Experienced team sets up inland haulage operation

New outsourcing option from factory to final destination LEONARD NEILL THE TEAM of Naidoo and Naidu is back heading up the development of recently formed South African Inland Logistics (Sa-il) in the business of total landside movement of cargo with cross-border operations included. When Roland Naidoo and Gerald Naidu withdrew from the scene five years ago following the restructuring of the company they were running at the time, they faded from the business scene – but only on a temporary basis. “We took a good look at the situation for the next two years before deciding to go it alone and develop a new concept in freighting,” says Roland Naidoo. Heading up the new company formed three years ago as its chief executive, Naidoo retained Gerald Naidu as his right hand man in a two-man work force which offers 40 years experienced between them. Naidu is now marketing manager of (SA-il). His task is building new business, with Arvin Dadassey appointed as operations manager and Denolan Naidoo the cartage manager controlling a fleet of vehicles. “We’ve seen a positive and happy growth that has come about through service levels and quality performance,” says the CEO. “It’s simply a case of focusing on what we can do and executing the job to the satisfaction of our customers. We run a 7-days-aweek operation, sending containers by road and rail long distances with a competent string of sub-agents inland and across the borders. We are also involved in setting up own offices in major centres.” A new development in their service has been to take up the reins where companies want to outsource their movables business, leaving it in the hands of others to take the goods from factory to their final destination. One of the country’s leading manufacturers of domestic toilet and household goods opened up this avenue to SA-il. “It was a tough call but we have done it to their full satisfaction,” says Naidoo. “Instead of them having to go the former breakbulk method of sending consignments from Gauteng to other destinations for example, we have set up a two-tier operation in Johannesburg. We move in our own team with 6m skeletal trailers to move the stacks to the loading point when they are packed into containers. This is done under full inspection and photographed for the producer’s records. Then the containers move in our longdistance vehicles for delivery to either ports or depots elsewhere as required.”