SRI LANKA - FIATA€¦ · Mr Jack Ampuja, President Supply Chain Optimizers LLC, has given FIATA the privilege of hosting his article on eCom-merce, as he sees this asa major dilemma

Magazine of the International Federation of Freight Forwarders Associations

No. 116 | March 2017

SRI LANKABEYOND TEA

wareHoUsiNg

Greater focus onbetter packaging

yiffy’s call

Mentorship programmefor women in logistics

How to learN

Singapore bankingon talent and training

Logistics Bridging Global Trade

FIATA’s theme in 2017 highlights the importance of logistics as a strong enabler of trade which is

highly dependent on intermodal transportation to move freight between land, sea and air. It

reinforces the importance of strategic direction in transforming Logistics into an integrated

network, supporting the global trade of international economic operators.

FIATAWorld Congress 2017 (FWC 2017) is hosted by Malaysia, a major logistics player in the region

and the “Gateway to ASEAN”. Its strategic geographical location at the crossroads of Asia makes

it an attractive trans-shipment centre and a vibrant regional logistics hub.

FWC 2017 will be an excellent opportunity for industry players to meet, exchange and share the

latest and most innovative in global logistics.

FIATA WORLD CONGRESS 2017

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre4th – 8th October 2017

FIATA WORLD CONGRESS 2017

Kuala Lumpur Convention Centre4th – 8th October 2017

Re-connect With Fellow-Industry Members!Be Amongst The First to Get Updateson Latest Logistics Developments!

Supported by:Hosted by:In Association with:

Registration Now Open!Deadline for Early Bird Registration: 30th Jun 2017

www.fiata2017.org

No. 116 | March 2017 FIATA REVIEW 3

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EXCLUSIVEEditorial5 From the President’s Desk

Country Report7 Sri Lanka –

actively engaged withthe rest of the world

LSP redefined8 Jack Ampuja

Optimizing packagingto reduce cost

Personally10 Meet Fortunate Mboweni,

YIFFY of 2014How to introducewomen to logistics

Transformation in Singapore12 Thomas Sim –

The future of the industrylies in innovation and training

Here & There / Agenda15 Happy Birthday15 Forthcoming Events15 Masthead

FIATA SecretariatSchaffhauserstrasse 104, PO Box 364CH-8152 Glattbrugg/SwitzerlandPhone +41 (0)43 211 65 00, Fax +41 (0)43 211 65 [email protected], www.fiata.com

Cover:Sri Lanka –pearl of theIndian Ocean.

Photo: Thinkstock

4 FIATA REVIEW No. 116 | March 2017

Friday, 31st March 2017Time Name of the Meeting Location Contact person

07:30 – 17.30 Registration by PCO Guest one Zurich Tourism Goody Bags handout Foyer Elena Primitzhofer

08:00 – 10:15 Region Africa and the Middle East Gottfried Keller (part Romeo) Bassil Eid

08:30 – 10:15 Region Americas Othmar Ammann Verena Schaer

08:30 – 10:15 Region Asia Pacific Patio Süd & West Daniel Bloch

08:30 – 10:15 Region Europe Gottfried Keller (part Julia) René Zimmermann

10:15 – 10:45 Coffee break** Main Forum (foyer) Elena Primitzhofer

09.30 – 12.00 Zurich Tourism booth open to guests Main Forum (foyer) Elena Primitzhofer

10:45 – 12:00 Advisory Body Legal Matters Gottfried Keller René Zimmermann

12.00 – 13.30 Zurich Tourism booth open to guests Main Forum (foyer) Elena Primitzhofer

12:15 – 13:15 Lunch & Learn with the FIATA Logistics Academy (sandwich lunch offered)** Gottfried Keller Verena Schaer

13:30 – 14:45 Advisory Body Safety and Security Gottfried Keller Bassil Eid

15:00 – 16:15 Advisory Body Vocational Training Gottfried Keller Verena Schaer

16:15 – 16:45 Coffee break** Main Forum (foyer) Elena Primitzhofer

Thursday, 30th March 2017Time Name of the Meeting Location Contact person

09:00 – 16:00 Meeting of the Presidency* FIATA Secretariat Marco Sorgetti

16:30 – 18:30 FIATA Foundation* FIATA Secretariat Barbara Wieser

19:30 – 22.30 Presidency Dinner* TBA (Pick-up at 19:30 at the Crown Plaza) Marco Sorgetti

Saturday, 1st April 2017Time Name of the Meeting Location Contact person

07:30 – 17.30 Registration by PCO Guest one Zurich Tourism Goody Bags handout Foyer Elena Primitzhofer

09:00 – 10:30 Association Members’ Forum Gottfried Keller Marco Sorgetti

10:30 – 11:00 Coffee break ** Main Forum Elena Primitzhofer

11:15 – 12:30 Custom Affairs Institute Gottfried Keller Daniel Bloch

12:30 – 13:30 Participants’ lunch** Restaurant LetziLeu Elena Primitzhofer

12:30 – 13:30 Lunch & Learn with WG Sustainable Logistics* Restaurant Relais des Art Verena Schaer

13:45 – 15:00 Advisory Body International Affairs Gottfried Keller Bassil Eid

15:15 – 16:30 Advisory Body Information Technology Gottfried Keller Bassil Eid

16:30 – 17:00 Coffee break ** Main Forum Elena Primitzhofer

17:00 – 18:30 Multimodal Transport Institute Gottfried Keller René Zimmermann

19:30 – 23:00 Dinner of the Extended Board* TBA (Pick-up at 19:30 at the Crown Plaza) Marco Sorgetti

Sunday, 2nd April 2017Time Name of the Meeting Location Contact person

09:00 – 12:00 Meeting of the Extended Board* Gottfried Keller (part Julia) Marco Sorgetti

12.00 – 13.00 Sandwich lunch Main Forum

NOTA BENE:If you are not FIATA member you may not be admitted to the Headquarters’ Session. If you wish to become amember, please log on to: http://fiata.com/membership/becoming-a-member.html.

*FIATA Presidency, FIATA Foundation, FIATA Sustainable Logistics WG and FIATA Extended Board meetingsare for members of these bodies only.

** Sponsoring the coffee breaks and lunches in the conference area is possible; if you are interested pleasecontact FIATA.

All Meetings of the Institutes, Advisory Bodies, Standing Committees and WG’s are regulated by Rulesof Procedure.

FIATA HEADQUARTERS SESSIONZurich, 30th March – 2nd April 2017Hotel Crown Plaza, Badenerstrasse 420, CH-8004 Zürich, Phone: 41 44 404 44 44

Welcome toWelcome toZurich 2017


FROM THE PRESIDENT’S DESK

logistics sector. It has invested S$4.5 billionin it, with the main objective of buildingstrong logistics talents. ABVT Chair ThomasSim explains this in an interview, which alsoexpands on the ambitious programmes thistiny but important island harbors.

Another interview features Ms FortunateMboweni, 2014 YIFFY Award Winner,who tells us about her experience in thedevelopment of her carrier after winningthe YIFFY Award in 2014. I am sure manyof you remember her award winning pre-sentation in Istanbul.

Mr Jack Ampuja, President Supply ChainOptimizers LLC, has given FIATA theprivilege of hosting his article on eCom-merce, as he sees this as a major dilemmafor Logistics Service Providers. FIATA isfully engaged in this issue as you may havefollowed our activities at WCO and WTOlevel through our circulars.

This number’s country report is about SriLanka, a spectacular politically independentisland in the Indian Ocean, which we dis-cover is not only a tourist attraction.

Let me briefly mention that this is my con-cluding year at the helm of FIATA, theorganisation I have presided with specialpride and satisfaction. I thank you all foryour support thus far and exhort you toprepare for the elections that will take placein the fall.

Looking forward to a busy and successfulyear, in the spirit of the Rooster, I will bedelighted to meet you in Zurich at the endof March.

Huxiang ZhaoFIATA President

We have started the year of the

Rooster, and Chinese tradition has

it that theRooster is favorable to thosewho

work hard. I am sure this is very positive

for FIATA, considering how earnestly we

all take this activity. I have seldom seen

such an engaging group of people; this is

particularly noticeable in January, when

the membership renewal period comes.

There are now nearly 7,000 renewals: it is

a big job for the Secretariat, which handles

reasonably well such a remarkable con-

stituency of enterprises. Being a member

is obviously an opportunity for good busi-

ness, but it is also a sign of distinction of

which we are all very proud.

This is also the period when we look for-ward to the Headquarters’ session. You havesurely seen the new online tools, which wereprepared by the Secretariat and came withpersonalised invitations. This is an eventwhich underlines the privilege (and duty)of being a FIATA member or delegate; Iknow many of you avail themselves of thisopportunity, which has its cost and cannotbe spread too thin. The HQ should not beconfused with the Congress as their objec-tives are quite different; the HQ is a moreintimate reunion for association members’delegates and individual members, but nota networking session. This is the momentwhen the hard work of the institutes andcommittees comes to full fruition and thepolicy items that are so important in thedevelopment of our sector come to the stagefor reasonable decisions to be taken.

Coming to the Review, we have a specialfeature in this number: the SingaporeanGovernment has a project to transform its

Dear colleagues and FIATA members,


COUNTRY REPORT

SRI LANKA

Reviving theEconomic Foundation

The country’s economy is expectedto grow slowly and steadily amid

a number of fiscal reforms intro-duced by the government, mainly tostrengthen and tighten the mone-tary policy and hoping to arrest ri-sing inflation and high credit growth.While foreign direct investmentsare required to be further enhancedby more attractive propositions, thepublic and private sector investmentscontinue to drive steady GDP growth,supported by the significant increasein tourism, which showed promisingsigns throughout the year 2016, ave-raging a 14% increase compared to2015*.

While a new International MonetaryFund (IMF) program for approximatelyUSD 1.5 billion will offer a policy anchorfor macroeconomic stability and struc-tural reforms, the World Bank approveda further USD 100 million DevelopmentPolicy Financing (DPF) operation, toprovide budget financing and to supportreforms in competitiveness, public sectorand fiscal management.

FORWARD INTEGRATIONThe Sri Lankan export product marketis now increasingly interested in mo-ving forward to claim more ownershipof the outbound supply chain by for-ward integration. This could be cate-gorised as a wise move and an importantstep towards moving ahead from a puremanufacturing mind-set to being a moreentrepreneurial business builder.

This will effectively contribute toeliminating the middle layers and goingdirectly to the market, improving overallmargins, which will hopefully contributeto the bottom line of the trade deficit inthe long run.

LOGISTICS INNOVATIONAs it was historically recognised, SriLanka is placed at the most strategic loca-tion in South Asia to be logistically com-petitive in comparison to economic giantsin the extended neighboring region. Theyear 2016 has been more promising thanany other year; it attracted many foreigntrading tycoons to consider Sri Lanka asa logistics hub or an international distri-

bution center of their services and goodsin the region.

GOOD PERFORMANCE IN 2016The country is now ready with en-hanced infrastructure, with a more sup-portive regulatory framework to discussadvance logistics process innovations

The ‘Pearl of the Indian Ocean’, characterised by its beautiful

beaches and its warm and welcoming people, is moving steadily

towards excellence in logistics through innovation as well as

continuous improvement.

No. 116 | March 2017 FIATA REVIEW 7No. 116 | March 2017 FIATA REVIEW 7

that could yield benefits for the regionas a whole. The port and airport hand-led an all-time record highest numberof consignments in 2016, both inboundand outbound, improving vessel andaircraft occupancy, encouraging opera-tors to increase the allocations for SriLanka. This upward trend is expected

Industry forums and communities likeSLFFA have been successful in draw-ing the required attention for resourceallocation, while simultaneously hold-ing the collective efforts together toachieve success.

*Figure from the Sri Lanka Tourism Board.

to continue with the growth of indus-tries in the country, enabled by infra-structure development. One of the big-gest ocean vessels to call at Sri Lanka in2016, the MSC Maya, was one of manysuch success stories that reveal the in-cremental investments on infrastruc-ture developments and maintenance.

SRI LANKA – FACTS&FIGURES

Official Name: Democratic Socialist Republicof Sri Lanka

Capital: Sri Jayawardenepura Kotte

Form of Government: Unitary semi-presidential constitutional republic

Area: 65,610 km2

Coastline: 1,340 km

Population: 20,277,593 (2012)

Demographic Growth Rate 0.73% p.a.

Ethnic Groups: Sinhalese, Muslims, Sri Lankan Tamils

Languages: Sinhalese, Tamil

Administrative Divisions: 9

Major Trading Partners: India, USA, China, United Kingdom, Italy

Founding Member of SAARC South Asian Association for Regional Cooperation

Logistics Performance Index 2014 Ranked 89th (not featured in the LPI 2016)

"The Sri Lankan export pro-duct market is increasinglyinterested in moving forward."

Skyline of Colombo.

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COUNTRY REPORT


warehousing

Forgotten factors: leveragefreigt cost and optimize

packaging

E-coMMErcE

A Major Dilemma forLogistics Service Providers

When e-commerce shippers out-source logistics services to third

parties, the shipper naturally assumesthat the LSP will handle the full spec-trum of requirements: receiving, put-away, storage, picking, packing, ship-ping. What we have observed is thatbecause LSPs focus on warehousing -this is what they know - they put theirefforts into receiving, put-away, storage,picking and packing labour. While thisapproach isn’t incorrect it is woefully in-complete. Unfortunately, the outboundfunctions of picking and packing typi-cally account for less than 35% of thetotal cost to serve because 65% of each-commerce outbound dollar goes intopackaging and freight cost.

So here is the dilemma: the LSPvalue proposition on e-commerce is thatthey will do the easiest part of the pro-cess – picking and packing - at a lowercost than the client thus focusing theentire relationship on cost efficiency andnot on the best total result. The moredifficult processes of packaging optimi-sation and freight cost control whichmany e-commerce shippers cannot man-age themselves isn’t even on the agendaof most Logistics Service Providers. Wecan confirm this from a recent market-ing effort to work with LSPs to help themdrive down client freight cost by optimis-ing e-commerce packaging; we contactedover one hundred US based warehous-

ing firms and have yet to find a singleone with any interest in working on thisproblem on behalf of their clients. Whilewe anticipated a low level of interest, zerowas a major surprise.

ExtEnd thE scopE of LspOne perspective worth sharing is that lastyear we worked with a large LSP on the e-commerce business of a world leading re-tailer. Our consulting firm was includedin the project only at the insistence of theretailer who opined that LSPs donot have capability to do pack-aging optimisation. And fromworking on this issue with someof the largest warehousing firms in

North America we concur fully with theretailer’s observation. So while LSPs can-not resolve the packaging optimisationissue for their customers, for some rea-son they also avoid bringing in expertisewhich can deliver a solution leaving theunsuspecting customer to endure perma-nently higher logistics costs; also, by notfocusing on packaging and freight fac-tors, LSPs who do try to help customerscut costs must then focus on the 35% ex-pense share the warehouse does control.This creates a huge competitive advantagefor any LSP which is willing to extend itsscope to include packaging and freight.

And trying to leverage freight costwithout optimising packaging will leavea lot of money on the table. Here is anexample. We were retained by a largee-commerce shipper [about 4 millioncartons shipped per year from one loca-tion] to work with their national ware-housing partner to optimise packaging.

What e-commerce shippers often assume is that their Logistics

service providers (Lsps) offer the full range of services. Instead,

they often focus only on warehousing. Yet, besides leveraging

freight rates, the optimisation of packaging costs, e.g. by using

more efficient cartons, can also result in considerable cost reduction.

Jack Ampuja


warehousing

The LSP was utilizing 16 outboundcartons. Our analysis showed that onlyseven of the cartons were appropriate forthe client – more efficient cartons werepossible. So we replaced the nine prob-lem cartons with twelve better ones anddelivered these results:• Reduction in outbound cartons:

167,000 [by having the optimal array ofcartons one larger box can replace twosmaller ones]

• Reduction in outbound carton cube:946,000 cubic feet

• Reduction in dimensional weight:1,416,00 cubic feet

• Reduction in outbound weight: 782,000pounds [all from more efficient boxes &less filler]

All of the above delivered cost reduc-tion of $1.5 million without even touch-ing the freight rates. Imagine the tremen-dous leverage the above improvementscan add to freight rate negotiations. Forsake of discussion let us assume that theclient’s outbound cost of picking, pack-ing, packaging and freight totalled $10million; so packaging and freight makeup $6.5 million with $3.5 million inwarehouse labour. If the LSP focuses onlyon warehouse labour as many of them do,to deliver comparable results they wouldhave to reduce warehouse labour by 40%[$1.5M/ $3.5M]. Is this doable? Proba-bly not. And even if the labour reductionwas achieved what is the incentive for theLSP to pass this along to the client?

Interestingly, the LSP challengedour solution because they ‘didn’t want to

the warehouse? There isn’t enough roomat the carton packing stations so we mayhave to re-engineer them and that couldcause a $250,000 increase in warehouseexpense.’ Although I didn’t say it, I feltlike asking ‘are you stupid - worryingabout $250,000 when the cost reductionis worth $1.5 million?’

And that pretty much confirms thetypical silo thinking that still permeatesthe business world and keeps many com-panies from implementing the best solu-tions available to them.

tackling optimisationBelow is a good example of the limitedperspective logistics service providersbring to the e-commerce party: a typi-cal announcement of an LSP launchinga new facility to support e-commercebusiness.

In the new facility, XYZ will sup-port its retail clients' e-commerce needswhich include receiving inventory intothe distribution centre, loading productinto warehouse storage, picking & packingand value-added services such as kitting,re-packaging, tagging, price sticking, re-labelling and barcoding, all the while en-suring real time visibility of inventory inthe supply chain. Along with order fulfil-ment services, transportation can be pro-vided to retailers for delivering merchan-dise to stores, and also transfer inventorybetween stores. XYZ can also support re-verse logistics including product inspec-tion, destruction and processing consumerreturns from stores to manufacturers.

Note that virtually all of the benefitsare inwardly focused on warehousingfunctions and nowhere is there any men-tion of packaging optimisation or trans-portation efficiency…the two aspectsthat can make the biggest cost differenceto an LSP client.

So the dilemma of e-commerce isthat if logistics service providers aren’tgoing to tackle packaging optimisationon behalf of their clients…then whoseresponsibility is it?

Jack Ampuja, PresidentSupply Chain Optimizers LLC

increase complexity’. I hear this objectionfrom company after company but I haveyet to see a financial analysis that provesthe cost because they were fairly close insize and this change ‘would reduce ware-house costs’.

When we asked how much cost re-duction would be passed on to our cli-ent the answer was ‘we can’t pass any-thing along to the client but the changewould delay a warehouse rate increase’.On the contrary, our analysis showedthe client would absorb a freight in-crease of $250,000 as result of the LSPsproposed ‘efficiency change’. More thanlikely if we had not been on the scenethe client would have accepted thewarehouse proposal and unknowinglyadded a big cost increase to its ownfinancials.

implement Best solutionsMore recently we were in discussion withan engineering firm which was installinga new Warehouse Management Systemfor the same client mentioned above; theengineering firm wanted to understandthe results of our previous packagingoptimisation project.

I informed two engineering execu-tives that we delivered $1.5 million incost reduction and then discussed thechanges we had implemented. WhenI mentioned that we had increased theoutbound carton count from 16 to 19one of the executives started yelling‘don’t you understand what kind of costincrease that kind of logic can cause in

Optimising packaging cost, e.g. by more efficient cartons, is a source of cost reduction

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10 FIATA REVIEW No. 116 | Month 2017

PERSONALLY

YIFFY AWARD WINNER OF THE YEAR 2014

"A mentorship programme tointroduce women to logistics"

Hello Fortunate! So, you won theYIFFYA in 2014. What has hap-pened in your professional lifesince then?In 2014 while busy with the YIFFYAcompetition, I was an Airfreight ImportsController. After winning the competi-tion, I was promoted to a Team Leaderposition. I also motivate upcomingyoung people entering BPL as learner-ship learners.

In 2016 I moved into the commercialdepartment as a Business DevelopmentConsultant Designate. The reason for mymove was because I felt that I needed toimprove my marketing and selling skills.I am currently a Servicing Consultantand really enjoy what I am doing.

What is your greatest successso far?Winning the YIFFYA competition, itopened doors for me in so many ways I

couldn’t have imagined. Having the oppor-tunity to travel internationally for the firsttime ever and being exposed to internationalexperience and receiving all the training.That to me is very priceless.

How do you envision your profes-sional growth in the next 5 years?I always envisioned myself as a KeyAccount Manager and, yes, in the nextfive years that’s what I will be. Not onlythat I also see myself being a great influ-ence not only at BPL but in the freightindustry as whole, motivating the youngpeople who have a passion to make adifference in the sphere of logistics andsupply chain and to become youngprofessionals.

What would you say to otherwomen in the industry to inspirethem?The sky is the limit, you can go as faras you envision yourself. Don’t be tooscared to dream, no matter how impos-sible it looks – if you work hard and be-lieve in yourself, then you can be whoev-er you want to be. You need to also havea good support system, then you willmake it. Never feel too proud to learnfrom experts within the industry. Makesure you find yourself a mentor that be-lieves in you as much as you believe inyourself. I am a living testimony to that

– I couldn’t have made it withoutmy mentors behind me, espe-cially Charles Dey who tookthe lead and interest in men-toring me. A special thank youto him and my other mentors.

What is your take onfemale empowermentin the sector? How canwomen be introduced,encouraged, motiva-ted, and supportedin their growth by theindustry?I think a mentorshipprogramme will be agood way to introducethem. At times, self-mo-tivation is not enough, youneed someone with the drive,passion and of course, who hastravelled the road and seen it all,to coach and mentor you within thisindustry. This doesn’t only motivate youbut it gives you the courage to tackleany challenge that comes your way, aslong as you know that there is a men-tor who has your back at all times.

Which TT Club training did youattend as part of your prize forwinning the YIFFY Award in2014?

Fortunate Mboweni won the Young International Freight Forwarder of the Year competition in

2014. Her prize was to attend and participate in the FIATA World Congress in Istanbul, as well as

to receive a total of five weeks training by the sponsor TT Club. The competition was developed

to encourage training in the freight forwarding industry and to further develop the professionalism

of young people. So almost three years after winning the competition, FIATA Review spoke to her

about her achievements and how the award impacted her professional life.

couldn’t have imagined. Having the oppor-tunity to travel internationally for the fi rst time ever and being exposed to international experience and receiving all the training.

How do you envision your profes-sional growth in the next 5 years?I always envisioned myself as a Key Account Manager and, yes, in the next fi ve years that’s what I will be. Not only that I also see myself being a great infl u-ence not only at BPL but in the freight industry as whole, motivating the young people who have a passion to make a diff erence in the sphere of logistics and supply chain and to become young

What would you say to other women in the industry to inspire

Th e sky is the limit, you can go as far as you envision yourself. Don’t be too scared to dream, no matter how impos-sible it looks – if you work hard and be-lieve in yourself, then you can be whoev-er you want to be. You need to also have a good support system, then you will make it. Never feel too proud to learn from experts within the industry. Make sure you fi nd yourself a mentor that be-lieves in you as much as you believe in yourself. I am a living testimony to that

– I couldn’t have made it without my mentors behind me, espe-cially Charles Dey who took the lead and interest in men-toring me. A special thank you to him and my other mentors.

What is your take on female empowerment in the sector? How can women be introduced, encouraged, motiva-ted, and supported in their growth by the industry?I think a mentorship programme will be a good way to introduce them. At times, self-mo-tivation is not enough, you need someone with the drive, passion and of course, who has travelled the road and seen it all, to coach and mentor you within this industry. Th is doesn’t only motivate you but it gives you the courage to tackle any challenge that comes your way, as long as you know that there is a men-tor who has your back at all times.

Which TT Club training did you attend as part of your prize for winning the YIFFY Award in 2014?

"A mentorship programme to introduce women to logistics"Fortunate Mboweni won the Young International Freight Forwarder of the Year competition in


to receive a total of fi ve weeks training by the sponsor TT Club. The competition was developed



about her achievements and how the award impacted her professional life.

"A mentorship programme to "A mentorship programme to introduce women to logistics"

– I couldn’t have made it without my mentors behind me, espe-cially Charles Dey who took the lead and interest in men-toring me. A special thank you to him and my other mentors.

What is your take on female empowerment in the sector? How can women be introduced, encouraged, motiva-ted, and supported in their growth by the

I think a mentorship programme will be a good way to introduce them. At times, self-mo-tivation is not enough, you need someone with the drive, passion and of course, who has travelled the road and seen it all, to coach and mentor you within this industry. Th is doesn’t only motivate you but it gives you the courage to tackle any challenge that comes your way, as long as you know that there is a men-tor who has your back at all times.

Which TT Club training did you attend as part of your prize for winning the YIFFY Award in

Fortunate Mboweni won the Young International Freight Forwarder of the Year competition in


to receive a total of fi ve weeks training by the sponsor TT Club. The competition was developed



“Make adifference inthe sphere oflogistics.”

No. 116 | Month 2017 FIATA REVIEW 11

PERSONALLY

When I participated in the USA train-ing, I attended a CMR convention atConnecticut. This related to the currentjob that I am doing as a Client ServicingConsultant. I learned that the exhibitionsnot only encourage potential clients andbusiness people to socialise but also to finda way to better improve the services pro-vided to clients.

I also attended my training in UK,at the TT Club head offices. I must say Ilearned a lot on marine insurance, cyber-crimes and a better understanding of howinsurances are paid out and the entire in-vestigation process that goes into claiminsurance.

How were these trainings helpfulin your career development?In both the USA and UK I learnt that, ir-respective of the field in which you work,customer service is key, and a very impor-tant component of delivering excellentcustomer service is the ability to relate toall people at all levels.

Send a message to the 2017YIFFYA Candidates!You need to have it in you to make it,no matter how tough it looks. You justneed to put an extra effort and have be-lieve in yourself. The sacrifice is worth allthe effort.

What is your advice to the younggenerations who want to becomeleading professionals in ourindustry?I like the quote by the late NelsonMandela, “It seems impossible until it isdone”. For a young person to become aleading professional in this industry theyneed to be prepared to do what otheryoung people wouldn’t like to do – work-ing hard.

It is better to invest the time and theenergy in improving yourself and gettingall the education and grasping the oppor-tunities that comes your way. Then at alater stage you will reap all the rewardsand become the change you would like tobe in this industry and in life.

“The sky is thelimit, you cango as far asyou envision

yourself.”Fortunate Mboweni, BPL

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IATA


News

iMplicatioNs of siNgapore's itp oN logistics

Investing in talented youngsters

To drive longer-term economictransformation and take Singapore

to the next phase of development, theGovernment has set aside S$4.5 billionfor firms and industries under a newIndustry Transformation Programme(ITP). One of the main objectives is tobuild up the logistics industry with a fo-cus on talent development. The FIATAReview interviewed Mr Thomas Sim,Chairperson of the Advisory Body Vo-cational Training, to know more aboutthis interesting initiative.

industry transformation1. We know that the Singaporean government is currently conducting aproject to transform the logistics sector. It has invested S$4.5 billion inthis project and one of its main objectives is to build up a strong core of local logistics talent. Why is developingeducated professionals in our sector soimportant?

The logistics sector is dependent onthe global economic environment andinternational trade flows. In the nationaleconomy, logistics contributes a signifi-cant proportion of GDP and works asone of the key engines of growth. Our lo-gistics sector is still affected from linger-ing effects of the global economic crisisand recovery has been slow.

Indeed, in order to achieve maxi-mum synergies in Singapore’s industrytransformation over the next few years,the Singapore Government announcedthe S$4.5 billion Industry Transforma-tion Programme in the last Budget 2016.The programme will integrate differentrestructuring efforts, taking a targetedand industry-focused approach to address

issues and deepen partnerships betweengovernment, firms, industries, trade asso-ciations and chambers of commerce.

Externally, as a small economy witha population just over 5.5 million, Singa-pore naturally faces challenging econom-ic conditions, rising competition, anddisruption from technological advances.Domestically, land and manpower con-straints grow more pressing. The Singa-pore Government continues its supportat the enterprise and worker level. It plansto look more intensively into industry-centred strategy in a more systematic andco-ordinated way.

Under Singapore’s nationwide pro-ject, there will be Industry TransformationMaps (ITMs) developed for 23 industriesunder 6 clusters; together, they cover over80% of Singapore’s GDP. The Council forSkills, Innovation and Productivity (CSIP)will take overall responsibility for the im-plementation of the ITMs.

Each ITM will be tailored to theneeds of the industry. In developingthese ITMs, the Singapore Governmentwill examine deeply the industry land-scape, the future trends and needs to setout a suite of initiatives to systematicallyraise productivity, develop skills, driveinnovation, and promote international-isation, so as to catalyse transformationand achieve the stated vision of each in-dustry. These will be refined over timeto ensure relevancy. The ITMs will berolled out progressively over the nexttwo years…

There will be integrated approach todeveloping skills, innovation and produc-tivity. Each ITM will consist of a growthand competitiveness plan, supported byfour pillars:

• Productivity: Strategies to support com-panies especially our Small and MediumEnterprises (SMEs) to move to highervalue-added (VA) activities and raise ope-rational efficiency

• Jobs & Skills: Investing in people, toequip them with deep skills to supportthe shift to greater value creation

• Innovation: Strategies to leverage R&Dto develop new products and services

• Trade and Internationalisation: Sup-porting companies in expanding tooverseas markets

The future of Logistics will be onethat is driven by innovation, supportedby productive and efficiency processes.There is huge potential in our logisticsindustry and we hope that it will be anindustry of choice for local talents. There-fore, developing educated professionalsin our sector so important…

catalyZe innovation2. One important element of this transportation project is innovation. Howcan training and education catalyseinnovation?

One of the important trends and prac-tices is to reduce reliance on manpower inLogistics Warehouses through robotics andautomation. Amongst the many initiativeswhich will be launched in phases, we plan to:• Pilot the use of Autonomous Forklifts

in Logistics Warehouses and Terminals,etc. Autonomous Forklifts will replacemanual operators and they can and willoperate 24x7 hrs;

• Job redesign for warehouse and logisticsoperations to manage and work withthe robots and AGVs;

• Our SMEs can expect future adoptionsto be easier and more affordable;

• Work closely with the Centre ofInnovation – Supply Chain Management(COI-SCM) to identify emergingscalable technologies to transform logis-tics operations;

singapore has earmarked s$4.5 billion for a transformation pro-

gramme of its industries, also the logistics sector. thomas sim

explains its scope and the implications for training and education.


News

• Attract and train logistics talent forthe industry – The Logistics Academy(TLA), a fully-owned subsidiary of theSingapore Logistics Association (SLA)was set up to provide intensive vocatio-nal training for logistics professionals.To date, TLA-SLA have completedover 10,000 training placements inSingapore;

• Continue with the Annual Case Com-petition, the “Supply Chain Challenge”(SCC) to expose Institute of TechnicalEducation (ITE) and Polytechnic stu-dents to real-world supply chain issuesand solutions. More than 1,000 studentshave participated since its inception in2012 (and also at the opening of theFIATA World Congress 2013 event inSingapore, which had over 100 teamsparticipating from 6 technical institu-tions, and saw over 500 participants ineach year’s event). This Supply ChainChallenge (SCC) has since been a regu-lar exciting competition to expose and

Phases of DeveloPment3. We heard at the FIATA World Con-gress in Dublin in the Training andEducation session that half of currentoccupations will not exist by 2030. Theforecast is that jobs that do not existnow will exist then, probably led bynew technologies. Do you think someof these future-oriented jobs will becreated by this transformation project?

The future of Logistics will be onethat is driven by innovation, supportedby productive and efficiency processes.Based on our industry researches, the fol-lowing factors are expected to make themost significant impact to the next phaseof development in the logistics sector:

(i) Geographical Shift• Emergence of Asia and ASEAN mar-kets (ASEAN is expected to contribute asignificant proportion of world logistics).

• Change in production / manufacturinglocations (Global manufacturing bases

groom both young budding entrants tothe transport logistics and freight for-warding sector in Singapore. It is a greatplatform to integrate industry playersand operators with the budding stars oftomorrow through intensive companyattachments with industry projects anddevelop and design SCM solutions, re-searched and proposed by these partici-pants for application and adoption ofthese solutions;

• For new entrants to the industry, SLAhas recently developed a ‘LogisticsIndustry Career Guidebook’, which willprovide a comprehensive view on careeropportunities, progression, and emer-ging skillsets required in the logisticsindustry of the future – see a copy ofthe ‘Logistics Industry Career Guidebook’.With the improvement in industry

branding through training, innovationand productivity enhancement, we hopeto see more Singaporeans entering thelogistics sector as the industry of choice.

News


are changing; major players have multiplemanufacturing and assembly locations; in-ventory is de-centralised; 3D printing maydisrupt traditional production models).

(ii) Shift in Customer Requirements• Preference for specialisation (customers

in specific segments like O&G, chemi-cals, etc., prefer to work with logisticscompanies that have specialised skills).

• Increasing preference for on-time deli-very (customers both in B2B and B2Care emphasising on-time delivery).

• Emergence of e-Commerce (signifi-cant volume in logistics is driven bye-Commerce).

(iii) Shift in Technology• Increasing emphasis on automation and

robotics (e.g. ASRS, Drone deliveries, etc.)• Localisation, Big Data and Location

Intelligence (these are expected to makea significant difference to the decision-making process)

• Internet of Things (making variousSMART options available in logistics)

We have seen the rise of Asia in recentyears. Emerging business and technologytrends are pervasive in the global econo-my, like e-Commerce resulting in B2Cproliferation, Omni-Channel Retail, 3Dprinting and on-demand manufactu-ring, Robotics, Internet of Things, andAugmented Reality (AR) in Warehousingand Inventory Controls, Specialisationin niche sectors, such as healthcare, foodand chemical logistics, smart controlledtechnologies, etc. Consolidation andshared services (UBER, GRAB, etc.),Crowd-Source Delivery and ResourcePooling has become a new normal…

Therefore, the ITMs intend to developmultilateral platforms, not only to engagemulti-stakeholders in identifying these newdemands, new requirements and expecta-tions, thus new knowledge and skills readyfor new jobs, but also developing trainingopportunities for the ‘new workers’.

New skills Necessary

4. Mr S. Iswaran, Minister for Tradeand Industry in Singapore, mentionedthat the transformation of the industry

will require new skills. Which skillsdo you think are necessary for a younglogistics professional to be successfulin the industry?

As we already see it now, the futurelogistics operations will likely be trend-ing towards the employment of:• IOTs – Internet of Things;• Big Data & Predictive Analytics;• AGVs – Autonomous Guided Vehicles;• Drones;• Collaborative Robots;• Hands-free Wearables (HFWs) and

Head-up Displays (HUDs);• Focussed Last-Mile Fulfilment (LMF);• Network Optimisation;• Technology Integration;• Supply Chain Synchronisation;• Vertical Specialisation;• Integrating City Planning with Logis-

tics Plannings;• Market Consolidation;• Innovation Models;• Electronic Logistics Marketplace (ELMs).

I perceive that jobs will evolve frombeing largely functionally-focused to-day to requiring broad-based, cross-functional and integration capabilitiesin the future. As business becomesmore end-to-end driven across areas(e.g. freight forwarding, Warehouse),it is critical that key business positionsacquires sufficient level of understand-ing of multiple areas.

With greater customer demandand expectation, trends on big dataas well as technology adoption, Dataanalytics skills, technology applicationskills, process improvement skills willbe part and parcel of the knowledgeand skills.

Overall Process Improvement andInnovation Management will alsobecome extremely important. Bothvertical and horizontal integration inknowledge and skills acquisitions areextremely important.

Therefore, in order for young logis-tics professionals and aspiring logisti-cians to succeed now and evermore inthe near future, they will have to con-tinuously enhance their skills, know-ledge and attributes to include all thementioned areas of changes.

traNsfer of kNowledge

5. How important is Lifelong Learn-ing in this context? And how can aninternational federation such as FIATAensure that experienced professionaltransfer their knowledge to the newgenerations?

As we are all aware, human resourceis one of the most important comparativeadvantages in any industry and any econo-my. Vocational education builds on a foun-dation of good general education as well ascontinuing relevancy in the workplace.

Vocational education as commonlydefined ‘covers any form of educationwhose primary purpose is to prepare per-sons ready for employment in recognisedoccupations’. It provides skills, know-ledge, and attitudes necessary for effectiveemployment in specific occupations; ourtransport logistics is no exception.

The concept of ongoing, voluntary,and self-motivated pursuit of knowledgeor Lifelong Learning has always beenthe backbone of employment, social andpersonal development. To ensure self-sustainability, as well as competitivenessand employability in today’s fast movingand disruptive world, every individualwill have to recognise that learning is notconfined to childhood or the classroombut takes place throughout life and in arange of situations.

Constant scientific and technologicalinnovation and changes has now madeLifelong Learning a new normal, whichhas now been embraced fully by society,governments and individuals alike.

As the global apex body for TransportLogistics, in my opinion FIATA can bean important catalyst in augmenting itsactive global memberships, whom are theoperators playing critical roles in their re-spective economies.

Through its education bodies – theFIATA Advisory Body Vocational Train-ing (ABVT) and FIATA Logistics Aca-demy (FLA), FIATA is an excellent plat-form to continue to closely develop newtraining methodologies and to outreachto all the global industry and its globalmemberships to meet the ever demand-ing disruption of consumer demands andworld trade.


HERE & THERE / AGENDA

May 4–6, 2017

Casablanca, MoroccoRAME Field Meeting

June 28, 2017

Bangkok, Thailand

11th RAP Field Meeting

September 14–15, 2017

Duisburg, Germany

UIC / FIATA Market Place Seminar

October 4–8, 2017

Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

FIATA World Congress

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NEXT EDITION

MAY 2017

Happy Birthday!FIATA congratulates three well known delegates to their birthday.We wish them many more years of good health and happiness.

Mr Francesco S. Parisi (Italy) celebratedhis 65th Birthday on 1st January 2017.Mr Parisi has been a longstanding FIATADelegate since 1995, he was Senior VicePresident of FIATA from 2009–2013,was President of FIATA from 2013–2015, and became Immediate Past Presi-dent in 2015.

Prof JanRamberg (Sweden) celebrated his85th Birthday on 1st February 2017. ProfRamberg has been a longstanding Dele-gate since 1965 and Honorary Membersince 1992. He is also well known as theauthor of the books “The Law of FreightForwarding” and “The Law of TransportOperators in International Trade”.

MrRobert Keen (United Kingdom) cele-brates his 65th Birthday on 11th March2017. Mr Keen has been a longstandingFIATA Delegate since 1997, and since2013 he has been the Chairman of MTI.

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How we makeart exhibitionsmore successful.This year, wedelivered a world-famous paintingcustom packagedin airtight conditionsfrom Shanghaito Zurich and thenonwards to a museumin Bern, where itsexhibition createda sensation, drawingmore visitors thanever. This is just oneof the many successstories we sharewith our customers.

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SRI LANKA - FIATA€¦ · Mr Jack Ampuja, President Supply Chain Optimizers LLC, has given FIATA the privilege of hosting his article on eCom-merce, as he sees this asa major dilemma