Staff kept up to speed on global trends

In the fiercely competitive warehousing environment, it’s all about keeping down costs without sacrificing service levels. For Logwin Air and Ocean SA, its national network is an important part of its value proposition. With warehousing and distribution facilities located across the country, including Cape Town, Durban and Port Elizabeth, Logwin is able to keep costs down by using its coastal operations to unpack containers, consolidate loads and transport them inland as breakbulk cargo. This saves on container turn-in fees as well as transport costs, Logwin’s logistics warehouse operations manager, Gareth Haigh, told FTW. Following extensive upgrades three years ago, the company’s flagship operation in Johannesburg – situated close to OR Tambo International Airport – comprises a licensed container depot and bond store as well as a modern storage warehouse with a racking system. It houses 4 500 pallet positions and a pick and pack operation with r/f scanners and an in-house warehouse system used globally by the company. “In warehousing our biggest challenge is staff skills and competence,” says Haigh. “Our staff gets training from one of our global teams on any advances in our system and policies and in order to remain up to date with trends in Europe and the Far East.” While fuel prices are out of any logistics operator’s control, Logwin has upgraded its fleet of forklifts and delivery vehicles to diesel. “They are far more economical, maintenance costs are lower and breakdowns occur less frequently with the newer units,” he said. And as shippers increasingly explore cost-cutting interventions, a lot of the smaller clients in the industry are moving their cargo to the ever-increasing number of self-storage facilities that have popped up in recent times which now also offer material handling equipment, said Haigh. He noted that larger clients, in turn, had opted to house their own cargo to keep costs down or would keep less stock on hand in order to cut costs. “Pricing and good service are key to retaining clients and staying competitive,” he said. INSERT & CAPTION Pricing and service excellence are the key to retaining clients and staying competitive. – Gareth Haigh CAPTION Logwin’s 7 500-sqm warehouse in Spartan has a racking system housing 4 500 pallet positions and a pick and pack operation as well as a cross docking/cross border consolidation depot.