Joy Orlek ON MONDAY US-based global logistics company EGL (Eagle Global Logistics) officially opened its doors in South Africa Headed up by managing director Pam Cornish the company expects to bring to the local market the formula which has yielded steady growth in financial performance since its launch in 1984, with revenues in excess of $2-billion (R16 bn) per year - a non asset-based model which combines the flexibility of traditional freight forwarding with the scope and capacity of integrated carriers The move follows the recent merger of EGL and Circle, and Circle's subsequent divorce from previous partner Renfreight. In terms of the Renfreight Circle partnership, Circle held a 20% share in Renfreight. Following he EGL takeover, Circle sold its share to Renfreight's holding company Bidvest, leaving the way open for EGL to establish a fully-fledged operation in South Africa. "For the past two and a half years we have been doing all the international forwarding for Renfreight," said Cornish. "We will now be in a position to provide those customers with a cradle to grave array of services including pick up and delivery, materials management, warehousing, trade facilitation and supply chain management." EGL will initially open three offices - Johannesburg (head office), Durban and Cape Town - with Port Elizabeth planned within the next few months. In a marketplace saturated with Ôalso-rans', Cornish believes there are two factors which differentiate EGL from the rest of the pack - its people and its global logistics solutions. "We have hand-picked staff who this week began aggressively marketing our services and capabilities on a global basis in South Africa." EGL is the largest domestic carrier in the US and operates aircraft around the world. These could well be deployed on the SA route when demand justifies. "We intend bringing EGL's domestic model to South Africa within the next few months. That will provide the customer with a seamless EGL service from start to finish." To page 16 Pam Cornish ... Sub-Saharan Africa has also been identified as a key growth area for EGL
