Regional liberalisation issues will put pressure on the shipping and logistics industry in the next few years, while this year is expected to be the most difficult, a logistics expert said last week.
The ASEAN fact sheets are as follows:
1. Local logistics service pro-viders will be forced to deal with stiffer competition as a result |of market liberalisation," said |Assoc Prof Ruth Banomyong, director of the Centre for Logistics Research, Thailand.
If the economy is not going |well, users might reduce their demand for global contracts, prompting international service providers to shift their focus to the local market
2. As a member of Asean, Thailand needs to open all modes in its transport and logistics sector - air, rail, road, inland water, and ports and maritime, he said.
3. Policies for the Asean logistics sector roadmap need to promote the integration of Asean national logistics systems, progressive liberalisation of logistics services, increased trade, logistics and investment facilitation, and mul-timodal transport capacity, he |said.
4. Airfreight transport services were designed to open last month and rail and road freight transport services last year. There is no deadline.
5. The other logistics services such as maritime cargo handling, storage and warehousing, freight transport agency, courier, packaging, and custom clearance services were set to be opened by 2013.
6. In terms of Asean rail transport issues, there is still a lack of double tracks, no dedicated tracks for rail freight services, some private freight train operations, some container train operations, no centralised or advanced train control system, and limited intermodal facilities.
7. For Asean road transport, even Thailand would benefit from the East-West Corridor highway linking northern Burma to Vietnam via Thailand and Laos. But there are still some infrastructure problems in newer member countries, high costs in many inland areas, truck bans in major cities, and insufficient harmonised rules and regulations.
8. Thai trucks can run in Laos but are banned in Vietnam and Vietnamese trucks can drive in |Laos but not in Thailand, while Laos has no trucks of its own.
In this case, Thai carriers could operate truck services in Laos by setting up a joint venture with local transport firms there. However, Japan's logistics firms are now operating truck carriage services in Laos.
9. For Asean inland water transport, there was limited usage, services are not fully computerised, and port facilities are not as advanced as seaports.
Asean ports and maritime is probably the most developed mode of transport in the region, with strong mainline connections and relative high level of IT usage, but this varies among countries.
10. The outlook for ship owners, shipyards and ship-owning nations is quite bleak. There is a clear oversupply of dry bulk carriers. "Traders and providers of transport services can do rather little against the fluctuations in freight costs as the industry is in the free market. They cannot control their service prices.
11. Demand for more integrated services will be a trend for logistics service providers.
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Budget Airlines-The Indonesian Scenario
Saturday, January 24, 2009
Call to Accommodate Budget Airlines
The Jakarta Globe, Putri Prameshwari, January 23, 2009
We have in the past week heard a lot of rumble regarding Air Asia's proposal to have their own air terminal at Labu. The situation in Indonesia is no different as the basic policy is to allow for any private investor to be a player in the market.
New aviation laws have created the opportunity for private investors to build and operate airports catering to budget or low-cost airlines, an aviation official said this week.
“As long as the investor is fully committed to serving the public, they can build such an airport,” said Budhi Mulyawan Suyitno, the director general of civil aviation at the Ministry of Transportation.
Currently, passengers of low-cost carriers share the same terminals with regular flights.
Under a 2009 aviation law, the private sector can take part in building and managing airports in the country. Presently, airports in eastern Indonesia are managed by state-owned PT Angkasa Pura I, while those in western Indonesia are operated by PT Angkasa Pura II.
Suharto Abdul Majid, the head of the air transportation forum of the Indonesian Transportation Society, said that there should be a clear difference between low-cost carriers and full-service airlines in the country.
“One of the problems is that Indonesian cities don’t have secondary airports that are dedicated to serving passengers of low-cost carriers,” he said, adding that regular airports charged high rates for carriers to rent hangars and aerobridges.
Suharto said that the boundaries between the two kinds of airlines still remained unclear. However, he said, safety should be the main priority, ahead of offering low-priced tickets.
“The government should make a distinction between low-cost and full-service airlines,” he said, adding that the main difference between the two was that “low-cost carriers sell food and beverages.”
Airports for low-cost carriers should still offer safety and comfort for passengers, Budhi said.
“But they should be simpler than regular airports,” he said. “The real challenge is how to make them comfortable for the passengers.”
Following the fall of President Suharto in 1998, the country’s airline industry has grown rapidly. The number of low-cost carriers has increased, but passenger safety and plane maintenance have often been overlooked.
In February 2007, seven of Adam Air’s Boeing 737-300 jetliners were grounded by the Directorate General of Civil Aviation after a hard landing in Surabaya, East Java Province, damaged one of the planes. A month earlier, an Adam Air jetliner with 102 people on board disappeared while flying over the Strait of Makassar.
Friday, January 23, 2009
LOGISTICS-Courier Service
Friday January 23, 2009
Express carrier to compete more on service, less on price
2009 CEO OUTLOOK
GD Express Carrier Bhd CEO Leong Chee Tung says this is also a good time to uphold and improve relationships with clients
YOUR outlook on the express carrier industry for 2009?
With the world in recession, the domestic economy is expected to slow down. We expect the industry to register zero to negative growth due to:
Leong Chee Tung
● lower rates (from lower fuel surcharge)
● lower volume in international trade due to tight credit and credit destruction and hence affecting contract manufacturers in Malaysia
● drop in capital expenditure and investment from businesses due to less capital raising (from initial public offerings) and budget tightening
● reduced domestic consumption from weaker stock market, lower commodity return, stagnant property market, lesser tourism spending and higher unemployment
● generally pessimistic outlook as everybody is expecting more shockwaves from the US and Europe.
Express carriers for the import and export sectors are expected to be harder hit due to the severe situation in the US and Europe. We expect the industry to be more competitive, and many players may resort to price undercutting.
Due to the shrinking market, international express carriers may venture deeper into the domestic carrier business. Related industry players (for example, transport and logistics) may also expand into the express carrier industry.
Within the industry, we may see a possible consolidation as this economic crisis is likely to claim a few casualties. We expect the economic recovery to be slow, possibily not until 2011.
Challenges for the industry, especially in a slowing economy?
The biggest challenge is to break away from the low price-poor service vicious cycle and get into the price-value service virtuous cycle.
In a slow economy, there is greater downward pressure on price from customers. And the draw on industry players into pricing competition will be stronger.
This will result in the whole industry charging sub-normal rates in general, becoming unable to attract the best people, and worse, driving the talents away from the industry. The end result is an industry that provides sub-standard service from sub-standard people.
The reverse is the starting point to any meaningful development in the industry. Competition should be more on service and less on price. But it still won’t guarantee automatic entry into the virtuous cycle.
Regarding people as our asset must occupy the centre value in any successful development for the industry.
That comes to our next point, which is attracting and keeping good people into the industry. The foreign players are doing well on this. The domestic players have to catch up.
The other major challenge is to seek common ground where the industry players can work together for improvement. The Association of Malaysia Express Carriers has made some headway over the past few years. However, more consensus and mutual trust can be achieved if the key players are convinced there are such all-win common grounds to work on.
Strategies to overcome the economic slowdown?
Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity. And cash flow is realty. As a company, the most important thing to ensure in an economic slowdown is cash flow.
We must ensure our billing, accounting and collection functions are in tip top form. Between profit and cash flow, the latter must be given priority.
From top management to finance personnel, we must practise forward planning in cash management to ensure sufficient buffer for the worst case scenario. Budget discipline must be upheld and sufficient financial lines secured.
We must also maintain good customer relationships. Never mind sales volume may drop or even vanish during this bad period, we must uphold and even improve our relationship with the customers that have supported us during the good times.
If there is a slowdown in business, it is a good opportunity to upgrade the skills of our people by intensifying training programmes. It is also a good time to inculcate the company’s value system in our people.
In summary, our strategy is to enhance our chances of survival while strengthening ourselves.
How GDex can help companies improve their delivery process during this slowdown and in this era of globalisation?
GDex can provide companies with customised logistics solutions on their various distribution and delivery requirements. We will study customers’ needs and propose a solution to outsource their logistics requirements partially or fully.
The end result must be either reduction in cost or improvement in delivery effectiveness, or both.
GDex’s role is to empower its customers with the “reach capability” to all parts of Malaysia in a timely, controlled and reliable environment.
Areas of growth that a homegrown express carrier can enter in the face of competition from established international players in the global market?
The main areas of growth are in non-document areas. Potential growth areas include business-to-business direct distribution from importers/manufacturers to retailers; business-to-consumer Internet order delivery fulfilment and home delivery service. Other new areas include bio-medical and security-handling delivery services.
Express carrier to compete more on service, less on price
2009 CEO OUTLOOK
GD Express Carrier Bhd CEO Leong Chee Tung says this is also a good time to uphold and improve relationships with clients
YOUR outlook on the express carrier industry for 2009?
With the world in recession, the domestic economy is expected to slow down. We expect the industry to register zero to negative growth due to:
Leong Chee Tung
● lower rates (from lower fuel surcharge)
● lower volume in international trade due to tight credit and credit destruction and hence affecting contract manufacturers in Malaysia
● drop in capital expenditure and investment from businesses due to less capital raising (from initial public offerings) and budget tightening
● reduced domestic consumption from weaker stock market, lower commodity return, stagnant property market, lesser tourism spending and higher unemployment
● generally pessimistic outlook as everybody is expecting more shockwaves from the US and Europe.
Express carriers for the import and export sectors are expected to be harder hit due to the severe situation in the US and Europe. We expect the industry to be more competitive, and many players may resort to price undercutting.
Due to the shrinking market, international express carriers may venture deeper into the domestic carrier business. Related industry players (for example, transport and logistics) may also expand into the express carrier industry.
Within the industry, we may see a possible consolidation as this economic crisis is likely to claim a few casualties. We expect the economic recovery to be slow, possibily not until 2011.
Challenges for the industry, especially in a slowing economy?
The biggest challenge is to break away from the low price-poor service vicious cycle and get into the price-value service virtuous cycle.
In a slow economy, there is greater downward pressure on price from customers. And the draw on industry players into pricing competition will be stronger.
This will result in the whole industry charging sub-normal rates in general, becoming unable to attract the best people, and worse, driving the talents away from the industry. The end result is an industry that provides sub-standard service from sub-standard people.
The reverse is the starting point to any meaningful development in the industry. Competition should be more on service and less on price. But it still won’t guarantee automatic entry into the virtuous cycle.
Regarding people as our asset must occupy the centre value in any successful development for the industry.
That comes to our next point, which is attracting and keeping good people into the industry. The foreign players are doing well on this. The domestic players have to catch up.
The other major challenge is to seek common ground where the industry players can work together for improvement. The Association of Malaysia Express Carriers has made some headway over the past few years. However, more consensus and mutual trust can be achieved if the key players are convinced there are such all-win common grounds to work on.
Strategies to overcome the economic slowdown?
Revenue is vanity. Profit is sanity. And cash flow is realty. As a company, the most important thing to ensure in an economic slowdown is cash flow.
We must ensure our billing, accounting and collection functions are in tip top form. Between profit and cash flow, the latter must be given priority.
From top management to finance personnel, we must practise forward planning in cash management to ensure sufficient buffer for the worst case scenario. Budget discipline must be upheld and sufficient financial lines secured.
We must also maintain good customer relationships. Never mind sales volume may drop or even vanish during this bad period, we must uphold and even improve our relationship with the customers that have supported us during the good times.
If there is a slowdown in business, it is a good opportunity to upgrade the skills of our people by intensifying training programmes. It is also a good time to inculcate the company’s value system in our people.
In summary, our strategy is to enhance our chances of survival while strengthening ourselves.
How GDex can help companies improve their delivery process during this slowdown and in this era of globalisation?
GDex can provide companies with customised logistics solutions on their various distribution and delivery requirements. We will study customers’ needs and propose a solution to outsource their logistics requirements partially or fully.
The end result must be either reduction in cost or improvement in delivery effectiveness, or both.
GDex’s role is to empower its customers with the “reach capability” to all parts of Malaysia in a timely, controlled and reliable environment.
Areas of growth that a homegrown express carrier can enter in the face of competition from established international players in the global market?
The main areas of growth are in non-document areas. Potential growth areas include business-to-business direct distribution from importers/manufacturers to retailers; business-to-consumer Internet order delivery fulfilment and home delivery service. Other new areas include bio-medical and security-handling delivery services.
Wednesday, January 21, 2009
ASIAN TOURISM
Asian tourism rocky ride in 2009
(Excerpts from article Published: January 22, 2009
by James Pomfret, Reuters)
The facts are as follows:
1. Across Asia -- hotels, airlines and tourism operators are bracing for another tough year as the financial crisis keeps long haul visitors at home, and regional travellers tighten purse-strings with shorter, budget trips. Hong Kong, Thailand and India have suffered sharp contractions, at times worsened by political turmoil, with many projecting negative growth in 2009.
2. Asia's blend of diverse cultures, geography, bargains and exoticism, with travel gems ranging from snowy Himalayan kingdoms to neon-lit capitals, crumbling Khmer ruins and powdery beaches -- have made it one of the world's fastest growing tourism regions in recent years, along with the Middle East.
3. Hong Kong, now one of Asia's top tourist hubs with 29.5 million visitors last year, is predicting visitor arrivals to dip 1.6 percent in 2009, though a steeper drop of 9.2 percent is forecast for non-Chinese visitors.
4. Singapore's tourist arrivals, meanwhile, fell 2 percent last year with more gloom expected, while Thailand and Malaysia both expect 9 percent drops in visitors this year.
5. The U.N.'s World Tourism Organisation (UNWTO) has described the Asia-Pacific region's performance in 2008 as having "deteriorated most rapidly," compared with the Americas, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, with tourism demand expected to be impacted further in the short to medium term. The UNWTO says it expects the decline in trip duration and spending to be "more pronounced" than the fall in arrivals.
6. The International Air Transport Association (IATA) has warned global airlines face their worst business crisis in 50 years with carriers facing possible collapse, revenues tumbling and hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk. Some 300,000-400,000 jobs were at risk among some 32 million or so people now employed around the world in air transport, travel and tourism sectors.
7. Despite the extremely fragile situation, the Pacific Asia Travel Association (PATA) expects Asia, which lured around 280 million international arrivals in 2008, to bounce back and enjoy 4-5 percent average growth over the next three years.
8. Hotel occupancy rates in the Asia Pacific region fell to 66.7 percent last November, versus 76.4 percent for the same period a year before.
9. People are changing their habits.
10. Political instability and shifting government policies have also exacerbated the strain on the tourism sector in countries such as Sri Lanka, India, Thailand and Macau.
The weeklong siege of Bangkok's airports tarnished Thailand's reputation as a tourist haven, and caused around a million foreign visitors to cancel or go elsewhere.
11. Thailand's Central Bank recently forecast tourist arrivals could fall 9 percent this year to 12.8 million, the worst year since 2005 after the tsunami disaster.
12. In India, 179 people, including scores of tourists, were killed in November's Mumbai attacks, when gunmen targeted luxury hotels and other popular tourist spots in India's financial capital. The gloom has since spread to places such as Goa, one of the country's top tourist draws where visitor arrivals fell 25 percent during the peak season, according to officials.
Saturday, January 17, 2009
LOGISTICS INDUSTRY NEWS-Choppy Waters
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Survival of the fittest
THE local maritime industry is expected to sail in choppy waters this year as global trade continues to decline.
But the impact of the global economic downturn on the country’s goods transportation sector is expected to be cushioned as intra-Asia trade is still at a healthy level.
This is reflected by the fact that all major ports in the country – Westports, Northport and Port of Tanjung Pelepas – met their volume targets last year.
The three ports are only anticipating slower growth this year as they could still rely on intra-Asia transhipments as well as the import and export business.
Northport's container yard in Port Klang.
For example, although the price of crude palm oil has been falling in recent months, exports to India, one of the major importers of our crude palm oil, is still robust.
Northport, a major import and export terminal in Port Klang, posted slightly above three million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) last year, up 5% from 2007.
Due to its large exposure to import and export cargo handling, the port is expected to post slower growth this year compared with last year.
But Northport managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Basheer Hassan Abdul Kader earlier said with the company’s low gearing of almost 0%, Northport could withstand the onslaught of the global economic crisis.
Westports, which has more transhipment business, is in somewhat better shape in terms of volume.
But the declining trade is also affecting Westports’ volume to a certain extent, and the port does not expect its “usual” double-digit growth this year.
The port recorded about 16% volume growth in 2008 to slightly less than five million TEUs.
The country’s main transhipment port, Port of Tanjung Pelepas, posted just below 5.8 million TEUs last year, slightly below expectation, but an increase of about 6.1% over 2007.
Malaysian shipping companies which are mainly involved in the container, bulk and crude palm oil (CPO) transportation are also not spared from the whiplash of the global economic crisis.
MISC Bhd, which operates a relatively small container shipping business compared with its main activity of liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation, should withstand the lower demand in container cargo.
The country’s major bulk carrier operator, Malaysian Bulk Carriers Bhd (Maybulk), has now ventured into the lucrative offshore support vessel (OSV) market after a collapse in bulk transportation where the Baltic Dry Index plunged more than 90% from its peak of 11,793 points on May 20.
Maybulk has also completed its proposal to acquire a 22.08% stake in PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH) for US$221mil.
Based on the current local and international demand, the OSV sector outlook is expected to be positive this year.
For main players in the OSV market such as Alam Maritim Resources Bhd and Tanjung Offshore Bhd, it should be smooth sailing.
The current stronger oil price, which breached US$50 per barrel recently, will also propel OSV demand to greater heights this year.
But future financing for fleet expansion could be difficult as banks are getting jittery on lending, especially for this particular capital-intensive industry.
Thinking ahead, Alam Maritim recently entered into a joint venture with CIMB Private Equity to acquire five vessels for a total of US$70mil.
The local logistics sector is already feeling the pinch of the declining trade. This is due to Port Klang’s monthly volume that has contracted by as much as 25% in the past few months.
On the bright side, the current economic turmoil will result in the survival of the fittest and make the industry less fragmented.
Source: Star Online
Survival of the fittest
THE local maritime industry is expected to sail in choppy waters this year as global trade continues to decline.
But the impact of the global economic downturn on the country’s goods transportation sector is expected to be cushioned as intra-Asia trade is still at a healthy level.
This is reflected by the fact that all major ports in the country – Westports, Northport and Port of Tanjung Pelepas – met their volume targets last year.
The three ports are only anticipating slower growth this year as they could still rely on intra-Asia transhipments as well as the import and export business.
Northport's container yard in Port Klang.
For example, although the price of crude palm oil has been falling in recent months, exports to India, one of the major importers of our crude palm oil, is still robust.
Northport, a major import and export terminal in Port Klang, posted slightly above three million 20-foot equivalent units (TEUs) last year, up 5% from 2007.
Due to its large exposure to import and export cargo handling, the port is expected to post slower growth this year compared with last year.
But Northport managing director and chief executive officer Datuk Basheer Hassan Abdul Kader earlier said with the company’s low gearing of almost 0%, Northport could withstand the onslaught of the global economic crisis.
Westports, which has more transhipment business, is in somewhat better shape in terms of volume.
But the declining trade is also affecting Westports’ volume to a certain extent, and the port does not expect its “usual” double-digit growth this year.
The port recorded about 16% volume growth in 2008 to slightly less than five million TEUs.
The country’s main transhipment port, Port of Tanjung Pelepas, posted just below 5.8 million TEUs last year, slightly below expectation, but an increase of about 6.1% over 2007.
Malaysian shipping companies which are mainly involved in the container, bulk and crude palm oil (CPO) transportation are also not spared from the whiplash of the global economic crisis.
MISC Bhd, which operates a relatively small container shipping business compared with its main activity of liquefied natural gas (LNG) transportation, should withstand the lower demand in container cargo.
The country’s major bulk carrier operator, Malaysian Bulk Carriers Bhd (Maybulk), has now ventured into the lucrative offshore support vessel (OSV) market after a collapse in bulk transportation where the Baltic Dry Index plunged more than 90% from its peak of 11,793 points on May 20.
Maybulk has also completed its proposal to acquire a 22.08% stake in PACC Offshore Services Holdings (POSH) for US$221mil.
Based on the current local and international demand, the OSV sector outlook is expected to be positive this year.
For main players in the OSV market such as Alam Maritim Resources Bhd and Tanjung Offshore Bhd, it should be smooth sailing.
The current stronger oil price, which breached US$50 per barrel recently, will also propel OSV demand to greater heights this year.
But future financing for fleet expansion could be difficult as banks are getting jittery on lending, especially for this particular capital-intensive industry.
Thinking ahead, Alam Maritim recently entered into a joint venture with CIMB Private Equity to acquire five vessels for a total of US$70mil.
The local logistics sector is already feeling the pinch of the declining trade. This is due to Port Klang’s monthly volume that has contracted by as much as 25% in the past few months.
On the bright side, the current economic turmoil will result in the survival of the fittest and make the industry less fragmented.
Source: Star Online
Friday, January 9, 2009
SDC NEWS: Sabah Economic Development Implementation Authority
State Assembly to approve Sedia: CM
Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) is moving into first gear with the approval of a proposal to form a co-ordinating body to be named Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (Sedia) by the State Cabinet, Thursday.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman said a special State Legislative Assembly session on Jan. 15 would specifically discuss and approve Sedia's legal formation.
"Sedia would be gazetted as the SDC implementing authority once it receives two third support members of the Assembly during the meeting next week," he said after chairing the State Cabinet meeting at Wisma Innoprise, Thursday.
There are 60 members in the Assembly comprising of 59 Barisan Nasional and a sole opposition assemblyman from DAP. On Sedia's role and function, Musa, who is also Finance Minister, said it would also be discussed during the assembly session.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had launched the SDC on Jan. 29, last year at Sepanggar Bay Port here. It is a development programme for Sabah within an 18-year period until 2025, in line with the Abdullah's aspiration for Malaysia survival in the next 50 years.
It would become a platform for the people of Sabah to overcome the challenges ahead at least for the first half of the period.
Musa said that they would be appointing Sedia's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and other officers including and board members later.
He was confident that with the formation of the body, it would be able to assist in the achievement of the SDC targets and at the same time to develop Sabah.
To this end, he urged all Sabah elected representatives and MPs to frequently turun padang (go down to the field) to ensure the smooth and successfully implementation of the SDC.
He said they must ensure that all the projects are implemented for the benefit of the people. "We need the support from everyone to ensure that what had been planned could and would be implemented," he said.
He said some projects under the SDC were just waiting to take off while other are still at the discussion table stage.
Excerpt: courtesy of Daily Express
Kota Kinabalu: The Sabah Development Corridor (SDC) is moving into first gear with the approval of a proposal to form a co-ordinating body to be named Sabah Economic Development and Investment Authority (Sedia) by the State Cabinet, Thursday.
Chief Minister Datuk Seri Musa Haji Aman said a special State Legislative Assembly session on Jan. 15 would specifically discuss and approve Sedia's legal formation.
"Sedia would be gazetted as the SDC implementing authority once it receives two third support members of the Assembly during the meeting next week," he said after chairing the State Cabinet meeting at Wisma Innoprise, Thursday.
There are 60 members in the Assembly comprising of 59 Barisan Nasional and a sole opposition assemblyman from DAP. On Sedia's role and function, Musa, who is also Finance Minister, said it would also be discussed during the assembly session.
Prime Minister Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi had launched the SDC on Jan. 29, last year at Sepanggar Bay Port here. It is a development programme for Sabah within an 18-year period until 2025, in line with the Abdullah's aspiration for Malaysia survival in the next 50 years.
It would become a platform for the people of Sabah to overcome the challenges ahead at least for the first half of the period.
Musa said that they would be appointing Sedia's Chief Executive Officer (CEO) and other officers including and board members later.
He was confident that with the formation of the body, it would be able to assist in the achievement of the SDC targets and at the same time to develop Sabah.
To this end, he urged all Sabah elected representatives and MPs to frequently turun padang (go down to the field) to ensure the smooth and successfully implementation of the SDC.
He said they must ensure that all the projects are implemented for the benefit of the people. "We need the support from everyone to ensure that what had been planned could and would be implemented," he said.
He said some projects under the SDC were just waiting to take off while other are still at the discussion table stage.
Excerpt: courtesy of Daily Express
Thursday, January 8, 2009
CITY TRAIN FOR KOTA KINABALU
A CASE FOR ELEVATED CITY TRAIN FOR KOTA KINABALU
The concept of elevated city train (see headlines in Daily Express, thursday 8th January, 2008) is a must for Kota kinabalu if we are to see efficient movement of people within the city for its future plan. I have through a blog entitled "Mass Transit System KK to 1Borneo" in the SDC Blog (www.sabahcorridor.com) talks about the same concept. A City is a city full of people moving about. These movements must be planned so that people movement will be efficient. In modern days and as proven by experiences of other cities, like Kuala Lumpur, to move people on the ground would not be practical anymore due to the complexities of resolving buildings, land and people's interest, that not only it is already congested but when all approvals obtained to put in more roads or widen them, you would already need to upgrade them again.
The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Malaysia (CILTM), Sabah Section, is in full support of what Suria Capital Holdings Bhd Group Managing Director had stated in the Daily today by pointing out several reasons why it should be built. We from CILTM as the body that has interest in the improvement of the quality of transportation needs and services at large, categorically and will see it fit that to build Kota Kinabalu for tomorrow we must start now. The act of shooting down the proposal by Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) with cost as the reason is not looking at it from the state point of view and interests. Perhaps this is the time that the state have a say in the matter for the sake of its future. As proven by KTMB itself its Komuter service serves as a mass transportation system from as far as Port Klang and Seremban to Kuala Lumpur. I would not dare to imagine the catastrophic effect on people's movement if this system is not in place.
Here in Kota Kinabalu, we are only talking about very short distance. The Group MD of Suria stated Kota Kinabalu to Lok Kawi yes agree, very scenic. Serving KKIA yes. And we from CILTM is saying provide another avenues from KK in a northerly direction to 1Borneo. It is as scenic, passing through Likas Bay and serving a lot of activity areas such as government comlplexes, residential areas and of course our very own university, University Malaysia Sabah (UMS), before reaching 1Borneo. How far is the distance that we are talking about? hardly 10 kilometres.
Another issue which we would like raised up, is, with elevated train it is time to get these trains into the city again and not stop at Tg Aru or worse still that they are considering to move it further from the city at either Putatan or Lok Kawi. This is going back into medieval days. Kota Kinabalu must move with the changing times. If Kuala Lumpur is the capital city, Kota Kinabalu being the second busiest airport in the country has a case at hand.
Please everyone, The Ministry of Infrastructure Development, the State Economic Planning Unit, UMS and all NGO's, let us put our heads together and say it in a single voice that we want this system.
Hj Ramli Amir
Chairman
The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport Malaysia, Sabah Section.
The concept of elevated city train (see headlines in Daily Express, thursday 8th January, 2008) is a must for Kota kinabalu if we are to see efficient movement of people within the city for its future plan. I have through a blog entitled "Mass Transit System KK to 1Borneo" in the SDC Blog (www.sabahcorridor.com) talks about the same concept. A City is a city full of people moving about. These movements must be planned so that people movement will be efficient. In modern days and as proven by experiences of other cities, like Kuala Lumpur, to move people on the ground would not be practical anymore due to the complexities of resolving buildings, land and people's interest, that not only it is already congested but when all approvals obtained to put in more roads or widen them, you would already need to upgrade them again.
The Chartered Institute of Logistics and Transport Malaysia (CILTM), Sabah Section, is in full support of what Suria Capital Holdings Bhd Group Managing Director had stated in the Daily today by pointing out several reasons why it should be built. We from CILTM as the body that has interest in the improvement of the quality of transportation needs and services at large, categorically and will see it fit that to build Kota Kinabalu for tomorrow we must start now. The act of shooting down the proposal by Keretapi Tanah Melayu Berhad (KTMB) with cost as the reason is not looking at it from the state point of view and interests. Perhaps this is the time that the state have a say in the matter for the sake of its future. As proven by KTMB itself its Komuter service serves as a mass transportation system from as far as Port Klang and Seremban to Kuala Lumpur. I would not dare to imagine the catastrophic effect on people's movement if this system is not in place.
Here in Kota Kinabalu, we are only talking about very short distance. The Group MD of Suria stated Kota Kinabalu to Lok Kawi yes agree, very scenic. Serving KKIA yes. And we from CILTM is saying provide another avenues from KK in a northerly direction to 1Borneo. It is as scenic, passing through Likas Bay and serving a lot of activity areas such as government comlplexes, residential areas and of course our very own university, University Malaysia Sabah (UMS), before reaching 1Borneo. How far is the distance that we are talking about? hardly 10 kilometres.
Another issue which we would like raised up, is, with elevated train it is time to get these trains into the city again and not stop at Tg Aru or worse still that they are considering to move it further from the city at either Putatan or Lok Kawi. This is going back into medieval days. Kota Kinabalu must move with the changing times. If Kuala Lumpur is the capital city, Kota Kinabalu being the second busiest airport in the country has a case at hand.
Please everyone, The Ministry of Infrastructure Development, the State Economic Planning Unit, UMS and all NGO's, let us put our heads together and say it in a single voice that we want this system.
Hj Ramli Amir
Chairman
The Chartered Institute of Logistics & Transport Malaysia, Sabah Section.
Tuesday, January 6, 2009
Economy Is Getting Real Bad
Downturn in European logistics industry starts to bite
23/Dec/2008 by John Manners-Bell.
The European road freight and contract logistics sectors are increasingly feeling the effects of the economic downturn. In the past few weeks a succession of job losses have been revealed as logistics companies and their customers have cut back or gone bust.
Major Dutch road operator Vos Logistics, for example, is making 345 staff redundant − 145 in the Netherlands and 200 spread across Poland, France and Hungary. Temporary workers will also be affected and some trucks sold off due, according to a company statement, to a sharp decline in freight volumes since October. Some parts of the group have seen a fall of 30% in revenue.
In the UK, 350 workers employed by DHL Exel at furniture retailer MFI's distribution centre in Doncaster, England, have been made redundant. Although DHL is looking for an alternative customer for the site, that will be a challenging task in the present economic environment and there are fears that the warehouse will close completely in February 2009.
Meanwhile, European logistics provider Wincanton is to lay off up to 188 of its employees based at two UK sites, Rochdale and Swindon, Wiltshire, following the decision by Woolworths' administrators to close down that retailer's chain of stores. That is in addition to a reported 900 job losses which will take place when Wincanton's cool chain network is merged with that of rival Culina. Wincanton's depots at Gloucester and Trafford Park, both in England, will be shut.
In France, industry trade association FNTR has revealed that the number of transport companies going bankrupt has soared by 97% to 2,055 in the first eleven months of the year. The situation is even worse for those with more than 50 staff, where the company failure rate has soared by 278%.
In Germany, an on-going survey of logistics companies undertaken by consultancy SCI Verkher has revealed that 70% of operators have experienced a slowdown in volumes and revenues. Around half reported delays in projects and 30% have seen customers go bust. The consultancy commented that German operators had seen a strong first nine months of the year up to the end of September. From that time on the financial crisis had started to impact severely.
Note: I hope we could get some statistics from the Malaysian Authorities so that we could check how bad is the situation over here.
23/Dec/2008 by John Manners-Bell.
The European road freight and contract logistics sectors are increasingly feeling the effects of the economic downturn. In the past few weeks a succession of job losses have been revealed as logistics companies and their customers have cut back or gone bust.
Major Dutch road operator Vos Logistics, for example, is making 345 staff redundant − 145 in the Netherlands and 200 spread across Poland, France and Hungary. Temporary workers will also be affected and some trucks sold off due, according to a company statement, to a sharp decline in freight volumes since October. Some parts of the group have seen a fall of 30% in revenue.
In the UK, 350 workers employed by DHL Exel at furniture retailer MFI's distribution centre in Doncaster, England, have been made redundant. Although DHL is looking for an alternative customer for the site, that will be a challenging task in the present economic environment and there are fears that the warehouse will close completely in February 2009.
Meanwhile, European logistics provider Wincanton is to lay off up to 188 of its employees based at two UK sites, Rochdale and Swindon, Wiltshire, following the decision by Woolworths' administrators to close down that retailer's chain of stores. That is in addition to a reported 900 job losses which will take place when Wincanton's cool chain network is merged with that of rival Culina. Wincanton's depots at Gloucester and Trafford Park, both in England, will be shut.
In France, industry trade association FNTR has revealed that the number of transport companies going bankrupt has soared by 97% to 2,055 in the first eleven months of the year. The situation is even worse for those with more than 50 staff, where the company failure rate has soared by 278%.
In Germany, an on-going survey of logistics companies undertaken by consultancy SCI Verkher has revealed that 70% of operators have experienced a slowdown in volumes and revenues. Around half reported delays in projects and 30% have seen customers go bust. The consultancy commented that German operators had seen a strong first nine months of the year up to the end of September. From that time on the financial crisis had started to impact severely.
Note: I hope we could get some statistics from the Malaysian Authorities so that we could check how bad is the situation over here.
Port News-World's #2 Container Port
Shanghai port held on to its world's no. 2 container port status
Shanghai port handled 28 million TEUs last year, growing its throughput by almost seven percent despite China's rapidly slowing exports.
The annual throughput was reported by China Knowledge Press, which announced that Shanghai had managed to hold on to its world No 2 container port status.
Singapore has yet to officially release its own annual throughput figures, but with 27.6 million TEUs having been handled between January and November, the city-state is certain to maintain its No 1 position.
Shanghai's Waigaoqiao Port handled 15 million TEUs last year, accounting for more than 54 percent of Shanghai's total volume.
Yangshan Deep-water Port handled 8.2 million TEUs as the last phase of its northern section was completed and became fully operational early last month, adding 2.2 million boxes to its existing handling capacity.
Shanghai's total container throughput was 26.1 million in 2007.
@Cargo News Asia
Shanghai port handled 28 million TEUs last year, growing its throughput by almost seven percent despite China's rapidly slowing exports.
The annual throughput was reported by China Knowledge Press, which announced that Shanghai had managed to hold on to its world No 2 container port status.
Singapore has yet to officially release its own annual throughput figures, but with 27.6 million TEUs having been handled between January and November, the city-state is certain to maintain its No 1 position.
Shanghai's Waigaoqiao Port handled 15 million TEUs last year, accounting for more than 54 percent of Shanghai's total volume.
Yangshan Deep-water Port handled 8.2 million TEUs as the last phase of its northern section was completed and became fully operational early last month, adding 2.2 million boxes to its existing handling capacity.
Shanghai's total container throughput was 26.1 million in 2007.
@Cargo News Asia
Saturday, January 3, 2009
China's Port Development Strategy Overseas-A Political Strategy
China uses ports to protect trade lanes
This report is a concern to the United States Military Authorities as it will share its dominance of the control of the sealanes with another up and coming superpower like China.
A port being built in southern Sri Lanka near the main shipping route across the Indian Ocean is part of a Chinese effort to project influence and protect vital trade lanes, according to a US military study, Asia Pulse reported.
The study lists the commercial-shipping container port at Hambantota being built by Chinese contractors as part of China's so-called "string of pearls" strategy to gain political influence and be able to project power in the Indian Ocean region.
It lists China as the main emerging nation-state threat that US forces could confront in a future conflict, along with potential threats from Russia, the Middle East and other places in Asia.
Other facilities listed in the report are Pakistan's Gwadar port, near the mouth of the Persian Gulf, as a naval base and surveillance facility, and the Woody Island airfield in the Paracel Islands in the South China Sea.
These are listed as being useful to China as part of the Chinese shipping-lane-protection strategy.
The US military report identifies China as the most significant potential threat for the American military in the future.
The paper said the report discloses new details of what it describes as Beijing's efforts to build political influence and military power along the strategic oil-shipping route from the Middle East to China, a so-called "string of pearls" strategy.
"China is conducting cooperation with some Asian countries in various fields including ports development, but it's justifiable business for China and the joint ventures are for commercial purposes only," A spokesman was quoted as saying.
"People should see China's activities with a sensible and more balanced approach. As facts have proven, China's activities are for mutual benefit and peaceful purposes, constituting no threat to anyone else."
Construction work on the port in Hambantota is ahead of schedule.
It is being built mainly with a Chinese loan and by two Chinese construction firms. It would be interesting to look at the terms and conditions of the loan as it would throw some light to any hidden agenda that China may have in its effort to have control of important sealanes between the oil producing nation in the Middle East and their homeland.
It is envisaged first as a bunkering facility and later a port for general cargo vessels and eventually to tranship containers. When one envisaged a port as a bunkering facility it is a way of saying that the port would be a base for them to operate from when political situation demands it.
Hambantota was chosen as the site for the new port because of its proximity to the main shipping lane across the Indian Ocean.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Safety In The Sky
Hi everyone!
I am sure that there are a many of us who has got fears about flying, be it because of the heights, past experiences and just being in an enclosed space high up on air, wants to ensure that plane riding is as safe as being on the road to make these fear go away. But many of us dont realise that there are more death on the road than due to accidents up in the air. Accidents on the road happens everyday whilst airspace accident is far smaller but when it happen it causes the lost of many lives.
Perhaps as a matter of educating ourselves on how the Authorities involved in the safety of aeroplane, it is good to open ourselves to a few of incidences that shows the limits and capabilities of aeroplanes and how the Authorities wants to ensure that only when a plane is certified beyond doubt that it is safe for commercial operations, can it be allowed to carry passengers.
Below, Ben Sandilands talks about plane safety as it affects an Airbus A330 and a Boeing 777 owned by our very own Malaysia Airlines.
I am sure that there are a many of us who has got fears about flying, be it because of the heights, past experiences and just being in an enclosed space high up on air, wants to ensure that plane riding is as safe as being on the road to make these fear go away. But many of us dont realise that there are more death on the road than due to accidents up in the air. Accidents on the road happens everyday whilst airspace accident is far smaller but when it happen it causes the lost of many lives.
Perhaps as a matter of educating ourselves on how the Authorities involved in the safety of aeroplane, it is good to open ourselves to a few of incidences that shows the limits and capabilities of aeroplanes and how the Authorities wants to ensure that only when a plane is certified beyond doubt that it is safe for commercial operations, can it be allowed to carry passengers.
Below, Ben Sandilands talks about plane safety as it affects an Airbus A330 and a Boeing 777 owned by our very own Malaysia Airlines.
Another entry for the Airbus A330 X-files!
January 2, 2009 – 6:58 pm, by Ben Sandilands
The Harold E Holt naval communications base near Exmouth on WA’s North West Cape is about to get worked over again as a menace to airliners, at least in the excitable media.
A short while ago the Australian Transport Safety Bureau released this brief but important statement concerning a Qantas A330-300 that experienced an unexplained autopilot disconnection in the early stages of operating QF 71, the Perth to Singapore service on 27 December. The flight returned to Perth without incident other than making a routine ‘overweight’ landing, which meant that it required an additional inspection before being returned to service.
On 7 October a similar Qantas A330-300 operating QF 72 from Perth to Singapore was not so fortunate when it experienced an autopilot disconnection without warning on the final stage of its flight in the opposite direction. A series of bewildering malfunctions ensued, including a brief uncontrolled climb, and two short uncontrolled dives, the first of which was so violent it injured 74 passengers or crew, 14 of them seriously, and lead to an emergency landing at Learmonth.
The Australian Transport Safety Bureau says that “as it appears to be similar…to a previous event…it will be included as part of the earlier investigation.”
That continuing investigation is the most important the ATSB has ever embarked on as it affects the safe operation of hundreds of Airbus A330s in service world wide, and involves the US and French air safety authorities as well as Airbus and Qantas.
The core concern is one of three vital flight data computers called Air Data Inertial Reference Units or ADIRUs which provide the pilots and the autopilot functions with speed and attitude information. The same unit, ADIRU number 1, was the prime source of this vital data when each flight experienced autopilot failure.
On QF 71, on 27 December, the pilots followed the latest revised instructions for dealing with a failure of the unit. That advice, which has itself been revised several times since the QF 72 inquiry began, may have been material in avoiding another serious incident, although confirmation of this will depend on the course of the investigation.
Electromagnetic interference with the A330’s systems by the VLF or very long frequency antenna array at the Harold E Holt base was all but completely ruled out by the ATSB early in the QF 72 inquiry.
The loss of control aboard QF 72 occurred when the A330 was 154 kilometres west of Learmonth. QF 71 was more than four times further away at a point 630 kilometres south of Learmonth, or nearly as remote from the vicinity of the base as Melbourne is from Sydney.
The A330 operating QF 71 was not the same jet that was flying QF 72, although that particular A330 has been repaired and returned to service. Thousands of jets have flown as close if not closer to the naval base than either QF 71 or QF 72 since it was opened, including more than 14 A330s each week in recent years.
A Malaysia Airlines 777 experienced a serious ADIRU unit failure in the general area on 1 August 2005 while flying from Perth to Kuala Lumpur. However in that incident the unit was of a different design and manufacture, and the problem that the pilots had to overcome before making an emergency landing was an uncommanded climb to 42,000 feet at which point the jet exhibited stall warnings.
To paraphrase agent Mulder in the X-Files, the truth about these incidents is out there, somewhere, and unlikely to get in the way of a good tabloid headline or two.
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