Maersk Sealand and Safmarine take intermodal control.
Joy Orlek
CONSTRUCTION OF a joint Maersk Sealand/Safmarine container depot and repair facility in Cape Town will begin shortly.
This follows Board approval for the R40-million project which will realise both lines' dream of taking closer control of the inland operational functions.
The facility will be based in Killarney, 12km from Cape Town, and will serve third party interests as well as in-house business.
It's an issue close to the heart of outgoing Maersk SA managing director, Gert Andersen, whose objective when he arrived in South Africa 20 months ago was to get more involved in intermodal and operational activities.
Andersen left South Africa at the weekend for Sweden where he will take over as Maersk Sealand's country manager responsible for the Scandinavian region.
His 20-month stay in South Africa was brief but frenetic.
By his own admission, Maersk SA had not made the inroads expected when he took over at the end of 1998. Whereas in other markets the company had little difficulty in achieving 20% market share on entry. South Africa proved a harder nut to crack.
This was probably caused by the artificial market place which had been in place in the past and the fact that changes materialise slowly in South Africa, said Andersen.
The entire South African marketplace and its players have however changed remarkably, and have become far more international. Maersk Sealand is moving ahead much faster now.
The acquisition of Safmarine by Maersk Sealand's parent company AP Moller last year also had its effect on the shipping sector and will have for years to come, in Andersen's view.
For us it's been a positive experience to integrate the two organisations while retaining the different brands. And we will continue to maintain the two brands because each has its own unique benefits to sell. The relocation of Maersk staff to Safmarine offices in Johannesburg and coastal areas is merely a practical, cost-saving measure. Certain back-room functions will be combined, but the brands will continue to be marketed independently.
Systems training is currently in progress and all Safmarine staff are migrating to the worldwide Maersk Sealand IT networks. It's a huge task but will bring many benefits to both organisations, said Andersen, who has given the assurance that once the integration is complete there will be no staff retrenchments within Maersk SA.
On a personal note, Andersen leaves South Africa with a sense of accomplishment and nostalgia.
Accomplishment in the knowledge that the team he leaves is, he believes, more motivated and cohesive than ever before, and nostalgia for a country which has offered the best of business challenge and social vibrancy.
Most notably, 365 golf days a year, which he confesses have sadly not improved his handicap.
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