Cargo and tally services join the Magnum mix

IT SEEMS logical that Magnum Shield Security Services should expand into the associated field of cargo and tally services at the ports. The company has been providing maritime security for a while and last year introduced a Stowaway Search section using trained personnel and dogs that go on board ships and physically search out unwanted passengers. In this they have proved highly successful with the result that many enquiries are coming in from international and local ship owners and agents wanting Magnum to be on duty whenever their respective ships arrive in South Africa. “It’s knowing that we provide a fully professional service that makes such a difference,” says Rob Hill, Magnum Shield’s regional sales manager. But now the company has begun providing another allied service – that of cargo and tally services. “There are strong synergies between stowaway and other ship security services and cargo tallying, so it was obvious that we should move into this allied arena,” says Hill. The company has an established framework involving highly trained personnel, with the emphasis on ‘trained tally personnel’ as opposed to making use of casuals as is often the case in the local industry, says Hill. “This is not an ad-hoc type of business as far as we are concerned – the people providing the tally services must be properly and fully trained and as the company providing that service we are contractually bound to service the client,” he told FTW. Partly as a result of this development Magnum is in the process of establishing offices and proper personnel facilities within the Maydon Wharf area from where the entire range of maritime services can be provided – gangway and ship security, stowaway detection, crew transport and courier services, specialised tours (for crew), meet and assist at airports, Cash to Master services (CTM) and now cargo tallying. All personnel work in identifiable uniforms and highly visible signage will be placed in position indicating when Magnum is on site. Services are currently available in the ports of Durban and Richards Bay but plans are in place to extend these to Cape Town, Saldanha, Port Elizabeth and East London.