Strong focus keeps momentum going

INTO ITS second year of big growth, UPS Supply Chain Solutions (previously listed as Fritz Companies before the takeover) has now taken a firm hold of 6th place in the IATA Top 30. Following 382.2% growth in 2002, the company logged 173.3% last year - bringing its airfreight export total turnover for 2003 to R86.4-million. This, said international operations director, Thore Saether, was not from “re-inventing the wheel”, but a case of “focus, focus, focus.” As a group, the current focus is on healthcare, retail garment and automotive industry exports – with the US and the north west continent (NWC) of Europe as the two prime destination areas. “Europe particularly so for healthcare and automotive products,” Saether told FTW, “with the garment trade exclusively to the US.” The company’s philosophy, he added, is in trying to take a more cautious approach to the airfreight export market, and spreading its activities over a wider range of alternative product groups. This to avoid the penalty of being too selective and suffering from a serious downturn in that particular business sector. The renewal of the US export trade incentive, the Africa Growth and Opportunity Act (Agoa), and its extension to 2015, Saether sees as good news. “This grants a fundamental benefit of growth to the garment trade,” he said, “and we feel that our share will continue to show growth, even despite the strong rand.” UPS is currently in the process of reviewing its overall warehousing space where its present premises around the country are getting choked up with extra business. “Our short-term airfreight storage needs are a prime part of this restructuring,” said Saether, “and will require new warehouse premises.”