8 BULKDISTRIBUTOR Tank Containers May / June 2016
8 BULKDISTRIBUTOR Tank Containers May / June 2016
Banging the drum for tanks in Asia
It has been a busy time of late for the Asian Tank Container Organization (@ tco ). President Reg Lee and technical director Graham Wood both presented at the Asia Chemical Supply Chain Executive Summit held in Shanghai in March . The two day meeting attracted almost 100 people , many of them representing major chemical companies . Lee and Wood ’ s joint presentation was on Asia Chemical / Petrochemical Tank Container Trends and Challenges . They took the opportunity to include new material and photographs from the Tianjin accident which included the safety features of tank containers that prevented them from exploding even when engulfed by fire during the disaster . Also included was some of the new information on the development in Chinese intermodal transport was supplied by Dr Binglian Song , of Shanghai Maritime University . They also highlighted a number of points that they believed logistics professionals in chemical companies should be aware of . For example , they should ensure that any bulk liquid containment systems , such as flexitanks , should not be disposed of in landfill or by other environmentally hazardous methods . Moreover , everyone involved in supply chain management must take responsibility for ensuring the safe disposal of any waste residue generated in the chain . Not surprisingly , they recommend using equipment such as tank containers which Lee and Wood said have a minimal carbon footprint over their life time . In conclusion , they stated : “ The support of chemical companies is imperative for the industry to reach the highest standards in the shortest period of time .” After the presentation , Lee joined a panel discussion on the Challenges & Opportunities of the One Belt , One Road initiative . Moderated by Ee-Foong Ewe , Vice President ICIS Consulting ( and ex Infinum , Singapore ), the panel also included Makarand Inamdar , management & business consultant , Reliance Industries Ltd India , and Justin Barrow , general manager , Damco West China . One Belt , One Road is a Chinese government initiative , introduced by President Xi Jinping , with the stated aim of connecting major Eurasian economies through infrastructure , trade and investment . The initiative was later specified to include two international trade connections : the land-based Silk Road Economic Belt and oceangoing Maritime Silk Road . It became clear as the meeting progressed that not many of the audience fully understood the concept and all had their own interpretation , Lee reported . As far as @ tco members were concerned , Lee said some had already started to move full train loads via the Rail Silk Road from Europe . However , progress has been very slow . In order for the tank container industry to play a part in this initiative the Chinese government must be prepared to invest in improving rail infrastructure , he added . This should include main rail hubs having their own container lifting facilities and modified rolling stock capable of securing tank containers safely . They will also need storage and trucking facilities at these rail hubs for delivery to the final destination . It would also be preferable to have repair and cleaning depots at the major hubs . Without freer access to the Chinese hinterland via railway the Chinese chemical
industry will not be able to compete in their stated aim of “ exporting more liquid chemical in a safe and cost effective manner ”. As for the Marine Silk Road the tank container already is part of this initiative but again it cannot be competitive for some products that must be loaded from inland China points without better and cheaper access to improved rail services linking the ports . Lee advised the audience that they only had to look at the way the European chemical industry had adapted their delivery patterns to road / rail combinations for journeys in excess of 500km . “ This is the way the Chinese chemical industry should go if it wants to sell products in overseas markets at a more competitive price ,” Lee reckoned .
Intermodal Asia
The same week , @ tco co-sponsored a forum at the Intermodal Asia event , also in Shanghai , along with the Association of International Chemical Manufacturers ( AICM ). The forum - AICM Expectations of Tank Containers and Cleaning Depots – was chaired by Ken Tsang , China Advisor , RCLG International Council of Chemical Associations . Dr Alasdair Jelfs , managing director of Merck Chemicals and chairman of AICM , told the audience that AICM introduced Responsible Care to Mainland China in 2002 , and the association now operates on behalf of nearly 70 international chemical companies in China . The role of AICM is to encourage members to bring their global best practices of Responsible Care into China to implement them locally and to propagate those practices more broadly in the industry . As such , members encourage the local industry to raise its performance , particularly in the area of environment , health and safety . One important dimension to its Responsible Care efforts is to promote distribution safety . “ In China , we actively support and organise a variety of activities in those areas ,” he said . He highlighted one particular programme . “ We run the Road Safety Quality Assessment System ( RSQAS ) which checks and improves the performance of logistic service providers . We organise trainings and workshops on key issues and best practices . Furthermore , we have been working with @ tco for the promotion of the safe usage of ISO tank containers ( as ) a lot of our members use them ,” he commented . The association is also a good platform for networking , and by joining firms can quickly discuss recent issues and exchange thoughts and concerns in the field . “ In summary , Responsible Care is embedded in the culture of our members and their logistics service providers wherever they operate ,” he said . “ It has been and will always be our goal to achieve and sustain operational excellence and uphold our steadfast commitment to employees , the community and customers in safety , health and environmental performance . “ We look forward to working closely together with @ tco and the other excellent partners in the chemical industry at large to continue to promote and practice Responsible Care in China for distribution safety and also for a sustainable and brighter future .” Also during the forum Shanghai Maritime University ’ s Professor transport logistic China June 14 - 16 , 2016
Shanghai ( SNIEC ), ITCO Village Hall E2 , Stand 380
Your tank container experts
Song updated attendees on the current China market for tank containers , while Graham Wood spoke on technical and safety issues relating to tanks . The forum theme then switched to listening to customers , where members of the AICM Transportation safety committee Lidia Li , manager BASF and Yang Yi , specialist at Dow Chemical Company presented their views on minimum requirements of tank cleaning . The final paper was delivered by Mike Duan , sales director , Exsif Worldwide , who gave information on risk management and learning from insurance claims . He pointed out that claims analysis provided by insurance mutual TT Club showed that some 46 percent of all claims were caused by contamination of the product being carried in tanks . Following the presentations , Lee and Wood made two separate presentations of depot plaques . The first was to Kerry-ITS , Shanghai depot and the second to the same company ’ s Tianjin depot . Lee praised Kerry-ITS and its workforce for their hard work and dedication in achieving a level of service required by China ’ s chemical industry . He added that he hoped more chemical companies would come to understand the benefits of using Asian depots that have been audited by @ tco . www . atcoasia . com
Reg Lee at the Asia Chemical Supply Chain Executive Summit – the Chinese government must be prepared to invest in improving rail infrastructure
Leschaco opens in Miami
L eschaco has opened a new branch office in Miami , USA , so widening its network of locations in North and South America . The new branch , opened by Leschaco Inc , USA , a subsidiary of the Bremen , Germany logistics service provider Lexzau , Scharbau GmbH & Co , KG , is managed by Amanda Oliveira who has worked in the field of logistics for numerous years and with Leschaco , Inc for eight years . With the addition of the Miami office , Leschaco is now represented in a total of 18 locations in the Americas . “ By expanding the number of our locations in the USA , we are promoting the worldwide Leschaco network ,” commented Jörg Conrad , owner and CEO of the Leschaco group . “ The Miami office opening will present new opportunities to grow and service our increasing customer demand in the Latin American market .” The office will provide FCL , LCL and import services for clients and Mark Malambri , president and CEO of Leschaco , Inc , added that the company and its affiliates looked forward to the continued growth and development in this market . Leschaco , Inc , USA , was founded in Houston in 1978 , where it still has its headquarters . As the competence centre for tank container operations for North and South America , the Houston branch also fulfils a double function .
TWS has more than 25 years of experience in renting out standard and special tank containers for liquid products to the chemical and food industries . TWS also provides various sizes of spill troughs . Customers rely on the outstanding quality of its fleet and value its flexibility in terms of volume and technical features . For more information : E-mail : tws @ tws-gmbh . de and web : www . tws-gmbh . de
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