Entries Tagged 'Issue 9 July/Aug 2008' ↓

Moving past the marketing

If bringing together an IT issue is tough, I imagine deciding what and how much IT to integrate into your business is even tougher. Breaking through the marketing hype and deciding what you really need, after all, can be difficult. Of course a GPS provider will tell you that you need GPS, an RFID vendor is going to push his tags and a software developer will insist that her product is the ‘streamlined’, ‘tailor-made’, ‘one-stop-shop’ solution for you. We at LOG.Middle East heard many such statements this month.

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Between the picture of a Togolese pineapple growing in his backyard he sends out to friends via email, the Mickey Mouse satchel bag hanging from the door knob of his office closet and a confession that he will still clean the upholstery of a plane at 3:00 am if need be, Tom Ronell, CEO, Istithmar World Aviation Holdings, clearly does not take himself too seriously.

Tom Ronell, CEO, Istithmar World Aviation Holdings

In fact, the son of Swiss musician parents who grew up in both “Mafioso” Brooklyn and “Soprano Country” New Jersey tells the story of a very serious career as if it were a joke.

“I credit myself for making the worst career move in aviation history,” he proclaims, explaining how he left his position as Vice President of Sales with Airbus to set up a western- style business airline in Russia for Boris Yeltsin.

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As if soaring inflation was not enough, the VAT is coming soon. Contrary to popular belief, experts say it could be a blessing in disguise

The UAE is set to be the first GCC country to introduce value added tax (VAT) on consumer goods and services in early 2009, paving the way for the tax to be pan-regional within five years – Oman and Syria are also proposing to introduce it next year. VAT will likely be set at between three to five per cent in the UAE, replacing the five per cent customs duty.

Small businesses with revenues under US$1 million will be exempt from the tax, according to a statement by Dubai Customs, and companies within the health and education sectors could also be exempt – but it is unlikely those in the logistics sector will escape.

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It’s the most environmentally friendly fossil fuel – liquefied natural gas (LNG). Used in homes as well as in industries, LNG is the future

Global economic growth has become dependant on the clean-burning LNG

Setting sail in January 1959, a converted World War II freighter traversed the Atlantic Ocean, fully laden with liquefied natural gas (LNG). Billed as the world’s first LNG tanker, the Methane Pioneer would carry seven additional loads from Louisiana, United States to Canvey Island, United Kingdom, chartering a course for all future natural gas transports.

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What security measures are in place to ensure your cargo moving on the sea is safe?

At any given time, billions of dollars worth of cargo and merchandise are in transit on the open seas. From suppliers to buyers, each is dependant on their respective goods reaching their destinations. Though often overlooked, the fundamental factor remains securing against vulnerabilities.

“As the maritime transportation system underpins the world economy, it remains the dominant support for global commerce,” said Michael Chen, CEO of ST Education and Training (STET), at the 2008 Maritime Security Forum in Dubai last month.

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When it comes to maritime shipping, few claim to be experts. Yet almost everyone involved in the logistics or supply chain industry (or in any industry for that matter) is in some way dependant on maritime transport

Operating out of some 3,000 deep sea ports around the globe, over 50,000 cargo ships are on the seas at any given time. Recognised as the safest and most environmentally friendly form of commercial transport, maritime shipping is responsible for 90 per cent of all world trade. Without it, transport of bulk raw materials and manufactured goods over such long distances would prove far too costly, if not impossible.

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Are you too late to secure space the Bahrain Logistics Zone?

Where do I hand in the Bahrain Logistics Zone tender?” an American businessman hurriedly asks the security guard in the lobby of the General Organisation of Sea Ports (GOP) in Bahrain. He is rushing to meet the deadline for applications to lease land at the one sq kilometre plot of land dedicated to re-export and value-added logistics at the new Khalifa bin Salman Port.

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Whether it’s calculating your position by reading the stars or admiring a snow-covered deck, life for a seaman is thoroughly unpredictable

Das Choudhury Arupnarayan, Stowage Coordination Manager, Maersk

Das Choudhury Arupnarayan is just getting used to his new job on land. He has transferred from First Officer on one of Maersk’s ships to Stowage Coordination Manager in their Dubai offices. His duty timings are now from eight to five.

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The 21st century will witness the emergence of a superpower that most agree is awakening to its potential. Chinese partnerships with like-minded Middle Eastern countries are proving mutually beneficial

Six centuries ago, a mighty armada of Chinese ships crossed the China Sea and ventured west to Arabia and East Africa. The fleet consisted of giant nine masted junks and was escorted by dozens of supply ships, water tankers, transports for cavalry horses and patrol boats. The armada’s crew would total more than 27,000 sailors and soldiers. The largest of the junks was said to be over 400 feet long and 150 feet wide.

Loaded with silk, porcelain and lacquerware, these vessels visited ports around the Indian Ocean, where Arab and African merchants would exchange spices, ivory, medicines, rare woods and pearls so eagerly sought by the Chinese imperial court.

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One German company will move anything GCC nationals want to and from Munich, including the kitchen sink

Many of us have experienced the pain of paying excess baggage fees after too much shopping on vacation, but imagine bringing 50, 500, even 800 kilogrammes worth of cargo home from a trip. This happens more often than you would think, according to Viktor Fuchs.

Fuchs is one half of the Gross Fuchs company, which specialises in cargo for GCC VIPs and royal families travelling to Munich. “Munich is a very popular tourist destination for GCC nationals,” he explains.

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