MARINE & SHIPPING
24
LOCKDOWN LOGISTICS:
delivering exceptional customer service
One year ago, almost overnight, air, road and sea travel ground to a halt. What would have previously been unthinkable soon became a frantic struggle for businesses to keep trade flowing worldwide.
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o one could ever have been completely prepared for the seismic change in our daily lives as the UK went into its first national lockdown; however, the team at Petrasco – a leading provider of international logistics solutions – has strived to deliver for its clients in the face of unprecedented challenges.
But the world doesn’t stop turning. “With the energy industry designated as an essential service, we had to adapt, and adapt quickly, to the ever-changing global situation brought about by the pandemic,” commented managing director Kevin Buchan. He added: “Due to the nature of our industry, planning and business continuity has long been a feature of every management meeting held in recent years. “Therefore, how we would operate, communicate with clients, function, and continue to provide our range of services throughout the pandemic had already been considered, so ‘Operation Lockdown Logistics’ went into full swing.” With operations in the three major energy hubs of Aberdeen, Dubai and Houston and beyond, Petrasco has a wealth of expertise in serving the global energy sector and is well-placed to advise clients on challenging markets from a logistics perspective. As well as procedures to keep staff and clients safe, Petrasco moved quickly to utilise technology to make remote working as fast and reliable as office working. Regular communication, including promoting staff wellbeing, came to the fore against the backdrop of a constantly evolving information landscape. Every freight agent found themselves in the same boat, with increasing rates due to limited capacity and changes in rates on a daily, and sometimes hourly, basis as airlines grounded flights. To find a way around this, Petrasco looked at other routes that wouldn’t normally be considered as well as leveraging its membership of an energy consortium of carefully selected partners.
www.ogv.energy I April 2021
Kevin Buchan, Managing Director
Kevin said: “We managed to overcome these challenges and continued to deliver freight services around the world thanks to our problem-solving ability and the relationships we’ve built up with industry partners over many years. “In many cases, these relationships have been strengthened, while even in the depths of the crisis we were trusted to find the best deal and best solution possible. “At the same time, it was vital to manage clients’ expectations – providing realistic options and timeframes, without making any guarantees given the state of flux and factors beyond our control.” The experience of its staff came to the fore, adapting to the constant changes and guidance, which allowed solutions to be found through long-standing contacts at shipping lines and airlines. For instance, Petrasco avoided port congestion and reduction of services with full container load (FCL) and less than container load (LCL) operators through alternative methods, such as utilising breakbulk services. In some cases, where key members of staff had been placed on furlough or left their post, Petrasco’s team found themselves liaising with new contacts who had to be guided through the process and practicalities of logistics. With so many projects being delayed, this has led to clients being more reactive – and asking for cargo to be delivered internationally often at short notice. This has created its own challenges with the need to relay the latest service information from the major carriers to clients in real-time. “On the exact day the UK went into lockdown, we challenged Petrasco with an urgent and critical consignment to be delivered to Las Palmas for one of our clients. “Despite the challenges presented by COVID-19, Petrasco expedited the consignment and delivered it ahead of schedule. Most of the shipments we have despatched during lockdown are time sensitive and the level of service, alternative solutions and communication we have received from Petrasco has been excellent.” Operations Manager, subsea fabrication company As confidence returns, more, better-planned projects will come back on stream, and yet, the industry still faces delays with port congestion that would not have existed 18 months ago due to the significant backlog – emphasising the need for contingency plans. Kevin added: “I’m extremely proud of the efforts of our team and how they have all pulled together over what has been the most challenging year in recent memory. It’s our people who find the solutions needed and it’s credit to their abilities that clients haven’t seen a drop-off in the level of service provided. “Because of this, and our willingness to respond when others couldn’t, we have also been fortunate to pick up new business for our range of services, including warehouse distribution. “Now, with light at the end of the tunnel, many of the changes brought to the fore over the past 12 months to help us adapt will remain in place as businesses look to become more resilient and achieve sustainable recovery.”
