Issue 6 Vol.16 May-June 2015
17
28
BMW bolsters
position as world’s
most sustainable
premium car
company
DP WORLD UAE REGION WINS OUTSTANDING
ACHIEVEMENT AWARD AT SCATA 2015
Swisslog develops
its presence in the
Middle East
TNT UAE named 2015 winner of CIPS
Middle East Award for Best Contribution
to Corporate Responsibility
Emirates Group Announces 27th
Consecutive Year of Profit
In the presence of HH Sheikh
Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum,
Emirates NBD launches first of its
kind Dubai Economy Tracker
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www.aflogistics.com
www.dubaidutyfree.com
Editorial
Issue 6 Vol.16 May-June 2015
17
28
BMW bolsters
position as world’s
most sustainable
premium car
company
DP WORLD UAE REGION WINS OUTSTANDING
ACHIEVEMENT AWARD AT SCATA 2015
Director SCLG
Kanchan R. Vora
kanchan@sclgme.org
Contributing Editors
Ali Al Jallaf
Dr. K.M. Madrecha
Ravi Subramanyam
Art/Production
M. Javed
Production Assistant
Fritzie Gay Balasuela
Photographer
Biju
Advertising & Marketing
admin@sclgme.org
Swisslog develops
its presence in the
Middle East
TNT UAE named 2015 winner of CIPS
Middle East Award for Best Contribution
to Corporate Responsibility
Emirates Group Announces 27th
Consecutive Year of Profit
In the presence of HH Sheikh
Ahmed bin Saeed Al Maktoum,
Emirates NBD launches first of its
kind Dubai Economy Tracker
The Link is the official publication
of Supply Chain and Logistics
Group (SCLG). The opinions and
views contained in this publication
are not necessarily those of SCLG.
Readers are advised to seek special
advice before acting on information
contained in this magazine, which
is for general use and may not
be appropriate for the reader’s
particular circumstances. No part
of its contents thereof may be
reproduced in any form without the
permission of SCLG in writing.
Dubai Duty Free, the leading airport retailer at
Dubai interna onal airport is a globally renowned
enterprise having been well known not only for
organized, efficient and excellent customer retailing
experience but also for many of its socially responsible
business ac vi es. In the month of March, members
of Supply chain and Logis cs Group (SCLG) had an
opportunity to visit the automated warehouse of
Dubai Duty Free. The visit was a ended by 40 plus
execu ves from 30 plus organiza ons. The site visit
was well conducted under leadership of Mr. Ramesh
Cidambi - Senior Vice President, IT and Logis cs,
Dubai Duty Free.
SCLG will be conduc ng more and more site visits in
view of bringing more opportuni es for members
to collaborate and connect -- the collabora on and
connec on as well are growth drivers.
Kanchan R. Vora
kanchan@sclgme.org
PRODUCTION AND
CONTENT CO-ORDINATION
Supply Chain and Logistics
Group (SCLG)
P.O. Box 124907, Dubai (U.A.E.)
Telephone: +971 4 3318855
Fax: +971 4 3318856
E-mail: mail@sclgme.org
7
May-June 2015
Contents
Link
10
12
Onwards and upwards
the message at SOHAR
Port
Management Programme
10-11
Gulftainer’s Khorfakkan
Container Terminal sets new
record of handling 19,561
TEUs for a single vessel
13
The Port of Salalah celebrates
Global Safety Day
15
Abu Dhabi Ports invests in new
mobile harbor cranes
17
19
20
22
23
24
8
DP WORLD ANNOUNCES
STRONG FINANCIAL RESULTS Like-for-like profit
grows 25% in 2014
May-June 2015
BMW bolsters position as
world’s most sustainable
premium car company at World
Green Economy Summit.
14
16
Alshaya’s Summer Internship Programme returns for
eighth year
10% boost in Chevrolet car
sales in Middle East
Panasonic Middle East & Africa
2015 Annual Policy Meet outlines
new mid and long term strategies
22
Alshaya named most
customer-friendly retailer
in Dubai for its commitment to
customers
Khalili Group: First to
Deploy SAP S/4 HANA in
MENA
JAWAD BUSINESS GROUP WINS
INTERNATIONAL FRANCHISEE
OF THE YEAR AWARD AT PAPA
JOHN’S CONFERENCE
Middle East Oil and Gas Companies Urged to Innovate from
Growing Volume to Optimizing
Operations
Abu Dhabi Ports
announces more
than 30% growth
in first quarter of
2015
Al Nabooda
Automobiles
Honored in the Consumer
Friendliness Index
20
21
GT USA TO OPEN PORT CANAVERAL OFFICE
Kizad investors up by 15%
in Q1, 2015
18
Al Habtoor Motors launches
a multi faceted Mitsubishi
showroom complex in Al Ain!
Ducab On Winning
Streak at The Venetian,
Macao, Hong Kong
13
DP WORLD REPORTS 4.5% CONSOLIDATED VOLUME GROWTH IN
FIRST QUARTER OF 2015
24
25
Al-Futtaim Group Drives
Procure-to-Pay Efficiency
with SAP Ariba
Link
26
28
33
36
Smartworld Launches
Cloud Customer Engagement Solutions in
the UAE
ALS Logistic
Solutions plans
to acquire new
markets
47
28-32
Swisslog develops
its presence in the
Middle East
Genavco Storage and Handling Solutions Division, Completed Double
Deep Pallet Racking for Intergulf
32
34-35
Group Management changes further sharpen GAC’s
business focus
36-37
Emirates SkyCargo to
Launch Weekly Freighter Service to Columbus
43-44
48
Cargo Airline of
the Year
Aramex Subsidiary InfoFort
Acquires 51% Stake in Leading Turkish IT Company
45
“Aviation industry veteran calls
for a Gulf body
on EUROCONTROL lines.”
DC Aviation Al-Futtaim flights to
the US gets pre-clearance at its
hub in Dubai World Central
46
Emrill lands itself
Dubai Airports contract
Dubai Maritime City
Authority concludes
its participation in
2nd Middle East
Offshore Support
Journal Conference
in Dubai
28
SSI SCHAEFER MEA receives the
award for Materials Handling
Provider of the Year at the 9th
annual Supply Chain & Transport Awards 2015
Aramex Subsidiary
InfoFort Acquires
51% Stake in Leading Turkish IT
Company
TNT UAE named 2015
winner of CIPS Middle
East Award for Best Contribution to Corporate
Responsibility
38-42
46
27
Canon Extends its Office
Print Portfolio with Four
New Colour MFDs for
Small Workgroups and
Offices
Contents
DMCA announces
formation of
Maritime Advisory
Council
50
Worldwide offshore fabrication
specialist Drydocks World wins
contract from Orwell Offshore
for Turret fabrication
Banking & Finance
50-56
58
The Middle East’s first LNG-powered
harbor tug ‘Elemarateyah’ commences productionat Drydocks
World steel-cutting ceremony
Supply Chain Conference
at SP Jain School of Global
Management
60-62
57
Smart Cities industry
projected at $ 400
billion by 2020
SCLG in cooperation with Dubai Duty Free hosted
a Site Visit in Dubai Duty Free Warehouse.
9
May-June 2015
Ports News
DP WORLD UAE REGION WINS OUTSTANDING ACHIEVEMENT
AWARD AT SCATA 2015
East and was attended by supply
chain leaders across the industry.
DP World UAE Region, the regional
leading marine terminal operator, has
won the Outstanding Achievement
Award from the Supply Chain &
Transport Awards (SCATA) 2015.
The SCATA’s ninth gala was held
recently in Dubai to highlight
leadership and innovation in the
regional logistics industry. DP World
UAE Region, Commercial Account
Manager, Esam Ahmed received the
Outstanding Achievement Award.
Mohammed Al Muallem, Senior Vice
President and Managing Director of
DP World UAE Region, said: “Jebel
Ali Port remains a gateway of choice
across the world with the supply
chain playing a vital role in boosting
trade and economic growth. We are
delighted to win the SCATA award
for the seventh year especially the
outstanding achievement category.
We will continue our key role in
supporting Dubai’s leading position
as a hub for trade and business.”
Abdulla Bin Damithan, Director of
Commercial, DP World UAE Region,
said: “As a world class business, it is
important to enable synergy between
our customers and employees
which underpins our continuous
achievement and performance. We
have first class logistics capabilities
that nurture trade in the UAE, GCC,
Middle East and the wider region,
and are constantly striving to enable
growth in this sector”. SCATA
celebrates the logistics, air cargo and
sea freight communities in the Middle
10
May-June 2015
DP WORLD
REPORTS 4.5%
CONSOLIDATED
VOLUME
GROWTH IN FIRST
QUARTER OF
2015
Continued growth in the UAE with
Jebel Ali reporting 7.7% volume
gain
DP World Limited will today hold
its Annual General Meeting for the
year ended 31 December 2014. DP
World Chairman, HE Sultan Ahmed
Bin Sulayem, will make the following
statement
regarding
operational
performance in the first quarter of
2015. “DP World Limited handled 15
million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent
units) across its global portfolio of
container terminals during the first
quarter of 2015, with gross container
volumes growing by 4.4%. “First
quarter growth was largely driven
by a stronger performance from
our Europe, Asia Pacific and UAE
terminals. The UAE had another
strong quarter handling 3.9 million
TEU, representing growth of 7.7%.
Conditions in Australia remained
mixed, while capacity constraints
weighed on performance in the Indian
Subcontinent but should ease as we
shortly deliver new capacity at Nhava
Sheva. “At a consolidated 1 level, our
terminals handled 7.1 million TEU
during the first quarter of 2015, a 4.5%
improvement in performance. “During
the quarter we announced the close
of our acquisition of Economic Zones
World FZE, which includes the Jebel
Ali Freezone surrounding our flagship
terminal. This transaction further
reinforces our position as the leading
logistics hub in the region. We also
announced the proposed acquisition
of Fair view Terminal in Canada which
is expected to close in the second
half of this year. This will enhance
our Americas portfolio, providing our
customers with the fastest access for
vessels travelling between Asia and
North America. “Overall, we are very
pleased by the portfolio’s first quarter
performance. Although some of our
terminals continue to operate in a
challenging macro environment, we
expect market conditions across the
portfolio to be generally favourable
for the remainder of 2015. We remain
confident in performing in line or
ahead of the market which is forecast
to grow at approximately 4-5% in
2015. “Our new developments remain
on track with Rotterdam (Netherlands)
and Nhava Sheva (India) due to come
on line in the first half of this year.
This will be followed by the opening
of Yarimca (Turkey) and an additional
2 million TEU of capacity at Jebel
Ali (UAE) in the second half which
will take total Jebel Ali capacity to 19
million TEU. “As always, we remain
focused on driving profitability by
targeting higher margin throughput
and improving efficiencies.”
Ports
News
Onwards and upwards the message at SOHAR Port
Management Programme
Port Management Programme to
bring SOHAR, government officials
together for learning
SOHAR Freezone CEO says driving
economy and succession planning
among key focuses
Full operations to be showcased
as leaders look to a bright future for
maritime industry
SOHAR Port and Freezone CEO
Jamal Aziz has said that driving the
growth of Oman’s economy and
serving the wider GCC region remains
the top priority for the logistics giant,
as it gears up for its third annual
Port and Freezone Management
Programme for governmental entities.
The four-day programme will be held
on 18-21 May 2015, and will engage
participants on what it takes to manage
a successful shipping business.
The programme will bring government
entities from Sohar and Muscat
together to focus on success stories
at SOHAR as it has attracted US$21
billion in investment. Initiated by
the
One-Stop-Shop
Customer
Service Department at SOHAR, the
programme also aims to increase the
ease of doing business.
“It is a familiar story, but SOHAR really
is growing at a tremendous pace.
As we grow, we learn, and passing
that knowledge on is something that
we see as being fundamental to the
growth of the Omani economy, its
businesses, industries, and supply
chains. In this sense, the programme
can also support job creation and the
realisation of the vision of His Majesty
Sultan Qaboos of a modern diversified
economy,” said Mr Aziz.
Ongoing infrastructure developments
12
May-June 2015
and investment, particularly in the
food cluster, plus the prospects on
offer through increasingly multimodal
connectivity at SOHAR, are expected
to be among the main talking points,
as are recently announced plans to
grow container capacity to 6 million
TEU by 2019. Land and marine
operations, and maintenance at
SOHAR, which boasts terminals
that handle over 50 million tonnes of
cargo, will offer further insights into
project management and technical
procedures at the logistics hub.
During the programme participants
will also have the opportunity to meet
and discuss port management with
SOHAR Port CEO, Andre Toet, and
Freezone CEO, Jamal Aziz. The
programme will conclude with a debrief in which participants will be able
to share what they have learned and
discuss future opportunities.
Note to editors about SOHAR Port
and Freezone
SOHAR Port and Freezone is a deep
sea port and free zone in the Middle
East, situated in the Sultanate of Oman
around 200 kilometres northwest
of its capital Muscat. With current
investments exceeding US$21 billion,
it is one of the world’s largest port and
free zone developments and lies at the
centre of global trade routes between
Europe and Asia. SOHAR provides
unequalled access to booming
Gulf economies while avoiding the
additional costs of passing through
the Strait of Hormuz. The existing road
network and airport and the future rail
system provide direct connectivity to
the UAE and Saudi Arabia, as well as
to the rest of the world. Equipped with
deep-water jetties capable of handling
the world’s largest ships, SOHAR has
leading global partners that operate
its container, dry bulk, liquid and
gas terminals including Hutchison
Whampoa, C. Steinweg Oman,
Oiltanking Odfjell and Svitzer. SOHAR
Port and Freezone is managed
by Sohar Industrial Port Company
(SIPC), a joint venture between the
Port of Rotterdam and the Sultanate
of Oman.
Gulftainer’s
Khorfakkan
Container
Terminal sets
new record of
handling 19,561
TEUs for a single
vessel
Gulftainer,
a
privately
owned,
independent terminal operating and
logistics company, set a new record
for the handling of the largest single
unloading and loading of a single
vessel call at its Khorfakkan Container
Terminal (KCT), at 19,561 TEUs
(Twenty-foot equivalent unit).
The terminal staff completed the
record breaking call of the CMA CGM
Jules Verne container ship with the
help of 11 cranes in only 54.5 hours.
The 396 metre long and 54 metre
wide vessel is the largest container
ship in the world sailing under the
French flag.
Due to its unique location, KCT has
been one of the most important
News
transhipment hubs for the Arabian
Gulf, the Indian Sub-continent, the
Gulf of Oman and the East African
markets. With this new record KCT
has demonstrated its ability to
accommodate these large container
volumes and to keep pace with
the increasing volumes generated
because of large container ships that
sail through this region.
Gulftainer is a privately owned,
independent terminal operating and
logistics company. Capitalising on
its strong international reputation,
the Gulftainer Group announced the
creation of GT USA in 2014, signing a
historic 35-year agreement to develop
and operate a multipurpose cargo and
container terminal at Port Canaveral,
Florida.
KCT recently received the ‘Shipping
Port of the Year’ honour at the 2015
Supply Chain & Transport Awards
(SCATA).
With more than three decades of
experience in the international and
domestic shipping and ports industry,
Joe Cruise will be responsible for
leading and managing all sales
activities for GT USA. Shafer
is
responsible
for
overseeing
implementation
of
office
and
personnel policies and procedures
as well as other chief administration
functions.
GT USA TO
OPEN PORT
CANAVERAL
OFFICE
GT USA hires commercial manager
and senior executive administrator
GT USA announced that it is all set to
open its Port Canaveral office in the
coming months and has made two key
recruitments to drive the operations.
Joe Cruise is the commercial manager
at the company’s new container and
multipurpose cargo terminal, and
senior-level administrator Heidi Shafer
is the executive personal assistant to
Gulftainer Group’s managing director
Peter Richards, who oversees the
company’s US expansion.
Richards said: “We are committed
to building long-term relations with
shipping lines and cargo enterprises,
as well as with the business partners
of Port Canaveral Port Authority to
establishing Port Canaveral as the
terminal of choice. This is highlighted
by the opening of our office and
the new qualified and experienced
personnel who will play key roles in
driving our business.”
GT USA is investing US$100 million in
Gulftainer Canaveral Cargo Terminal’s
new
state-of-the-art
container
terminal, infrastructure, equipment
and workforce. The expansion into
the US is part of parent company
Gulftainer’s strategic vision to
increase its global portfolio and triple
its throughput to 18m TEUs (twentyfoot equivalent units) within ten years.
Ports
On Tuesday, 28 April 2015 the port of
Salalah celebrated its annual safety
Day, which focuses on increasing
awareness and sharing best practices
for health, safety, security and
environment (HSSE) procedures
to the Port Staff. The theme for this
year’s Safety Day was “Work Safe,
Home Safe” and emphasis was put
on the need to travel to and from work
safely. In his introductory speech
David Wilson, general manager of
HSSE, said “it is statistically more
likely that a member of staff will be
injured whilst on their way to or from
the Port than while they are working
here. It is therefore vital that we take
the lessons we have learned about
Safety whilst at work and apply
them to the rest of our lives.” David
Gledhill, the CEO of port of Salalah,
personally led senior managers and
Staff in signing a pledge to adhere to
Road Safety Laws, to wear a seatbelt,
not to use a phone whilst driving and
to stay within the speed limit. The
first three hundred signatories to the
pledge received blue tooth headsets
provided by Omantel. The Road
Safety messaged was emphasised by
placing cars that had been involved
in crashes at strategic points around
The Port of
Salalah celebrates
Global Safety Day
the Port as a visual reminder of the
importance of adhering to the traffic
laws. Other activities during the day
included “Man Overboard drills”, a
demonstration by Civil Defence and
Talks on the “Fatal Five” risks in ports
The port of Salalah employees more
than 2000 personnel making it the
13
May-June 2015
Ports
News
largest single employer in the Dhofar
region. The {ort of Salalah is able to
boast an impressive safety record,
showing no time lost due to injuries
(LTI) for 264 consecutive days. The
Safety Day highlights the shared
commitment of the port and its staff
to ensure a safe working environment
for all of its employees, customers,
and visitors to the port.
Abu Dhabi Ports
announces more
than 30% growth
in first quarter of
2015
Abu Dhabi Ports has announced
significant volume increases across
all of its different import and export
trades as the year develops.
The Khalifa Port Container Terminal
14
May-June 2015
which is operated by Abu Dhabi
Terminals (ADT) has seen a 35%
increase in volumes handled in the
first quarter of the year. The number
of TEUs (twenty foot equivalent units/
containers) has increased year on
year from 224,080 in 2014 to 302,151
in 2015. One of the reasons behind
this increase is the number of new
shipping lines calling at the port and
new connections to ports around the
region and the world. Abu Dhabi Ports
has more than 100 direct connections
to global ports and over 36 shipping
lines calling at its ports. One such new
service is the direct weekly service to
and from Karachi, Pakistan, operated
by Wan Hai Lines from Taiwan.
Announced by ADT in October 2014,
the first vessel under this intraGulf service called at Khalifa Port in
February, offering a three day service
between Khalifa Port and Karachi.
But container traffic is not the only one
to have increased. General and Bulk
cargo accounts for a considerable
volume of traffic through Khalifa Port,
Musaffah Port and Zayed Port, and it
has increased by 32 percent in the first
quarter of 2015, compared to 2014.
Capt. Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi,
CEO, Abu Dhabi Ports commented:
“Last year our general and bulk
cargo increased by 37 percent over
the entire year. This trend looks
set to continue looking at our latest
figures, as containers, general and
bulk cargo have all increased by more
than 30 percent to date. This healthy
growth is the result of increased
import/export activity around various
industrial development projects in the
emirate and work resuming on some
of the Emirates major infrastructure
projects.” So far, the ports have
handled a total of 3,519,714 FT (freight
tonnes) of general and bulk cargo in
the first quarter of 2015, compared
with 2,663,129 FT in the same period
last year. The vast majority of the
Emirate’s roll-on, roll-off (RORO)
trade is now transiting through
the Khalifa Port RORO hub,
this too has seen some growth
compared to last year. The first
quarter of 2015 is up 4.7 percent.
This is down to the new services
available to customers at Khalifa
Port and the introduction of new
vehicle models. In Q1 2015,
25,709 vehicles were imported
into the Emirate compared with
24,542 in the same period last
year. Last but not least, the
2014-2015 cruise season which
ran from October until May, also
recorded a significant increase for
Q1 2015, up 32 percent compared
with the same period last year,
that’s 115,796 cruise passengers
visiting the Emirate compared with
87,713 passengers last year. Abe
working hard with our customers to
support and sustain this trade growth.
Increased import and export activity
underpins Abu Dhabi Ports core
objective which is to support trade
and development across the Emirate.”
Abu Dhabi Ports has taken delivery of
News
Ports
Abu Dhabi Ports invests in new mobile harbor cranes
New Cranes can liŌ 65 Tonnes and reach Across 35 Metres
two new mobile harbor cranes which
will be used to handle the increasing
volumes of general cargo, faster and
more efficiently. The new cranes are
part of an ongoing upgrade to all of
the general cargo handling equipment
in Khalifa, Zayed and Musaffah
Ports. The new cranes are supplied
by Liebherr and have been made in
Austria. They can lift 65 tonnes, and
will complement Abu Dhabi Ports’
existing cranes, which are capable of
lifting loads of up to 100 tonnes. The
new cranes were shipped to Zayed
Port from Western Europe. Specialist
engineers from Liebherr flew over to
work with the Zayed Port engineering
team to assemble and commission
the high tech equipment, a process
which has taken about a month.
The assembly time also served as a
familiarization period for Abu Dhabi
Ports staff. The cranes are now fully
operational and Abu Dhabi Ports’
engineers are fully trained on the
maintenance requirements of the new
equipment. Gary Lemke, Executive
Vice President, Abu Dhabi Ports:
“General cargo is a growing sector for
our ports, covering everything from
grain to animal feeds, to concrete
and building sand, our general cargo
volumes grew by 37% last year and
we expect this growth to continue.”
“These new cranes will increase
our productivity levels, enable us to
improve our operational processes
and ensure that we continue to meet
and exceed the growing needs of our
customers.” Abu Dhabi Ports handled
record volumes of general cargo in
2014, a total of 12.8 million freight
tonnes, which was a 37% increase on
the 2013 general cargo volumes. The
majority of this volume is dry bulk cargo
and Zayed Port has just received four
new hoppers to support this sector
further. The hoppers will be used
to improve the speed and efficiency
of handling dry bulk cargo from the
unloading ship into land transport.
The hoppers were manufactured
by a local supplier York and were
commissioned and tested while the
new cranes were being constructed.
By utilizing the new cranes in tandem
with the hoppers, vessel turnaround
times will be greatly reduced, enabling
the port to handle increased capacity
and growing volumes of bulk cargo.
15
May-June 2015
Ports News
Kizad investors up by 15% in Q1, 2015
Kizad Signs Nine Sma’s With NaƟonal and internaƟonal Businesses in the first Quarter of 2015
Abu Dhabi Ports has announced that
it signed nine standard musataha
agreements (SMAs) in the first quarter
of 2015, increasing the number of
Kizad investors by 15% in just three
months. The close proximity of Khalifa
Port and its transport infrastructure
were key deciding points for all of
the investor companies. Khalifa Port
and Kizad are intrinsically linked,
offering supply chain efficiencies
that will add significant value to
these latest business operations.
Four of the companies have already
announced their commitment to
invest in the industrial zone, these
include National Catering Company
(catering supplies), Gulf Precast
(construction materials), Safe Care
Medical (medical supplies) and most
recently Advanced Manufacturing
Solutions (automotive spare parts
brake pads and discs). A further five
companies have now signed SMAs
16
May-June 2015
with Abu Dhabi Ports, including; HCG,
Afaq Al Khaleej, Schmidt Logistics,
Naseem Al Bawadi and Tmdeed. All
of these companies have international
business links and are – in different
ways - logistics focused. Combined
the nine new investors represent an
investment worth more than US$
232 million(AED 853 million) and
their new plots cover a land area of
over 422,000 square meters. Capt.
Mohamed Juma Al Shamisi, CEO, Abu
Dhabi Ports comments; “We are now
observing a cumulative effect across
the Khalifa Port trade and industrial
zone - Kizad, as more companies
become operational and more are
attracted to the zone, because of its
superb location, transport links, world
class infrastructure and competitive
operating costs. “The first quarter
of this year has been an exceptional
one. I welcome these new investors
and congratulate them on choosing an
ideal location to build their business
operations. The many advantages
offered by such close proximity
to Khalifa Port and the industrial
zones outstanding services and
infrastructure will help each company
to achieve its business goals.” To date,
71 national and international investors
have chosen Kizad as their production
or logistics base. Ten of these will
have completed construction and will
be fully operational by the end of this
year. Abu Dhabi Ports has now leased
a total of 11 million square metres of
land in the trade and logistics zone,
which represents a total investment
of more than USD13 billion (AED
47,75 billion). Once these investors
are fully operational, Khalifa Port’s
throughput is expected to increase by
900,000 tonnes of general cargo and
containers annually.
News
Retail
BMW bolsters position as world’s most sustainable
premium car company at World Green Economy Summit.
BMW i Project Manager delivers smart
mobility insights and showcases the
Group’s commitment to sustainable
motoring at progressive Summit.
BMW Group has once again
highlighted its position as the world’s
most sustainable premium car
company, as Daniel Gamber, Project
Manager at BMW i, offered insights
into electro-mobility and services at
the recently held Emirate’s World
Green Economy Summit (WGES).
With sustainability a core element
of BMW’s entire value chain, the
premium car company’s commitment
to eco-mobility has seen the Group
reduce both the volume of resources
used in vehicle production, and the
emissions produced by an average
vehicle by 45% since 2006; a crucial
component of the Summit’s focus
on a greener future. Speaking as
part of a panel discussion on ‘Smart
Cities’, the Project Manager for the
Group’s dedicated sustainable subbrand, BMW i, provided insights into
the global trends driving the need
for eco-mobility, such as increasing
environmental regulations in urban
areas. At a time when green initiatives
are a core focus globally and in the
emirate, following the debut of the
first 16 of 100 charging stations for
zero-emission electric cars in Dubai
under the ‘Smart Dubai’ initiative,
Daniel Gamber highlighted the need
for progressive vehicles and services
– such as the BMW i8, the world’s
most sustainable
plug-in
hybrid
sports
car,
and the range
of
innovative
BMW i Mobility
S e r v i c e s .
Commenting on
BMW
Group’s
participation
at WGES, an
initiative of Dubai
Electricity
and
Water Authority
(DEWA), Daniel
Gamber,
said:
“With BMW Group’s commitment
to providing sustainable and futureorientated products and services
through our BMW i sub-brand,
WGES provided the perfect platform
to highlight the importance of ecomobility to an engaged audience –
especially in a progressive city such as
Dubai. From vehicle designs offering
zero emission driving, at-home
charging options and complete in-car
connectivity, BMW Group is leading
the charge in sustainable motoring,
and we look forward to continuing
our contribution towards helping the
Dubai government become a global
leader in sustainability by 2020. In the
same way, we are working towards
achieving a greener future in all
markets around the world through
our innovative technologies, services
and products that fall under our BMW
i sub-brand.” A key discussion point at
the event was the most progressive
sports car for Smart Cities, the BMW i8,
which has been on sale in the Middle
East since June 2014. Combining the
performance and appeal of a sports
car with the fuel consumption and
emissions of a small car, the BMW i8 is
powered by a 1.5-litre, three-cylinder
BMW TwinPower Turbo petrol engine
which drives through the rear wheels.
The BMW i8 is covered by the 360°
ELECTRIC range of products, which
provides support for charging at
home or public charging stations. For
charging at home, the BMW i8 comes
with a Wallbox Pro, which charges the
car in two and a half hours. The vehicle
can also be charged on the move
through its intelligent hybrid system,
which capitalises on a potent electric
motor that sends drive to the front
wheels resulting in a combined power
output of 362hp delivered to all four
wheels. When united, the dual motors
(electric motor at the front and petrol
engine at the rear) work in harmony
enabling the BMW i8 to accelerate
from 0 to 100km/h in 4.4 seconds
while using just 2.1 litres of petrol per
100kms and emitting just 59g/km of
emissions. Furthermore, BMW Group
i Mobility Services for Smart Cities
have been developed to enhance
sustainable mobility options. Already
in place in some countries across the
world, the DriveNow service is one
such example, offering drivers the
opportunity to collect an all-electric
vehicle for just a few minutes, an hour,
a day or even more. BMW’s exclusive
DriveNow service promotes car
sharing with emission-free vehicles.
Similarly, the Group’s eco-footprint in
the US is continuing to grow, as it has
launched BMW i Ventures in New York,
whereby it is looking to partner with
start-up companies with a mandate
17
May-June 2015
Retail News
to improve personal mobility in urban
areas. One such partnership is the
My City My Way mobile app, which
offers users a one-stop portal offering
location-based services and a city
guide for urban areas. WGES is held
under the patronage of HH Sheikh
Mohammed Bin Rashid Al Maktoum
Vice President Prime Minister of
UAE and The Ruler of Dubai and the
Dubai Supreme Council of Energy,
in cooperation with the Dubai Green
Economy Partnership and WETEX.
The World Green Economy Summit
(WGES) aims to be the premier
international platform for strategic
partnerships and innovative solutions
seeking to accelerate the transition in
to the green economy. The Summit
took place between 22 – 23 April 2015
at Dubai World Trade Centre (DWTC).
from consumers aged 25-34. Retailers
from seven sectors were honoured by
DED for their consumer friendliness.
The annual Consumer Friendliness
Index, currently in its third year, aims
to promote customer satisfaction
through fostering healthy competition
among retailers and encouraging
them to adopt exemplary practices to
gain consumer confidence.
Al Nabooda
Automobiles
Honored in the
Consumer
Friendliness Index
The new state-of-the-art complex
features
Mitsubishi
passenger
vehicles and hosts a dedicated Aftersales facility for both, passenger
and commercial vehicles.To meet
presence in the United Arab Emirates,
especially in the Emirate of Abu
Dhabi. Recently, Al Habtoor Motors
commissioned the world’s largest
Mitsubishi showroom spanning a
built up area of 235,000-squarefoot in Mussafah, Abu Dhabi. With
addition of the new 121,169-squarefoot facility in the industrial hub of
Al Ain, Al Habtoor Motors plans to
cover all bases in the Abu Dhabi
market. The new Mitsubishi complex
was launched in the presence of Mr.
Ahmed Al Habtoor, CEO of Al Habtoor
Motors, , Senior management of Al
Habtoor Motors and Mr. Toshiaki
Nomura, President - MMMEA FZE.
Speaking of the new showroom and
After-sales complex, Mr. Joe Rogan,
Sales Director of Al Habtoor Motors
added “This new state-of-the-art
complex reflects our dedication and
commitment to our existing and our
prospective customers. Al Ain is one
of the important cities in Abu Dhabi
and this evergreen garden city has
experienced a steady growth both as
the growing demand of Mitsubishi
customers in Al Ain, Al Habtoor
Motors has launched its latest stateof-the-art Mitsubishi showroom and
After-sales complex. The launch
of the new facility coincides with Al
Habtoor Motors’ vision to expand its
an industrial and a residential hub.
There’s always a great demand for
quality commercial and passenger
vehicles. We are ensuring to bring
a quality motoring and ownership
experience to the resident of Al Ain.”
The new multi-storied showroom
His Highness Sheikh Mansoor
Bin Mohammed Bin Rashid Al
Maktoum, Chairman of the Dubai
International Marine Club, honoured
the top performers in the third
‘Consumer Friendliness Index 2014’
of the Department of Economic
Development (DED) in Dubai at
a special ceremony held today. Al
Nabooda was the top performer in the
Car Agency sector with index score
of 80 and the overall scores were
indicative of the stiff competition in this
vital sector. The survey also showed
that the majority of consumers are
satisfied with their car agencies in
general although prices and service
quality leave much to be desired.
However, pricing got a good rating
18
May-June 2015
Al Habtoor Motors
launches a multi
faceted Mitsubishi
showroom complex
in Al Ain!
News
complex features a basement, ground
floor and mezzanine. While the
basement features covered parking
area for hundred cars, the ground
floor features Mitsubishi passenger
vehicles showroom, an After-sales
area featuring spare parts center
and separate service facilities for
passenger and commercial vehicles.
The showroom reflects Mitsubishi’s
winning spirit and features large
display areas for the entire range of
Mitsubishi vehicles. The showroom
design focuses on sporty elegance
and customer convenience. Al
Habtoor Motors has constantly strived
to offer its clients some for the finest
automobiles backed by efficient
After-sales service, which is why, the
Mitsubishi showroom also features
a separate service and parts section
under one roof. “We have a very
special relationship with the people
of the UAE. Al Habtoor Motors and
Mitsubishi continue to share a unique
and decades long partnership of trust
and success. We are both driven by
professionalism, quality and high
standards of customer service. We love
challenges and we keep challenging
our own achievements. This has
helped us to reach new frontiers as
we continue to expand our network.”
added Mr. Ahmed Al Habtoor, CEO of
Al Habtoor Motors. “A great product
cannot be one, if it fails to satisfy the
customer. In the case of automobiles,
unfailing After-sales support becomes
as critical as the sales efforts itself.
This is where our association with
Al Habtoor Motors has helped us
ensure that all Mitsubishi customers
in the UAE enjoy a great ownership
experience. We at Mitsubishi Motors
Corporation (MMC) are proud of Al
Habtoor Motors achievements as they
continue to expand their network thus
enabling Mitsubishi to maintain its
leading position in the UAE market as
well as the region.”, said Mr. Toshiaki
Nomura, President - MMMEA FZE
GM Thanks
Customers for 500
Million Vehicles
Milestone
Middle East Regional Office –
General Motors recently celebrated
500 million GM-branded vehicles built
globally over the past 106 years – the
most of any automaker by far. At each
of GM’s five regional celebrations
the company emphasized the
important role customers have
played in its accomplishment,
and expressed its appreciation by
giving new GM-branded vehicles to
select loyal customers. In addition,
the company presented special
videos about customers who have
achieved their own milestones with
GM-branded
vehicles,
including
one about a Chevrolet Captiva club
member from Bangkok who used
a fleet of Captivas to propose to
his girlfriend. “This celebration isn’t
about GM’s manufacturing prowess.
It is really about our customers and
the positive experiences they’ve
had with Chevrolet and other GMbranded vehicles around the world,”
said Stefan Jacoby, GM Executive
Vice President and President of GM
International, at the event in Thailand.
GM
International
encompasses
the Middle East region, along with
those in South-East Asia, Africa, and
Australasia. Jacoby added: “While
Retail
we are proud to have built 500 million
vehicles, we know we will only earn
the right to build 500 million more by
putting our customers at the center of
everything we do.”
During the celebration in Thailand,
company leaders presented a new
Chevrolet Colorado High Country,
built at the plant, to loyal customer
Supot Khwankoom, a farmer from
Phichit Province, chosen from a
number of video entries from Chevy
Plus members of Thailand. In his
entry, Khwankoom explained that
his current Colorado was his family’s
first vehicle, delivered to them on his
son’s birthday, is a great source of
pride for them and has brought much
luck. Khwankoom is one of only five
customers worldwide to be given a
GM-branded vehicle as part of regional
celebrations held this week in Kansas,
USA; Ruesselsheim, Germany; Sao
Paulo, Brazil; Shanghai, China, and
Rayong, Thailand. Vice President,
Manufacturing of GM Thailand
Amnat Saengjan added: “It’s worth
remembering that just over a year
ago we celebrated 1 million vehicles
built here at Rayong, Thailand – a
great milestone itself. We continue
to produce great vehicles with a
strong focus on quality, because our
customers deserve the best.” At the
U.S. event, GM CEO Mary Barra
spoke of how the company’s vehicles
have played vital roles in the lives of
its customers – from daily commutes
to family vacations, and in milestones
such as weddings and graduations
– and how GM looks to build on
the achievement. “During 2015, we
expect to sell more than 1,000 new
vehicles per hour, 24 hours per day,”
said Barra. “This adds up to nearly
10 million vehicles, the most in our
history. I look at this extraordinary
volume as 10 million opportunities to
prove what kind of company we are
and to say thank you.”
19
May-June 2015
Retail
News
10% boost in Chevrolet car sales in Middle East
Greater demand for mid to large
sized Chevrolet cars
Leading markets: Kuwait up 41%,
UAE up 48% & Jordan up 86%
Continued healthy growth in the
industry for passenger cars
MIDDLE EAST REGIONAL OFFICE
– This week Chevrolet Middle East
announced a 10% increase in yearon-year sales of its cars for the month
of April. The increase comes on the
back of the recent strong monthly
sales that has seen the brand also
report 10% growth for the year to
date.Increased demand for mid-size
and large passenger cars is largely
responsible for the growth, with
sales of the award winning Chevrolet
Impala up 19%, the Cruze up 43%
and the Caprice up 37%. “We’ve
seen a lot of consistent growth in our
car sales and also the industry over
the last few months,” said Jeroen
Barwegen, Regional Sales and
Marketing Director for Chevrolet. “It’s
great to see that more people are
choosing to get behind the wheel of
a Chevrolet because they understand
that they can have reliability, style,
20
May-June 2015
technology and low cost of ownership
in one package.” Chevrolet has
managed to boost its presence and
business in the region by ensuring
there is a different model competing
in every car segment of the industry.
Chevrolet sells 10 types of passenger
car, ranging from the Spark city car,
up to the Impala sedan, as well as the
Camaro and Corvette sports range.
Leading the charge in terms of the
markets with the highest growth were
Jordan, the UAE and Kuwait (up 86%,
48% and 41% respectively).
Macao, Hong Kong. Representa ves
from the Sands Group visited Ducab
facili es and placed an order for
more than US$12 million worth of
cables for the extension project of
the Vene an. The project was won
by Ducab’s Hong Kong representa ve,
Polygon Cable Supplies Ltd., and
Ducab has been contracted to supply
the project’s requirement of BASECapproved low-voltage (LV) cables, as
well as LPCB-approved FlamBICC 4 –
fire-retardant – cables. Andrew Shaw,
Managing Director, Ducab, said:
“Winning this project is testament to
the global standards to which Ducab
products comply, and it is a proud
moment for Ducab to be selected
to supply the cabling needs for the
Sands Group’s latest Macau property.
This shows that our quality focus
con nues to open up opportuni es
beyond the Middle East region. We
were happy to host a delega on from
the customer and the contractor at
our factory and show them our classleading processes and products.” The
Vene an is a well-known hotel and
resort in Macao, and the promoters
have undertaken its extension to
include a new property, The Parisian.
Ducab On Winning
Streak at The Venetian, Macao, Hong
Kong
Representatives visited Ducab
facilities & place multi-million
Dollar cable order
Ducab, the Middle East’s leading
manufacturer of high quality cables
and cabling products, has announced
a new customer – the Vene an
Resort, owned by the Sands Group in
This will be the Sands Group’s fourth
property in Macao and will feature
3,000 rooms and suites,a retail mall,
replica Eiffel Tower, conference
facili es, diverse F&B outlets,
News
and entertainment op ons. Dale
Chandwick, Vice President – Building
Services, Vene an Cotai Ltd., said:
“Iconic projects such as the Vene an
and the Parisian have a significant
quality reputa on to live-up to, and
we believe that this begins at the
construc on stage. Working with
Ducab and Polygon, we are in no doubt
of the quality, safety, and longevity
of the product, and we were also
impressed by the facili es we visited
in the UAE.” As main contractors for
this project, the Sands Group has
selected BYME Engineering, a part
of Bouygues Contrac ng, one of the
largest contractors in the world. The
delega on to Ducab facili es included
representa ves from the Vene an,
from BYME, and from Polygon.
Panasonic Middle
East & Africa 2015
Annual Policy Meet
outlines new mid
and long term
strategies
Panasonic Marke ng Middle East
& Africa (PMMAF) – the regional
headquarters for Panasonic in the
region, held its annual policy meet
this year on 10th May 2015 at The
Address Hotel, Dubai Mall, Dubai,
UAE.
The annual event, set the stage
not only for outlining the regional
business strategies but created
an ideal mee ng point to engage
in a one-on-one discussion with
the company’s esteemed business
partners. It also manifested into an
ideal launchpad where new products
got under the limelight.
Panasonic’s state-of-the-art line
-up of products comprising of B2C
(Audio Visual, Home Appliances &
Beauty Products) and B2B (Security
& Home Safety and Eco Solu ons)
product categories were showcased
at the event. The event registered an
a endance of more than 50 business
associates from across the Middle
East & Africa markets.
Speaking at the 2015 policy meet, Mr
Shinichi Wakita, Managing Director,
Panasonic Marke ng Middle East &
Africa, commented, “As a company,
Retail
Panasonic has unveiled a new
future growth strategy. Globally,
we are seeking to enhance market
compe veness, and in turn improve
profitability. Efforts are currently
being taken to strengthen emerging
markets like the Middle East & Africa
and to that end, PMMAF believes in
leveraging the strengths that it has in
its businesses and with its partners
who have in-depth exper se in each
space, and will work to combine these
strengths pursuing “Cross-Value
Innova on”. This year the company is
embarking on a new channel strategy
focused on greater interac ve
customer experience, with an aim
to capitalize and benefit from the
opportuni es offered by the region’s
thriving business sector. More than
profitability, and re-defining business
structures what Panasonic is aiming
for is to keep on providing “be er
living” everywhere, mee ng the
needs of each individual customer.”
PMMAF recently introduced brand
showrooms in Kuwait and UAE and
there are plans to add more during
the course of the year. The company
aims to provide a seamless integra on
by crea ng an ideal venue, where a
broad-line up of products are not
only displayed but also
provides an excellent
opportunity of touch
and feel.
PMMAF is currently
focusing on crea ng
products and associated
services that together
meet
consumer’s
demands for superior
experiences, ul mately
transforming the way
they live, work and
entertain themselves
towards crea ng “A
Be er Life, A Be er
World”.
21
May-June 2015
Retail
News
Alshaya’s Summer Internship Programme returns for
eighth year
Four-week programme provides
training
and
development
opportunities for young Kuwaitis
within the growing retail sector
The popular M.H. Alshaya Co.
Summer Retail Internship initiative,
run in partnership with Kuwait’s
Manpower
and
Government
Restructuring Programme (MGRP),
returns again this summer for the
eighth year, providing young Kuwaiti
students with training opportunities in
the diverse world of retail. Following
the MGRP’s call to Kuwaiti senior
students to register for the 2015
private sector summer internship
programme, Alshaya will be offering
up to 650 four-week internship
opportunities across its 70-plus worldleading international brands.
Kuwaiti students may register for
an interview at the MGRP website.
Interviews are scheduled from 10th to
28th May, from 4:30 pm to 7:00 pm
at the MGRP Headquarters in Regaie.
22
May-June 2015
Taking place from 2nd August to 3rd
September, the Alshaya Summer
Retail Internship Programme sees
Kuwaiti
school
and
university
students spend four hours daily in
one of Alshaya’s stores, cafes and
restaurants. For those who want to
explore a career in retail, the internship
provides a valuable hands-on learning
and development experience. Brands
involved in the programme include
Debenhams, Starbucks, American
Eagle Outfitters, H&M, P.F. Chang’s,
Bath & Body Works and KidZania.
During their time in store, interns
are introduced to the essential
concepts of how a store is run and
managed. The training includes
coaching in sales, promotions,
customer service, merchandising
and stock management. The Alshaya
Summer Internship Programme aims
to provide participants with a full
understanding of the jobs and career
opportunities available in the retail
industry, including the qualifications,
behaviours and skills necessary for a
promising career in retail.
Alshaya named
most customerfriendly retailer in
Dubai for its commitment to
customers
M.H. Alshaya Co., one of the world’s
leading international retail franchise
companies, has been named as
the most customer-friendly Retail
Company by the Department of
Economic Development in Dubai
(DED) in its third annual Consumer
Friendliness Index, which shows the
most customer-friendly retailers in
the emirate. The Index celebrates
retailers from seven sectors, who
demonstrated their commitment to
customer satisfaction throughout
2014. Alshaya was named as winner
in the Retail Stores Category for
strong customer satisfaction levels
and after-sales services.
Collecting the award on behalf of
the company, Mr Ayman Abdullatif
Alshaya, a member of the Board
of Alshaya said: “We are delighted
to receive this award from the
Dubai Department of Economic
Development,
which
recognises
Alshaya’s ongoing commitment to
innovate on behalf of its customers.
With over 300 stores in Dubai, and
2,800 overall across our operations,
we work hard to ensure we deliver
outstanding service to our customers
every time they visit – this award
is a great validation of our ongoing
efforts.” The Consumer Friendliness
Index, currently in its third year, aims
to promote customer satisfaction by
fostering healthy competition among
retailers and encouraging them to
adopt best practices to gain consumer
confidence.
Last year Alshaya received recognition
from the DED for its strong and
News
ongoing support of DED initiatives,
including the ‘Be Right – Know Your
Consumer Rights’ advisory service.
Since last November, every receipt
issued by Alshaya across all its 300+
stores, restaurants and cafes in the
Emirate of Dubai has carried details of
the DED’s Consumer Rights helpline
number and web address, helping
to raise awareness of the Dubai
government’s ‘Be Right – Know Your
Consumer Rights’ advisory service
(www.consumerrights.ae).
The company also produces receipts
in both Arabic and English in line with
DED guidance, whilst clear Exchange
and Refund policies are displayed in
store.
JAWAD BUSINESS
GROUP WINS INTERNATIONAL
FRANCHISEE OF
THE YEAR AWARD
AT PAPA JOHN’S
CONFERENCE
Jawad Business Group was awarded
International Franchisee of the Year
Award at a glittering function held
in Orlando, Florida recently. The
annual OPCON 2015 celebration was
attended by Papa John’s Founder
John Schnatter, COO Steve Ritchie,
Sr. VP Jack Swaysland and other
top executives of the brand. In the
running for top honours for two years
straight, Jawad Business Group
walked away with the Award, beating
other heavyweight Papa John’s Pizza
operators from around the globe.
Faisal Jawad, Chairman & CEO of
Jawad Business Group said, “We are
proud of our team that has worked
hard to make Papa John’s such a
success story in the GCC. Mohammed
Jawad is a wonderful example for all
Bahrainis to emulate. His success
shows just how far one can go with
a strong work ethic, sincerity and
determination.”
Steve Ritchie, COO, Papa John’s
said, “It was an honour to present
to the Jawad Group the award for
Large International Franchisee of the
Year. Winning such a respectable
and prestigious award is an
indication of their passion, hard work
and perseverance in consistently
delivering the best in quality to their
customers every single day. Their
dedication, devotion and belief in
Papa John’s brand promise has
earned them with this deserving
recognition. We continue to wish the
Jawad Group ongoing success for
2015 and beyond. This I believe is
the first of many more success stories
and awards as they continue to grow.”
Senior VP, Jack Swaysland, who has
worked closely with the JBG team said,
“It was an absolute delight to see the
Jawad group awarded Papa John’s
International large franchisee of the
year for 2014. This is great testament
Retail
to both the excellent business they
run in bringing our Better ingredients
Better Pizza promise to all our
customers across the GCC and the
Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia and
to the great way they operate their 89
stores.”
The company headed up by Faisal
Jawad are an absolute pleasure to
work with & our brand is all the stronger
having such great franchisees. The
accolade of Franchisee of the year is
sought by many but awarded to only a
few and demonstrates just how good
the Jawad group are. We look forward
to continuing our relationship with
them & working closely on expanding
the business across the Middle East.”
Papa John’s has realized tremendous
growth internationally over the past
years, but the success of the brand
has always been rooted in the
principles established in 1984 – using
better ingredients to make a better
pizza. The single most important
element of Papa John’s ‘Better
Ingredients, Better Pizza’ promise is
passion, which is immediately evident
in terms of quality and taste. From
fresh-sliced vegetables to fresh handtossed dough and superior quality
tomato Business Intelligence Platform
Boosts Competitiveness, as Oman’s
23
May-June 2015
IT
News
Khalili Group: First to Deploy SAP S/4 HANA in MENA
Non-Oil Economy Set to Grow 5.5
Percent in 2015
chain, propelling Al Khalili Group into
a new era of growth.”
Khalili Group has become the first
company in MENA to deploy the
SAP S/4 HANA business intelligence
solution, boosting competitiveness
and Oman’s diversifying economy.
Al Khalil Group, which has worked
with SAP since 2012, is one of Oman’s
leading conglomerates, operating
across verticals such as building and
construction, automotive services, IT,
oil and gas, electrical and lighting.
Demonstrating the strong opportunities
for Oman’s conglomerates, the
country’s Ministry of Finance projects
5.5 percent growth for Oman’s non-oil
economic growth in 2015, especially
in the sectors of construction, trade,
utilities, public sector, and security
and defense.
In the emerging Digital Economy,
Oman’s IT market is set to grow by
28 percent from OMR 164 million to
OMR 210 million in 2018, according
to BMI Research.
“As we expand our operations across
the Middle East, we faced an urgent
need to have the insights into our
supply chain and human resources,
in order to attract and retain the top
staff, and deliver enhanced customer
experiences,” said Sheikh Talal
bin Salim Al Khalili, Deputy Group
Managing Director, Al Khalili Group.
“SAP’s S4/HANA technology solution
provides the real-time dashboard to
develop staff and enhance our supply
24
May-June 2015
“As the Digital Economy picks up the
pace in Oman, Al Khalili Group has
become a regional leader in using
technology to simplify and transform its
employee and customer experience,”
said Gergi Abboud, Managing
Director, SAP Gulf and Pakistan.
“With SAP S/4 HANA and a variety
of SAP solutions, Al Khalili Group
will be able to analyse data in realtime for in-depth reports
and faster decisionmaking,
boosting
competitiveness.”
By combining the SAP
S/4 HANA in-memory
platform with a variety of
SAP solutions, Al Khalili
Group has a real-time
dashboard that tracks
and analyses data on
more than 40,000 items,
helping to determine
product
stocking
decisions across 18 branches in
Oman and the UAE. Among the
solutions deployed are Business
Intelligence, Enterprise Resource
Planning,
Strategic
Enterprise
Management,
and
Customer
Relationship Management.
With more than 2,000 employees,
Al Khalili Group has deployed SAP
Fiori and SAP Mobility solutions to
support mobile apps, SAP Workforce
Performance
Builder
for
staff
development, and SAP Interactive
Forms for automating paper-based
forms, auditing, and archiving.
Al Khalil Group deployed SAP S/4
HANA with ISS, an SAP Gold Partner
that operates in the Gulf and India.
Middle East Oil and
Gas Companies
Urged to Innovate
from Growing Volume to Optimizing
Operations
In Era of Lower Prices But Rising
Demand,
Technology
Helps
Optimize
Efficiency,
Increase
Profitability, and Guard Against
Price Volatility
In an era of lower prices but rising
demand, Middle East oil and gas
companies are urged to innovate
from growing volume to optimizing
their operations to support economic
growth, industry experts announced
today. While global oil prices reached
their lowest level in four years in
2014, global oil demand is set to
News
grow by more than 21 percent in 2015
from 960,000 barrels/day to in 2014
to 1.17 million barrels/day in 2015,
according to a recent report from the
Organization of Petroleum Exporting
Countries (OPEC).
From 2014-2015, the Middle East will
be the world’s second-fastest growing
region for oil demand, particularly
from the UAE, Qatar, and Kuwait,
according to OEPC.
OPEC shows oil and gas is a key
contributor to GCC countries’ GDP,
including 60 percent of Kuwait’s, 55
percent of Qatar’s, 50 percent of the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia’s, and 40
percent of the UAE’s.
“While it may seem counter-intuitive
for Middle East oil and gas companies
to invest in technology now, they need
to face the new reality of lower oil
prices, and innovate their operations
from growing volume to enhancing
value from their operations, to
support the rising energy demands
and economic growth,” said Maher
Chebbo, General Manager of Energy
& Natural Resources, SAP EMEA.
Demonstrating the strong demand
for technology solutions in the oil
and gas sector, 70 percent of oil and
gas companies will invest in evolving
their IT by 2016, when connectivityrelated spending will increase by
30 percent over 2014, according to
IDC’s “Worldwide Oil & Gas 2015
Predictions”.
Middle East oil and gas companies
are shifting investment to solutions
across Big Data, cloud, and mobility
to optimize operational efficiency,
increase profitability, and guard
against price volatility.
In particular, oil and gas companies are
looking at solutions that leverage Big
Data for optimizing capital spend and
production management, supporting
sustainable operations with a real-time
energy platform, ensuring an effective
talent management strategy, and
enabling mergers and acquisitions.
As part of SAP’s continued support
for innovation in the oil and gas
sector, the company is working
with Shell to develop a new well
and reservoir facility management
solution enabled by SAP HANA – the
company’s in-memory computing
platform – to accelerate analytics,
business processes, and sentiment
data processing to increase early
production and improve resource
optimization.
SAP is also working with the Abu
Dhabi National Oil Company and its
group of companies to deploy key
business solutions across exploration
and production, marketing and
refinery, finance, human resources,
procurement, and supply chain
management requirements built on a
common platform.
SAP counts more than 800 oil and
gas customers worldwide, including
85 percent of the Fortune 2000 oil and
gas companies, and SAP customers
produce more than 70 million barrels/
day.
Al-Futtaim Group
Drives Procure-toPay Efficiency with
SAP Ariba
IT
world’s premier business commerce
event, Al-Futtaim discussed how it
is leveraging the world’s business
network to fuel an automated procureto-pay process that delivers gamechanging improvements.
As a diverse automotive company
going through a rapid phase of growth,
Al-Futtaim understands the need to
keep things moving. So when manual
processes and lack of standardization
began to hamper its procure-to-pay
operations, the company set out on a
new course.
“We needed to gain better visibility
into and control over our spend,” said
Asad Zaidi, Director of Procurement
and
Performance
Improvement,
Automotive Division, Al-Futtaim. “And
we knew that in order to achieve
this, we’d need to automate our
operations.”
The company tapped into the Ariba
Network and the cloud-based
applications for procurement and
invoicing delivered on it, and laid out
an aggressive plan to:
Create a standard, best-practice
procure-to-pay process that would
provide a clear view into spend
and contracts and improve controls
and compliance, Enable suppliers
to collaborate electronically on
Cloud-Based Applications Enable
UAE Conglomerate to Automate
Procurement
and
Invoicing,
Supporting Growth
Procure-to-pay
efficiency
is
something many companies dream
about, and with the help of Ariba, an
SAP SE company, UAE-based AlFuttaim Group is making it a reality.
During an interactive breakout
session at the recent Ariba LIVE, the
everything from sourcing and orders
to invoicing and payment,
Give business users a friendly,
consumer-like experience by enabling
them to procure through catalogs,
25
May-June 2015
IT
News
Digitize invoices to reduce errors and
inefficiency.
“We needed to change the way
we did business,” said Asad Zaidi.
And since Al-Futtaim implemented
Ariba solutions, that change has
come. Today, the company has a
uniform and centralized process
for purchasing goods and services
across its operations. It has all but
eliminated manual purchase orders,
and the majority of its invoices are
received and processed electronically.
“Al-Futtaim operates one of the most
efficient and effective networks of
automotive companies in the Gulf
region,” said Tim Minahan, Senior
Vice President, Ariba. “In leveraging
Ariba’s business network and the
cloud-based applications delivered
on it, the company is driving new
levels of efficiency that enhance its
performance and the value it delivers
to its customers.”
Smartworld Launches Cloud Customer Engagement Solutions
in the UAE
The new offering leverages the
virtualized capabilities of the
Altitude uCI 8 platform to deliver
Altitude’s flagship contact center
applications in a cloud-based
service model
Dubai-based Focus Point Selects
Smartworld
Cloud
Customer
Engagement Solutions
Smartworld has selected Altitude
Software to Launch the first Cloud
Customer Engagement Solutions
in the UAE. Smartworld is a joint
venture between Etisalat and Dubai
World Central. The company is one of
the emerging technology companies
with an impeccable track record of
developing and delivering cuttingedge digital solutions in the region.
Altitude Software delivers a robust,
modular contact center solution that
handles all customer interactions and
unifies all touch points throughout
the organization. Enabling UAE
companies to focus on customer
service while reducing costs The
new Smartworld Cloud Customer
Engagement solutions bring to market
a high value-added offering, enabling
companies in the UAE to focus on
customer service while reducing costs
and optimizing resources. Hosted
within Smartworld data center at Dubai
World Central, these are completely
customizable solutions that can be up
and running within a matter of hours
26
May-June 2015
with little to no capital investment.
Contact Centers operations are able
to scale up or down based on demand,
while optimizing resources and saving
time and money. Free from IT and
communications operational tasks,
contact centers can focus on their
core business relationships to become
more productive and competitive.
“Today in UAE, a vast majority of
contact centers are internal. There
are large numbers of companies who
are unwilling to outsource all or part
of their customer relationships and
want to keep control of their customer
relationships while not managing a call
center’s administrative constraints.
It is this type of organizations that
we target through this cloud-based
solution, offering the same quality
of service and performance while
allowing companies to retain control
of their customer relationships. Our
expertise both in the IT and CRM,
combined with our Data Centre
expertise allows us to master
all the components of this offer,”
says Mohammed Fouz, CEO of
Smartworld.
CRM Outsourcer Selects Smartworld
Cloud
Customer
Engagement
Solutions
One key contract won by Smartworld
is with Focus Point, the first and
only UAE-owned contact center
outsourcing
services
provider
with a strong specialization in live
telephone interviewing and feedback
management services.
‘’Our goal is to provide our clients with
the highest quality interviewing and
feedback management services at
the most cost effective rates in UAE,’’
commented Youssef Ben Beshoosh,
Focus Point President & Co-Founder.
“Selecting
Smartworld
Cloud
Customer Engagement Solutions as a
key component of our contact center
operations reaffirms our commitment
to incorporating the best technology
available to service our customers
and ultimately, drive our contact
center outsourcing business to new
heights,” added Beshoosh.
Smartworld
Cloud
Customer
Engagement Solutions enable Focus
Point to take advantage of various
multimedia contact center capabilities
powered by the Altitude Software
platform, including:
A fully customizable Unified Desktop
application that empowers contact
centre agents to handle all customer
related activities
An outbound dialler that adds
intelligence to the dialling process,
used in outbound telemarketing,
surveys, telesales, scheduled callbacks or collections campaigns.
News
A unified queue and intelligent router
to answer, prioritise and intelligently
route inbound interactions to available
agents A Management Portal for
Real-time contact centre monitoring of
business results as well as complete
analytics and historical reporting
’We are honored that the Altitude
solution was chosen to power
Smartworld’s
Cloud
Customer
Engagement offering,’’ said Riadh
Boukhris, Altitude Software MENA
President. “We bring companies more
freedom of choice to benefit from a
customizable, flexible technology
offer. Altitude uCI has a great track
record in reducing operating costs
and investments while achieving true
customer engagement.’’
Altitude Software has a track record
of 22 years of customer and industry
recognition and has won dozens of
awards for innovation and tangible
results with customers in key markets
worldwide. The Altitude uCI solution
provides businesses with a wealth of
advanced contact centre features in
about 80 countries worldwide, with
a fast-growing presence across the
GCC Region. It manages, in real time,
enterprise functions like customer
service, help desk, collections,
telesales, surveys, etc. It is unique in
accelerating the creation of services
and campaigns, thanks to the unified
design studio, routing, dialer, voice
portal, desktop front-end, monitoring
and analytics. ‘Smartworld are excited
to partner with Altitiude to provide a
UAE cloud based customer contact
centre solution. This is a rapidly
evolving market place and another
step in the UAE embracing cloud based
services. We are equally excited to
launch this service with Focuspoint,
the first UAE-owned contact centre
outsourcing services provider, and we
look forward to growing with them.’
Said Simon Williams, Sales Director,
Smartworld.
Canon Extends
its Office Print
Portfolio with
Four New Colour
MFDs for Small
Workgroups and
Offices
(ME NewsWire) Canon Middle East,
world-leader in imaging solutions,
today extends its print portfolio with
the addition of four compact and
feature rich A4 colour multifunctional
devices (MFDs), the imageRUNNER
C1225, imageRUNNER C1225iF,
imageRUNNER
C1325iF
and
imageRUNNER C1335iF.
Value for money
The new devices are packed with
features and provide businesses with
great value for money. In addition to
fast colour printing, copying, scanning,
fax and send functionality, they also
feature a new “touch and swipe”
operation, 8.9cm colour graphical
display, as well as Genuine Adobe®
PostScript 3TM support1 as standard.
This is the first time Canon has used
separate toner and drum technology
on the A4 colour imageRUNNER
range to reduce waste and achieve
greater efficiencies in printing.
Retail
output
New and unique to Canon’s latest
imageRUNNER devices is V2 Vivid
and Vibrant technology, which
produces professional-looking colour
business documents that deliver
greater impact, to help businesses
stand out from the competition.
With a robust design capable of a
maximum duty cycle of up to 50,000
pages, the new models produce
impressive high-quality colour prints.
The new printers are also the first
imageRUNNER
devices
to
support
the
Mopria
mobile
printing standard
and
come
with
extensive
connectivity
options
to
support mobile working.
Efficient management and control
Across all the new devices,
enhanced support for a range of
IT industry standards ensures
seamless integration with existing IT
environments, while Department ID
functionality, which delivers basic print
policy controls such as restricting the
use of colour to certain individuals,
allows smaller offices to help control
costs.
Leading environmental performance
Canon’s latest multifunctional printers
are Energy Star certified and feature
class-leading TEC ratings, with power
consumption figures of less than one
watt in sleep mode. In addition, the
devices recover rapidly from sleep
mode with Canon’s on-demand fixing
technology.
The imageRUNNER printers are now
available through Canon Middle East.
Impressive document handling and
27
May-June 2015
Automation
News
SSI SCHAEFER MEA receives the award for Materials Handling
Provider of the Year at the 9th annual Supply Chain &
Transport Awards 2015
Cargo Equipment such as Transport
ALS Logistic
systems, Truck Docks & Workstations
as well as Warehouse design facilities
Solutions plans
and Consulting.
to acquire new
Swisslog develops
markets
After successful holding Air Cargo its presence in the
Africa 2015 in Johannesburg, South
Africa, ALS Logistic Solutions Middle East
is getting ready for new events
planned for this year.
During a spectacular evening held at
the Intercontinental Hotel in Festival
City, SSI Schaefer took home the
award for Materials Handling Provider
for the second consecutive year and
the third one in total (again in 2008).
This year’s finalists were ALS
Logistic Solutions, Span Trading LLC,
FAMCO, Almajdouie Logistics and
CHEP Middle East. Yet the prestigious
award, which comes to recognize and
highlight the contributors to the supply
chain efficiency achievement in the
region, states the SSI Schaefer name
as a strong brand in this particular
business area.
SSI Schaefer is renowned as an
optimum solution provider that would
not only address the immediate
operational demands but also provide
a flexible solution to accommodate
future growth within the business.
28
May-June 2015
ALS Logistic Solutions has numerous
turnkey projects across Africa,
Asia and Europe. Starting a year
with InterAirport South East Asia in
Singapore, ALS put a new resolution
for 2015. Being active on the market is
a key priority for ALS Logistic Solutions.
Air Cargo Africa – that took place on
February – helped us to meet with our
old friends from Nigeria and Kenya,
and to find new business opportunities
in Africa. Moving forward, spring will
bring two big events in Air Cargo
world. We will attend Air Cargo Europe
in Munich and we look forward for new
contacts. Airport Show in Dubai will
take place on 10-12th, May 2015. In
cooperation with SCHOPF/Goldhofer,
ALS will exhibit in German Pavilion.
We will be glad to greet you at booth
6701. It is our pleasure to exhibit
again in InterAirport Europe 2015
that will be held on 6-9th, October
in Munich. Visit ALS booth 1258 in
German Pavilion to learn more about
automation of material handling. ALS
Logistic Solutions is one of the world
leading suppliers of cargo logistics
equipment. As a turnkey cargo system
provider, ALS supplies the whole
range of products and services from
the Fully Automated to the Modular
Warehouse automation specialist,
Swisslog, is extending its presence
in the Middle East with a new office
based in Dubai and new legal entity,
Swisslog Middle East LLC.
The new business is intended to
provide stronger local support to allow
the growing number of Middle Eastern
automation customers to stay ahead
of their competition. The move is also
in response to the growing importance
of automation in the region, particularly
in the retail business and in sectors
where temperature control has a
significant impact on the supply chain.
Swisslog Warehouse & Distribution
Solutions designs, develops and
delivers best-in-class automation
solutions
for
forward-thinking
customers,
offering
integrated
systems
for
warehouses
and
distribution centers as well as services
from a single source.
Behind the company’s success are
2 300 employees worldwide working
across two divisions, Warehouse &
Distribution Solutions (WDS) and
Healthcare Solutions (HCS), and
supporting customers in more than
50 countries. With the establishing of
Swisslog Middle East LLC in the Dubai ,
Swisslog WDS aims to develop further
its presence in the region, and follows
a similar strategy of local offices in
News
developing automation markets such
as Singapore and the US.
The Dubai office will be headed by
Frédéric Zielinski, General Manager
of Swisslog Middle East LLC who
joined the business in 2004.
He sees Dubai’s position as a regional
hub as playing an important role in
the future development of the Middle
Eastern logistics market. Said Frédéric:
“We have seen a lot of development
in a short space of time. Dubai’s
strategic importance as a centre for
international shipping and air-sea-land
logistics means the market has always
offered great potential. Now, with the
increasing impact of e-commerce and
temperature controlled solutions, the
time is right for us to increase our local
presence, increasing the reach and
capabilities of our customer service
and support.”
The region has seen remarkable growth
over recent years with manufacturing
activities
increasing
dramatically
and the logistics sector responding
accordingly. The subsequent effects
of these developments have had a
major impact on modern warehouses,
with many existing operating models
no longer fitting their intended
purpose. The trend toward automation
has gathered pace, as investment in
technology is viewed as a long-term
benefit.
Swisslog’s portfolio consists of different
key technologies, such as conveyor
systems, ASRS, AGVs, monorails,
and software to help businesses
maximize their intralogistics potential.
Daniel Hauser, Managing Director of
Swisslog Ltd, believes the Middle East
offers real potential for the automation
industry. Said Daniel: “It’s a big step
for us, but one which we are incredibly
excited about. Our aim with all our
regional offices is to develop our
local business knowledge and reach,
and to support our loyal and growing
customer base. With this commitment
to the Middle East market, Swisslog
continues to follow its strategy to
be close to customers, not only to
deliver services, but to learn from their
challenges and to allow us to develop
even better systems and support.”
Swisslog hopes to develop the market
yet further, with its range of modular
solution portfolios that provide order
fulfillment, split case picking, returns
management and other common
warehouse processes.
Later in the year, Swisslog will also
take part in Material Handlings Middle
East exhibition, 14-16 September, at
the Dubai International Convention
and Exhibition Centre.
Swisslog acquires
warehouse
automation
provider FORTE
Industries in the
United States
FORTE
Industrial
Equipment
Systems, Inc. (doing business as
FORTE Industries) is a US-based
consulting, systems integration and
software technology firm focused
on optimizing distribution centers
for many of the world’s fastest
growing companies. FORTE plans,
designs and implements material
handling automation systems with its
warehouse execution software (WES)
as the core of each solution.
FORTE’s expertise in conveyor
systems, case and piece picking, and
sortation solutions, particularly in the
e-commerce and multichannel retail
segment, will strengthen Swisslog’s
offering in North America. The FORTE
customer base extends across
multiple vertical industries and will
enhance Swisslog’s offering to both
E-Commerce and Pharmaceutical
segments.
Automation
FORTE employees will continue to
serve customers as part of Swisslog
FORTE will continue to operate
within its well-established business
model as a separate unit of Swisslog
Warehouse & Distribution Solutions
(WDS) North America from its
Mason, OH headquarters. With the
completion of the acquisition, founder
and owner Gene Forte transitioned
management of the company to AK
Schultz, previously Vice President
Customer Service Swisslog North
America. Schultz has more than 15
years of experience in engineering
and the automated material handling
industry and has held management
positions within Swisslog for more
than a decade. He can rely on the
strong FORTE management group
and an entire team of talented and
experienced
material
handling
experts.
Win-win situation for Swisslog and
FORTE
Throughout the acquisition and
leadership change, FORTE and
Swisslog customers will remain the
top priority. “We are convinced that
the combination of Swisslog and
FORTE will deliver significant benefits
to our customers that are far beyond
the individual offerings. In addition,
the acquisition will support Swisslog’s
market strategy and particularly
its positioning in the e-commerce
and multichannel segments,” said
Markus Schmidt, President Swisslog
Warehouse & Distribution Solutions
North America.
“I am enormously proud that a global
systems integrator with the stellar
reputation of Swisslog sees FORTE
as such a valuable addition to their
team. The FORTE brand has always
stood for excellence and innovation
and I believe the synergies between
our respective teams will result in an
even more powerful proposition to our
rapidly expanding client base,” said
Gene Forte, founder and previous
owner of FORTE.
29
May-June 2015
For more information call
UAE: 800 4333
www.tnt.com
News
Automation
Swisslog acquires technologies and employees from
Grenzebach Automation GmbH in the areas of AGVs and
logistics robots
Swisslog has acquired a carefully
selected portfolio of technologies
and employees from Grenzebach
Automation GmbH in Karlsruhe,
Germany to strengthen its expertise
in the areas of automated guided
vehicles (AGVs) and logistics robots.
This acquisition dovetails with
Swisslog’s strategy of expanding
it’s positioning in the e-commerce
and omni-channel segments and
pursuing opportunities in the field
of production logistics. Following an
existing partnership between the
two companies, Swisslog acquired
intellectual property from Grenzebach
Automation GmbH on 16 April 2015.
This includes software technology
in the areas of AGVS, including the
jointly developed mobile storage
and picking system CarryPick®,
automated case picking, automated
item picking, palletizing and depalletizing. Grenzebach engineers
to join Swisslog A select team of
Grenzebach employees will transfer
to Swisslog and form a new Swisslog
location in Karlsruhe, Germany,
headed by Dr. Volker Jungbluth.
Swisslog is looking forward to utilizing
the experience and exceptional
knowledge their new colleagues have
in research and development, as
well as in application development,
solution design and technical sales.
The expanded cooperation between
Swisslog and Grenzebach as partners
means that customers will continue to
receive optimal support from a highly
qualified team. Prepared today for the
challenges of tomorrow Swisslog is
already playing a key role in shaping
the future of intralogistics. Best-inclass technologies combined with
expert knowledge will continue to
translate into progressive solution
concepts for our customers. In the
near future, humans and robots will
interact and collaborate seamlessly
in Intralogistics optimizing processes.
In light of these developments,
Swisslog’s acquisition of AGV and
logistics robot technologies is another
logical step toward becoming an
automation powerhouse.
Konecranes
adds more hightech features to
its heavy-duty
overhead crane –
SMARTON
INS. Konecranes SMARTON® is a
built-up, heavy-duty overhead crane
for demanding processes, assembly,
and maintenance use. SMARTON has
a lifting capacity of up to 250 tons with
a single trolley and up to 500 tons with
two trolleys. The crane’s speed range
is wide, and duty classes range from
M3 to M8. Konecranes has now further
developed the SMARTON crane. The
revamped crane is designed to make
lifting operations as safe, smooth,
and efficient as possible. The latest
updates have been geared specifically
towards improving the user interface
for crane operators, customer service
crews, and management.
User experience taken to the next level
The new SMARTON includes a tablet,
which can be mounted to the radio
controller or in the operator’s cabin.
The tablet makes crane operation
easier and more productive, as the
operator receives crane- and processrelated information directly to the tablet
and is able to make adjustments to
the crane. Optional camera views for
safer and more effective load handling
are also available.
Easy to Maintain
For maintenance purposes, the
SMARTON tablet provides advanced
troubleshooting
and
condition
information of the crane controls.
Maintenance personnel can access
real-time information of the crane
condition without the need to climb up
to the crane service platform anymore,
and wireless operation allows flexible
use even during crane operation.
“The
SMARTON
includes
31
Smart
May-June 2015
Automation
News
Features
and
TRUCONNECT®
Remote Services, available to
improve safety and productivity of the
customer’s lifting processes,” says
Tero Jaakkola, Product Manager.
“SMARTON now makes it even easier
to tailor solutions for customers who
want to get the benefits of the latest
technology and have safety and a Total
Cost of Ownership approach as part
of their ‘DNA’. With flagship products
like SMARTON, we want to make
sure customers who need advanced
technology in their operations get it.”
Adaptable to different requirements
and industries Konecranes has sold
SMARTON cranes since 2009 to
48 countries, including the Middle
East. The main industries using the
crane are paper, automotive, power,
and steel, with other customers from
general manufacturing and mining.
As customer needs vary considerably
from industry to industry, as well as
from one location to another, there is
a clear need for a product that adapts
to these different requirements.
Modular and expandable In its basic
form, SMARTON comes with many
standard features that will benefit the
customer’s production process. Even
if the load-handling requirements are
more complex, SMARTON offers
the option to further increase the
intelligence of the crane with added
Smart Features.
Smarter lifting starts here The use
of the latest Smart Features, such
as SNAG PREVENTION, HOOK
CENTERING, and ACTIVE SWAY
CONTROL, help improve speed,
accuracy, and safety.
Latest Smart Features
• ACTIVE SWAY CONTROL limits load
swing by controlling the bridge and
trolley acceleration and deceleration.
Sway Control allows faster load
handling and more precise positioning.
32
May-June 2015
This feature also prevents damage to
the load, crane, and surrounding area.
• HOOK CENTERING is designed
to eliminate side pull during lifting by
automatically positioning the bridge
and trolley directly over the load. This
feature means less wear and tear on
your crane’s components, faster load
cycle times, and ease of operation.
• SNAG PREVENTION is designed
to stop all crane movement if the
hook, sling or load accidentally gets
caught on something. This safety
function reduces the risk of hazardous
situations while moving loads and
helps to prevent damage to the load,
crane, and surrounding area.
Photo 1: Designed to enhance crane
operation & maintenance, the Smarton
tablet. © Konecranes
Photo 2: Available with a wide
selection of software-based smart
features. © Konecranes
Photo 3: SMARTON has a lifting
capacity of up to 250 tons with one
trolley. © Konecranes
Konecranes is a world-leading group
of Lifting Businesses™, serving a
broad range of customers, including
manufacturing and process industries,
shipyards, ports and terminals.
Konecranes provides productivityenhancing lifting solutions as well
as services for lifting equipment
and machine tools of all makes. In
2013, Group sales totalled EUR
2,100 million. The Group has 11,800
employees at 600 locations in 48
countries. Konecranes is listed on the
Nasdaq Helsinki (symbol: KCR1V).
Genavco Storage
and Handling
Solutions Division,
Completed Double
Deep Pallet Racking
for Intergulf
IFFCO is a United Arab Emirates
based international group which
manufactures and markets a wellintegrated range of mass-market
food products, related derivatives and
intermediates. IFFCO operates under
the following business segments:
Impulse Foods, Agri Business, Oils &
Fats, Packaging, Chemicals,
Sales and Distribution.
Intergulf Ltd – Empol, a divison of the
IFFCO Group, is one of the largest
manufacturers of PET preforms
and closures in the Middle East and
North Africa region. Their preforms
are widely used for mineral water,
carbonated soft drinks, edible oils,
milk/juices and ketchup. Intergulf
exports to more than 45 countries
across the Middle East, Africa, South
Asia, Europe and Far East. Now
their Central Warehouse in Sharjah
is equipped with Stow Double Deep
Storage System and Crown Material
Handling Equipments. Genavco, the
authorized distributor of Stow & Crown
in the UAE , was invited to design the
racking system and provide an optimal
storage solution for their central
warehouse of 60.000 square feet. One
News
of the biggest challenges in front of us
was the multiple type of SKU’s being
handled by the client. The solution
Genavco proposed was exactly what
the client expected, which helped to
rule out the competition. Moreover
Genavco had proposed a complete
Storage and Material Handling
solution to the customer that included
Stow racking systems and Crown
MHE. The project included supplying
and installing the Double Deep Pallet
Racks with a height of 12m along with
Crown RD 5700 Series Double Deep
Reach Trucks,Forklifts and Powered
Pallet Trucks. The multi-bay racking
system stores several pallets on each
level, according to the various SKU’s.
The Warehouse is in operation since
March 2015.
TNT UAE named
2015 winner of
CIPS Middle East
Award for Best
Contribution
to Corporate
Responsibility
TNT UAE is delighted to receive the
CIPS Middle East Award 2015 for
Corporate Responsibility. This award
recognizes TNT’s efforts in having
achieved safer work practices and
reducing fuel gas emission goals.
Mr Turab Rahaman, Operations
Director, TNT UAE said, “Today,
90% of our Diesel Fleet in the UAE
is run on Biodiesel. This initiative has
enabled us to rely less on fossil fuels
bringing environmental benefits and
contributed to cost savings for TNT
UAE by 13.5% a year.” The pilot
study began in June 2013 and was
implemented a year later. Biodiesel
Fuel B5 - which is cooking oil blended
with petroleum diesel produces ten
times fewer harmful
greenhouse gases than regular diesel.
This reduces emissions of particulate
matter, carbon dioxide and hydro
carbons. In switching to Biodiesel
5, TNT UAE is expected to reduce
carbon emissions by about 32 tonnes
per year based on its normal fuel
consumption patterns. The monies
saved were invested back into training
TNT’s drivers on safe and eco driving.
Overall, this supports UAE’s larger
plan to encourage use of alternative
fuels and give a boost to its national
environmental goals. In presenting the
award, the jury commented, “TNT’s
objectives in support of the National
Green agenda included safer work
practices and reducing harmful fuel
emissions. By having clear goals
and good planning they were able to
introduce enhanced driver training
and alternative fuels which has been
held up as a best practice model”.
CIPS an international organisation
serving the purchasing and supply
profession is dedicated to promoting
good practice and provides a wide
range of services for the benefit of
members and the wider business
community, including qualifications,
education and training. GAC is further
strengthening its strategic focus on
the
worldwide
energy sector with
the appointment of
William Hill as its
Executive Group
Vice
President
– Oil & Gas.
Group President
Bengt
Ekstrand
says bringing a
specific
senior
management
focus on Oil & Gas
is a clear signal
of GAC’s intent.
Logistics
“Our aim is to be more strategic, more
active and more successful in this
sector.”
“Over the decades, GAC has built
up a broad suite of assets and
skills in Oil & Gas,” he adds. “With
Hill’s appointment, we will expand
our footprint and impact as a
global provider to this dynamic and
demanding industry.”
Hill joined the GAC Group in 1984
and held marketing and business
development roles in Kuwait and
Dubai before serving as Regional
Manager for Asia Pacific from 1995
to 2001. Before his appointment as
Executive Group Vice President –
Commercial in 2009, he was Group
Vice President for Logistics Services.
His former duties as Group Vice
President – Commercial are being
taken over by Christer Sjödoff,
previously Group Vice President
– Solutions. Sjödoff’s appointment
brings his accountability for Group
IT and the eco-friendly underwater
hull cleaning system HullWiper under
Commercial. Sjödoff has more than
25 years of experience in shipping,
logistics and marine and has been
with the GAC Group since 1993. After
holding management and operations
posts in the Middle East and Asia, he
served as Regional Director for Asia
33
May-June 2015
Logistics
News
Pacific and the Indian Subcontinent
for five years from 2002. In 2007, he
was appointed Group Vice President
– Solutions, to develop strategic
partnerships to meet the needs of the
international maritime community.
Ekstrand says: “The position of Group
Vice President – Commercial is a
good fit with Sjödoff’s energy and
entrepreneurial flair. With him at the
helm, we shall bring together under a
single umbrella all the essential tools
we need to develop our business
products and services to serve the
changing needs of our customers.”
Both appointments are effective from
1 May 2015.
Aramex Subsidiary
InfoFort Acquires
51% Stake in Leading
Turkish IT Company
InfoFort, a susbsidiary of Aramex and
the leading records and information
management solution provider in
the Middle East and Africa, today
announced the acquisition of a 51%
stake in Turkey-based CBKSoft
Software Inc. CBKSoft is the leader
in the Turkish electronic content
management
(ECM)
market,
developing custom software solutions
to empower businesses and improve
the bottom line.
Aramex first entered the Turkish
market in 1998 and now has 12 offices
across the country. The acquisition
of CBKSoft provides significant
opportunities for Aramex and InfoFort
to continue their regional expansion,
taking advantage of increasing
demand for innovative information
management and business solutions.
CBKSoft offers a range of innovative
IT services including its state-of-the34
May-June 2015
art enVision® document and workflow
management system. These services
complement InfoFort’s comprehensive
suite of records and information
management solutions.
The acquisition will further expand
InfoFort’s reach in the region by giving
Turkish customers greater access to
its client–focused, technology-driven
solutions. InfoFort services, including
physical
records
management,
electronic
records
management,
media and tape vaulting and rotation
and secure data destruction will be
gradually introduced to the Turkish
market. At the same time, enVision®
and other CBKSoft services will also
be exported to InfoFort’s markets
across the Middle East and Africa.
Since enVision® is available in five
different languages and can be easily
integrated into routine business
operations, the service can be adopted
in diverse market environments. The
management of CBKSoft will remain
the same and continue to manage the
company following the acquisition.
Commenting on the acquisition,
Hussein Hachem, Chief Executive
Officer of Aramex, said: “We’re
excited to join forces with CBKSoft
as we expand our reach in one of
the world’s fastest growing emerging
markets. The acquisition of CBKSoft
demonstrates Aramex’s commitment
to expand into high-growth markets
to deliver shareholder value and
incremental growth and revenue.
CBKSoft’s services and solutions
align well with InfoFort’s offerings and
represent an excellent strategic fit for
our overall global business, which will
benefit from greater reach in a major
emerging market.”
Abed Shaheen, Chief Executive
Officer of InfoFort, said: “CBKSoft
is one of the most exciting and
successful software boutiques to
emerge in the Turkish IT industry
over the last decade. The company,
with its great team and advanced
technology, is a perfect strategic fit for
InfoFort and the acquisition presents
a unique opportunity to leverage
the complementary strengths of our
respective services. This will be a
critical move in enhancing our range
of information management solutions
for all of our customers. InfoFort
believes that corporations need to
securely, efficiently and professionally
store their records in order to ensure
confidentiality and business continuity.
We will continue to stress the need to
our existing and potential clients to
invest in digitisation and in automating
paper driven processes and the
acquisition of CBKSoft will make
this service even more accessible to
them.”
Salih Kanli, Chief Executive Officer
of CBKSoft, said: “Our reach across
Turkey, in addition to the range of
information management solutions we
provide, have resulted in significant
competitive differentiation for our
business and brand. We believe
InfoFort is the right partner for us to
expand our presence, both locally
and in the Middle East and Africa. Our
customers will now also be able to
benefit from InfoFort’s wider network,
breadth of information management
solutions and its innovative, customerfocused technologies, whilst still being
able to enjoy our services.”
With the Middle East and Africa
expected to post the world’s highest
cloud traffic growth rate by 2018,
customer demand for digitisation and
secure data storage will continue
to increase rapidly. CBKSoft and
InfoFort are aligned in their efforts
to help regional customers meet this
increased demand, making the deal a
logical, strategic fit.
Established in 2004, CBKSoft provides
a range of IT solutions including
business
process
management,
project
management,
software
News
development, archive management,
record management, form integration
and electronic signatures. Its indepth IT experience is driven by a
highly qualified team of computer
and industrial engineers who have
successfully implemented projects in
Aramex (DFM: ARMX), the leading
global logistics and transportation
solutions provider, today announced
its financial results for the first
quarter of 2015. Aramex’s Net Profits
increased 10% to AED 86.6 million,
up from AED 78.7 million in Q1 2014.
Revenues in the first quarter of 2015
increased to AED 930 million, up 9%
compared to AED 852 million in Q1
2014.
Aramex’s solid performance was
driven by growth across all its
geographies with the GCC remaining
the largest contributor to revenues.
International express performed well
supported by the continued expansion
of the company’s e-commerce platform
across key growth markets. Domestic
Express also saw an increase due
in part to the company’s recent
acquisitions in both Australia and
South Africa and due to an increase in
demand for domestic services for both
businesses and individuals in its key
markets.
Commenting on the results, Hussein
Hachem, Aramex CEO said: “Although
we witnessed slower growth at the
beginning of the quarter we finished
Q1 strongly despite challenges
brought about by low oil prices and
weak global currencies. While the
volatility in global currencies impacted
our revenues, a strong US dollar
presents us with opportunities for
acquisitions.”
Logistics
extending our growth momentum
and performance into the remainder
of 2015. Our traction is driven by
innovation, investments in future
growth and a company-wide focus
on improved operational efficiencies
through strategic investments in digital
transformational technologies aimed
at enhancing customer experience.”
E-commerce will continue to be the
key theme of Aramex’s business
expansion, supported by investments
in technology. Aramex will continue
to remain bullish on its outlook in
the Middle East, Asia and Africa
investigating
more
acquisition
opportunities with companies that
add to and complement its existing
infrastructure.
“As such, we are confident about
35
May-June 2015
Logistics
News
Group Management changes further sharpen GAC’s business focus
hull cleaning system HullWiper under
Commercial.
Sjödoff has more than 25 years of
experience in shipping, logistics and
marine and has been with the GAC
Group since 1993. After holding
management and operations posts in
the Middle East and Asia, he served as
Regional Director for Asia Pacific and
the Indian Subcontinent for five years
from 2002. In 2007, he was appointed
Group Vice President – Solutions, to
develop strategic partnerships to meet
the needs of the international maritime
community.
of William Hill as its Executive Group
Vice President – Oil & Gas.
Group President Bengt Ekstrand says
bringing a specific senior management
focus on Oil & Gas is a clear signal
of GAC’s intent. “Our aim is to be
more strategic, more active and more
successful in this sector.”
“Over the decades, GAC has built up a
broad suite of assets and skills in Oil &
Gas,” he adds. “With Hill’s appointment,
we will expand our footprint and impact
as a global provider to this dynamic
and demanding industry.”
Hill joined the GAC Group in 1984
and held marketing and business
development roles in Kuwait and
Dubai before serving as Regional
Manager for Asia Pacific from 1995
to 2001. Before his appointment as
Executive Group Vice President –
Commercial in 2009, he was Group
Vice President for Logistics Services.
His former duties as Group Vice
President – Commercial are being
taken over by Christer Sjödoff,
previously Group Vice President
– Solutions. Sjödoff’s appointment
brings his accountability for Group
IT and the eco-friendly underwater
36
May-June 2015
Ekstrand says: “The position of Group
Vice President – Commercial is a
good fit with Sjödoff’s energy and
entrepreneurial flair. With him at the
helm, we shall bring together under a
single umbrella all the essential tools
we need to develop our business
products and services to serve the
changing needs of our customers.”
Aramex Subsidiary
InfoFort Acquires
51% Stake in Leading
Turkish IT Company
InfoFort, a susbsidiary of Aramex and
the leading records and information
management solution provider in
the Middle East and Africa, today
announced the acquisition of a 51%
stake in Turkey-based CBKSoft
Software Inc. CBKSoft is the leader
in the Turkish electronic content
management
(ECM)
market,
developing custom software solutions
to empower businesses and improve
the bottom line.
Aramex first entered the Turkish
market in 1998 and now has 12 offices
across the country. The acquisition
of CBKSoft provides significant
opportunities for Aramex and InfoFort
to continue their regional expansion,
taking advantage of increasing
demand for innovative information
management and business solutions.
CBKSoft offers a range of innovative
IT services including its state-of-theart enVision® document and workflow
management system. These services
complement InfoFort’s comprehensive
suite of records and information
management solutions.
The acquisition will further expand
InfoFort’s reach in the region by giving
Turkish customers greater access to
its client–focused, technology-driven
solutions. InfoFort services, including
physical
records
management,
electronic
records
management,
media and tape vaulting and rotation
and secure data destruction will be
gradually introduced to the Turkish
market. At the same time, enVision®
News
and other CBKSoft services will also
be exported to InfoFort’s markets
across the Middle East and Africa.
Since enVision® is available in five
different languages and can be easily
integrated into routine business
operations, the service can be adopted
in diverse market environments. The
management of CBKSoft will remain
the same and continue to manage the
company following the acquisition.
Commenting on the acquisition,
Hussein Hachem, Chief Executive
Officer of Aramex, said: “We’re
excited to join forces with CBKSoft
as we expand our reach in one of
the world’s fastest growing emerging
markets. The acquisition of CBKSoft
demonstrates Aramex’s commitment
to expand into high-growth markets
to deliver shareholder value and
incremental growth and revenue.
CBKSoft’s services and solutions
align well with InfoFort’s offerings and
represent an excellent strategic fit for
our overall global business, which will
benefit from greater reach in a major
emerging market.”
Abed Shaheen, Chief Executive
Officer of InfoFort, said: “CBKSoft
is one of the most exciting and
successful software boutiques to
emerge in the Turkish IT industry
over the last decade. The company,
with its great team and advanced
technology, is a perfect strategic fit for
InfoFort and the acquisition presents
a unique opportunity to leverage
the complementary strengths of our
respective services. This will be a
critical move in enhancing our range
of information management solutions
for all of our customers. InfoFort
believes that corporations need to
securely, efficiently and professionally
store their records in order to ensure
confidentiality and business continuity.
We will continue to stress the need to
our existing and potential clients to
invest in digitisation and in automating
paper driven processes and the
acquisition of CBKSoft will make
this service even more accessible to
them.”
Salih Kanli, Chief Executive Officer
of CBKSoft, said: “Our reach across
Turkey, in addition to the range of
information management solutions we
provide, have resulted in significant
competitive differentiation for our
business and brand. We believe
InfoFort is the right partner for us to
expand our presence, both locally
and in the Middle East and Africa. Our
customers will now also be able to
benefit from InfoFort’s wider network,
breadth of information management
solutions and its innovative, customerfocused technologies, whilst still being
able to enjoy our services.”
With the Middle East and Africa
expected to post the world’s highest
cloud traffic growth rate by 2018,
customer demand for digitisation and
secure data storage will continue
to increase rapidly. CBKSoft and
InfoFort are aligned in their efforts
to help regional customers meet this
increased demand, making the deal a
logical, strategic fit.
Established in 2004, CBKSoft provides
a range of IT solutions including
business
process
management,
project
management,
software
development, archive management,
record management, form integration
and electronic signatures. Its indepth IT experience is driven by a
highly qualified team of computer
and industrial engineers who have
successfully implemented projects in
Turkey and Silicon Valley in the US.
Aramex Posts 10%
Profit Growth in the
First Quarter of 2015
Logistics
Aramex (DFM: ARMX), the leading
global logistics and transportation
solutions provider, today announced
its financial results for the first
quarter of 2015. Aramex’s Net Profits
increased 10% to AED 86.6 million,
up from AED 78.7 million in Q1 2014.
Revenues in the first quarter of 2015
increased to AED 930 million, up 9%
compared to AED 852 million in Q1
2014.
Aramex’s solid performance was
driven by growth across all its
geographies with the GCC remaining
the largest contributor to revenues.
International express performed well
supported by the continued expansion
of the company’s e-commerce platform
across key growth markets. Domestic
Express also saw an increase due
in part to the company’s recent
acquisitions in both Australia and
South Africa and due to an increase in
demand for domestic services for both
businesses and individuals in its key
markets.
Commenting on the results, Hussein
Hachem, Aramex CEO said: “Although
we witnessed slower growth at the
beginning of the quarter we finished
Q1 strongly despite challenges
brought about by low oil prices and
weak global currencies. While the
volatility in global currencies impacted
our revenues, a strong US dollar
presents us with opportunities for
acquisitions.”
“As such, we are confident about
extending our growth momentum
and performance into the remainder
of 2015. Our traction is driven by
innovation, investments in future
growth and a company-wide focus
on improved operational efficiencies
through strategic investments in digital
transformational technologies aimed
at enhancing customer experience.”
37
May-June 2015
Aviation
News
E-commerce will continue to be the
key theme of Aramex’s business
expansion, supported by investments
in technology. Aramex will continue
to remain bullish on its outlook in
the Middle East, Asia and Africa
investigating
more
acquisition
opportunities with companies that
add to and complement its existing
infrastructure.
Emirates SkyCargo
to Launch Weekly
Freighter Service to
Columbus
Emirates SkyCargo, the freight division
of Emirates, has announced that
Columbus, the State Capital of Ohio
in the United States, will join its global
freighter network with the launch of
a weekly service to Rickenbacker
International Airport from 27 May
2015.
The new freighter service to America’s
15th largest city will become Emirates
SkyCargo’s 48th destination in its
worldwide freighter network and
sixth in the US. The announcement
38
May-June 2015
was made on the side lines of the
7th Air Cargo Europe Exhibition and
Conference taking place in Munich,
Germany, where Emirates SkyCargo is
showcasing its products and services.
The flight will be operated by an
Emirates SkyCargo Boeing 777
Freighter, which has the capacity to
carry just over 100 tonnes of cargo,
and with its main deck cargo door
being one of the widest of any aircraft,
enables it to uplift outsized cargo and
carry larger consignments.
“Our freighters play a major role in
our network strategy, and with the
addition of Columbus to our freighter
schedule, we will be able to connect
businesses in the US mid-west and
the rest of our global network through
our Dubai hub, thereby improving
freight connectivity and creating new
opportunities for American companies
to reach new markets. Columbus also
serves as an ideal alternative point to
Chicago where shipments originating
or destined to the mid-west can be
trucked much more efficiently,” said
Nabil Sultan, Emirates Divisional
Senior Vice President, Cargo.
“This new service and partnership with
Emirates wouldn’t be possible without
the common vision and tireless efforts
of our business partners throughout
the Columbus Region,” said Elaine
Roberts, President & CEO of the
Columbus Regional Airport Authority,
which operates Rickenbacker. “We
have been working together to position
Rickenbacker as a critical global air
cargo gateway for all commodities.
When the Emirates SkyCargo
service from Dubai is combined
with the existing import and export
services through Asia and Europe,
Rickenbacker will provide global
business solutions in a way the region
has never seen before.”
“This new service extends Ohio’s
reach into a critical market and
provides yet another global asset that
makes it easier and more profitable
to do business within The Columbus
Region,” added Kenny McDonald,
CEO, Columbus 2020.
Expected products to be moved
into and out of Columbus and
surrounding areas include high
fashion, pharmaceuticals, automotive
spares, electronics and machinery.
The flight will depart on Wednesday
every week and stop in Copenhagen
on route to Columbus, and in Chicago
and Copenhagen on the return flight
to Dubai.
News
Emirates SkyCargo’s US freighter
network includes Chicago, Atlanta,
Houston, Los Angeles and New York,
while it also has belly-hold cargo
services on its passenger flights to
San Francisco, Seattle, Washington
D.C., Boston and Dallas.
Emirates SkyCargo operates a fleet
of 14 freighters–12 Boeing 777Fs
and two Boeing 747-400Fs from its
freighter cargo terminal, Emirates
SkyCentral, at Dubai World Central’s
Al Maktoum International Airport
Emirates Group
Announces 27th
Consecutive Year of
Profit
Group records 2nd highest profit ever
with AED 5.5 billion (US$ 1.5 billion);
Steady revenue and business growth
in line with capacity increases,
significant investment in the business
at AED 20.2 billion (US$ 5.5 billion)
Declares a dividend of AED 2.6 billion
(US$ 700 million) to the Investment
Corporation of Dubai.
Emirates makes profit of AED 4.6
billion (US$ 1.2 billion), as revenue
increases 7% to AED 88.8 billion (US$
24.2 billion)
Capacity crosses 50 billion ATKM
for the first time in airline’s history
dnatamakes profit of AED 906 million
(US$ 247 million), highest-ever in 56
years
Revenue of AED 10.3 billion (US$ 2.8
billion) exceeds AED 10 billion for the
first time International business now
accounts for over 60% of revenue
The Emirates Group today announced
its 27th consecutive year of profit and
steady growth across the company,
ending the year in a strong position
despite the many global and operational
challenges during this period. The
financial year ending 31 March 2015
also marked the achievement of new
capacity milestones at both Emirates
and dnata, as the Group continued
to expand its global footprint, and
strengthen its business through
strategic investments.
Released today in its 2014-15 Annual
Report, the Emirates Group posted
an AED 5.5 billion (US$ 1.5 billion)
profit, up 34% from last year. The
Group’s revenue reached AED 96.5
billion (US$ 26.3 billion), an increase
of 10% over last year’s results, and
the Group’s cash balance remained
strong, growing to AED 20.0 billion
(US$ 5.5 billion).
“2014-15 was a turbulent year for
aviation. The fall in oil prices provided
cost relief in the second half of our
financial year, however it did not
offset the hit to our profitability caused
by significant currency fluctuations,
nor the hit to our revenue from
operational adjustments in addressing
the Ebola outbreak, armed conflicts
in several regions, and the 80-day
runway upgrading works at Dubai
International airport (DXB). Achieving
our 27th consecutive year of profit and
one of our best performances to date,
is testimony to the strength of our
brands and business fundamentals,
as well as the dedication and talent
of our workforce,” said His Highness
(H.H.) Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed
Al Maktoum, Chairman and Chief
Executive, Emirates Airline and Group.
The strong rise of the US dollar against
currencies in many of Emirates’ and
dnata’s key markets had an AED 1.5
billion (US$ 412 million) impact to the
Group’s bottom line, while the 80-day
disruption at DXB had an estimated
impact of AED 1.7 billion (US$ 467
million) on Group revenue.
Aviation
“Every year brings a new set of
challenges. In addressing these, we
are always guided by the best interest
of our people, our customers, and our
long-term goals. As a Group, we keep
a close eye on our top and bottom
lines, but we never take our foot off the
gas pedal when it comes to investing
to enhance our business performance,
and looking after our people. In 201415, the Group collectively invested
over AED 20.2 billion (US$ 5.5 billion)
in new aircraft and equipment, modern
facilities, the latest technologies,
and staff initiatives. This was the
second highest amount ever in one
financial year after last year’s record
investment.”
The Group’s employee base across
its more than 80 subsidiaries and
companies increased by 11% to over
84,000-strong representing over 160
different nationalities.
“Looking
ahead,
the
ongoing
uncertainty for many currencies and
economic markets around the world
will continue to pose a challenge, as
will the looming threat of protectionism
in some countries. However, we
move into the new financial year with
confidence, and a strong foundation
for continued profitability with our
strong balance sheet, solid track
record, diverse global portfolio, and
international talent pool,” said Sheikh
Ahmed. “We will continue on our
journey of steady and rational growth,
and work even harder to meet and
exceed our customers’ expectations.”
In line with the overall profit increase,
the Group declared a dividend of AED
2.6 billion (US$ 700 million) to the
Investment Corporation of Dubai.
Emiratesperformance
In 2014-15, Emirates increased
capacity by 4.0 billion Available Tonne
Kilometres (ATKMs). For the first time
in the airline’s history, Emirates’ total
passenger and cargo capacity
39
May-June 2015
Aviation
News
crossed the 50 billion mark, to 50.8
billion ATKMs at the end of the financial
year, cementing its position as the
world’s largest international airline.
Emirates received 24 new aircraft
during the year, including 12 A380s, ten
Boeing 777-300ERs and two Boeing
777Fs, bringing its total fleet count to
231. At the same time 10 aircraft were
phased out, taking the average fleet
age to 75 months or approximately half
the industry average of 140 months.
The airline remains the world’s largest
operator of the Boeing 777 and A380
– both aircraft being amongst the most
modern and efficient wide-bodied jets
in the sky today.
With the delivery of new aircraft,
Emirates launched five new passenger
destinations:
Abuja,
Brussels,
Budapest, Chicago, Oslo and four new
additional freighter-only destinations:
Atlanta, Basel, Mexico City, and
Ouagadougou. It also added services
and capacity to 34 cities on its existing
route network across Africa, Asia,
Europe, the Middle East, and North
America, offering customers even
greater choice and connectivity.
The 80-day runway closure at DXB
necessitated the grounding of 19
Emirates aircraft, reducing the airline’s
capacity by 9%, and causing the
reduction of services to 41 destinations
over this period. The estimated impact
on airline revenue was AED 1.6
billion (US$ 436 million). The Ebola
outbreak in Africa prompted route
suspensions and increased health and
safety screenings at other ports; and
geopolitics resulted in the suspension
of services and re-routing of flight paths
to avoid overflying conflict zones.
Despite these challenges, Emirates
revenue reached a new record of
AED 88.8 billion (US$ 24.2 billion).
The average price of jet fuel dropped
40
May-June 2015
significantly during the second half of
the financial year and has supported
Emirates’ bottom line improvement.
Emirates’ fuel bill decreased by 7% over
last year to AED 28.7 billion (US$ 7.8
billion). Fuel is now 35% of operating
costs, down by 4%pts compared to
last year. However, fuel remained the
biggest cost component for the airline.
Total operating costs increased by 6%,
compared to a revenue increase of 7%
over the 2013-14 financial year.
The airline successfully managed
increased competitive pressure across
all markets to record a profit of AED
4.6 billion (US$ 1.2 billion), an increase
of 40% over last year’s results, and
a healthy profit margin of 5.1%, the
strongest margin since 2010-11.
Carrying a record 49.3 million
passengers, up 11% from last year,
Emirates managed to achieve a
Passenger Seat Factor of 79.6%, an
improvement compared with last year’s
results (79.4%) in spite of a 9% increase
in seat capacity byAvailable Seat
Kilometres (ASKMs). This highlights
thestrong consumer desire to fly on
Emirates’ state-of-the-art aircraft, and
via efficient routings through its Dubai
hub.
Under pressure from the weakening of
all major currencies against the USD,
passenger yield dropped to 29.7 fils
(8.1 US cents) per Revenue Passenger
Kilometre (RPKM).
Emirates also improved its premium
seat factor despite lingering economic
uncertainty and strong competition
in many markets. Premium and
overall seat factor for the airline’s
flagshipA380aircraft outperformed the
network, underscoring the popularity of
Emirates’ premium and A380 product
amongst passengers. At 31 March
2015, Emirates had 59 A380 aircraft in
its fleet, serving one out of every four
destinations on its passenger network.
To fund its fleet growth, Emirates
raised a total of AED 18.7 billion (US$
5.1 billion), using a variety of financing
structures. Emirates achieved a major
landmark when it closed the first ever
Japanese Operating Lease on an
A380. It also entered into a Japanese
Operating Lease with a Call Option
(JOLCO) with respect to one A380800 aircraft to expand the investor
base of the A380 into the Japanese
market. During the year, Emirates also
successfully closed sale and leaseback
transactions for five B777-300ERs and
one B777-200ER aircraft.
The financing highlight of the year
was the successful issuance of a UK
Export Finance (UKEF) guaranteed
Sukuk bond of AED 3.4 billion (US$
913 million) to fund the acquisition of
four A380 aircraft to be delivered in
2015. This deal marked the world’s first
Sukuk financing supported by UKEF
and the largest ever capital markets
offering in the aviation space with an
Export Credit Agency guarantee.
These deals align with Emirates’ strategy
to seek diverse financing sources, and
underscore its sound financials and
the strong investor confidence in the
airline’s business model. Emirates
closed the financial year with a healthy
AED 13.3 billion (US$ 3.6 billion) cash
flow from operating activities.
Revenue generated from across
Emirates’ six regionscontinues to
be well balanced, with no region
contributing more than 30% of overall
revenues. Europe is the highest
revenue contributing region with AED
25.2 billion (US$ 6.9 billion), up 7% from
2013-14. East Asia and Australasia
follows closely with an increase of 3%
and AED 24.6 billion (US$ 6.7 billion).
The highest growth with 20% was
recorded for the Americas to AED 11.0
News
41
A
Mar 2015
Aviation
News
billion (US$ 3.0 billion). Gulf and Middle
East revenue increased 4% to AED 8.6
billion (US$ 2.3 billion).
Across the rest of the globe Emirates
saw strong revenue increases from
West Asia and Indian Ocean up 11%
to AED 9.2 billion (US$ 2.5 billion)
and Africa with AED 8.1 billion (US$
2.2 billion) in revenue, up 5%. In line
with its customer-focused proposition,
Emirates invested over AED 73 million
(US$ 20 million) last year to equip
its fleet with free Wi-Fi. By 31 March
2015, 107 of its A380 and Boeing 777
aircraft offered Wi-Fi services. The
airline also opened new dedicated
airport lounges in Glasgow and Los
Angeles, taking to 37 the number of
dedicated Emirates Lounges across
the world. Emirates also opened a new
300-seat contact centre in Budapest
to support its growth and supplement
its language and response capability.
Looking forward to 2015-16, Emirates
has to date announced two new routes
including Denpasar and Orlando aside
from a number of capacity upgrades to
existing destinations.
The 2014-15 financial year has been a
strong one for Emirates SkyCargo who
reported a revenue of AED 12.3 billion
(US$ 3.4 billion), a very remarkable 9%
increase over last year. Contributing
15% of the airline’s total transport
revenue Emirates SkyCargo continues
to play an integral role in the company’s
expanding operations.
Emirates SkyCargo’s tonnage strongly
increased by 6% to reach 2.4 million
tonnes in an airfreight market that
remained challenging with fastchanging demand patterns. Emirates
SkyCargo’s performance highlights its
ability to grow revenues against the
industry norm. This year, freight yield
per Freight Tonne Kilometre (FTKM)
decreased by 1%, and was also
impacted by the weakening of major
currencies. On 1 May 2014, Emirates
SkyCargo marked a major milestone
42
May-June 2015
with the move of its freighter operations
to its new cargo terminal at Dubai World
Central’s Al Maktoum International
airport (DWC). Capable of handling
700,000 tonnes of cargo annually, the
new terminal at DWC is equipped with
state-of-the-art technology and has the
potential for further expansion to handle
1 million tonnes annually, positioning
the business for future growth. At the
end of the financial year, the Emirates
SkyCargo freighter fleet had grown to
14 aircraft - 12 Boeing 777Fs, and 2
Boeing 747-400Fs.
Emirates’ hotels recorded revenue of
AED 693 million (US$ 189 million), an
impressive increase of 23% over last
year. This positive development was
supported by the opening of the second
tower of the JW Marriott Marquis Hotel
in Dubai, the world’s tallest hotel.
Dnataperformance
In its 56 years of operation, 2014-15
has been dnata’s most profitable yet,
building on its strong results in the
previous year. dnata’s revenue grew
to AED 10.3 billion (US$ 2.8 billion),
crossing AED 10 billion for the first
time. dnata’s international business
now accounts for more than 60% of its
revenue.
This substantial revenue increase of
36% was achieved through organic
growth, and bolstered by the first
full year of Gold Medal Travel Group
operations which dnata Travel acquired
in March 2014 of the previous financial
year, the acquisition of Stella Travel
in the UK in October 2014, and the
remaining 50% share in Toll dnata in
Australia in February 2015. Also the
sale of mercator, dnata’s aviation IT
business, was completed in the 201415 financial year.
Building on last year’s record levels
of investment, dnata continued to
lay the foundations for future growth
by investing AED 513 million (US$
140 million) into its business. Its key
investments in 2014-15 included: a
new 700-seat contact centre in the
Philippines, new airport lounges in
Manila and Dubai; new halal kitchens
in Italy; new cargo facilities in Australia,
Iraq, Pakistan, Singapore, Switzerland,
UAE, and UK; and new travel retail
outlets in the Middle East.
Revenue from dnata’s UAE Airport
Operations, including aircraft and
cargo handling increased moderately
by 5% to reach AED 2.5 billion (US$
685 million) as it was significantly
impacted by the 80-day DXB runway
closure. Airlines during this time either
had to reduce frequencies or operate
smaller aircraft. The estimated impact
on dnata’s revenue was AED 113
million (US$ 31 million). The number of
aircraft handled increased moderately
by 2% to 188,752 whereas Cargo
handling dropped by 7% to 734,000
tonnes. Dubai World Central now
accounts for 36% of dnata’s cargo
handling activities in Dubai. dnata’s
International
Airport
Operations
divisiongrew revenue by 16% to AED
1.6 billion (US$ 434 million), on account
of increasing business volumes mainly
in the UK. The number of aircraft
handled increased by 5% to 109,546
whereas Cargo noted a substantial
growth of 15% to 937,000 tonnes of
handled goods. These results speak to
the benefits reaped from the previous
years’ investments in new international
cargo handling facilities particularly
in the UK. dnata’s Cateringbusiness
accounted for AED 2.0 billion (US$ 552
million) of its total revenue, up 7%. The
inflight catering business uplifted more
than 46 million meals during the year,
a healthy growth of 13% on account of
dnata’s consolidated operation in Italy
as well as its growth in the UK.
Revenue from dnata’s Travel Services
division has seen a sharp rise of 278%
to reach AED 2.7 billion (US$ 726
million) and now represents the largest
business segment in dnata by revenue
contribution. This is mainly attributed
News
to business growth in the UK through
the full year impact of Gold Medal
Travel Group acquired March 2014
and the newly acquired business of
Stella Travel as of October 2014.
The underlying total transaction
value (TTV) of travel services sold
substantially increased by 66% to
AED 9.8 billion (US$ 2.7 billion).
In 2014-15, dnata’s operating costs
increased accordingly to AED 9.3
billion (US$ 2.5 billion), reflecting
the impact of integrating the newly
acquired companies across its airport
and mainly travel businesses.
dnata’s cash balance of AED 3.1 billion
(US$ 858 million) has significantly
grown over last year impacted by
the new acquisitions. It is the highest
ever recorded figure. The business
delivered a solid AED 1.1 billion (US$
288 million) cash flow from operating
activities in 2014-15.
dnata’s employee strength increased
to over 27,000, a 19% growth
which includes employees from its
newly acquired companies. With
the business’ growing international
footprint, dnata’s staff ratio based in
UAE has dropped to 51%.
Forwarder of the Year’ to ‘Cargo
Airline of the Year’. Voted for by the
industry, the awards were presented
during this year’s Air Cargo Europe,
an exhibition organised by Air Cargo
Week’s owner - Azura International –
and the conference venue operator
- Messe Muenchen. The magazine’s
‘World Air Cargo Awards’ took place at
a Gala Dinner, at the Bayerischer Hof
Hotel, on the evening of Wednesday
6 May 2015, where the Etihad Cargo
team were presented with their latest
award. David Kerr, Vice President of
Etihad Cargo, said: “This is another
award that reflects the hard work of the
team at Etihad Cargo, who operate in
different countries across our growing
network. As with our passenger
airline services, we are recreating
the airline’s vision of being the best
in our field of business, going above
and beyond, to ensure our customer’s
needs are met. We’re delighted to
accept the award and it’s a mark of
our continued success as the cargo
division of Etihad Airways.”
Etihad Cargo, the cargo division of
Etihad Airways, the national airline of
the United Arab Emirates (UAE), has
been recognised as ‘Cargo Airline of
the Year’ by leading industry magazine,
Air Cargo Week, at a prestigious gala
dinner awards ceremony in Munich.
The latest award follows swiftly after
the cargo team won Best Cargo Airline
in the Middle East from Air Cargo
News, Cargo Operator of the Year at
the ITP Publishing Group’s annual
Supply Chain and Transport Awards
(SCATAs), and ‘Cargo Airline of the
Year’ at the annual Air Transport News
awards. From its hub in Abu Dhabi,
Etihad Cargo’s fleet of 10 freighter
aircraft operates scheduled services
to 38 destinations on its passenger
network, and 14 regular freighter-only
services to key destinations around the
world including Bogotá, Chittagong,
Dar es Salaam, Djibouti, Dubai World
Central, Eldoret, Guangzhou, Hanoi,
Hong Kong, Houston, Kabul, Miami,
Sharjah and Tbilisi.
Held alternately at Air Cargo Europe
in Munich or Air Cargo China in
Shanghai, the ‘Air Cargo Week
Awards’ are presented in nine
categories ranging from ‘Airfreight
Etihad Cargo also offers a combination
of belly hold capacity and main deck
freighter services to 111 destinations
internationally, operated on a fleet of
116 passenger and freighter aircraft.
Cargo Airline of the
Year
EƟhad Cargo secures another ‘Cargo
Airline of the Year’ Award
Aviation
Etihad Airways
honoured for
Emiratisation
program
Etihad Airways, the national airline of
the United Arab Emirates, celebrated a
double win at the MENA HR Excellence
Awards 2015, after being honoured
in the ‘Nationalisation Initiative of the
Year’ and ‘HR Professional of the
Year’ categories.
The MENA HR Excellence Awards,
now in their seventh year, celebrate
excellence in human resource
management and development within
the Middle East and North Africa.
Etihad
Airways
received
the
‘Nationalisation Initiative of the Year’
award for pioneering one of the
UAE’s most successful nationalisation
strategies, with a focus on offering
dynamic career and development
opportunities to Emiratis in the UAE
and other markets worldwide.
The airline currently employs more
than 2,300 UAE nationals across its
global business. Emiratis remain the
number one nationality group amongst
total employees based in the UAE,
and amongst employees at manager
level, executive level and within Etihad
Airways’ pilot community. Under plans
to accelerate its employment of UAE
nationals over the next five years,
Etihad Airways is expected to recruit
more than 6,000 UAE nationals by
2020.
A number of initiatives are underway to
create rewarding careers for Emiratis.
Last year, Etihad Airways opened
a Revenue Accounting Centre of
Excellence in Al Ain, which will create
job opportunities for over 1,000 UAE
nationals by 2017. Etihad Airways has
also expanded its broad portfolio of
43
May-June 2015
Aviation
News
specialist development programs for
UAE nationals to include areas such
as finance, revenue management,
network planning and cargo.
commitment of the entire HR team,
which has built a strong culture of
performance, and I thank them for
their tremendous contribution.”
There are now a total of 22 UAE
national
development
programs
offered by Etihad Airways for Emiratis
to develop key skills and gain practical
experience, enabling them to fast
track their managerial careers with the
airline.
Etihad Airways wins
three Middle East
Procurement awards
In addition to the ‘Nationalisation
Initiative of the Year’ award,
Etihad Airways’ Chief People and
Performance Officer, Ray Gammell,
received the ‘HR Professional of the
Year’ award.
Mr Gammell, who joined Etihad
Airways six years ago, is responsible
for the strategic HR direction of the
airline, which has almost 25,000
employees worldwide. He was named
‘HR Professional of the Year’ by the
judging panel for embedding a culture
of performance, talent, meritocracy
and engagement at Etihad Airways;
creating world-class benefits for
the airline’s staff; and supporting a
number of restructuring programs with
Etihad Airways’ equity partners.
Mr Gammell said: “Etihad Airways
is a people business and we
need dedicated, hardworking and
passionate employees to maintain
our position as the World’s Leading
Airline.
“Emiratisation is fundamental to this
process and remains the number one
priority of the HR division. The fact
that we have been presented with
the Nationalisation Initiative of the
Year award reflects the considerable
success of our nationalisation
strategy, which is focused on providing
Emiratis with world-class career and
development opportunities in the
UAE and across our global network.
It is also a much wider reflection of
the collective efforts, hard work and
44
May-June 2015
Etihad Airways’ Procurement &
Supply Management department has
received three prestigious awards
from the Chartered Institute of
Procurement & Supply (CIPS)
The department was shortlisted in five
different categories and successful in
two categories, namely ‘Best People
Development Initiative’ and ‘Best
International Procurement’. The team
also carried home the judges’ award
for ‘The Overall Winner’. The Middle
East Awards ceremony was held on
11 May at the InterContinental hotel
in Abu Dhabi. James Rigney, Chief
Financial Officer at Etihad Airways,
said: “A great deal of hard work has
gone into winning these awards by
our Procurement and Supply Chain
team. This achievement underlines
the important role the team plays in
our business.
“I know they will build on this
momentum during the year ahead
and continue to support the ongoing
financial strength of the business.”
During the last two years, Etihad
Airways’ Procurement and Supply
Management team has undergone a
complete business transformation in
its procurement model and processes.
This shift enabled the team to support
Etihad Airways’ business growth and
strategic objectives as well as the
wider objectives of Abu Dhabi 2030
vision. By contributing to the UAE
economy through supplier selection,
the team have realised significant
cost savings and strengthened its
professional procurement practices.
Adil Al-Mulla, Etihad Airways’ Vice
President Procurement and Supply
Management, said: “We are delighted
to receive this recognition from the
Chartered Institute of Procurement &
Supply.
“The awards reflect the team’s
innovative
and
collaborative
procurement practices that deliver
real financial benefits to the airline.
“The awards set the benchmark for
our performance for the next year
and provide international recognition
for the department as procurement
professionals.”
A panel of industry experts and senior
procurement professionals judged the
Chartered Institute of Procurement
& Supply awards process which was
chaired by Duncan Brock, Group
Customer Relationship Director of
FCIPS.
Duncan Brock, Group Customer
Relationships Director of CIPS,
said: “Delivering real benefits from
leveraging
scale
across
eight
different airlines is challenging. Many
collaborative sourcing projects fail due
to lack of senior executive support and
aligned goals.
“Etihad Airways leads an excellent
joint procurement program with its
equity alliance partners and has
already delivered significant results
with more to come.”
The Chartered Institute of Procurement
& Supply is considered the premier
global organisation, serving the
procurement and supply profession.
CIPS is dedicated to promoting best
practice within the profession, and
is the largest provider of specialist
courses across all aspects and levels
of the supply chain, from the start of
a career to senior management level
News
Aviation
“Aviation industry veteran calls for a Gulf body on EUROCONTROL
lines.”
Subsidies allegations against Gulf
airlines utterly unjustified
Bayanat
among
companies
prequalified for Bahrain airport
expansion project
Bayanat to open offices in Oman and
Saudi Arabia
Georges Hannouche: Success of Gulf
airlines due to excellence in service
Georges Hannouche, CEO of Bayanat
Airports and Engineering Supplies
(BAES) and the Arab world’s leading
aviation veteran, has called for the
establishment of an Arabian Gulf body
on the line of EUROCONTROL for air
traffic management keeping in view
the ceaseless expansion of airlines
fleet and airports.
“ The aviation industry in the Gulf
region faces two major hurdles.
There has to be better coordination
among the civil aviation authorities
and regulators. The other is the need
for the creation of a Gulf-wide body
equal to EUROCONTROL with the
involvement of all stakeholders and
regulators,” he said on the sidelines of
the Airport Show of which BAES has
been a regular participant since the
past 15 years of its running.
“The UAE has taken the lead towards
making this a reality. Air traffic has
recorded phenomenal growth in the
past few years and the future scenario
is no different. This calls for a unified
and coordinated efforts at the regional
level for ATM,” he added.
EUROCONTROL, he said, has
proved to a success story in managing
and regulating the air traffic in Europe
through a variety of initiatives and
programmes like SESAR. The
creation of Gulf Control will be the
first right step towards effectively
managing the skies in fastest growing
aviation markets. Dubai Air Navigation
Services (DANS) has earlier this year
signed a deal with EUROCONTROL
which will help in bringing about better
results in air traffic management in the
region, he added.
He also underscored the need for
better management of operations
and performance of airports in the
region taking into account the huge
increase in the volume of passengers
and cargo handled by them. The
Airport Collaborative Decision Making
(A-CDM) has proved to be hugely
effective and successful towards this
end and more Middle East airports
should adopt A-CDM, he added.
New technologies are playing and
will continue to play a key role in the
airport and air traffic management,
said Hannouche whose company
has been working over the years with
the key airports in the UAE and other
parts of the region.
BAES has recently completed the
LIDAR and FOD projects for the Dubai
International Airport. It was also behind
the successful implementation of the
facilities to handle the pre-clearance
of the US-bound passengers at the
Abu Dhabi International Airport.
The company is among the nine
prequalified for the $100 million project
for Bahrain Airport’s new terminal.
Nine companies were selected out of
the total 35 that bid for the project as
main contractors. A decision is due by
July by the Bahrain authorities.
of Saudi Arabia next year.
About the allegations by US airlines
about Gulf airlines getting government
subsidies,
he
blamed
some
international airlines for giving their
governments a wrong picture.
He remarked: “It has been proved
that the vision of Gulf leaders about
aviation has been well placed and the
success story of Gulf is due to massive
investments in the aviation industry
and its advantageous geographical
location which is just eight hours away
for two-thirds of the world population.
Excellence of service more or less
does not exist anymore in the West.
They can succeed now only when
they excel in the services offered to
passengers both in the skies and on
the ground.”
He said the future of aviation in the
Gulf region is “bright” with the aviation
remaining a vital strategic player in
the growing regional economies,
especially in the UAE where it almost
contributes to 25 per cent of the GDP.
The world’s largest annual airport
event, Airport Show, attracted over 300
exhibitors from 40 countries for its 15
edition run at the Dubai International
Convention and Exhibition Centre
(DICEC).
The show has over 300 exhibitors from
40 countries. The three-day show has
12000 square meters of exhibition
space.
The Abu Dhabi-based company
currently has two offices in the region
– Doha and Casablanca – and it plans
to open an office in Sultanate of Oman
by the end of this year and in Kingdom
45
May-June 2015
Aviation
News
Emrill lands itself Dubai Airports contract
conveniently go through screening,
immigration, customs and agricultural
checks before boarding their flight in
Dubai, enabling them to avoid queues
on arrival and thereby saving time.
Emrill,
the
leading
Facilities
Management provider in the UAE,
today announced the signing of a
three year contract for cleaning and
janitorial services with Dubai Airports.
Jason Ruehland, Managing Director,
Emrill said, “The signing of a three
year contract with Dubai Airports is
a massive victory for Emrill. We are
honored to be awarded the huge task
of contributing towards the efficient
management of one of the fastest
growing airports in the world. This
is the result of the efforts of our staff
who have worked hard to deliver
the outstanding service that is now
synonymous to Emrill.”
Emrill is in the process of deploying
over 700 employees to provide
integrated cleaning and janitorial
services at Terminal 3 and Concourse
B and C of Dubai International Airport.
The largest aviation hub in the Middle
East, Dubai International became the
busiest airport in the world in terms
of international passengers in 2014
with over 70 million passengers. The
airport serves more than 100 airlines
flying to over 260 destinations across
six continents.
“Facilities Management plays a very
important role in ensuring a clean
46
May-June 2015
and pleasant ambience at the airport,
thereby ensuring the comfort of and
delivering satisfaction to the millions
of customers that pass through Dubai
International each year. We are
glad to be partnering with Emrill, an
organisation with a good track record
in delivering quality services,” said
Dorothee Stein, Head of Facility Care
at Dubai Airports.
“We are extremely pleased to offer
the benefits of the US visa waiver
program to our VVIP customers
flying out from our hub at DWC,” said
Holger Ostheimer, General Manager,
DC Aviation Al-Futtaim. “The program
will reduce wait times at key airports
in the US by allowing our customers
from Dubai to enter the US having
already pre-cleared customs and
immigration.”
The DCAF facility offers exclusive
lounge area that caters to the
discerning needs of VVIP customers
offering the highest levels of comfort,
luxury and privacy exemplified through
shower areas, a conference room,
covered parking and an exclusive
contemporary
finish.
Customers
benefit from a dedicated ramp parking
DC Aviation AlFuttaim flights
to the US gets
pre-clearance at
its hub in Dubai
World Central
Starting this month, VVIP
customers travelling on flights
operated by DC Aviation Al-Futtaim
(DCAF) will be able to experience
the benefits of arriving in the United
States of America having pre-cleared
US Customs and Border Protection
at its hub in Dubai World Central
(DWC).The visa waiver facility will
allow DCAF’s customers to the US to
area spanning over 7,700square
metres, on-site security processing
facilities, the shortest distance
between limousine drop-off and the
aircraft steps and flexibility by having
no operational restrictions therefore
flying when needed.
News
Maritime
Dubai Maritime City Authority concludes its participation in 2nd
Middle East Offshore Support Journal Conference in Dubai
Dubai
Maritime
City
Authority
(DMCA), the government authority
charged with regulating, coordinating
and supervising all aspects of Dubai’s
maritime sector, participated as a
platinum sponsor in the 2nd Middle
East Offshore Journal Conference
2015. The conference, which ran from
May 19 to May 20, 2015, served as
an interactive platform to discuss
ways to meet emerging challenges
in the Middle East and to tackle
numerous recruitment opportunities
in the region. The Middle East has
become an attractive destination for
operators of offshore support vessels
in light of the steady growth of its
investments into marine production
and exploration. The event has been
held in the Middle East for the second
time by Riviera, the publisher of the
Offshore Support Journal (OSJ), a
pioneering international publication
and event management company
specializing in offshore support. Amer
Ali, Executive Director, Dubai Maritime
City Authority, said: “The Middle East
Offshore Journal Conference is of
strategic importance not only for the
emirates but also for the region, as
it provides an interactive podium
to address the local, regional and
international challenges in the Middle
East’s offshore sector. DMCA has
extended its support to the conference
in alignment with its Maritime Sector
Strategy to strengthen Dubai’s
position as the leading global maritime
center.” “DMCA took the opportunity
to network with key industry experts
and stakeholders in the offshore
support industry from all across the
world with an aim to discuss issues
that affect smooth operations of
offshore support vessels and form
new alliances, promote Dubai as a
promising investment destination
for maritime support activities, and
leverage recruitment opportunities in
the Middle East,” added Ali. Industry
experts attended the Offshore
Support Journal Conference to
take an in-depth look at the current
regional challenges facing the market,
including crewing and training, vessel
design and construction, opportunities
available outside the Middle East,
ship performance, energy efficiency,
power and propulsion technology,
and dynamic positioning. The twoday event held popular roundtable
sessions to provide an excellent
platform for brainstorming and
exchange of views on how to leverage
the regional experience in the global
context. Offshore Support Journal, an
undisputed market leader, is circulated
in more than 1,000 national and
private oil companies and contractors
as well as more than 2,200 shipowners, operators and managing
companies of support vessels
globally. It organizes the largest
specialist conference on offshore
support vessels in the world annually
in London, UK. OSJ conferences
have also taken place in Singapore
and the USA. Nearly 5,000 industry
professionals, including one-third from
the ship owing/operating community,
have attended OSJ conferences to
date. Nawfal Al Jourani, Director of
Marketing and Communications,
Dubai Maritime City Authority,
concluded: “Dubai has always
played a significant role with its good
reputation as an ideal environment for
hosting most prominent international
marine conferences, and once again
reinforced its dominant position in the
regional maritime sector by welcoming
the 2nd consecutive Middle East
Offshore Journal Conference in the
presence of the major companies
operating in the offshore support
operations locally and globally.”
47
May-June 2015
Maritime
News
DMCA announces formation of Maritime Advisory Council
“The competitiveness of the local
maritime sector to promote and
strengthen the partnership between
the public and private sectors is
at the forefront of the Council’s
priorities.”
“The Council is a positive push to
the Maritime Sector Strategy that
will consolidate Dubai’s leading
position on the global maritime
map.”
Dubai Maritime City Authority, the
government
authority
charged
with regulating, coordinating and
supervising all aspects of Dubai’s
maritime sector, has launched a new
initiative concerning the establishment
of the Maritime Advisory Council.
The move is in line with the efforts
to establish an integrated framework
to boost the local maritime sector’s
competitiveness and consolidate
Dubai’s position as a key player
on the global maritime map. It also
complements DMCA’s endeavors to
ensure the success of the Maritime
Sector Strategy (MSS). H.E. Sultan
Ahmed bin Sulayem, Chairman of
Dubai Ports, Customs, and Free
Zones Corporation and Chairman of
DMCA, confirmed the importance of
48
May-June 2015
the formation of the Maritime Advisory
Council. The Council has given a
strong impetus to Dubai strategic plan
2021, providing a robust base for the
vision of H.H. Sheikh Mohammed
bin Rashid Al Maktoum, UAE Vice
President and Prime Minister and Ruler
of Dubai, by creating an integrated
competitive and sustainable maritime
economy. It represents a quantum
leap in optimizing the prospect of
growth for Dubai to become one of the
most prominent maritime and logistics
centers in the Middle East and the
world. “The Maritime Advisory Council
complements the efforts of MSS to
strengthen the synergies between
concerned government and private
bodies in the maritime industry. The
move comes at a time when the
maritime sector in Dubai is witnessing
rapid growth and radical change
which
requires
intensive
joint
efforts to ensure the integration
and sustainability of the marine
environment. This will enable the
emirate’s maritime sector to respond
effectively to market changes, keep
pace with emerging trends, and attract
regional and international investors
to leverage Dubai’s leadership as a
major player on the global maritime
map,” added Bin Sulayem.
The duties of the Maritime
Advisory Council will center
on fostering collaboration,
consultation,
coordination
and
support
among
stakeholders to promote
and develop all aspects of
Dubai’s maritime sector and
keep pace with rapid regional
and international changes. It
will also study and discuss
commercial
challenges
and find out solutions to
enhance the confidence of
regional and international
investors in the local marine
environment and consolidate
Dubai’s position as a worldclass maritime hub. The Maritime
Advisory Council is composed of
well-known personalities from the
maritime sector and senior executives
from prominent marine companies
and those operating in the sector.
The members include DP World, Dry
docks World, Emirates Classification
Society ‘TASNEEF,’ DIFC Courts,
Clarksons, Tufton Oceanic, Gulf
Energy Maritime (GEM), United Arab
Shipping Company (UASC), Maersk
Line, Emarat Maritime, Fichte and Co,
Partner Ince and Co, Global Marketing
Systems (GMS), and Dubai Trading
Agency (DTA).
The membership also includes senior
partners or members from Clyde &
Co, Emirates National Oil Company
(ENOC), Topaz Energy and Marine
Engineering, Al Tamimi & Company,
National Association of Freight and
Logistics (NAFAL), UAE National
Ship Suppliers Association (UNSSA),
Hadef & Partners, Mubarak Marine,
Baker & McKenzie Habib Al Mulla,
Holman Fenwick Willan (HFW),
Wilhelmsen Ships Service, DHL
Express, Rais Hassan Saadi, Aramex
3PL.
Details and references under
www.unitechnik.com
Turnkey overall solutions for the intralogistics
System integration, storage and transport systems, automation,
warehouse management software, retrofit, energy efficiency
LOGISTIC
SYSTEMS.
Unitechnik FZE
Dubai Airport Freezone, UAE
Maritime
News
Worldwide offshore fabrication specialist Drydocks World wins
contract from Orwell Offshore for Turret fabrication
Drydocks World the leading provider of
maritime and offshore services to the
shipping, oil, gas and energy sectors
is set to expand on their extensive
track record of constructing Turret
mooring Systems, securing a contract
from Orwell Offshore to fabricate an
external Turret for FPSO Layang.
Drydocks World’s experienced team
will play an integral role in facilitating
successful project completion during
this fast track project expected
to be delivered in Q1 2016. The
technical expertise and innovative
solutions at Drydocks World have
successfully delivered similar external
turrets for FPSO’s and FSRU’s. The
external turret for Orwell Offshore
will deliver significant improvements
in operational effectiveness and
weathervaning capabilities on FPSO
Layang, enabling FPSO operations in
water depths of up to 90m. Drydocks
World’s innovative strategy has lead
the company to win global projects
for the international energy industry,
such as Orwell Offshore, validating
our approach into the future.Drydocks
World has constructed massive scale
projects for world renowned offshore
companies, demonstrating the yards
vast fabrication capacity while ensuring
excellence in safety and quality. As
one of the few worldwide specialists
50
May-June 2015
capable
of
constructing
such
large
c o m p l e x
Turret Mooring
Systems,
Drydocks
World
has
the
proven
expertise
with 4 turrets
previously
delivered. With
the completion
of the final
module for the world’s largest turret
approaching, Drydocks World has
created a name for the company
in successful offshore fabrication.
Constructing this turret for Orwell
offshore is a milestone in marking the
next phase of turret development at
Drydocks World and we look forward
to working with Orwell Offshore again.
The Middle
East’s first LNGpowered harbor
tug ‘Elemarateyah’
commences
production at
Drydocks World
steel-cutting
ceremony
Drydocks World and Maritime
World, the leading provider of
maritime and offshore services to
the shipping, oil, gas and energy
sectors marked a key milestone in
achieving environmental excellence
at the steel cutting ceremony for the
Middle East’s first LNG powered
harbour tug ‘Elemarateyah.’ Held
in Drydocks World’s state-of-the-art
steel fabrication centre, the beginning
of this project sets a regional first
and demonstrates Drydocks World’s
innovative approach to providing
maritime and energy sector solutions.
This landmark undertaking represents
a major breakthrough in the future
of green technology and sets the
course towards a green economy for
sustainable development. The large
global reserves of gas and the energy
efficiency of LNG fuel, compounded
by stringent emissions standards,
positions LNG as a commercially
viable opportunity. LNG fuel has
almost double the energy content of
MDO fuel, with LNG approximately
reducing emissions of NOx by
85% and CO2 by 25%. LNG as an
alternative energy source is gaining
momentum as the ‘fuel of the future’
among the global maritime community
and Drydocks World strives to be a
pioneer in implementing this green
technology throughout their facilities,
wholeheartedly
supporting
the
Government of Dubai’s environmental
initiatives.
Drydocks World is experienced in
building tugs and is now modernizing
the yards tug operations through
pioneering the LNG-power concept,
with Elemarateyah due to be
completed in May 2016. Drydocks
World is leading innovative technology
by constructing this tug, with the
company maintaining a strong
commitment towards green initiatives
that positively contribute to the
industry and society. Drydocks World
News
Banking & Finance
in hygienic paper products and one
of the most recognised facial and
personal tissue brands in the Middle
East along with kitchen, bathroom,
industrial hygienic products and baby/
adult diapers. FINE is majority owned
by the reputable Nuqul Group of
Jordan, where it is headquartered, and
is fully integrated with a widespread
manufacturing base throughout the
GCC, Levant and North Africa.
SCPE will be granted two seats at the
board of the company and will provide
strategic insight towards delivering
on FINE’s growth strategy in core
markets, expanding in new markets in
Africa and an eventual IPO.
will embark on this project with active
participation from Wartsila supplying
the main engine and with Tasneef
providing their valued classification
services. Drydocks World shares
many core corporate values with these
companies such as safety, quality,
customer service and environmental
sustainability.
Their
relentless
efforts and dedication to ensuring
operational excellence coincides
with the importance Drydocks World
places on safe optimal productivity
and continuous innovation.
Dubai is the gateway to green
maritime products and services, due
to the strategic location, excellent
infrastructure, modern port facilities
and shipyard services. Drydocks World
is proud to collaborate with these local
and international companies to position
Dubai and the UAE at the forefront of
environmentally sustainable projects.
The maritime industry is a pillar of
the economy and Drydocks World
continually invests in infrastructure to
deliver world-class services. As the
first in the Middle East to lead the way
with the LNG powered tug, Drydocks
World looks forward to many future
successful project milestones.
Standard Chartered
Private Equity
announces a US$
175 million equity
investment in
Nuqul Group’s FINE
Hygienic Holding”
This is SCPE’s sixth investment in the
Middle East and North Africa (MENA),
its second investment in a Jordanian
headquartered company, and takes
overall MENA direct investments to
$560 million. SCPE is committed
to investing in successful regional
businesses across sectors and is
actively seeking opportunities across
the Middle East. SCPE invests in
companies with proven cash flows,
backed by reputable shareholders
and run by best in class management
teams.
Investment is SCPE’s sixth in the
region with a total investment of
$560 million
Taimoor Labib, Regional Head of
MENA Private Equity & Head of Global
Private Equity Portfolio Management
at SCPE said:
UAE, 12 May, 2015 – A Standard
Chartered Private Equity (“SCPE”)
lead consortium has invested $175
million for a significant minority
stake in FINE, the leading integrated
tissue manufacturer across the
Middle East and North Africa region.
The majority of the proceeds will be
used to fund the expansion of the
company’s production capacity given
the robust growth in core markets and
opportunities in new markets.
“We are delighted to partner with
the Nuqul Group, one of the region’s
leading business conglomerates.
FINE’s active ownership, high quality
management team, iconic brand,
transparency
and
independent
governance make it one of the leading
consumer brand companies in the
MENA region. We look forward to
working with our partners and helping
the company and Group achieve its
long-term strategic objectives.”
FINE is the region’s leading brand
Mr. Labib and his colleague Omar
51
May-June 2015
Al-Futtaim
52
Retail
May 2015
P.O. BOX 17013, Jebel Ali South Zone, Dubai, UAE
Tel: +971 4 8863028 Fax: +971 4 8863110
Email: info@sharafcnp.com
Activity: 3PL, Air Freight, Sea Freight, Land
Transport, Project Cargo, Sea Air Cargo, Supply
Chain Management, Warehousing & Distribution,
Ship & Port Agency, Break Bulk Cargo, Value
Added Services, Consol / De Consol, Clearing and
Forwarding.
www.retaillogistics.net
Banking & Finance
News
Rifai, Executive Director, will be joining
the FINE Board on behalf of SCPE.
Ahmad Abu Eideh, CEO Standard
Chartered Bank Jordan said: “We
are excited that our private equity
colleagues are investing in one of the
leading companies in Jordan. SCPE’s
investment in FINE is testament to
the bank’s focus on building deep
and long-standing relationships with
our clients. The Nuqul Group and
FINE has been one of our strategic
clients for the last five decades and
we look forward to further supporting
FINE as it enters its next phase of
growth and expansion.” SCPE is
the private equity arm of Standard
Chartered Bank. SCPE invests in
companies in need of growth capital
and buyouts. SCPE focuses on
companies whose principal operations
and management are located in Asia,
Africa or the Middle East. It is an
active partner that provides boardlevel strategic advice and access to
54
May-June 2015
the international network of Standard
Chartered Bank. Since inception
in 2002 has invested about US$ 7
billion in over 100 companies across
Asia, Africa and the Middle East.
FINE is a leading integrated regional
hygienic paper product manufacturer
commonly known for its “FINE”
brand of facial and personal tissues
along with kitchen, bathroom and
industrial hygienic products and baby/
adult diapers. FINE is the number
one player in tissue products across
the MENA region and is one of the
strongest regional brands.
FINE
operates across the MENA region,
but increasingly exports across Africa,
South Asia and select European
countries. The Company’s operations
are spread across the Middle East
and North Africa with paper mills,
converters and packaging plants
located in UAE, KSA, Egypt, Jordan,
Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco and Algeria.
The Company owns 10 converters,
4 large paper mills and two large
packaging plants.
In the presence of
HH Sheikh Ahmed
bin Saeed Al
Maktoum, Emirates
NBD launches first
of its kind Dubai
Economy Tracker
New monthly survey, compiled by
Markit, is first to exclusively track
Dubai’s economy Emirates NBD
Chairman unveils inaugural report Bimonthly Emirates NBD Dubai Real
Estate Tracker also launched Dubai,
12
May,
2 0 1 5 :
Emirates
NBD,
a
leading
bank
in
the region,
t o d a y
announced
the launch
of
the
Emirates
NBD Dubai
Economy
Tr a c k e r,
the
first
dedicated
monthly
survey of
Dubai’s
e c o n o m y.
T
h
e
tracker,
compiled
by Markit,
is
based
on
the
News
methodology behind the Purchasing
Managers’ Index™ (PMI™) series and
provides an accurate and timely signal
of the performance of Dubai’s nonoil sectors including manufacturing,
services, construction and retail. The
new survey is launched in conjunction
with the Emirates NBD Dubai Real
Estate Tracker, which surveys real
estate agents and households on a
bi-monthly basis to gauge trends in
Dubai’s real estate sector.
The new trackers were unveiled by His
Highness Sheikh Ahmed bin Saeed
Al Maktoum, Chairman, Emirates
NBD, who said, “In the last decade,
Dubai’s economy has become one
of the most vibrant and diversified in
the region. Revenues from the non-oil
sector continue to grow and this new
report will provide a useful window on
emergent trends and opportunities
as Dubai continues on its path to
growth as a global hub for business,
trade, real estate and tourism.” The
launch event was attended by senior
officials from Emirates NBD including
Vice Chairman, Hesham Abdulla
Al Qassim; CEO, Shayne Nelson
and Chief Economist and Head of
Research at Emirates NBD, Tim Fox,
along with Luke Thompson, Managing
Director and Head of Economic
Indices from Markit. Hesham Abdulla
Al Qassim said, “As a home-grown
brand and the first national bank in the
emirate, Emirates NBD has played an
integral role in Dubai’s growth story.
This is an exciting time for Dubai as
we cross new growth milestones.
The Emirates NBD Dubai Economy
Tracker reflects our commitment
to steer and support the emirate’s
development and progress. Shayne
Nelson stated, “Dubai has one of the
most dynamic economies - not only
in the region – but in the world. We
can now provide a timely and useful
tool that will arm analysts and policy
makers with a useful and timely
Banking & Finance
dataset that helps them to better
understand economic conditions and
the opportunities they represent.” Tim
Fox said, “Emirates NBD Research
is very pleased to be partnering with
Markit on these exciting new products.
With our footprint in the MENA region
and with Markit’s global expertise at
producing highly recognised data, we
believe that the Emirates NBD Dubai
Economy Tracker and the Dubai Real
Estate Tracker will provide important
new sources of reliable and timely
information about the state of the Dubai
economy.” Luke Thompson added,
“Markit is delighted to be extending
and enhancing its survey coverage
in MENA with the launch today of the
Emirates NBD Dubai Economy Tracker
and Dubai Real Estate Tracker. We
are confident that both surveys will
quickly establish themselves as key
performance
indicators
in
the
region
by
providing
timely
and
accurate data
on
economic
conditions.” The
Emirates NBD
Dubai Economy
Tracker
is
based on the
Purchasing
Managers’
Index
(PMI)
series, and is
an
economic
i n d i c a t o r
compiled
by
Markit
from
monthly surveys
of
carefully
s e l e c t e d
companies
in
Dubai.
The
survey
will provide a
timely signal on the emergent trends
in Dubai’s thriving non-oil private
sector economy. The survey will track
55
May-June 2015
Banking & Finance
News
variables such as output, new orders,
employment and prices across the
economy as a whole, with sub-sector
data available for three key areas
of the economy (travel & tourism,
construction and wholesale & retail).
The Emirates NBD Dubai Real Estate
Tracker, produced by Markit, is a new
bi-monthly survey of the Dubai real
estate sector. The survey is based
on original data compiled from a
representative panel of Dubai estate
agents alongside data collected from a
representative sample of households
living in Dubai. The report is designed
to provide an early indication of trends
across the Dubai property market.
Mashreq awarded for
outstanding support
to Emirati youth
Mashreq, one of the UAE’s leading
financial institutions, was recently
honored at the “Celebration of
Partnership” Ceremony at Dubai
Women’s College – a Higher College
of Technology flagship institution
– for showing continuous support
to the university and its’ Emirati
female students, thus underlining
its commitment to advancing career
opportunities for the Emirati youth.
The award serves as a testimonial
towards
Mashreq’s
efforts
for
Emiratisation and empowering Emirati
students by providing the necessary
training to develop their professional
and industry skills.
Mariam Al Ali, Head of Emiratisation
and Government Relations at
Mashreq, said, “We are pleased
to receive this honor once again,
which acts as a direct appreciation
of the bank’s efforts aimed at
Emirati students. We continue
to provide them with increasing
opportunities for early-training and
56
May-June 2015
self-development programs, as well
as opportunities to gain hands-on
experience in the banking sector
at an early stage. As one of the
leading banking institutions in the
UAE, our primary aim remains to
foster young talent and prepare
them to contribute effectively to the
banking industry.”
The annual event celebrates the
abundant and long-lasting partnership
ties that Dubai Women’s College
establishes every year with the
national and international communities
in the region, and honors partners that
endeavor to provide students with the
necessary career preparation.
Aarefa Al Falahi, Branch Manager
at Mashreq received the Award on
behalf of Mashreq. Dubai Women’s
College honored the bank for its’
commitment towards the recruitment
of graduates in part-time placements
within the bank, and further helping
to develop their professional skills by
enrolling them in management training
programs.
NBAD named
‘Rising Star
Emerging Markets
House
The National Bank of Abu Dhabi
(NBAD) has been named the ‘Rising
Star Emerging Markets House’ by
Global Capital magazine, making it the
first bank in the Middle East to receive
this prestigious award. Year to date,
NBAD has worked on 18 benchmark
bond and Sukuk offerings including
for Etisalat, DP World, National Bank
of Kuwait, the Government of Ras Al
Khaimah, Hikma Pharmaceuticals
and Emirates Airlines.
Alex Thursby, NBAD’s Group Chief
Executive Officer, said: “We are
extremely pleased with this award,
which is a result of executing against
business strategy, which began in
2012. This achievement is evidence
of NBAD’s commitment to debt
capital markets - both regionally and
globally - and it serves as evidence of
the increasing strength and maturity
of the UAE banking industry. We
look forward to continuing to build
momentum in debt capital markets as
we focus on helping clients around the
world to raise capital in all forms.”
Andy Cairns, Managing Director and
Global Head of Debt Origination &
Distribution at NBAD, said: “This is a
significant honour that recognizes the
relevance of Middle Eastern liquidity
to both regional and international
issuers. It also attests to the breadth
and sophistication of NBAD’s debt
financing platform. That this week we
are leading deals for a Chinese bank
(ICBC), an Indonesian airline (Garuda)
and the Hong Kong Government
as well as for Bank Dhofar, DIB and
Bank of Sharjah goes some way in
illustrating why we have won this
award.”
“I wish to congratulate Andy with his
team and all our NBAD family on
winning this award. We are the first
Bank in the Middle East to earn this
honour. It is a reflection of the trust the
global financial industry has in NBAD’s
increasing
global
capabilities,”
concluded Mr. Thursby.
Cover Story
Smart Cities
industry projected
at $ 400 billion
by 2020
which will utilize new technology to
attain their goals efficiently. Dubai’s
plans of 100 initiatives in transport,
communications,
infrastructure,
electricity and urban planning and to
convert government services to smart
services are indicative of the ushering
in of a new era,” said Achour.
Smart Cities of future to help combat
challenges of rapid urbanization
Dubai has taken a giant leap to
become world’s smartest city
More than 70 p.c. people to live in
cities by 2050
Dubai has already taken a giant leap
in this direction with the launch of its
strategy to turn to a ‘Smart City’. His
Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin
Smart Cities industry is
projected to be worth
more than $ 400 billion by
2020, according to experts.
The mega trend of Smart
Cities is the main solution
to cope with water and
energy shortages, higher air
pollution, traffic congestions
and other challenges due to
rapid urbanization.
By 2050, more than 70 per
cent of global population is
estimated to be living in urban
areas, presenting multiple
challenges of managing resources
and protecting the environment.
Hamza Achour, Marketing, Alliances
&
Sales
Operations
Manager,
Smartworld, a leading digital smart
service provider in the Middle East,
said: “As the population gravitates
toward urban areas, globally, we are
bound to have higher air pollution,
water
and
energy
shortages,
traffic congestions and issues like
inadequate capacities for disposing of
urban and industrial waste for long.”
“Smart and intelligent cities are the way
forward if we want to ensure superior
connectivity, healthy and comfortable
lifestyles for all and not be hit by
scarcity of resources. Major initiatives
are being taken to make cities smarter
Smart Cities
“Through Smart Cities, we can expect
to address these challenges. New
technologies, for instance, can not only
ensure optimal utilization of available
resources, these can provide new
services regardless of time or place,”
said Achour.
IHS Technology expects there will
be at least 88 smart cities by 2025,
up from 21. Many countries are
announcing initiatives to develop new
smart cities as well as turn the existing
ones smarter.
Recently, India announced its plan to
develop 100 smart cities. UK’s Bristol
announced ‘Bristol is open’ a multimillion pound experiment to create
the smart city of the future. In Japan,
the national government has selected
13 locations for its Eco-Model Cities
(EMC) scheme.
Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President
and Prime Minister of UAE and
Ruler of Dubai, launched the ‘Smart
City’ project under which, more than
1,000 government services will go
smart in the next two years. Major
transformation in the way we live is
on the cards as Dubai moves toward
its target of becoming the world’s
smartest city.
According to a United Nations report,
urbanization, combined with the overall
growth of the world’s population, could
add another 2.5 billion people to urban
populations by 2050, necessitating an
efficient management of the global
urban areas. In addition, experts
worldwide point out, there will be
a need to cope with changes in
lifestyles, work, study along with time
and location constraints.
While this mega advent of Smart Cities
would bring in opportunities, Achour
said the common aim would be to
provide cost efficient smart services.
“These rapid developments will
provide great business opportunities
especially for technology and service
providers. But even before we talk
about the revenues, the common goal
is to provide cost-efficient services
to their residents and make cities
both economically vibrant and also
environment friendly,” he said.
Talking about challenges, he said
Smart Cities will need to address
digital security and capacity building
issues alongwith cost factor at the
same time. Effective utilization of
infrastructure, resources and better
sustainability are the key, he added.
To achieve this, the service providers
need to chalk out their plans and
offerings starting now, said Achour.
57
May-June 2015
Academic
News
Supply Chain
Conference at SP
Jain School of Global
Management
On 27th February 2015, a Supply Chain
Supply Chain Performance on Brand
Performance” by Dr. Rajiv Aserkar. It was
an exploratory study to inves gate the
linkage of Supply Chain performance and
brand performance. The Global Rankings
of Top 25 supply chain published by
Gartner and Global Rankings of Top
Brands published by Milward Brown
Op mor-BrandZ Top 100 were considered
to establish the link. The findings were as
followsTotally
17
brands were
inves gated
w h i c h
appeared
consistently
in Gartner’s
top supply
chain list and
Brandz Top
100 list for
the past 5
years.
Conference was organized at Singapore
campus of SP Jain Centre of Global
Management with a great success. This
was 6th in the series of such conferences
which were organized in our Singapore
and Dubai campuses in the last 7 years.
In the past, Supply Chain and Logis cs
fraternity have supported all our events
in Singapore as well as in Dubai. We had a
similar overwhelming response this me
as well. The conference was a ended
by more than 60 delegates comprising of
senior representa ves from organiza ons
like Dell, Accenture, HP, KMS, Infosys,
Zalora, Cognizant, Servion, Singapore
Logis cs Associa on, Philip Morris,
Modec, DNV-GL, Bernhard-Schulte, Auric
Pacific, Singapore Government,
and
many others. The conference started
with a very dynamic presenta on by Jim
McAdam, Founder & CEO TVS – Asianics
(Singapore) and former President and CEO
of APL Logis cs, Singapore, highlighted
the importance of investment in logis cs
infrastructure, which in turn boosts
the brand image of a na on for future
investments. He cited the examples
of China and Singapore in this regard.
This was followed by presenta on of SP
Jain research on a very contemporary
topic of “Inves ga ng the link between
58
May-June 2015
They belonged to Technology, Retail,
Food & Beverages, FMCG & Automobile
sectors
Brands like Apple, HP, Cisco, Coca-Cola,
Nokia, Pepsico, Tesco, Walmart & Amazon
showed strong linkage between their
supply chain and brand ranking
The reasons for this linkage ranged from
demand shaping (Apple), efficient last
mile delivery (Amazon), acquisi on of
leading bo lers for be er control over
distribu on (Coca-Cola & Pepsico),
agile supply chains for speedy reac on
to market demand (Cisco), inability to
develop smart phones leading to drop
in demand (Nokia) & keen compe on
from e-commerce segment and inability
to create effec ve online presence (WalMart & Tesco).
Brands like Dell, Nike and Amazon showed
a par al linkage.
Brands like IBM, Intel, Toyota, ColgatePalmolive and McDonald showed
absolutely no linkage.
This topic found immense interest in the
audience, which was apparent in the
enthusias c ques on and answer session
which followed this presenta on. The
two panel discussions moderated by Jim
McAdam, CEO TVS-Asianics (Singapore)
and former President and CEO of APL
Logis cs, Singapore , and Paul Bradley,
Chairman & CEO Caprica Interna onal
were much appreciated and were
followed by lively ques on and answer
sessions. Paul Bradley previously served
as President of Arshiya Interna onal
headquartered in India and as Managing
Director of IDS Interna onal (a member
of the Li & Fung Group of companies,
Hong Kong). He was selected by the
World Economic Forum as one of the forty
“New Asian Leaders” and was selected
as “Asian Supply Chain Manager of the
Year” by Lloyds FTB Publica ons in 2004.
The first panel, which was moderated by
Jim McAdam, had Michele Ferrario from
Zalora, Sandy Gopalan from Cognizant
and Kumud Jha from Accenture. This
panel discussed the supply chain
strategies that the organiza ons must
adopt to ensure that the supply meets
the demand from the market. The panel
concluded that if the organiza ons can
a ain high service levels, which are the
result of accurate demand forecas ng,
prudent inventory policies and efficient
transporta on infrastructure, it will have
a posi ve impact on the brand value of
the organiza on. The panel cited the
examples of iconic companies like Apple,
Amazon, Dell, McDonald and Wal-Mart.
`The second panel discussion which was
moderated by Paul Bradley had Alison
Curry, an independent Brand Consultant,
M.R. Sunderesan from Dell and Dr. Rajiv
Aserkar from SP Jain School of Global
Management. This panel discussed
the Emerging Trends in Supply Chain
Management. The important trends
which emerged from this discussion were
technology trends like Internet of Things,
Cloud and Mobile Technologies and
3D Prin ng. In addi on, Data Security,
Regulatory Compliance, Free Trade
Area agreements and Near Sourcing
trends were discussed. The conference
concluded with informal discussions
among the par cipa on over networking
lunchwhich followed the conference.
SCLG
Site Visit
SCLG in cooperation with Dubai Duty Free hosted a Site
Visit to Dubai Duty Free (DDF) distribution facility
A tour of automated DistribuƟon Center in Umm Ramoul was organized by Supply Chain
and LogisƟcs Group in cooperaƟon with Dubai Duty Free IT & LogisƟc Department.
Mr. Ramesh Cidambi, Senior Vice President - IT and LogisƟcs, of Dubai Duty Free made a
presentaƟon on DDF’s retail business and the automaƟon in their distribuƟon facility. The
presentaƟon was followed by a tour of the facility.
The warehousing facility consists of Automated Storage and Retrieval System, Tote
Handling System, Truck Docks, Input & Output Work StaƟons, Complete IT SoluƟons with
exisƟng Oracle database.
The main objecƟve of automaƟon is to cover all operaƟons for on-Ɵme delivery of orders
to meet with the requirements and projected growth of Dubai Duty Free.
60
May-June 2015
Special
61
News
May 2015
Retail
Al-Futtaim
61
May 2015
62
May-June 2015
SCLG
Industry Forum
On 20th May Professors, students and indusrty experts gathered in
American University of Sharjah (AUS) for discussion on relevant topics
relating to logistics and supply chain industry.
64
May-June 2015
Insight
SCLG
Collaboration of Industry and Academic Campus is
key to growth
I had an opportunity
to a end AUS-SCLG
Industry forum at AUS
(American
University
of Sharjah) on May 20th
2015.
Shashi Shekhar
Group Chairman & Founder SCLG
Chairman & Managing Partner innovaXL
twitter: @shashi_SCLG
At SCLG we have always
been
encouraging
industry and academia
interac on in various
educa onal campuses.
During
delivery
of
the forum, students,
professors and industry
leaders
discussed
opportuni es and skills
required in supply chain
and logis cs industry.
Such industry forums
help build robust supply
of talent in supply chain
and logis cs industry.
This is to be noted that
currently demand of
talent in this industry is
more than supply and
industry experts say
that demand of talent
will always be more than
supply for many years to
come.
Dr. Moncer Hariga, Dr.
Malick Ndiaye and Dr.
Abdelkader Daghfous.
SCLG
officials
are
planning to deliver
industry forums in
various other academic
ins tu ons in UAE as
well.
The panelists from
industry
presented
their view-points on
how technology is re
shaping supply chain.
The panelists included
senior personnel from
Procter & Gamble,
Technip, Al Rostamani,
Velocity, Oracle, SICK,
Kanoo
Group
and
also senior professors
from AUS including
I enjoyed my visit to AUS
campus. I am thankful to
authori es, professors
and students of AUS
for a warm welcome
to supply chain and
logis cs industry. Here
are some of great
moments that students,
professors and industry
shared.
65
May-June 2015
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