Letter from the Editor

EDITOR’S LETTER

According to my diary, I should be in Budapest this month. I was rather looking forward to it – after all, it is a beautiful city, with good food and wine, plenty to see and do, and nice people too. Oh, and that was where EPCA was to hold its Annual Meeting this year. So, if all had gone to plan, I would be sitting now somewhere alongside the Danube, glass of beer in hand, having interesting HCB-related chats with important people from the European petrochemical industry.

Instead, I am still in my home office, enjoying the last of the summer weather, and communicating with the world by means of one of the many software systems that have sprung up to keep us all working virtually during the travel and other physical restrictions imposed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic. By comparison, those old workhorses of mobile phone and email seem now rather quaint and old-fashioned, but they still work well enough for most purposes.

EPCA itself, in common with other organisations and commercial outfits that put on the conferences and events that help us do business together, has had to re-imagine how its Annual Meeting can work in this virtual world and, as several pages in this issue of HCB reveal, has come up with some ideas as to how best to keep the conversation flowing.

And there is plenty to talk about. The disruptions caused by the Covid-19 pandemic – as well as by rapid fluctuations in chemical feedstock prices, growing geopolitical tensions and the increasing demand for action on climate change – have thrown an unforgiving spotlight on inefficiencies within the supply chain. Those that have been able to respond fastest have had an advantage in the market – and the one common factor seems to be that they have all gone at least some way on the digitisation journey.

Being able to quickly switch from office-based operations to home working was a critical issue for many and one that was enabled best by having digitised systems and platforms in place. Being able to locate and monitor transport assets out in the real world was also a major benefit for many logistics service providers, again with the assistance not just of ‘track and trace’ systems but integrated telematics with real-time visibility, linked to ERP and other systems to help operators make sure they could plan ahead with at least some confidence.

It is clear from HCB’s conversations with many operators in the chemical logistics arena that the pandemic has accelerated the uptake of digitised systems and platforms. It is also apparent that both they and their business partners have realised that investment in digitisation delivers rewards. Those rewards go further than just improved efficiency in operations, though: they include better relationships between the various players in the supply chain, better customer service, better care of the health and safety of personnel in the field, and – something that may not have been expected – better performance in terms of sustainability and carbon emissions.

EPCA’s Annual Meeting will try to look ahead to a postpandemic world but it seems inevitable that the gains that digitisation as a concept has made within this industry, so often slow to embrace new technologies, are here not just to stay but to grow and to realise even greater benefits for all. Peter Mackay

CONTENTS

VOLUME 41 • NUMBER 09

UP FRONT Letter from the Editor 01

30 Years Ago Learning by Training View from the Porch Swing 04 05 06

What’s next? M&S looks ahead to post-pandemic world 08

EPCA SPECIAL SUPPLEMENT Welcome to the future EPCA takes Annual Meeting online 13 Reflections on uncertainty EPCA CEO Caroline Ciuciu speaks to HCB 15 Navigating into tomorrow Dirk Verstraeten on the supply chain 20 Refreshing the committee SCPC reinvented for the modern world 26 Digitisation in practice Eclic broadens its scope 33

TANKS & LOGISTICS Train and retain Cefic, ECTA address driver shortage 36 Jobs for life Chemical Express and driver welfare 38 Silo mentality Greiwing expands Duisburg site 39 Tank takeover Essers grows tank container fleet 40 Outside the box Aeler offers new container concept 42 Intelligent expertise WHS Logistics improves visibility 44 Exception management IMT introduces alert function 46 Ready to serve GSEE develops logistics facility 47 Power for powder Mouvex compressor does the job 48 French twist Perolo continues to grow 50 Built to last Peacock reviews leasing market 52 Not just for bulk Lineas offers less than wagon loads 54 Keep on the rails Fort Vale expands rail offerings 56 The safety standard Wascosa extends safe tank car 58 On the platform VTG launches traigo 59 News bulletin – tanks and logistics 60

SUSTAINABILITY Keep it in the tank ITCO highlights isotanks’ reusability 62 Clean air action Endegs takes degassing to ports 64 Low-carbon society GPCA reports lower emissions 65

INDUSTRIAL PACKAGING Where’s my cube? Greif offers IBC tracking Living in a box Thielmann protects batteries 66

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CHEMICAL DISTRIBUTION Not on the high street Univar boosts online presence 68 News bulletin – chemical distribution 69

TANKER SHIPPING So far so good Demand firm for gas shipping Second of pleasure Odfjell focuses on sustainability News bulletin – tanker shipping

STORAGE TERMINALS Take it from the top 71

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Editor–in–Chief Peter Mackay, dgsa Email: peter.mackay@hcblive.com Tel: +44 (0) 7769 685 085 Campaigns Director Craig Vye Email: craig.vye@hcblive.com Tel: +44 (0) 208 371 4014

Commercial Director Ben Newall Email: ben.newall@hcblive.com Tel: +44 (0) 208 371 4036 Production Manager Binita Wilton Email: binita.wilton@hcblive.com Tel: +44 (0) 208 371 4041 TSA launches leadership charter 78 A year apart ILTA works hard for its members 80 The intermodal port Tarragona promotes rail connections 82 Getting the most out Evos optimises Amsterdam 84 Standic still building Antwerp construction continues 85 Coping in a crisis Dan Balt pulls through 86 Inter sells a slice CLH buys part of Inter Terminals 87 Latin lessons Implico partners in Latin America 88

COURSES & CONFERENCES Off the ground Online training for ground handlers 91 Rethinking IATA training Lion looks at CBTA 92 Conference diary 95

SAFETY Incident Log Could it happen here? Beirut explosion scares ports Small but deadly Don’t use LQ to hide hazards The detectorists NCB, Exis launch Hazcheck Detect 102 Clearing the air Safety in on-ship fumigation 103

REGULATIONS Devil in the detail Changes to ADR 2021 104

More than training Significant changes to IATA DGR 108 Connecting the community Labelmaster launches DG Exchange 110

BACK PAGE Not otherwise specified 112

Managing Editor Stephen Mitchell Email: stephen.mitchell@hcblive.com Tel: +44 (0) 208 371 4045

Designer Jochen Viegener

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HCB Monthly is published by Cargo Media Ltd. While the information and articles in HCB are published in good faith and every effort is made to check accuracy, readers should verify facts and statements directly with official sources before acting upon them, as the publisher can accept no responsibility in this respect.