CFR adds named-day airfreight services from Frankfurt and LA

Building on the success of its named-day airfreight import consolidation concept, neutral air and seafreight consolidator CFR Freight has added two origins – Frankfurt and Los Angeles – to its service menu. “Because there are so many options out of Frankfurt, it was critical that we put together a seriously differentiated product before we hit the market,” general manager – airfreight Dave Graham told FTW. “And that’s what we can now offer – twice weekly consols, palletised on a direct Lufthansa freighter at very preferential rates.” And according to Graham, it’s attracting a lot of medium to larger multinational forwarders who previously had contracts directly with the carriers. “At the rate structure we’re offering, they simply can’t ignore it. “The service was launched in October last year – in conjunction with Saco Air, the company’s global partner in the Air Cargo Group stable – and within a month we were doing three pallets a week.” Rather than increase the number of pallets, the idea is to increase the number of frequencies – and although the service is currently running twice weekly, Graham expects that this will soon need to be increased. “It’s all about the bottom line,” said director Peter Schmidt-Löffler, “and if a company can save through co-loading, that’s the way they’re going to go.” Graham says a number of multinationals that have in the past been averse to the concept of co-loading are now warming up to the idea very quickly because the rate is so attractive. “And because it’s contracted capacity, we haven’t had a single offload since the service was launched in November.” The company’s named-day Los Angeles service, launched early this month, feeds into another lucrative niche, says Graham. “We launched a namedday US service in the middle of last year, but while there are several options out of the East Coast into South Africa – which is where we have existing contracted capacity on direct services out of New York – the West Coast options were extremely limited.” Following a market research exercise, CFR took the bold step – with its Air Cargo Partner Shipco in the US – of signing a firm Block Space Agreement (BSA) out of Los Angeles into South Africa. “We have created a premium named-day consol product with an optimum transit time. Cargo delivered on Friday morning in Los Angeles is available for collection on Monday morning in Johannesburg.” The LA option joins CFR’s existing US services out of New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Houston. “And we’re not offering it solely as a Los Angeles service but rather as a comprehensive West Coast service, feeding in from the likes of Portland Oregon and San Francisco. “The main focus this year will be to continue to develop our existing named-day products,” said Graham “These include Hong Kong, China, India, Europe and the US, with South America on the radar for the future. “A major advantage for us is our membership of the muscular Air Cargo Group – and we will continue to develop new products in conjunction with our key partners around the world.” CFR’s airfreight division has truly come of age, says Schmidt-Löffler. “We are no longer a traditional seafreight NVOCC but can offer an allembracing air and sea option.” The company’s original mantra however will never change, he added, “and that means dealing exclusively with freight forwarders.”