22 TANKS & LOGISTICS
BRING IT ON HOME SUPPLY CHAINS • DACHSER REPORTS ON HOW IT IS HELPING ITS CHEMICAL INDUSTRY CLIENTS FACE THE CURRENT CHALLENGES IN LOGISTICS AND WHAT IT EXPECTS FOR THE NEXT FEW YEARS THE GLOBAL CHEMICAL industry has faced enormous challenges over the past two years, with the ongoing restrictions imposed to deal with the Covid-19 pandemic compounded by disruptions to trade caused by port congestion, rocketing ocean freight rates, labour shortages and geopolitical concerns. Those challenges have also come at a time when the chemical sector is growing but also facing greater demands for increased sustainability. Dealing with those challenges requires agility, which is something that a competent logistics partner can offer. “The chemical industry has been put under considerable strain over the past two years due to disruptions to supply chains, shortages of materials, and capacity bottlenecks,” says Michael Kriegel, department head of Dachser Chem Logistics. “It’s now a matter of using predictive planning to manage these difficulties so that global supply chains in the chemical industry run without interruption. “Companies are currently in crisis mode,” Kriegel adds. “They’re focused entirely on procuring capacity at affordable rates and working with their logistics partners to find solutions for maintaining their supply chains. But in the medium to long term, companies will begin making structural changes to their supply chains. Last summer, we conducted an internal survey that revealed that 70 per cent of the customers polled were considering regionalising their supply chains.” That is already causing a shift in production to be closer to the main markets for chemical
A CAPABLE LOGISTICS PARTNER CAN HELP SUPPLIERS ENSURE THE STABILITY OF THEIR NETWORKS
HCB MONTHLY | MARCH 2022
products. “But this will take some time and in no way heralds the end of globalisation,” Kriegel says. “Reshoring or regionalising the supply chain completely would be sub-optimal as well as risky. However, this is about more than just regionalism. Ensuring the stability of logistics networks and uninterrupted supply chains calls for logistics networks with flexible structures. Our job as a logistics provider is to respond with alternatives while also expanding our own transport capacity, for instance through air freight charters.” AND KEEP IT CLEAN Chemical manufacturers, themselves keep to boost their ‘green’ credentials, are increasingly demanding lower carbon activities on the part of their logistics partners. Dachser is already using some electric vehicles and is investing in that sector. But few suitable electric trucks are yet available. “So, the main lever we have to
make chemical logistics more climate-friendly is still to optimise transport capacity,” Kriegel says. “At the end of the day, there’s nothing worse for the climate than empty runs.” Dachser is taking the same innovative approach to its warehouse operations, with one project involving the use of ground conveyors powered by lithium ion batteries and another using more efficient LED lighting. Furthermore, since the start of 2022 Dachser has only been buying electricity generated from renewable sources. “We’re also expanding our own production of power from renewables, for which we’re investing in expanding and adding new photovoltaic systems on the roofs of our logistics facilities and office buildings in Europe,” Kriegel adds. We have not seen the end of these challenges and changes, Kriegel says. “In addition to the topics we’ve already touched on — such as sustainability — important topics for us will be the driver shortage, digitalisation and supply chain resilience and the corresponding network mindset. “The current bottlenecks are giving many companies a wake-up call. They want to and must position themselves to be more resilient if they want to better protect their supply chains against potential dangers. IT security and IT resilience will also be among the top priorities, because secure data and the exchange of that data are what’s keeping the physical supply chain going,” Kriegel concludes. www.dachser.com
