#134SEPTEMBER

2020

MARITIME SUPPLY CHAIN page 6

Jens Roemer’s answers to the challengesfacing maritime stakeholders

THE STEP BEYOND page 10

Consultant Steve Walker’s viewof FIATA’s role in the digital age

FROM WASTE TO WORTH page 16

The Lego of pallets – a modular,smart and digitally-enabled solution

POINTS6AN UPDATE FROM THE SIX PRESIDENCY MEMBERS ON FIATA’S RESET PROGRAMME page 12

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 CONTENTS | 3

DIGITAL TRENDS

10 An industry veterangives his opinion on FIATA’s digital strategy. Forwarding consultant Steve Walker wants FIATA to become a focal point of digital transformation.

MEET THE FIATA PRESIDENCY

12 The reset programmeis on its way. The six members of the presidency explain the strategies.

FIATA MEETINGS AND EVENTS

15 A toolkit as a new instrumentfor forwarders to deal with the hot top-ics of demurrage and detention will be available in autumn.

LEARNING AND SUSTAINABILITY

16 Sustainable logistics also needs the right equipment. FIATA supports the Ponera Group’s smart, sustainable and digitally-enabled pack-aging – made of biopolymers.

FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

5 The future is brightFIATA’s mission remains on track –de-spite the pandemic. Basil L S Pietersen on FIATA’s reset programme, its digital strategy, its promotion of sustain-ability – and its reaching out to young forwarders.

INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND LAW

6 Developments driven by carriersdo not necessarily ease the work of the freight forwarder. A common way forward is possible, though.

TRAINING AND DEVELOPMENT

8 How to contribute to the SDGsThe FIATA Working Group Sustainable Logistics is convinced that Logistics can contribute its share by support-ing the goals for 2030 in the fields of food security, health, energy, economic growth and infrastructure, amongst others.

CONTENTS FIATAREVIEW#134 | September 2020

The road less travelledIn the midst of the perfect storm that the pan-demic, protectionism and trade restric tions represent, forwarders are challenged by the policies of shipping lines. Yet the impact of alliances, blankings and rollings can be over-come, according to Working Group Sea Chair Jens Roemer. Dialogue, transpa rency, fairness and data sharing are some of the tools which are apt for building a sustainable maritime future.

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FIATA MEMBERSHIP

18 Many associations and memberstook the next step to make their train-ing courses virtual. Check it out!

KNOW YOUR FIATA

21 Where can I find...?FIATA’s Association Policy Handbook is in the making.

AGENDA

22 FWC 2021 in Brussels unveiledMarc Huybrechts explains the rather ambitious programme that Forward Belgium has laid out for the 2021 FWC.

COVERThe future is

especially bright

when FIATA becomes the

industry‘s focal point and

think tank for digitalisation.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 20204 | MASTHEAD

MASTHEAD

FIATA Secretariat

Rue Kléberg 6 1201 Geneva Switzerland +41 22 715 45 10 info@fiata.com www.fiata.com

Editorial team

Claudia Marquina, Editor Stéphane Graber, Co-editor Andrea Tang, International Trade and Law Nina Eggert, Learning and Sustainability Lucelia Tinembart, Digital Trends Pauline Dutertre, Marketing and Events Vanessa Villa, Membership Emmanuela Simantirakis, Facts and Figures

Design and printer

Swiss Professional Media AG Grosspeterstrasse 23 4052 Basel Switzerland

FIATA Review

FIATA’s quarterly magazine presents a global outlook on freight forwarding and logistics, as well as the latest news from FIATA’s secretariat and its members.

FIATA

Also known as the ‘Architects of Transport’, FIATA International Federation of Freight Forwarders Asso-ciations is a non-governmental, membership-based organisation representing the freight forwarding industry in some 150 countries.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 PRESIDENT‘S DESK | 5

A BRIGHT FUTURE AHEADDear colleagues and friends,

It is hard to believe that it has been almost one year since I assumed the presidency at the FIATA World Congress in Cape Town. The current pandemic has certainly made it challenging – but memorable, as we continue to work to better serve our members. The impact of COVID-19 will be felt in our industry for some time, but we are optimistic that the future holds better days to come.

At FIATA, we remain active and engaged to deliver top-quality services to freight forwarders. Despite facing un-precedented times, we have accomplished so much in less than a year. Our priority in the reset programme was to restructure our head office and get relevant staff on board, who could re-energise the way we conduct business. It was also important to do this work from Geneva, to regain our presence in the inter-national scene and advocate trade-facilitation policies that will reposition us as the key global freight logistics organisation.

Our mission is certainly underway. Under the guidance of our new director general, the Geneva team has plenty of work ahead of it to ensure that objectives are met. On the topic of education, the reset programme called for the enhancement of training through the newly-created FIATA Logistics Institute (FLI). The head office, in collaboration with FLI Interim Chair Stephen Morris, has already identified three workstreams, focusing on standards and certifications, digital learning and international cooperation, and catering to youth to bring all education and training initiatives under one umbrella.

On industry digitisation, we have some catching up to do, but this is now covered by our digital strategy. Our head office, led by the expertise of the Advisory Body on Information Technology, has already launched two projects to create a registry of FIATA Members’ digital identities and a library of digital standard templates to help freight forwarders enter the digital world. Multiple working group meetings have already taken place.

The reset programme also highlighted the need to protect FIATA’s intellectual property. We have an array of documents that are widely used by the industry, and while copyright applies, its enforcement remains a day-to-day challenge. The head office, aided by the digital strategy, is conducting an audit of licences to ensure compliance.

Finally, we recognise the need to do more to promote sustainability in logistics. The way to do this is by engaging young professionals who will carry sustainable practices forward and take the industry into the future. The head office has therefore modernised its communica-tion to reach young freight forwarders. We want the younger generations to know that we are motivated by our leading reset programme, and that they can count on FIATA to take freight logistics to the next level.

Sincerely,Basil L S PietersenFIATA President

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020

PERFORMANCE OF THE MARITIME SUPPLY CHAIN

CHALLENGES FOR A SUSTAINABLE FUTUREGlobalisation has fostered maritime trade over a long period, but the tide has turned. In these difficult times, FIATA Working Group Sea Chair Jens Roemer addresses the current industry developments and perils, while pointing out the need for a long-term dialogue amongst maritime partners for a sustainable supply chain.

Globalisation has led to a substantial in-crease in maritime trade, with the growth factor being at times three times higher than global growth of GDP. This has recently re-duced to a factor of one. In this article Jens Roemer, FIATA Working Group Sea Chair, ad-dresses many of the industry developments and challenges facing a sustainable maritime supply chain.

THE CONTEXT

Protectionism and trade restrictionsGlobalisation and related trade agreements have led to a reduction of import tariffs, red tape and corruption, and have significantly increased the movement of goods. Over the last three years, however, the situation has changed and there are now strong protec-tionist movements involving countries that were previously in the forefront of promoting trade and reducing trade barriers.

Home shoringAs things stand, COVID-19 is providing an un-precedented shock to the global system that could result in several quarters with negative GDP growth. No doubt the ongoing pandemic will lead to a review of the supply chain and procurement priorities, as it is argued that there has been too much reliance on China. If goods are produced locally or sourced from nearby, they will be lost to the maritime sup-ply chain.

The environment and sustainabilityThe protection of the environment and long-term sustainability objectives have finally become major items on corporate agendas. The carbon footprint is on everybody’s mind and whilst lo-cal manufacturing appears to have advantages, the maritime industry must continue to argue its case as the most environment-friendly mode of freight transport.Above all, the environmental objectives of the International Maritime Organization must be met and adhered to. With the exception of the environmental aspects, there is very lit-tle the maritime sector can do to control its destiny. It can however ensure that shippers and forwarders alike can count on a maritime supply chain that is reliable, efficient and re-silient – which is currently not the case. The responsibility for unreliable, inefficient and non-resilient maritime supply chains lies in the fact that the liner shipping sector is being confronted with problems that are of its own ma king. It has created havoc in maritime sup-ply chains, frustrating freight forwarders and shippers alike.

DEVELOPMENTS DRIVEN BY SHIPPING LINES

Vessel size and alliancesThe rat race for bigger vessels and lower unit costs seems to have come to an end and some lines have now expressed the wish to focus on service quality. But isn’t it too late?

How much room is there for shipping lines to differentiate themselves when they are all or-ganised in only three allian ces, in which they share their vessels?There is no room for competitors either, ex-cept for a few established niche operators. The investments to compete with the estab-lished and highly-protected alliance system are simply too high.

Blank sailingsShipping lines have been inventive in intro-ducing terms such as blank sailings. These are not a new development, they were intro-duced years ago and already played havoc with EU-China trade three years ago.The current pandemic has led to the mas-sive use of the blank sailing tool, which is largely a capacity management tool that has a direct impact on price levels. This was probably necessary to avoid another ‘Han-jin scenario’, but as a long-term effect one must caution that reliable planning has be-come impossible.

Rolling containersEven if a vessel is not blanked and actually sails, a container that has been booked and accepted by means of a booking confir-mation well in advance may not be loaded. The term for this one-sided contractual vio-lation is called ‘rolling’. Containers that are accepted and confirmed for loading on a specifically-agreed vessel are simply rolled to the next vessel.

6 | INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND LAW

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 INTERNATIONAL TRADE AND LAW | 7

Lead times – export closing timesVessel cut-off times – the latest time a con-tainer may be delivered to a terminal for loading to a scheduled vessel  – have sig-nificantly increased over the last ten years, putting reliable supply chains under stress. Cut-off times for the delivery of loaded containers to terminals for export have doubled; for ultra-large containerships they have increased from two days (prior to ves-sel departure) to four days and more.At the same time, terminals are dealing with higher peaks and need to improve productiv-ity to deal with congestion. The increase in cut-off times that has led to an increase in dwelling time of containers inside terminals is counterproductive.

Shorter demurrage free time and very narrow delivery windowsAt the same time, demurrage free time has dramatically reduced for merchants. This leaves a very small window for the delivery of the export container to the terminal in time for a vessel’s cut-off time and free demur-rage, adding additional stress to roads and already-strained infrastructure.

The current situation and its effect on the maritime supply chainA well-organised supply chain aims to match demand with supply, subject to the least pos-sible inventory and just-in-time deliveries. A reliable, predictable and resilient supply chain with fast lead times adds value and

represents a competitive advantage. Howev-er, due to the above-mentioned situation, the maritime supply chain has become extremely unreliable as it seems to be at the mercy of a few major shipping lines holding world trade hostage.

“It is impossible to organise a supply chain in which bookings made up to four weeks

in advance can simply be blanked or rolled.”

It is simply impossible to organise a supply chain subject to bookings as long as four weeks in advance that may anyway be blanked or rolled. Why should anyone ex-pose themselves to such a situation that only creates additional cost, unproductiv-ity, uncertainty and above all frustration, when there are options to home sourc-ing subject to reliable and predictable supply chains?Then there is the pricing and structure of freight tariffs, with surcharges invented at will and often not substantiated, in addition to the criticism related to rate levels that ap-pear to be abusive during COVID-19. The cur-rent structure of the liner shipping industry allows carriers to manage their capa cities within alliances, and reduces competition and choice, allowing carriers to have some ‘pric-ing discipline’. All stakeholders are seriously threatened by the pandemic and its economic

consequences, certainly including the major container shipping lines.

THE WAY FORWARDAll stakeholders must ensure that the mari-time supply chain once again becomes more attractive, by assuring more reliable, predict-able and faster lead times, as other wise there is the potential risk that trade will be lost for good.

DialogueStakeholders should find platforms for regu- lar dialogue, rather than taking one-sided decisions, or hitting out at each other in the media. The International Transport Forum at the OECD had a good initiative promo ting dialogue amongst maritime stakeholders, which unfortunately lost drive due to can-celled meetings related to COVID-19.

Tariff and surcharge transparencyProfessional maritime services must be re-munerated to allow providers to sustain their services, cover their costs, undertake main-tenance, invest in the future, ensure employ-ment and provide a return to their sharehold-ers. However, tariffs should be transparent and limited to surcharges that are justified and clearly defined.

Fair and just demurrage and detention practicesThe US Federal Maritime Commission has clearly identified that many demurrage and detention practices are unfair and unjusti-fied. Consequently, related practices should be reviewed on a global scale.

Data sharingThe stakeholders in the maritime supply chain must increase cooperation for the ex-change and sharing of data. FIATA has a clear focus in its digital strategy, to provide the global forwarding industry with an ecosys-tem that will enable its members to exchange data. The reputation of the global maritime supply chain has never been as bad as today, at least in the eyes of global forwarding. It is therefore time for stakeholders to come out of their hook and take the initiative to facili-tate long-term planning for those who wish to trade globally.

Assuring more reliable, predictable and faster lead times is vital for planning.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020

WORKING GROUP SUSTAINABLE LOGISTICS

FIATA PRESIDENCY SETS PRIORITIESLogistics can contribute to the SDGs through its participation in trade and trans-port. To work on this crucial topic, FIATA has set up the Working Group Sustainable Logistics (WGSL). The presidency expects the WGSL to work, among other things, on the development of a directory of emissions calculators, a best-practice platform and an emissions calculator.

In 2015, the 193 member states of the United Nations adopted 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), aimed at achieving a better and more sustainable

future for all by 2030. The SDGs address different areas, all interrelated, inclu ding poverty, inequality, climate change, envi-ronmental degradation, peace and justice.

Every sector of society has a role to play in achieving these goals: governments, civil society and business enterprises. And as an industry, freight forwarding can also

8 | LEARNING AND SUSTAINABILITY

While there is no SDG dedicated to logistics, sustainable transport applies to the SDGs for food, health, energy and infrastructure.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 LEARNING AND SUSTAINABILITY | 9

positively contribute to achieving these goals.Logistics can contribute to the SDGs through its participation in trade and trans-port. Given its cross-sectional nature, there is no SDG dedicated to transport. Sustain-able transport is mainstreamed across several SDGs, in particular those that are related to food security, health, energy, eco-nomic growth and infrastructure, amongst others (see Workshop on Transport re-lated SDGs from UNECE). In the area of climate change, the role of transport is fur-ther recognised under the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), as it will play a central role in achieving the goals of the Paris Agreement. Indeed, it is estimated that a quarter of energy-related greenhouse gas emissions and one fifth of CO

2 emissions come from transport.To work on this crucial topic, FIATA set up its Working Group Sustainable Logistics (WGSL). In October 2019, the FIATA Gene-ral Meeting in Cape Town elected Cavit Ugur (UTIKAD) as WGSL Chair. The WGSL has now been integrated into the FIATA Mul-timodal Transport Institute (MTI). This step reflects the cross-sectional and intermodal nature of logistics’ contribution to sustain-ability in general and to the SDGs in par-ticular. Taking its responsibility seriously, the FIATA presidency set up the WGSL’s priorities, which focus, among others, on three areas of activities expected by FIATA members.

Repository of emission calculatorsGiven estimates of transport’s greenhouse gas emissions, it has become increasingly important to be able to calculate these.There is a plethora of tools for this, that use different calculation methods and standards. The global and multi modal na-ture of freight forwarding makes this exer-cise even more challenging. Companies sometimes find it difficult to get a clear overview of existing tools, as well as to identify which one is the most appropriate for their activity and the objective of their overall calculations.The FIATA presidency has thus mandated the WGSL to develop a repository of diffe-rent emissions calculators, highlighting the advantages and limits of existing tools, and the aspects to be taken into consider- ation when choosing one. This will help As- sociation Members and firms in their jour-ney to a sustainable logistics industry.

Platform on best practicesMany sustainability initiatives have already been developed by freight forwarding and logistics companies. Given the wide array

of SDGs to which logistics can contribute, these initiatives cover a broad spectrum. Most of the time, these initiatives have been developed by larger companies, which have the resources for such activities.The WGSL will thus serve as a platform and repository of best practices in the area of sustainability, to inform the industry and to accompany small and medium-sized enter-prises that develop and implement sustain-ability initiatives.

Develop an emissions calculatorDepending on the resources available and the findings that will emerge from the repos-itory of emission calculators, the WGSL has been encouraged to develop an emissions calculator for FIATA’s members. This would allow it to develop a tool that suits the in-dustry, taking into account its speci ficities. This would require working with external stakeholders, however.This first set of priorities will drive the work of the WGSL forward. Given the variety of areas in which logistics can contribute to the SDGs, this is only the beginning of a fas-cinating and promising journey.

Logistics can contribute to the SDGs through its partici-pation in trade and transport.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 202010 | DIGITAL TRENDS

Forwarding consultant Steve Walker, who offers 40 years of successful industry experience, has welcomed FIATA’s new digital strategy. He has also called for more direct involvement of freight forwarders in the organisation, which should become a focal point for industry professionals, harmonising existing digital solutions to harness the power of data.

Discussing FIATA’s digital evolution

INTERVIEW

FIATA asked forwarding consultant Steve Walker, who has 40 years of successful industry experience, to outline his opinion of the organisation’s new digital strategy. Having initially expressed his doubts about FIATA’s ability to pave the way for the in-dustry in the digital age, Steve Walker has now welcomed the new direction that FIA-TA is taking. He has called for more direct involvement of freight forwarders in the organisation, which should become a focal point for industry professionals, harmonis-ing existing digital solutions to harness the power of data.

FIATA recently launched its digital strategy, as you know, to enable for-warders to exchange data, whilst also keeping control over it (elabo- rating a network of trust as well as a data exchange ecosystem, inclu ding the standardised trade documents). What is your take on the organisation’s new direction?Steve Walker: I welcome FIATA’s new di-rection and its digital initiative. The next steps, however, are the most critical ones. It is all about bringing together a freight forwarding industry that has a complicat-ed DNA.For decades, the isolated indepen dence of the traditional 3PLs (third-party logis-tics providers) has been its unique selling proposition; however, there is a real need to re-evaluate that, with digitisation being the perceived driver. We need to form new

alliances and collaborate with traditional and online forwarders, in what I refer to as ‘hori-zontal collaboration’.FIATA should enable the top forwarders to come together to try and establish protocols and determine our global position in the mar-ket for the coming decade.Maybe we need to share initiatives. Could we imagine Kuehne + Nagel accepting, or the rest of forwarding agreeing, to use their block-chain? Yet, other verticals are collaborating.FIATA needs direct forwarder contact, with less emphasis on country associations, which I believe strangles decision making. I think forwarders should join FIATA directly, but they might have difficulty in understanding why they have to pay for this direct membership,

without knowing what value a new FIATA could bring them.If we as a sector are coming together, so too should the associations, by considering the creation of a super-data association, with the obvious as well as the not-so-obvious ones. For example, the WCA is the only commercial group within this sector. That is horizontal collaboration.So it isn’t about changing to more dyna mic leadership or the move from Zurich for Ge-neva, it’s about innovative ideas. If forward-ers all replicate data mining, think what kind of knowledge we could get if the freight as-sociations all replicate it. We need to be pre-sented with radical ideas from an association symposium.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 DIGITAL TRENDS | 11

Why do you think data is so important for the freight forwarding industry?SW: I can explain this best by offering an example that still drives me today. We have always held more data than shippers have re-alised, but have done little with it, a tracking-and-tracing offering with data holes. In 2009, I could no longer offer this, so we set out on a new dashboard vision.During one trip to Asia, our overseas agent suggested that rather than us continuing with the torturous configuration, he would make a special provision for us to use his purchase order monitoring software. My response was a key question that went un answered. ‘Who will then own my freight paying customers, you or me?’The power of data ownership comes down to business control. You can ship as much cargo as your client wants, but with data held, say, on a ‘steamship-line blockchain of-fering’, could you re-route freight away from that data offering? Very, very unlikely. Busi-ness control is lost.

What do you see as the key factors for FIATA’s digital strategy to succeed?SW: In 1972, when I started in forwarding, there were freight conferences / freight car-tels where lines carved up the market on trade routes and rates. In 2008, this was banned under anti-trust legislation.I started taking an interest in July last year, challenging that, whilst we were no longer seeing freight conferences, we were in fact seeing floating data conferences – where the lines were getting together, controlling data and fees with blockchain offerings, and in the case here, one possible carrier potentially holding over 65% of world trade data.Later in December, I discovered that the Fe-deral Maritime Commission (FMC) accep ted a data agreement, put out after a 45-day con-sultation, which passed without any objec-tions on 6 February 2020. I didn’t realise that the FMC was dealing with data / software and data storage organisations.It is unfortunate for forwarders that FIATA did not act on this sooner, but there is one upside here – there is an acceptance of com-peting companies meeting. Providing there is no complicity or collusion on rates and ser-

vices, those companies can have discussions on collective software offers.FIATA needs to become the forum for freight forwarders, with lawyers present to ensure that there is no collusion or complicity, so members feel free to discuss defining matters. FIATA needs to become a data-representative organisation. Many freight forwarders in the world are present ly scrap-ing data from the web, so why couldn’t our lead organisation do that and have a commercial benefit?

How would you measure the success of the strategy?SW: This will be reflected by the relevance of FIATA in the years to come. It is that critical and time-sensitive!

How do you think FIATA should posi-tion itself – should the association take a leading role and build its own digital solutions, or should it actually stay in a governance role and harmonise existing solutions?SW: Build its own digital solutions? Absolute-ly not. Even by the time you’ve finished typing this question, you have been overtaken by far more focused offerings. Nor even controlling solutions.Instead. FIATA should be the focal point for the industry, a think tank, a media go-to rep-resentative, where appropriate, a lead signa-tory on behalf of its members.

How do you see FIATA’s role evolving in the five next years?SW: I would like to see a radical change, with two divisions within FIATA. It keeps its traditional legislative / training focus and the knowledge-base committees, represent-ing the worldwide associations, although that needs a revamp. We need more than in-ternational committee individuals volunteer-ing their time. Everyone in the presidency should be delivering visions to members and the media.The big change is that FIATA should create a new division to represent forwarders in the changing data offerings, and should be the focal point for the streaming of data, allowing new revenues covering related costs.

FIATA needs to expand this vision by of-fering an online meeting to key freight forwarders, to find the common areas that need addressing.I think forwarders should join FIATA di-rectly. As the industry wants stronger leadership, they should be ready to make a greater financial membership contribution, in exchange for the additional services that FIATA could offer, such as standardised data feeds from which they and their trans-port management systems could expand offerings.

“FIATA needs to become a data-representative organisation – and the

forum for forwarders.”

Can FIATA not lead with green innovation? I talked to young forwarders in the UK, who were in disbelief that four-way pallets had been around for 80 years, and that we hadn’t had the ability to think of a more modern way of moving goods in and out of boxes.Greenpeace, for example, talks about the three Rs: reduce, reuse and recycle. How could we apply this to our industry? For in-stance, we say that the pallets that come in our containers are being re cycled, but let’s be honest, they don’t have a very long shelf life. They slowly downgrade until they become something like wooden pellets for burning. We could find a better way to deal with this.I’d like FIATA to take my proposal, we should go back with a positive message from our industry. After all, we are only delivering what the world has ordered in our ‘take, make, consume and dis-pose’ socie ty, but the public wants a green planet, so we should come up with strong ideas to be debated instead of being silent.FIATA has the most difficult role, to make itself significant in forwarders’ day-to-day thinking, to make the organisation’s work seem relevant for the younger gene rations of forwarders and to lead the sharing of in-dustry expertise on social media.

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 202012 | MEET THE FIATA PRESIDENCY

In this instalment of ‘Meet the FIATA Presidency’, all six of its members provide an update on the progress of the FIATA reset programme, a six-point initiative aimed at reinvigorating the organi-sation’s relevance to its mission of representing the forwarding industry at international level.

FIATA reset programme

INTERVIEW

The reset programme, proposed by the presidency in 2018 and passed by the or-ganisation in 2019, signifies the profound restructuring of FIATA and is leading it into the future with a presence at the heart of the international community in Geneva, where global policies are shaped.

yy Basil Pietersen, FIATA Presidentyy Babar Badat, FIATA Immediate Past President yy Robert Voltmann, FIATA Secretary Generalyy Turgut Erkeskin, FIATA Senior Vice Presidentyy Ivan Petrov, FIATA Senior Vice Presidentyy Thomas Sim, FIATA Senior Vice President

Last year, FIATA approved the reset programme; it then recruited a new director general, who started imple­men tation in January 2020. Soon after that, the world was confronted with the unprecedented COVID­19 crisis, which created a huge chal­lenge for all organisations globally. How do you see FIATA’s work over the last nine months and its adaptation to this new environment?Basil Pietersen: My response in one word would be ‘challenging’, that is how I would describe the past nine months. As the architects of the supply chain, the responsibility of finding solutions to something unprecedented and never ex-perienced before required a unified and inclusive approach to matters. During the chaos we had to meet one of the reset

programme’s conditions of relocating the FIATA Head Office across Switzerland from Zurich to Geneva. Under normal circum-stances relocation of any sort is difficult, so imagine doing this whilst having to adhere to lockdown restrictions.Instead of settling comfortably into his new role, the newly-appointed director general had to lead the change and ensure the re-cruitment of staff with relevant expertise to deliver a professional service to all mem-bers. Thankfully, months later we saw the steady inclusion of individuals taking up their respective roles at our head office. Here I would also like to acknowledge the work done by those members of staff no longer with FIATA.

“The organisational structure to manage the institutes and advisory

bodies was well accepted.”

It is understood that settling down in any work environment takes time, but unfortu-nately this was – and is  – a luxury we did not have. The new staff had to hastily adapt to the new environment and deliver services to members. The organisational structure to manage the institutes and advisory bo-dies was well accepted and it is great to see the plan evolving. In all this, the priority remained that of meeting members’ expec-tations, not for any one individual or group, but for the entire FIATA body. While the head office endeavours to always work towards achieving the interests of members and ul-timately the industry, it remains the respon-sibility of members to continually challenge the head office, extended board and also the

presidency, and to ensure use of all organs of the federation. It is needless to state that the work continues, and I perso nally wish to thank everyone for having seen us through what I believe to have been the most chal-lenging period. Thank you!

Moving the head office from Zurich to Geneva was the first step of the FIATA reset programme. Why was the move to Geneva so important and how does it contribute to FIATA achieving its over­all objectives?Babar Badat: The reset programme was initiated to take FIATA to an upgraded exist-ence, more in line with the current global environment, a consideration for the future and, most importantly, in line with the ex-pected aspiration of the organisation’s membership. It is a fundamental shift in the way FIATA works, and the move to Geneva is a cornerstone of this initiative. Geneva is where the world meets, it is a key centre for international multilateral organisations, the United Nations and seve ral other non-governmental development organisations. A great part of FIATA’s work involves advo-cacy and for that there is no better place than Geneva.The traditional work of the international freight forwarder has, over recent years, moved to a far more complex service pat-tern, which encompasses the complete logistics supply chain of moving products from their point of origin to their final des-tination, also known as ‘end-to-end’ across multiple modes. Therefore, the industry’s engagements have also become more elaborate, requiring its representative body to engage on a far larger canvas. For FIATA the move to Geneva brings this to the table.

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 MEET THE FIATA PRESIDENCY | 13

Training has long been one of FIATA’s strengths. As part of its reset pro­gramme, FIATA voted at the 2019 congress in Cape Town to create the FIATA Logistics Institute (FLI), which merged the FIATA Logistics Academy (FLA) and the Advisory Body for Voca­tional Training (ABVT) into one single new body. What are the merger’s ob­jectives and what challenges do you foresee for the FLI to be fully ope­rational by the end of 2020 and be able to fulfil its mission of equipping freight forwarders with the know­ledge and skills they need to deal with today’s industry?Thomas Sim: The FLI seeks to position training, development and research in freight logistics as a priority, and will bring all education and training initiatives under one umbrella. At the cusp of global industry transformation and moving forward, FIATA’s roadmap towards human capital develop-

ments will focus on preparing our transport logistics workforce to be ready for the fu-ture by constantly equipping it with new skill sets and expertise to be ready for the job with technical and critical soft skills.We will continue to develop industry- focused curricula that mirror our profes-sions through strong industry engage ments as well as partnerships to curate real-world projects for operators’ learning. FIATA’s minimum standards and curricula will be further strengthened to include business 4.0 tools and technologies, such as appli-cation of smart digital technologies (AI, machine learning), the IOTs and the cloud, human-centred design, workflow automa-tion and making better decisions using data analytics, so that our learners will be equipped with the knowledge and skills to navigate the rapid transformation brought about by digitalisation.The FLI will be organised around three workstreams:

1. FIATA standards as well as certificates ( FIATA diploma in freight forwarding, the higher diploma in supply chain management, and the ICAO-FIATA dan-gerous goods training).

2. Digital learning as well as international cooperation.

3. Attracting and maintaining young and new talents to industry.

“FIATA’s minimum standards and curricula will be strengthened to

include business 4.0 tools and technologies.”

It is impossible to think about the fu­ture of logistics without mentioning the current digitisation of the supply chain. As part of the implementation of the reset programme, FIATA de­veloped and approved an ambitious digital strategy last May. What is the significance of this stra tegy and how will members gene rally benefit from it?Robert Voltmann: FIATA’s digital stra-tegy involves several projects to promote a freight forwarders’ trusted network, share and distribute standards, and fos-ter interoperability and data analy sis. Two initial projects were launched in June: the trusted digital members regis-try, and the digital document library. This is significant because the registry will constitute the first nece ssary step to allow FIATA members to enter the digital world, by certifying the identity of freight forwarders and ensuring that they ful-fil the requirements to benefit from the different solutions provided by the digital strategy.The digital standard-template library, on the other hand, will address the current chal-lenge of controlling the distribution and multiplication of electronic versions of trade docu ments. This will make standard FIATA templates easily available to all freight for-warders and stakeholders through their eve-ryday tools and will indeed represent a great bene fit for our members.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 202014 | MEET THE FIATA PRESIDENCY

Intellectual property is a major con­cern for a great many organisations and is one of the issues addressed in the reset programme. Why is intel­lectual property such a crucial issue for FIATA and the freight forwarding community and what actions have been taken in this field since the be­ginning of the year?Ivan Petrov: FIATA’s forms and docu-ments are subject to copyright protection and are used worldwide to facilitate inter-national trade for the benefit of its mem-bers. The digital strategy, for example, will contribute to better overall protection and use of FIATA’s intellectual property.We are also conducting an audit of current licensing processes, to ensure the optimi-sation of administrative and compliance process, and to ensure documents are used in the correct authorised manner. It is important to preserve the excellent

reputation of FIATA’s name and our logo, so we are currently revising brand guidelines and FIATA intellectual property statements to provide clarity and reinforce our position.

“The digital strategy will contribute to better protection and use of FIATA’s

intellectual property.”

The reset programme points out that, to really remain relevant, FIATA needs to promote sustainable practices and engage young professionals. What ac­tions has FIATA taken since the begin­ning of 2020 to start building a strong community of young freight forwarders and develop its overall work in the field of sustainability?Turgut Erkeskin: FIATA has completely modernised its overall communications this year. One example is the reactivation of so-

cial media accounts with key messaging; another is the promotion of current work to address a younger audience of freight forwarders.The FIATA newsletter and magazine have also been given a new look to make them more interesting to younger audiences, along with the website as well, which now has a more user-friendly sitemap and is visually rather more appealing.FIATA also continues to promote the Young International Freight Forwarder of the Year Award, to recognise young tal-ent: We will develop a promotional plan that is integrated into the larger com-munications strategy, as reaching the younger generations is crucial to FIATA’s work moving forward. Finally, the FIATA Presidency has produced guidance for the Working Group Sustainable Logistics that will help us further our sustainability objectives in an inclusive manner, with small and larger companies.

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 FIATA MEETINGS AND EVENTS | 15

COMING SOON FOR FIATA MEMBERS

A DEMURRAGE AND DETENTION TOOLKITFollowing the FMC’s landmark decision on demurrage and detention, FIATA is set to launch a dedicated toolkit this autumn, geared towards empowering members to promote the decision in their national contexts.

The Working Group Sea Transport (WG Sea) continues to proactively address the need to ensure a fair and level playing field in maritime logistics. In recent months, FIATA welcomed a landmark decision made by the US Federal Maritime Commission (FMC)  – its Final Rule on Demurrage and Detention, which came after an extensive six-year investigatory process. Though the FMC decision applies solely to the United States of America, the FMC’s analysis and findings apply worldwide. Demurrage and detention charges are a global issue, after all, and therefore the decision has the po-tential to have important implications in other jurisdictions. Ultimately, the goal is to ensure that all demurrage and detention

charges are reasonable and in line with their purpose, which is to incentivise cargo and equipment velocity.

Ready in autumnFIATA is therefore set to harness the exper-tise of the WG Sea by launching a dedicated FMC final-rule toolkit this autumn, geared to-wards empowering members to promote the decision in their national contexts to regula-tors, policymakers and industry. The toolkit will include a press release to be adapted and distributed to local media, presentation slides, and a detailed analysis of the FMC’s final rule, from which FIATA members can ex-tract and use the parts of greatest relevance in their national environments. In addition,

the WG Sea Chair, Jens Roemer, will be on hand to present an exchange on this topic at FIATA regional meetings, to promote and fos-ter understanding of the topic for the benefit of the industry.

FIATA will play a leading roleAs the global voice of freight forwarding logis-tics, the launch of this FMC final-rule toolkit is a crucial step in FIATA’s commitment to play a leading role on the worldwide issue of demur-rage and detention. It is hoped that the FMC’s final rule will have a knock-on effect to end unreasonable and unjust practices, and pro-mote transparent and reasonable demurrage and detention practices that improve supply chain fluidity.

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decision on this topic.”

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020

PAVING THE WAY TO SUSTAINABLE LOGISTICS

TRANSFORMING WASTE INTO INTELLIGENCEFIATA encourages more solutions such as Ponera’s. Think of it as the Lego of pallets, providing a smart, modular and digitally-enabled solution that can be assembled into any size and can reduce packaging costs as well as CO2 emissions.

The Ponera Group was established in Switz- erland in 2019 by two colleagues and friends from EPFL, who believe that eco-friendly solutions are necessary to shaping the future of our fast-growing world.Together they developed a unique logis-tics solution, based on an innovative pal-let system, designed to decrease packing costs by minimising transport inefficiencies. The Ponera Group’s CEO, Matthew Reali, describes the great benefits of investing in circular logistics.

The story of PoneraThe journey began many months prior to the creation of Ponera. Working in opera-tions strategy for several years, the target was always to find ways to be more efficient, deliver on time, and with high quality. In the industrial sector I observed at first-hand for several years how complex port folios of goods transported every day led to low standardisation in industrial packaging, and still relied on solutions which have not really evolved for decades. As packaging is often

produced in smaller quantities, with diverse load requirements, material and hand ling costs of industrial packaging are high and can have a huge negative impact on com-panies’ profits. The packaging is often used only once before reaching the end of its life-cycle, which results in a vast volume of wood waste and an inefficient use of re-sources that offers very low sustainability.Having been exposed from a young age to the transport industry, with access to sea-soned logistics professionals, this situation seemed illogical, and we could not find a good explanation for it. So there was a big impact opportunity to optimise the pro-cess. That was when the spark came; what if we had a flexible solution which could be modelled to any specific need, work trans-versally for different product types, easing the user’s pain, and allow an effective and seamless integration of state-of-the-art technology to their supply chains? Since that thought, not a day went by without thinking of how to make this a reality.We improvised a first meeting as a friendly get-together, co-founder Masoud Ponera and I, where we spoke about this challenge.

From there it quickly became clear that we just

had to embark on the journey of developing our inno vative and

disruptive venture, which we would lat-er call Ponera. After

numerous challenges, failures and pivots we were happy to develop the patented con-cept and design, receiving very encourag-ing endorsements from industrial and aca-demic environments. From there, creating the Ponera Group was the only logical next step forward.Our mission is to create circular logistics through our modular and digitally-enabled industrial packaging solution, delivering un-precedented efficiency and transpa rency in freight logistics. Our vision is to transform waste into intelligence, by substituting one-time use packaging into valuable operation-al assets, orchestrating a sharing economy and enabling activity-based digital solutions. To achieve this, we have built a strong team with passionate people  – with both scien-tific and industrial backgrounds – who have jumped to the challenge. We were joined by world-class advisors and have been granted much support by industry professionals. It has been very exciting!

The Ponera solutionThink of Ponera as the Lego of pallets. A smart, modular and digitally-enabled solu-tion, which can be provide in any size on account of its assembly. It facilitates cir-cular logistics, guaranteeing full flexibility and high convenience to users. Given the right logistic flows, Ponera’s solution can reduce packaging costs and CO

2 emissions by an order of magnitude. The introduction of smart modularity will allow us to provide effective IoT solutions in the whole freight

16 | LEARNING AND SUSTAINABILITY

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The Lego of pallets: a

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digitally-enabled solution.

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 LEARNING AND SUSTAINABILITY | 17

transportation system, increasing the over-all transparency, efficiency and effective-ness of the solution.The use of biopolymers ensures the possibi-lity of reusing the packaging many times in the long duration of life, and its full re-cyclability. There are three core skills that we seek to offer our partners’: physical packaging innovation, IoT solutions, as well as process knowledge, which acts as a pre-cursor to all our developments.Logistics can be a complex field, where mul-tiple services and factors need to be consid-ered to provide the customer with a strong service. Working together with other like-minded logistic service providers  – espe-cially freight forwarders, who play a key role in enabling their client’s effective processes through a circular economy  – we can cre-ate huge impact. The freight forwarders can influence processes prior to and after the goods’ transport phase is completed. With Ponera’s solution, freight forwarders can enable their clients to make huge savings and have positive climate impact through their value chains, upstream, downstream and during transport.

Sustainable logistics in Switzerland and beyondWith regards to sustainability, we think indi-viduals, companies and government entities all have an important role to play. Our busi-ness interactions have shown us that both multinational corporations as well as young ventures are increasingly putting a focus on, and showing commitment towards, reaching the sustainable development goals.A clean-tech ecosystem is now evolving in Switz erland, as we can see from our talks with government associations, from speak-ing to potential clients, and through our in-teractions with other ventures at the EPFL Innovation Park, where our business cur-rently operates from.One trend that we have observed in the transport field, however, is that a lot of at-tention is placed on people’s mobility, and less on freight logistics. Given that freight represent approximately one third of total global transport emissions, this is a topic which should continue to gain traction in the coming years. From our viewpoint, the international community also seems to be

taking action and moving in this direction, as FIATA can also testify.As logistics is an international industry, in-terregional trade is at an all-time historic high (pre-COVID-19) and sustainability is a global topic, it is fundamental that we reach a global audience to make a signifi-cant impact. The solution we offer is just as effective in regions outside Europe: in-deed it even has a higher potential of CO

2 emissions mitigation in areas where top-ics such as deforestation are an issue, or where energy sources are more polluting, for example.

Addressing the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)To put this in simple numbers, it has been estimated that up to 50% of hardwood pro-duction in the USA is used to produce pal-lets as well as crates. On top of this, about 25% of global CO

2 emissions are caused by freight logistics and manufacturing (8% and 17% respectively).Ponera impacts exactly these verticals. We have conducted specific analyses, using his-torical client data on specific logistics flows, where our CO

2 mitigation potential can be

higher than 80%. At Ponera we feel a big re-sponsibility to support the attainment of the United Nations’ goal of reducing emissions by 50% by 2030.We are particularly committed to three SDGs: SDG  13 on climate action, SDG  12 on responsible consumption and produc-tion, and SDG 9 on industry innovation and infrastructure.

Looking into the future of logisticsThe goals are to increase overall efficiency and sustainability by optimising our trans-port capacity use, handling operations and material consumption worldwide. This can be achieved through physical, operational, as well as digital interconnectivity, for which we need open and collaborative logistics systems.Ponera can play a big role in fulfilling a move in this direction by accomplishing our vision. By substituting consumable packaging material (used but a few times) in connected assets, we facilitate effective sharing economies and enable our clients and partners to dynamically optimise ope-rational processes.

The use of biopolymers ensures the possibility of reusing the packaging many times.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 202018 | FIATA MEMBERSHIP

FIATA MEMBERS CONTINUE THEIR STRENGTHENING

VIRTUAL SPACES IN THESE TIMES OF COVID-19As the pandemic has put a halt on face-to-face events, our members have stepped up to the challenge, gone through a full digital transformation to continue their daily activities, and developed more e-learning courses and webinars. Here are their stories.

BRAZIL, ACTC

The Conflict Mediation Chamber (CIMEC) of the Association of Forwarding Companies, Air Cargo Agents, Customhouse Brokers and Intermodal Operators (ACTC) resumed activi-ties in August, after four months of inactivity due to COVID-19, with a series of webinars on issues related to the labour legal frame-work, as well as the programming of training courses for mediators, scheduled for 2020.

BULGARIA, NSBS

The Bulgarian National Freight Forwarding Association (NSBS) developed a new pro-gramme structure for its digital courses, shortening its eight-hour classroom lecture schedule to a six-hour online session (two

hours, thrice a day). The vocational train-ing centre’s decision to go virtual received further impetus from the extraordinary cir- cumstances caused by the outbreak of COV-ID-19. NSBS now enjoys greater demand for its learning courses, due to the convenient access to training.

CANADA, CIFFA

The Canadian International Freight Forward- ers Association (CIFFA) has rebranded and re-designed its courses, formerly known as the advanced certificate programme, into the new FIATA Diploma course in Advanced Freight Services. This online course is the last step re-quired to qualify for the FIATA Diploma in Can-ada. By highlighting and promoting the FIATA diploma in the course name and covering the cost of the application for an e-diploma, CIFFA hopes to encourage more Canadians

to achieve this international recognition. The course is offered entirely online, and provides an e-textbook, online lessons, exercises and online exams to allow any Canadian interested in the diploma to work towards this goal.

CHINA, CIFA

This month, the China International Freight Forwarders Association (CIFA) celebrated 20  years since it was founded and joined FIATA. With 21  member freight forwarder associations and more than 6,200 mem-bers in mainland China, CIFA has delivered 1,067  FIATA Diplomas and 383 ICAO-FIATA training certificates. CIFA was awarded the title of ‘Outstanding Social Organisation’ in 2010 and hopes to continue to collaborate with other Association Members over the next 20 years and beyond.

CYPRUS, CCFAA

The general assembly of the Cyprus Clear-ing and Forwarding Agents Association (CCFAA) elected new board officers for the next two years. George Loutsios was elected as president, Pambos Pieri as vice-president, Georgia Iordanou as secretary and Paris Onisiforou as treasurer. The following were elected as board members: Andreas Ortho-NSBS witnessed greater demand when it offered virtual programmes.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 FIATA MEMBERSHIP | 19

doxou, Fotos Charalambous, Eleni Savvidou, Lefteris Hadjioannou and Georgia Charalam-bous. Iacovos Hadjivarnavas, finally, was elected as manager.

ETHIOPIA, EFFSAA

The Ethiopian Freight Forwarders and Shipping Agents Association (EFFSAA) started its Young Logisticians Training Programme, organ-ised in collaboration with the Deutsche Gesells-chaft für Internationale Zusammen arbeit, to offer the FIATA Diploma in inter national freight forwarding to 80 unemployed university gradu-ates. EFFSAA aims to increase qualified human power in the sector and play its role on minimis-ing the national unemployment rate by creating job opportunities.

HONDURAS, AHACI

Despite COVID-19, the Asociación Hondure-ña de Agencias de Carga y Operadores Logís-ticos Internacionales (AHACI) has contribut-ed greatly to the integration of the logistics chain and its ability to face the challenges of a competitive globalised environment. AHACI remains committed to working for its mem-bers, expanding their representation both in public and private fora in the logistics sector, and guiding them to perform in an efficient and overall effective manner.

HONG KONG, HAFFA

The Hong Kong Association of Freight For-warding and Logistics (HAFFA), together with 11 other logistics bodies, organised a press conference on 13  August, requesting the government to launch an anti-epidemic fund 3.0, to help ease the financial burden, es-pecially on SMEs, experienced during COV-ID-19. HAFFA Chair Brian Wu was a speaker at the event, voicing members’ concerns and answering media questions. Video recording, a joint press release, and photos are avail-able on the HAFFA website.

NORWAY, NLFA

The Norwegian Logistics and Freight Asso-ciation (NLFA) made an unprecedented digital transformation from conventional training to a virtual classroom in a matter of weeks, due to COVID-19, including train-ing eight instructors and 40 students. The NLFA is also organising two awards this year: the ‘Young Talent Award’, recognising loyalty, initiative and innovative thinking (to be awarded later this year), and the ‘Envi-ronmental Award’, to stimulate the deve-lopment and dissemination of knowledge about sustainable and innovative logistics and transport solutions. The winner of the Young Talent Awardwill also be given the opportunity to represent Norway in the

FIATA Young International Freight Forward-er of the Year Award.

PAKISTAN, PIFFA

The Pakistan International Freight For-warders Association (PIFFA) will hold elec-tions in September, where members will elect 50% of its executive committee for the next two years. Once formed, the ex-ecutive committee will include a new chair, a senior vice-chair and a vice-chair, they will commense office from 1 October and pursue objectives.

PANAMA, APAC

The Panamanian Association of Freight For-warders (APAC) celebrated 30 years since its founding. Established as a beacon of ed-ucation and the voice of the logistics sector in Panama, APAC was certified as a FIATA Diploma provider in 2016. It has led several trade missions, including to government institutions. In 2019 in Cape Town, APAC finally achieved its greatest dream and won the bid to host the 2023 FIATA World Con-gress. APAC’s board of directors are look-ing forward to welcoming FIATA members in Panama.

PHILIPPINES, PMTLAI

The Philippine Multimodal Transport and Lo-gistics Association Inc (PMTLAI) launched its ‘Digital Week’ (21–24 July), to assist its members in their digitisation initiatives and alleviate the impact of COVID-19 on their operations. The PMTLAI also organised a virtual forum, entitled ‘Navigating Labour Rules under the New Normal’, in which the under-secretary of the department of labour and employment discussed new la-bour regulations.

Panama’s APAC is looking forward to hosting the 2023 FIATA World Congress.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020

PORTUGAL, APAT

The Portuguese Freight Forwarders Associa-tion (APAT) signed an agreement with CIFA allowing the two to rebuild a bridge between China and Portugal, the westernmost coun-try in Europe. APAT believes, especially in the light of the difficult circumstances be-ing faced globally, that the good relationship between both associations is of great value to members in both countries, and looks for-ward to straightening out ties in the future.

SINGAPORE, SLA

A total of 16 members of the Singapore Lo-gistics Association (SLA) benefited from two online workshops in robotic process automa-tion (RPA) in July 2020. The two-day online programme was sponsored by Workforce Sin-gapore, in collaboration with the Singapore National Employers Federation and Singapore Polytechnic, and was part of SLA’s continu-ous effort to encourage its member compa-nies to transform their logistics operations. The workshop demonstrated how businesses could redesign job roles and automate some of the internal process to bring about an im-provement in productivity and assist employ-ees to move up the work-value chain.

SWITZERLAND, SPEDLOGSWISS

In addition to new business models and in-novations for ‘Economy 4.0’, many new jobs and job profiles are emerging, as seen by a reform project for basic vocational train-ing at the Swiss federal level. Spedlogswiss is actively involved in the core team as an industry representative. The profile of inter-national freight forwarder will be revised by 2022, to develop new expertise and social skills, so that the new generation will be equipped to meet the demands of the digital age in the industry.

SYRIA, SIFFA

An agreement between the Syrian government and a Russian company was signed last July to invest into the port of Tartous, where the Russian company will improve and develop the port, increasing the port facilities and terminal with a large capacity starting from the quantity of 4 million tons per year producing or passing through the port of Tartus and reaching 38 mil-lion tons yearly, with a target of 2 million TEUS to be reached yearly. This improvement will stimulate the maritime shipping process and positively affect the freight industry in Syria.

UGANDA, UFFA

The Uganda Freight Forwarders Association (UFFA) had 26 certificated trainers who will facilitate the delivery of the UFFA-FIATA Di-ploma in International Freight Forwarding. These constitute the Course Planning Team that has developed the curriculum for a train-ing programme which meets the FIATA mini-mum standards.On 24 April 2020, the FIATA Logistics Insti-tute validated their training programme mak-ing UFFA the 47th FIATA Association Member to have their curriculum validated to deliver the training. For more information, visit the UFFA website.

UNITED STATES, TIA

The board of directors of the Transporta-tion Intermediaries Association (TIA) is con- ducting an executive search for a new CEO, to replace Robert A. Voltmann, who resigned as president and CEO of the associ ation in June. While the search for a new exe cutive is underway, Chris Burroughs, TIA’s vice-president of government affairs, will serve as the point of contact for FIATA. TIA is looking forward to continuing to work with FIATA and its members to advance our shared goals and overall missions.

20 | FIATA MEMBERSHIP

Spedlogswiss can help shape basic vocation-

al training at the Swiss federal level to 2022.

SLA organised two online workshops on robotic process automation in July.

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 KNOW YOUR FIATA | 21

DOES ANYONE KNOW… WHERE CAN I FIND… WHO LOOKS AFTER?

AN ASSOCIATION POLICY HANDBOOK? FOR WHAT?The ability to pass the correct knowledge from one place or person to another is highly dependent on the quality of the corporate memory and knowledge base. In this series of ‘Know Your FIATA’, we introduce the purpose of publishing our Association Policy Handbook.

How often have we heard these questions in our business, as staff seek answers to questions on policy, process, or practice? In small to medium-sized enterprises, cor-porate knowledge is usually in the hands / minds of senior management or long-ser-ving staff. Little is committed to writing or consolidated in an electronic file or hard-copy as an easy access library of corporate information.So, what happens when these people are no longer in the organisation? What happens to their knowledge? Staff have to rely on do-ing the best they can, undertaking discovery learning and usually spending considerable time as well as effort to find an answer.

Keep the corporate memory aliveWhile corporate memory is one of the great-est benefits to a business, it does not re-ceive the due attention and maintenance it deserves. The usual comment? We are all too busy.The simple solution is a corporate policy and procedure document, in whatever form and complexity, which will provide direc-tion, guidance, uniformity, consistency and retention of knowledge on key issues. It enables all staff to be aware of, and un-derstand, the overall corporate philosophy of the organisation, and why things are just as they are.In organisations, of whatever size or com-

plexity, corporate knowledge, rather than just knowledge in its human re-

sources, either as staff or voluntary sup-

port, is not only desirable but critical to the organisation’s operation. Federations such as FIATA remain constant, while its human resources can be transient.The ability to pass the correct knowledge from one place or person to another is high-ly dependent on the quality of the corporate memory and knowledge base.

Consolidating policy in FIATAIn this regard, FIATA commenced a build-ing process through the consolidation of certain key policy and process information related to FIATA, in the second release in November 2019 of its Association Policy Handbook for Association Members, the presidency, the extended board, and its head office. The handbook consolidates policy-related issues in FIATA. It covers is-sues such as:yy rules of procedure for specific bodies and meetings;yy privacy policy/data collection;yy board / staff relationships;yy financial policies;yy record-retention policy.

The handbook is a living document and will be linked to FIATA’s statutes and its key data repository for head office support to FIATA’s institutes, advisory bodies and external work. The handbook is another resource for Association Members in the ‘Know your FIATA’ series of articles, which will be delivered in Association Member sessions at the FIATA World Congress and HQ Meetings. Ph

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FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 202022 | AGENDA

Marc Huybrechts, chair of next year’s FIATA World Congress (FWC) and long-time member of Forward Belgium, the national logistics association organising the 2021 FWC, discusses key topics to be addressed at the congress, including sustainability in logistics, innovation and digitalisation trends, and of course COVID-19.

What’s new at the 2021 FIATA World Congress?

INTERVIEW

Why did Forward Belgium bid to orga­nise the 2021 FIATA World Congress?Marc Huybrechts: If I remember well, Belgium already organised the FWC in Antwerp and Brussels, but the last time was more than 30 years ago. So we want-ed to bring the FWC ‘flame’ back home once again.Forward Belgium (formerly known as the Confederatie der Expediteurs van België, CEB) has always been very much involved within FIATA. Members such as Herman Doncker, Frank Boogaerts, Jean-Claude Delen, to name but a few, have partici-pated in several FIATA activities over the past years. Recently, Jens Roemer pro-vided outstanding contributions, on So-las / VGM and best practi ces regarding demurrage and detention, to the Working Group Sea in the Multimodal Transport Institute.We wanted to go a step further, and bring our contribution to a wider and inter-national level, hence Forward Belgium put in a bid and raced for the organisation of the 2021 FWC.

FIATA is introducing a new programme at the 2021 FWC. What are the new fea­tures and specificities that will be un­veiled at the congress?MH: With the world moving and evolving at high speed, the FWC has to reinvent itself to ring in change within the logistics industry. FIATA and Forward Belgium are seeking to el-evate the FWC by introducing a more compact programme, bringing a more attractive set of panellists and speakers, and focusing more on sharing more practical overall knowledge.The 2021 FWC will also give logistics stu-dents and young professionals top billing, as they will have an entire congress day dedi-cated to them. The younger generations are next in line to bring our industry to the next level. They are the ones who will become more involved with FIATA, with the ulti mate goal to help make FIATA futureproof.

What will be different from past edi­tions of the congress?MH: The 2021 FWC organising team will continue to build on the long tradition of suc-cessful congresses of the past years, with the

last edition in October 2019 in Cape Town a particular highlight. One major difference compared to previous years is a new focus on composing a substantive programme, with relevant speakers from our sector. Our partic-ipants will be able to take home concrete and practical know ledge, as well as material that can be easily applicable and that will have an impact on their day-to-day work. Today, we actually are launching the Congress website - www.fiata2021.com - so you can already find more congress news there!

“FIATA and Forward Belgium are seeking to elevate the FWC by introducing a

more compact programme.”

There is an emerging trend where most SME (small- and mid-size companies) are putting more emphasis on their daily opera-tional activities. However, they have voiced the opinion that they need more guidance regarding  – amongst other things  – CO

2 reduction, digitalisation, and innovation to make themselves futureproof. This is defi-nitely something that we would like to ad-dress at the 2021 FWC.In a nutshell: less high level, and much more focus on daily practice.

Next year’s congress theme is The Changing Climate of Logistics, which can be read in many different ways. What does it mean and why did you choose it?MH: Sustainable logistics are very high up on the agenda of the industry, which has

Your chance to make your voice heardBecause the FIATA World Congress would not happen without the parti­

cipation of its members, the 2021 FWC is introducing a call for contributions.

Are there any topics you would like to see covered at the FWC, specific

issues you would you like to see addressed, stories you would like to listen

to, speakers you would like to hear from?

Send your suggestions to dutertre@fiata.com, and let’s build the

2021 FWC programme together.

FIATAREVIEW  #134 | September 2020 AGENDA | 23

been held increasingly accountable for the challenges posed by environmental issues, as we have seen. Our sector has demanding goals surrounding sustainabil-ity that we need to address and achieve. However, it is not such an easy concept to apprehend, foremost for SME (small- and mid-sized companies). At the 2021 FWC, we from Forward Belgium, as a national as-sociation, together with FIATA, want to pro-vide these companies with tools to guide them. Hence the need for us to take re-sponsibility and provide tangible answers on this topic.We can also see sustainability in the con-text of making supply chains more resi-lient. The COVID-19 pandemic has had an enormous impact on logistics worldwide. It is important to know how to deal with the consequences and impact of the pandemic on the logistics chains. For example, what will happen in the future with demand for transport with regards to nearshoring ver-sus offshoring? Many more questions will need to be addressed in line with this overall framework.Innovation and digitalisation are also of the utmost importance. We feel and know that our members – companies – need gui dance on this. There are a lot of initiatives, such as blockchain, data exchange /sha ring plat-forms, digital documents, etc., but companies can no longer see the forest for the trees. We

need to provide members with concrete so-lutions linked to these digi tal initiatives. The 2021 FWC in Brussels is the ideal moment to make something of a round-up of where com-panies have experienced the biggest impacts, and how we can address the ongoing relevant challenges for the future.

“Innovation and digitalisation are of the utmost importance. We know that our members need guidance on this.”

COVID­19 forced the Korean associa­tion to postpone the 2020 FWC. Are you worried for the 2021 FWC? Have you considered alternative options to run­ning the 2021 FWC?MH: We remain optimistic that the 2021 FWC will take place. Pharmaceutical com-panies are working hard to produce vac-cines, at the latest by the end of 2020, and there is good hope that enough vaccines will be made available before October of this year. But we need to remain vigilant and cautious, of course, as we do not know how travelling will be possible in the next few months. We certainly do not know exactly how the virus will evolve. We thus remain in a period of uncertainty. In the meantime, we are considering offering an online / digi-tal alternative.

When is registration for the 2021 FWC set to open?MH: We aim at opening registration this autumn. We also have many exciting new opportunities in terms of sponsoring and exhibiting at the 2021 FWC, and we would be very happy to discuss them in depth. To have a booth or stand of your own, please do not hesitate to contact us at fiata2021@aimgroup.eu.

For those who do not know Belgium or Brussels very well, how does the country stand out, logistics­wise?MH: Brussels is Belgium’s capital and is also the de facto capital of the European Union, making Brussels the decision-making centre of Europe. It is very well connected to the biggest consumer cen-tres in Europe. Belgium has five seaports (Antwerp, Zeebrugge, Gent, Ostend and Brussels) and three major cargo airports (Brussels, Liege and Ostend) to serve them. Belgium is also ranked third in the Logistics Performance Index (LPI) of the World Bank.

“We have many exciting new opportunities in terms of spon­

soring and exhibiting at the 2021 FWC.”

Belgium has one of the densest highway and railroad networks in the world  – if not the densest. We have an ever-growing number of European distribu-tion centres, because of efficiencies and economies of scale in warehouse operations. An attractive labour market with a highly-educated, multilingual and very productive workforce, strategically located in Europe, are what makes Bel-gium unique.At the 2021 FWC, we will also organise a logistics exhibition. Forward Belgium, to-gether with the port of Antwerp, Belgian customs, Brussels airport, Liege airport, the port of Zeebrugge and others, will have one big Belgian logistics pavilion during the entire congress. Marc Huybrechts on the 2021 FWC: “Less high level, and more focus on daily practice.”

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FIATAWORLDCONGRESS26-29 OctoberBRUSSELS

The changing climate of logistics

2021 FIATA World Congress Secretariatfiata2021@aimgroup.eu

FORWARD Belgiuminfo@forwardbelgium.be

The 2021 FIATA World Congress website is now live!For more information, visit: www.fiata2021.com