on by Keith McKinley

Meachers Global Logistics has become a member of The Solent Cluster, the first major decarbonisation initiative to substantially reduce CO2 emissions from industry, transport and households across the Solent and the south coast of England.

The Solent Cluster is a cross-sector collaboration of international organisations, including manufacturers and engineering companies, regional businesses and industries, leading logistics and infrastructure operators and academic institutions, with decades of proven expertise in carbon capture and storage and hydrogen technology.

Meachers, signed up as a member at the launch event alongside founding members the Solent Local Enterprise Partnership (LEP), global energy provider ExxonMobil and University of Southampton. Each shared details of their vision for the Solent and how it could secure existing jobs and produce low-carbon fuels for sectors including maritime and aviation, as well as providing energy to heat homes, businesses, and public buildings. This effort could position the Solent at the centre of low carbon fuel production in the UK and make a major contribution to the country’s Net Zero ambitions by 2050. The project could capture approximately three million metric tons of CO2 every year.

Gary Whittle, commercial director of Meachers Global Logistics, said: “We are delighted to show our support to The Solent Cluster by announcing our membership to this important partnership. We look forward to collaborating with fellow members to bring societal and environmental benefits to the Solent region and helping it become a major contributor to the UK’s Net Zero ambitions.”

Anne-Marie Mountifield, chief executive of Solent Local Enterprise Partnership, said: “Decarbonisation is at the heart of our economic strategy for the area and the creation of The Solent Cluster will sit alongside our ambition to pioneer approaches to climate change adaptation and decarbonization, linked to our coastal setting, and establishing real expertise which other regions – nationally and globally – can learn from. The Solent Cluster will provide a platform for the excellent work that is already taking place and the partnership has a unique opportunity to affect real change in energy production and consumption, establishing the Solent and wider region as a leading centre for low carbon investment now and in the future.”

“This is an important opportunity to decarbonise the Solent Region, and we are proud to be a part of this collaborative effort to significantly reduce CO2 emissions from multiple sectors,’’ said Dan Ammann, president of ExxonMobil Low Carbon Solutions. ‘We look forward to working with our founding members and others to develop a compelling project.”

The Solent Cluster could enable organisations to bid for government investment support for projects to decarbonize the Solent region and realise the benefits that can flow to the region’s businesses and communities.

Dr. Lindsay-Marie Armstrong, associate professor of mechanical engineering and academic cluster lead for the Solent Industrial Decarbonization Cluster at University of Southampton, said, “The Solent is recognised as one of the leading contributors of CO2 emissions with approximately 3.2 million metric tons of CO2 emissions released from energy-intensive manufacturing processes every year. To form a decarbonisation cluster that spans the public, private and higher education sectors is a monumental step forward for the region.

“It will introduce sustainable fuels for local transportation, the aviation and the shipping sectors; create low carbon energy to heat homes, businesses and public buildings; and open up new highly skilled jobs opportunities. This can only be achieved by working together as a community, covering all sectors and ultimately working with the same desire to achieve a low carbon economic future for the Solent region.”

Subscribe

Get notified about New Episodes of our Podcast, New Magazine Issues and stay updated with our Weekly Newsletter.