Guaranteed express freight delivery
ALAN PEAT
ROAD CHARTERS is one of the specialities of the express freight company, African Express, according to administrative manager, Sadey Dodgen.
“We offer a charter service carrying special loads on dedicated vehicles,” she said.
The company’s core business is courier, express and budget express - able to handle everything from documents to 21-ton loads on its fleet of vehicles, ranging from 1300cc delivery cars to 21-t horse and trailer units.
African Express was established in 1993 as MDS Couriers in Botswana.
“From these humble beginnings it has grown into the largest express freight company in Botswana, and today employs more than 200 staff in eight branches in Botswana, one in SA and two in Swaziland.”
In March 2002 MDS Couriers became part of the Unitrans family, when 60% of the company was acquired by Unitrans Freight (Commercial), and the new company, African Express, was established in Botswana. In January last year, it opened in SA, with Unitrans holding a 50% share of this business.
The company is currently offering guaranteed express freight delivery - with varying service level requirements between Johannesburg and the other African centres of Gaborone, Windhoek, Maputo, Mbabane and Harare.
“But the strategy of duplicating the Johannesburg to Gaborone route for other Southern African Development Community (SADC) countries has already begun - with a state of the art computer programme incorporating track-and-trace, bar-coding, and scanning functionality,” she said.
It has also established a worldwide delivery network and is offering a wide range of services including messenger/mailroom services, warehousing and distribution, international courier, airfreight, express road and clearing and forwarding
“With these services available,” said Dodgen, “African Express can deliver virtually anywhere in the world, to any market, thereby offering our clients a total logistic solution.”
