Logistics & Materials Handling - Aug/Sep 2017

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inside AUGUST/SEPTEMBER 2017 Rethinking security Gender equality The rise of containers Sydney’s logistics shift

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In with the new Change is a given. Every individual, organisation and industry lives in a constant state of change, whether it be keeping up with peers, coping and thriving with the latest technology or reevaluating processes that served well in the past, but could be more efficient.

The logistics industry is no exception. The supply chain is constantly bombarded with innovative technologies designed to improve traceability, cost efficiency and safety, each more inspired than the last. Changes affecting the nation’s overarching issues, such as the improvement of Australia’s transport links, and the regulation of emerging technologies for use in packaging and delivery, inspire rich debate among the logistics industry’s modern and traditional players.

In this issue, we explore the various transformations already taking place in the country’s supply chain space, and others that still need to be ushered in.

Our cover story, ‘City Limits’, considers the feasibility of a logistics haven under construction in Paris being replicated successfully in a major Australian city. The Chapelle International development is a green initiative through which freight will arrive in the French capital by train – cutting the number ofgrowth trucks entering the city Proving profitable at the cutting significantly – and deliveries will then be made ed Proving profitable growth at the cutby sustainable means. ting edProving profitable growth at the We also edProving look at evolution in CCTV camera cutting profitable growth at technology, from the world’s largest lock the cutting hear edProving profitable growth manufacturer about efficiency and safety, at the cutting edProving profitable and find out how logistics is edProving reshaping the face of growth at the cutting profitAustralia’s industrial able growth at the zones. cutting edProving Finally, Hermione Parsons, of DeakinedProvprofitable growth at the cutting University’s Centre for Supply andeding profitable growth at theChain cutting Logistics,profitable shares whygrowth she believes will take Proving at theitcutting more than a few cocktail parties to address edProving profitable growth at the cut- the gender diversity issue in the growth industry.at the ting edProving profitable Happy reading. cutting edProving profitable growth at

behindthecover

22 Contents COVER STORY 12 City limits

32 Capital shift

The logistics infrastructure of Australia’s major cities is at capacity. Finding a solution may mean turning CBD deliveries on their heads and taking 04 Bulletinboard inspiration from the city of lights. Tru-test of quality.

contents

Sydney’s logistics landscape is experiencing a rapid shift, according to real estate company GPT Group – with major infrastructure Data Capture & projects on their42 way, industrial players Supply relocating operations and the Chains local freight task 24 Factory Materialsramping up. Sustainable supply chains.

06 Mercury Awards FEATURES Handling 2010 34 Demand flexibility 18 A Mercury world of Awards difference Spiral conveyor solves launched.

Forklifts & Lifting For over half44 a century, international container With the logistics industry facing a shortage of problems. leasing companySix Seaco has been providing the skilled workers, developing the talentheat pipeline is Humbled and Exalted new overhead cranes containers that make the world go round. critical.

Getting women ‘on board’ could be the key Cart dollies for simple – 2009 Mercury Award for Ferrocut. to prosperity. handling tasks. winners.

37 Back on trackAirfreight system reduces Double pallet dispenser.

Over the next decade, Inland Rail is going to handling costs.

20 Changing perceptions a viable option for the east coast’s 14 Training Getting women to enter and prosper Palletising in industry was robot. reinstate rail as Hybrid forklift. rural producers. The new InterlinkSQ Intermodal in focus at the Women in Industry Awards, and the Bell’s Transport benefits Terminal and Industrial Precinct in Toowoomba, inaugural Women in Industry Conference, both held from Skills for Growth 32 Warehousing & Storage Handling positioned Hazardous Queensland,49 is strategically to connect in Melbourne in June. program.

Goods the country’s exports by road, rail, air and sea.

Record picking 22 CCTV 2.0 productivity. 38 Logistics in action Gloves for handling – Sunstate Cement 16 Information CCTV systems from network camera manufacturer hazardous substances.

Automated storage.

In November 2015, Sunstate Cement Technology Supply Mobotix are highly intelligent and all seeing. Forget commissioned aHand-held new turnkeyeyewash. state-of-the-art Chains Storage everything you thought you knew about CCTV.success. dry-mix plant to introduce a number of readyInformation driven. to-use dry-mix products to complement its 27 Gaining momentum product range.

Nord Drivesystems’ newest drive system, the NordAC Link, fills a gap in Australia’s materials handling market for an adaptable solution.

28 Addressing the big issues

An early reveal of global door lock manufacturer Assa Abloy Entrance Systems’ latest whitepaper, looking at the impact door technology can have on energy efficiency and safety.

mercuryawards Regularnullaorem Run velit augait, volorpero dolortie 04 From the Editor faccum dipsum zzriu 06 Industry News 09 Global News 10 Australian Logistics Council

the cutting edProving profitable growth John Murphy | Publisher at the cutting edProving profitable growth at the cutting edProving profitJohn Murphy able growthPUBLISHER: at the cutting.

MANAGING EDITOR (SOUTHERN): Sebastian Grote e sebastian.grote@primecreative.com.au ASSISTANT EDITOR: Philippa Edwards e philippa.edwards@primecreative.com.au PRODUCTION CO-ORDINATOR: Michelle Weston e michelle.weston@primecreative.com.au MANAGING DIRECTOR: John Murphy PUBLISHER: Martin Sinclair e martin.sinclair@primecreative.com.au SALES MANAGER (SOUTHERN): MattASSOCIATE Carey e matt.carey@primecreative.com.au EDITORIAL CO-ORDINATOR: Ben Hagemann t 02 8484 0884 e ben.hagemann@primecreative.com.au PRIME CREATIVE MEDIA PRODUCTION ZibaVIC Mahabat 02 (03) 84849690 06258766 e ziba.mahabat@primecreative.com.au 11-15 BuckhurstCO-ORDINATOR: St, South Melbourne, 3205 tTel: Fax: (03) 9682 0044 ABN 80 132 719 861 ISSN 0004-976X www.primecreative.com.au KEY Tim Street, Richards 02 8484 0829 tim.richards@primecreative.com.au Suite ACCOUNT 3.03, Level MANAGER: 3, 1-9 Chandos St tLeonards, NSWe2065 Tel: (03) 9439 7227 PRIME CREATIVE MEDIA Media, 2017 © Copyright Prime Creative Tower 2, reserved.

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Industry News

DB Schenker, DPWA and Hamburg Süd join forces for blockchain trial One of the largest and most comprehensive trials of blockchain technology for global supply chains has recently been completed with the help of a new, Australian-developed blockchain security architecture from TBSx3.

The TBSx3 system is based on militarygrade 44-alphanumeric-character security cryptography as opposed to the six-digit public cryptography which up until now has been commonly used.

The new TBSx3 benchmark was successfully used on a 8,100km global road-and-sea supply chain stretching from the wine-growing Coonawarra region of rural South Australia to the port of Qingdao in north-eastern China.

Partners included DP World Australia, DB Schenker, Hamburg Süd and Australian wine producer IUS, which exports seven product lines into the rapidly growing Chinese wine market.

KPMG advised TBSx3 on the trial and verified

the custodial handovers for the integrity of the product on the journey. Furthermore, KPMG simulated the customer at the end of the trial by receiving and validating the product, and checking if the system could potentially detect duplicates.

Ron Koehler, CEO of DB Schenker Australia and New Zealand, said, “In a globalised world, the safety and security of supply chains for the medicines you buy, the food you eat, the parts that are used for your cars and the planes you fly in cannot be taken for granted.

“Supply chain security affects everyone – consumers, companies, communities.

The Hon. Arthur Sinodinos, Minister for Industry, Innovation and Science, added, “Blockchain is an exciting technology with great potential for Australian businesses and SMEs. It promises to reduce costs, create new market opportunities and transform industries.

“Importantly the technology provides a

new opportunity for Australian exporters and their customers to verify the authenticity of their products, protecting the reputations and brands of both Australia and Australian business.”

The successful completion of the trial between Australia and China is the first of a planned series with multiple partners which will “simultaneously test the robustness of TBSx3 blockchain technology for every custodial link in global supply chains and also verification protocols for both bulk product and individual items for retailers and consumers at the end of the chain,” according to Anthony Bertini, Chairman of TBSx3.

“In terms of the numbers of partners simultaneously involved and the challenges posed for resolution of integration with multiple existing proprietary security systems we believe this can be developed to become a new security benchmark,” he added.

Japan Post President comments on Toll takeover In an interview with The Nikkei Review’s Fumito Akiyama, Japan Post Holdings President, Masatsugu Nagato, noted that avoidable mistakes were made when acquiring the Toll Group in 2015, adding that the first step in Japan Post’s future strategy for the Australian logistics company will involve spending cuts.

6 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

“I believe we did make appropriate efforts to integrate operations after the Toll purchase, but it is true that we probably left too much up to the local staff,” he said. “From around the summer of 2016, we started re-examining the Toll operations, realising we had to do something.

“I have no intention of bad-mouthing my predecessor [Taizo Nishimuro], but buying the business for ¥620 billion ($7.5 billion) with goodwill of ¥500 billion ($6 billion) from day one is careless. I wonder why management could not think it through more. With more effort, a slowdown in the Australian economy could have been predicted, given that commodity prices had been falling.”

The next step for Toll will be a decrease in spending, he shared. “First, we should cut Toll’s spending to build a lean organisation,” he said. “It is like taking one step back to advance two steps forward. We are contracting now to prepare for a leap forward.”

Nagato added that there will be further

acquisitions in Japan Post’s future, though the company will approach them with more caution.

“When I think of the postal services 10 years from now, I feel we have to acquire businesses and take other steps,” he said. “Currently, the postal business generates ¥3 trillion ($36 billion) in revenue and spends ¥3 trillion – we have to either increase revenue or reduce spending.

“The postal business is [going] to decline gradually over the long term, so if we can buy a good company for a good price, we would love to. But it is not easy to make an acquisition a success.

“What’s important in mergers and acquisitions (M&As) is not to pay a top price, and to have solid confidence about running the newly acquired business. Good companies have high stock prices, too. Right now, good deals are not out there. We had said we should go after M&As as opportunities arise, but we should tone that down.”

Industry News

Melbourne’s second port to be built in 2055 Infrastructure Victoria has made recommendations to the Andrews government that Melbourne’s second major container port should be built near Werribee, but not for another 40 years.

The suggested site, Bay West, is located between Werribee and Point Wilson, though Infrastructure Victoria notes that it will not be needed until container traffic outgrows capacity at the Port of Melbourne, estimated to happen by 2055.

The port’s container terminal would be offshore – a four-kilometre industrial island connected via a 1.5km road and rail bridge.

Road and rail links would need to be established across Melbourne Water’s Western Treatment Plant, a protected site for birdlife.

Infrastructure Australia decided to remove another contender from the running, the Port of Hastings in the south-east of Melbourne, due to to the estimated $5 billion cost of connecting it to Melbourne’s rail network via the PakenhamCranbourne line, and the risk of increasing shipping traffic in the ecologically delicate

Western Port.

The advisory body did add that the Port of Hastings could perform a supporting role, dealing with shipping of non-containerised goods.

The Australian Logistics Council (ALC) welcomed Infrastructure Victoria’s advice on securing Victoria’s future ports capacity. “[The] ALC provided a submission to Infrastructure Victoria which stated that the Port of Melbourne should be able to operate as efficiently as possible for as long as possible,” said Michael Kilgariff, Managing Director, ALC.

“[The] ALC will continue to advocate that the recent lease of the Port of Melbourne should ensure it has an operational life of 50 years.

Significant long-term investments made by those in the freight logistics industry must be respected and supported by all governments.

“The fact that a second container port has been mooted for operation post-2055, should not prevent much-needed infrastructure, such as the port rail shuttle, from being planned, financed and built as soon as practicable,” he added.

Nine in 10 online Australian shoppers to purchase from Amazon A new study has revealed how much strain the arrival of Amazon in Australia is likely to put on local online retailers – 90 per cent of Australian online shoppers state they will purchase from the e-commerce giant if it fulfils its promise to deliver low prices, vast selection and fast delivery.

The results come from an independent survey commissioned by parcel delivery service

CouriersPlease.

The survey separated Amazon’s three focuses – price, selection and delivery – to gauge what was more important for Aussie shoppers. Sixty-eight per cent of respondents noted that ‘lower prices’ would be the main reason they would purchase from Amazon.

“Amazon’s promises of lower prices and faster delivery times may put pressure on existing local

retailers and the supply chain, but I believe we will become better at what we do,” said Hoy Yen Hooper, Chief Operating Officer, CouriersPlease.

“In the US and UK markets, where Amazon has a large share of the retail market, one-hour delivery through Amazon Prime and competitive prices are being offered.

“In our survey, fast delivery was the least important reason for shopping on Amazon, which may indicate that consumers in regional and country areas know that delivery may take longer as it is not commercially viable for many providers to have that sort of reach.

“Amazon will be attracted to delivery services that provide consumers with flexible delivery choices – such as enabling them to pick up at retail outlets such as newsagents, grocery stores and petrol stations – consistency in delivery, and reliability in keeping with expected delivery transit times.” logisticsmagazine.com.au | 7

Industry News

Linfox evolves fulfilment offering Transport giant Linfox has added new fulfilment services to its portfolio, ranging from storage all the way through to product repairs.

“The market is moving towards online retailing and omni-channel systems, which is something traditional supply chains can’t necessarily support in a cost-effective way,” John Pucek, General Manager – Operations Development at Linfox, told Logistics & Material Handling.

“That’s why transport businesses like Linfox are evolving into much more multi-faceted organisations. Our new fulfilment operation in Sydney is the latest example of that evolution.”

The Sydney facility is designed to provide comprehensive fulfilment services for e-commerce operations – ranging from basic storage, ‘pick and pack’ and dispatch services through to product customisation, kitting, reverse logistics, repairs and even order track-and-trace services.

“We’re also developing our own, enterprisegrade e-commerce solution for the consumer goods market,” he said.

“A company will be able to purchase a fully managed service where we provide the e-commerce platform, a management team and online store management. We even do all the content management, and it will be integrated into

our fulfilment.”

The service is designed for small- to mediumsized businesses trading between $120–300 million. “Rather than having to invest in their own e-commerce platform, they can get the complete package from us,” he explained – adding that the company launched the fulfilment and e-commerce projects at a strategy level in January 2016.

The company secured its first customer, consumer electronics company Belkin, in November 2016, and then went live in April 2017.

Initially, Linfox will continue to focus on the consumer electronics market, Pucek said, and it was recently announced that the company’s second confirmed customer is audio company Sennheiser. Next up are health and beauty. “The service offering suits many industries, but they’re the two current strategic targets,” he shared.

“We want to be a real partner of consumer goods organisations and retailers,” Pucek added – highlighting the evolutionary leap Linfox has taken from its beginnings as a transport operation.

“We’re hoping to be more so a partner than a 3PL – we want to be more integrated with them to help them grow their businesses, and now we’re looking at the other channels for which they want to grow their business and how we can

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Pucek said that as consumers and small businesses demand better choice in how and where they receive their products, the market will continue to see change and innovation when it comes to last-mile delivery.

“The challenge for traditional operators will be to bend and flex with consumer demand,” said Pucek.

“Linfox is investing heavily in our systems to provide small businesses and end-consumers with greater visibility throughout the fulfilment supply chain.”

Read the full interview in the October/November issue of Logistics and Materials Handling.

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Global News

Long-distance drone delivery record A fixed-wing Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV) has flown over 150km in Texas to deliver a package, setting a record for long-distance drone delivery.

Nevada UAS (Uninhabited Aircraft System) Consortium Team, Roadrunner, arranged the flight in May. Launched from a central Texas urban location, the UAV followed a pre-planned route autonomously, though it was supported by visual observers located across the flight route.

The observers were equipped with enhanced radios and mobile phone communications, enabling the UAV to be flown using a cellular communications link until it successfully landed and delivered its package in Austin, Texas.

“This was the most challenging, logistically intensive, and longest package delivery

demonstration recorded to date using cellular technology in the NAS (National Airspace System), and allowed us the opportunity to demonstrate innovative capability – a demonstration necessity for the UAS industry,” said Dr Chris Walach, Director of the Nevada UAS Test Site.

“Drone package delivery in an urban and remote environment is the wave of the future, and Nevada is leading and helping to grow this major commercial endeavour,” he added. “These package delivery milestones prove that new UAS technology enables the safe integration of UAS into the NAS for long-distance and urban package deliveries.”

Steve Hill, Executive Director of the Nevada Governor’s Office of Economic Development, added, “Creating a safe and thriving drone

industry is an incredible challenge, especially when you couple that with drone package delivery. The record-breaking success of Team Roadrunner’s aerial package delivery mission proves that diligent testing in complex conditions will lead to drone delivery becoming reality.”

Uber officially enters freight race US ride-hailing service Uber has officially ventured into the freight transport industry with the launch of Uber Freight.

The formal launch of the app, which promises to match trucking companies with loads to haul, marks the company’s long-anticipated move into the industry.

Uber said in a blog post that the location-based app will relieve stress for drivers by confirming rates and loads “within seconds” and delivering payments within a few days – even if it means Uber has to cover the cost of delays.

“Uber Freight is committed to paying within a few days, fee-free, for every single load,” the company said “ When things don’t go as planned

or drivers have to wait longer than expected, we pay for that too.”

Uber added, “Truck drivers are the heart of the American economy [and] take on a great risk to make sure we get the products we need, from the produce in our local supermarket to the clothes at our favorite stores. But running a trucking business isn’t easy.

“We take the guesswork out of finding and booking freight, which is often the most stressful part of a driver’s day. What used to take several hours and multiple phone calls can now be achieved with the touch of a button.”

With the app, drivers can find dry or refrigerated freight according to parameters such

as where and when they want to pick it up, where the load is bound and price offered.

Eric Berdinis, Product Lead, Uber Freight, pointed out that there are no short-term plans to mesh Uber Freight with self-driving trucks. “Right now the self driving trucks and Uber Freight are two independent bets on what the future of trucking might look like,” he told US publication Heavy Duty Trucking.

“Certainly when Uber bought Otto, it whet its appetite for what it could do in the trucking space.

Right now that’s two separate teams working on two separate paths…One day will they cross paths and create something together? Possibly, but it’s not something the team is focused on right now.”

Chinese and US delivery giants form partnership Delivery companies UPS and SF Holding, parent company of SF Express, have announced plans to establish a joint venture through which the pair will develop and provide international delivery services, initially from China to the US, with plans to add other destinations later.

“UPS is excited to form a joint venture with SF,” said Ross McCullough, President, UPS Asia Pacific. “This joint venture will support products that provide competitive benefits to our Chinese customers who trade or seek to trade internationally.

Alan Wong, Group Vice President, SF, added, “China is leading the world in terms of e-commerce market size, growth, penetration and mobile business usage. Coupled with a rapidly growing and internet-savvy consumer base, it’s imperative that SF and UPS collaborate to revolutionise the logistics sector.

Together, we aim to bring greater competitive advantages to our customers in China, to succeed globally.”

The joint venture is subject to regulatory approval.

August/September 2017 Logistics&MaterialsHandling | 9

ALC Column

Michael Kilgariff Managing Director Australian Logistics Council

S

peculation about the impact of Amazon on the Australian retail market kicked up a notch in late June, when news emerged that the company had acquired upscale grocery chain Whole Foods – effectively acquiring ‘bricks and mortar’ stores in strategic locations across the United States.

Many local industry participants are now wondering precisely what that might mean for the retail sector here in Australia, given Amazon’s well-publicised plans to expand in this country.

Yet, for all the time and space this and similar developments occupy in news pages and on television, most of the commentary on the issue is driven by speculation.

At the same time, comparatively little attention is being given to another significant change coming our way – one which won’t just impact freight logistics operators, but also anyone that uses their services.

Granted, it’s not in the shiny form of an app, or a big new market player, or drones delivering groceries straight to the balconies of high-rise apartment buildings in our cities.

Although the coming changes relate to

10 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

DO YOU UNDERSTAND COR? something far more down to earth, they are far more relevant to the day-to-day operation of businesses.

Despite that, awareness and coverage of the issue to date has been astonishingly low.

The forthcoming changes to Chain of Responsibility (CoR) laws, which are due to come into effect in mid-2018, will have an impact on the operations of businesses throughout the economy – not merely in the transport sector.

Accordingly, now is the time to become familiar with exactly what those changes will mean for your business – and establish appropriate systems within business operations to ensure compliance.

For those who may be unfamiliar with its operation, the Heavy Vehicle National Law (HVNL) sets the rules that ensure vehicles of more than 4.5 tonnes in weight operate in a safe manner in all states and territories of Australia (except Western Australia and the Northern Territory).

Under its provisions, if you consign, pack, load or receive goods as part of your business, you can be held legally liable for breaches of the HVNL – even if you have no direct role in

driving or operating a heavy vehicle.

In addition, corporate entities, directors, partners and managers are deemed accountable for the actions of people under their control.

This is what is meant by the ‘Chain of Responsibility’.

The aim of the CoR laws is to make sure everyone in the supply chain shares equal responsibility for ensuring breaches of the law do not occur.

Under CoR, if you exercise – or have the capability of exercising, control of or influence over – any transport task, you are part of the supply chain, and therefore have a responsibility to ensure the law is complied with.

The law also recognises that multiple parties may be responsible for offences committed by the drivers and operators of heavy vehicles.

By way of example, let’s consider consignors and consignees of goods.

Effectively, the HVNL is designed to prevent consignors or consignees from pressuring a transport operator to engage in unsafe behaviour, such as speeding or driving long distances without adequate breaks.

ALC Column

If a driver is found to have broken speed limits, or driven in a fatigued state, everyone who was responsible for requiring the driver to undertake a long journey in an unsafe manner could be prosecuted under the national law.

This is because consignors and consignees are required to take all reasonable steps to ensure that drivers don’t speed or drive whilst fatigued. The current maximum penalty for failing to do this is $10,000.

Furthermore, this responsibility extends to directors who either authorised or knew – or ought to have reasonably known – about unsafe transport requirements. That said, it is considered an acceptable defence to show that parties such as directors have shown reasonable diligence in ensuring that the law is complied with.

Accordingly, if you are in a business that deals directly with transport operators to either send goods to clients, or to receive goods from suppliers, you should make certain you have a well-documented set of procedures establishing business rules requiring goods to be transported in a fashion that doesn’t compel drivers to act in a reckless manner.

It would also be prudent to ensure that the executive board establishes reporting requirements that measure how well these procedures have been adhered to.

Having appropriate procedures in place will become vastly more important when the amendments to CoR laws commence operation in the middle of 2018.

These changes are designed to align CoR more closely with workplace health and safety (WHS) laws.

Under the new regime, a primary duty of care will be introduced for supply chain participants to ensure, so far as is reasonably practicable, the safety of ‘road transport operations’, with executive officers (such as directors) having the primary duties regime

applied to them through a positive due diligence obligation, similar to that imposed

by WHS law.

Essentially, this means that if you or your company operates, loads, drives, sends or receives goods using a heavy vehicle, you will effectively have the same responsibilities as you presently do under WHS law to ensure that the CoR under the HVNL has not been breached.

This means you will need to make certain all reasonably practicable steps are taken to ensure vehicles are properly loaded and goods secured, and that drivers undertake their responsibilities in a safe manner.

This underscores the need to ensure that properly documented road transport practices are kept, and that your organisation’s executive board is kept properly informed as to compliance with these measures.

Yet, in a survey undertaken by the Australian Logistics Council (ALC) in April this year, 50 per cent of respondents did not believe their organisation understood the changes coming to CoR. Even more worrying was the fact that 90 per cent of respondents were unable to say the CEO of their organisation fully understood their obligations in respect of these matters.

Given the clear lack of knowledge about CoR and the operation of the HVNL, it’s evident that far more needs to be done to support industry in meeting its obligations – and time is of the essence.

Considerable efforts are now underway within the freight logistics industry to help make this happen.

The HVNL permits the development and registration of registered industry codes of practice.

People who can demonstrate compliance with a Code can use this as evidence to prove they have taken all reasonable steps to ensure the discharge of their safety obligations.

The ALC and the Australian Trucking

Association (ATA) are now working together to develop a registered industry Master Code of Practice designed to assist freight and supply chain participants in complying with their CoR obligations.

It is the intention of the ALC and the ATA to have the new Master Code ready when the changes to CoR come into effect in mid-2018.

This will help provide certainty for the industry and promote higher standards when it comes to heavy-vehicle safety – which is in the interests of all road users.

The Master Code will help meet and manage the common risks faced by all heavy-vehicle operators, and help reduce red tape and compliance costs.

Given that 98 per cent of trucking businesses have fewer than 20 employees, and that other relevant road parties such as consignors and receivers also have HVNL obligations, establishing a Master Code is a practical way to help responsible parties manage safety risks.

Work on developing the Master Code is now well underway, and the ALC will be working with the ATA to keep industry fully informed as to its progress.

A particularly significant stage of its development will be the 2017 ALC Supply Chain Safety & Compliance Summit.

Taking place in Sydney, 5–6 September, this event will provide an opportunity for participants to have direct input into the Master Code’s content, though a series of workshops focusing on management of speed, fatigue, load and maintenance issues.

All organisations with an interest in improving supply chain safety should register to attend, and make sure their views are heard as the Master Code is developed.

The full details of the programme and registration are available at www.austlogistics.com.au/events

logisticsmagazine.com.au | 11

Cover story

City limits With growing urban populations, the increasing popularity of online retail and rising service expectations, the logistics infrastructure of Australia’s major cities is at capacity. Finding a solution may mean turning CBD deliveries on their heads and taking inspiration from the city of lights.

Story by Philippa Edwards

12 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

Cover story

A

ustralia’s shoppers have embraced the convenience, choice and price competitiveness offered by e-commerce. In 2016, Roy Morgan Research found that Australians spent $41.3 billion on online shopping in the previous year – almost 10 per cent up on the $37.8 billion spent the year before, with four out of every 10 people making an online purchase at least once per month.

It appears that three factors have impacted the remarkable growth of online shopping in Australia. First – great expanses of water separate Australia from where much of the media content and products it consumes are created – primarily Asia, the US and Europe.

As such, consumers have long turned to online shopping to get their hands on products not available locally, at least where delivery fees were not prohibitive. Second – until 1 July 2017, a tax exemption was afforded to imported goods valued at under $1,000, making buying from abroad all the more appealing. Third – while the majority – 67 per cent (ABS) – of Australia’s population lives in Greater Capital City areas, a not-insignificant eight million residents live in rural, often hard-to-reach places with reduced access to bricks-and-mortar shops for household, fashion, health and electronic goods. For these residents, online shopping has presented an opportunity to avail of competitive prices and greater choice.

The March/April issue of Logistics & Materials Handling looked at the potential repercussions of then-rumoured, now-confirmed plans for Amazon to set up shop Down Under. With the e-commerce giant’s Australia battle plan emerging, the country’s logistics providers are now ramping up their delivery capability to prepare for a projected increase in online shopping. They also must prepare to contend with offering – or competing with – free, low-priced, same-day and one-hour delivery options that have proven extremely popular when offered by Amazon to customers in urban centres of the US and the UK. While Australian consumers’ uptake of e-commerce has been rapid and broad, logistics software companies Temando and Fluent Retail are among those who have observed that the nation’s delivery infrastructure has struggled to keep up. They advise that it will take time for local internet retailers and traditional bricksand-mortar retailers to be able to offer the kind of delivery services seen in Europe and the US,

with logistics operators contending with timeconsuming deliveries across the nation.

Both city and countryside dwellers have long since accepted that longer waiting times are just part and parcel of the online shopping experience in Australia.

Australia’s population centres are swelling.

Between 30 June 2015 and 30 June 2016, the combined population of the Greater Capital Cities grew by 276,500, 82 per cent of the country’s total population growth.

Sydney’s population reached five million in 2015–2016 and, while it took almost three decades for Sydney’s population to increase from three to four million people – 1971 to 2000 – it took only 16 years to reach its next million. By 2050, Australia’s population is predicted to hit 42 million, with more than half settling in Sydney and Melbourne.

To stand a chance of offering comparable delivery in Australia’s major metropolitan areas, the logistics facilities that have traditionally been located in industrial parks, outside of cities, may need to be supported by ultra-efficient, strategically placed and stocked inner-city satellite facilities to allow for direct, prompt delivery to highly populated areas.

While the 2017–2018 Federal Budget earmarked money to fund infrastructure projects long requested by Australia’s logistics industry, the focus of these projects has been getting freight in and out of the country by the most efficient means possible, via ports and the under-construction Inland Rail. The project represents the culmination of efforts by the Australian Logistics Council (ALC) and others to unite the industry at large on freight transport routes for now and the future, though little thought has been given to the still-fragmented domestic delivery task, which is handled by numerous agents and struggling to keep up with the substantial leap in business-toconsumer (B2C) shipping.

For packages due to be delivered to highly populated residential or business areas, a reliable means of transferring cargo into city centres, which avoids delays from congestion, road works and a lack of parking, is needed.

Downtown gridlock The adoption and evolution of technology has resulted in a fundamental change in the nature of CBD delivery. Where once bicycles couriers would crisscross the city, carrying urgent documents from business to business during logisticsmagazine.com.au | 13

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© SAGL-Architectes Associés

FAST FACT Recent research carried out by UK transport research charity the Independent Transport Commission (ITC) looked at various ways to combat the negative externalities of urban freight in London, including congestion, reduced air quality due to emissions from diesel engines, noise pollution and last-mile infrastructure challenges.

A case study considered explored the development of urban consolidation centres (UCCs), using the London Boroughs Consolidation Centre (LBCC) as a model. The LBCC, which was established through a partnership between several London councils, has enabled deliveries between councilowned sites to be streamlined. The ITC noted that while the Centre has achieved significant supply chain discounts and alleviated congestion, such a project would require public subsidy until it reached a sufficient scale.

“It is clear that without some from of public financial supports, UCCs will continue to be slow to implement and too small to have a substantial impact,” the ITC said in its report How can we improve urban freight distribution in the UK. “The primary difficulty is the privatesector competitive model, which inhibits the sharing of loads of setting up a system that is more expensive than competitors.

We recommend piloting a scheme that provides an incentive (or penalty for noncooperation) for private-sector freight distributors to encourage them to work together to make large-scale UCCs a reality.”

14 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

office hours, now various sizes of final-mile vehicle – from the classic bicycle to full-size rigid trucks – can be seen at all hours. Email has taken over the delivery of all but the very most official of documents, but urban streets do not lay empty. While roads have become ever more congested with both commercial and passenger vehicles, delivery expectations have only become more sophisticated. “As demand for online retail increases, the demand for courier services delivering into metro areas also increases,” says Rob Hango-Zada, Co-founder and Joint CEO of Sydney-based logistics start-up, Shippit. “High-density living, combined with reduced road space, puts greater stress on courier networks, as they need to adapt to increasing congestion on our roads.

“In addition to this, expectations on delivery speeds are increasing. So, while bicycle couriers have been repurposed, with the demise of business-hour document delivery, we are predicting delivery to come full circle with the same demands being placed to deliver fashion, technology and general merchandise during business hours.”

Gary Edstein, CEO of DHL Express Oceania, notes that the courier company has noticed a marked shift in both the type of cargo

they deliver, and the recipient. “We’re seeing a change in models,” he says. “We were traditionally a B2B (business-to-business) model, and a lot of our business was centred around the city, delivering documents and small parcels.

“What we’ve seen over the past several years is an incredible surge in e-commerce – B2C now represents more than 50 per cent of our volume coming into Australia, and this impacts the final mile.”

A challenge of B2C delivery that companies such as DHL Express and Shippit face is availability of a signatory at the destination – rarely an issue for deliveries made to businesses during office hours. In order to avoid wasted trips, courier companies are having to reassess their practices to increase flexibility and communication capability, whether by providing real-time tracking information, increasing the number of delivery options or enabling customers to easily modify delivery arrangements. DHL Express recently added several redirect services to tackle the challenge of missed deliveries, including some better suited to dwellers of suburban or rural areas, such as divert to a neighbour or permission to leave the package outside

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the property. Others are more appropriate for modern communities where neighbours may share a staircase and a daily ‘hello’, but not know each other’s names – including post lockers at DHL’s own facilities and at select BP and 7-Eleven convenience stores to enable customers to retrieve their goods locally at a time that suits them One innovative project currently under construction in Paris seeks to create a logistics hub capable of serving, developing and linking the community around it.

La joie de la logistique Chapelle International is a logistics, residential and community hub described

by Anne Hidalgo, Mayor of Paris, as the “front door for logistics in the city.” The €58 million ($87 million) project is currently being built on former railway land in Paris’ 18th arrondissement and is set to open in September 2017. It will comprise a 42,000m2 multimodal logistics base serviced by a 400m rail terminal and served by shops, social, rent-controlled and ‘single-office, home office’ (SOHO) housing, a restaurant, gym, school, nursery, sports

facilities, data centre, and even an urban roof garden.

The Chapelle International project is being developed by SNCF – France’s national stateowned railway company, a global supply chain solutions provider, rail operator Eurorail, urban freight logistics operator Sogaris, the City of Paris and Espaces Ferroviaires, an SNCF subsidiary that redevelops and reintegrates land no longer used for rail activity.

Sustainability has been a big consideration in the development of Chapelle International, in terms of land use, energy efficiency and emissions. A huge component of the development will be its capability to support Paris’ environmental aims, including the Regional Climate, Air and Energy Action Plan (SRCAE) which was established in 2012 with goals relating to achieving significant improvements in energy efficiency, urban heating and traffic emissions set to be accomplished by 2020.

The hub will encompass various vertical retail, business and residential premises, built using modern, space- and energy-efficient building practices, so its land footprint will

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be minimised – an important consideration in cities where land prices are often at a premium. The data centre due to be housed within the project will not only help supply power, excess heat generated will also be used to heat the logistics facility, targeting a key SRCAE aim of reducing the use of renewable and recovered energies.

Chapelle International will do its bit to help Paris reach a 20 per cent reduction in greenhousegas emissions from road traffic by allowing only electric vehicles, compressed and natural gas vehicles and hybrids to distribute and drop off cargo at the logistics facility. In the project’s marketing campaign, its organisers note that by bringing freight into the heart of the city by train, Paris will be visited by 48,000 fewer trucks per year – a 60 per cent reduction in emissions. The Chapelle International hub will be served by two rail shuttles per day, with goods transported from its Urban Rail Link to an ‘Urban Distribution Area’ for onward dispersal by green means.

A project spokesperson tells Logistics & Materials Handling that the development has been designed with multimodality, innovation and sustainability in mind. “In the heart of the Greater Paris Region, the Sogaris group is innovating and developing a mixed logistics/offices/facilities infrastructure,” the spokesperson adds. “Its aim is to reposition logistics at the heart of our cities in order to better meet the needs of professionals and regions.”

It is perhaps fitting that Paris should be the backdrop for such a significant, green project – the city hosted the negotiation of the Paris Agreement, an agreement within the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC), and the city’s name has become as synonymous with greenhouse gas policy as it long has been with romance.

Lost in translation?

The options for Australia’s logistics operators are numerous, indeed urban logistics will likely change tact multiple times over the coming decades, as population pressure, congestion and customer preferences take their toll. Building an inner-city logistics hub on reclaimed railway land in the likes of Sydney and Melbourne is not completely beyond the realms of possibility, though the logistics of arranging for rail shuttles and getting Australia up to speed with the global green agenda would be no mean feat.

There is no one clear path ahead, though 16 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

Gary Edstein, CEO, DHL Express Oceania.

“We must completely reimagine how we go about designing and constructing our Australian cities if we want them to remain the fantastic places they are to live in today.”

Rob Hango-Zada CEO of Sydney-based logistics start-up Shippit

inaction is not recommended. For DHL Express’ Gary, the need for innovation does not end at the need to find a more effective way of bringing freight into and around the city.

In the long term, a concerted effort by property developers and government will ease the task for logistics companies, Gary says. “Property developers should be working with industry as they design and construct apartment buildings,” he adds. “They should be installing locker systems within the foyers of the apartment blocks – you wouldn’t need a locker per apartment, rather when a shipment comes in, the recipient will have a PIN sent to them, in this way the usage of the locker system would be maximised.”

As for the Chapelle International facility, he notes that DHL would be very interested in participating if such a project were to be

undertaken in Australia. “I think it’s a great model,” he says. “It would be suitable for certain large cities such as Sydney and Melbourne where it would make sense to have a freight hub closer to the CBD. Using old railway land, as was done in Paris, makes a lot of sense.

“If government authorities were visionary and looked at developing a similar project, we would be keen to get on board, especially with the increasing number of apartment blocks going up and people living in the CBD.” Shippit’s Rob would welcome the construction of a facility similar to Chapelle International in Australia’s cities. “It is a fantastic initiative because too often, decisions are made out of efficiency or productivity gains with little consideration of the environment,” he says. “The disproportionate reactions of the industry to the

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increasing environmental footprint online delivery is contributing to concerns me – more needs to be done in this space, in terms of reducing consumer packaging waste and improving first-time delivery reliability, and this is a good first step.

For Rob, while more coordinated infrastructure including strategically located logistics hubs is appealing, the main draw for advocating for Australia’s own Chapelle International project is its ‘green’ credentials. “Globally and locally, environmental sustainability is too low on the list of priorities,” he said. “Sustainability doesn’t always need to come at a competitive disadvantage, it can be win/win. Coming from my background with Unilever, where the business has self-imposed sustainability targets – I think the public sector could learn a lot from this approach.”

Brendan Richards, Partner at Ferrier Hodgson, recently wrote that the effective planning, construction and management of our cities will be hugely important if we are to deal with the logistical dilemmas brought about by population growth. “As our populations and cities grow, we can expect to see very sophisticated logistics hubs that receive all the goods coming into the city and

allow for their final-mile distribution by a variety of transport services including drones, Uber-type freight delivery operations and even personal pick-up by the customer,” he wrote. “This is what smart cities are all about. We must completely reimagine how we go about designing and constructing our Australian cities if we want them to remain the fantastic places they are to live in today.

“Technology offers part of the solution, but the real challenge is in questioning and reinventing the accepted concepts of things like farming, transport and distribution to reflect a very different set of future needs.”

For Mark can den Enden, Principal – Transport and Infrastructure of architectural firm Architectus, solving the growing freight task in inner-city locations will require a multifaceted approach, and consideration in the National Freight and Supply Chain Strategy.

“The current system relies on decentralised, often privately-owned, processing hubs to sort and distribute imports and export, disseminating them amongst road freight and rail for delivery to recipients around the

country,” he says.

“With online retailer Amazon set to enter the Australian market, and a suite of others likely to follow, ensuring distribution centres are designed in a way that can handle the increase in goods is vital – in CBDs, solutions for reducing emissions are already hot-button topics. Incorporating emissions-reducing strategies – such as the increased use of electric and hybrid vehicles as in the Paris project – should be part of the government’s updated freight strategy if there is any chance of making such a plan viable in the long term.”

Over the coming years, if the popularity of e-commerce increases further and other international retailers look to set up omnichannel operations down under or eye Australia’s consumers, the infrastructure supporting the country’s urban and rural delivery will need to be reinforced. For logistics operators to succeed, their service must reflect the reason consumers are shopping online in the first place – if their delivery does not offer convenience, choice and price competitiveness they will lose out to other more agile contenders.

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A world of

difference

With the logistics industry facing a shortage of skilled workers, developing the talent pipeline is critical.

Getting women ‘on board’ could be the key to prosperity.

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he concept of diversity is often oversimplified, understood simply as the ratio of women to men working in an organisation. Explore the issue in more detail, however, and its scope quickly shows itself to be far broader. At its core, the conversation about diversity centres on the embracing of individuals that differ from the norm into a workforce, not necessarily because of the unfairness of their exclusion, but because their difference offers a competitive advantage.

The face of Australia’s workforce has transformed in recent decades, thanks to concerted efforts by organisations to embrace workplace diversity for competitive advantage.

Further, work itself has undergone significant change, with technology easing some physically demanding roles, creating whole new industries and rendering others obsolete.

While the definition of diversity captures anything from gender, race, culture, age, physical ability, sexual orientation, career background and beyond, to understand it on a practical level you must consider the 18 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

“We want to help the industry reach the 50 per cent of the population whose talent is as yet untapped.”

Hermione Persons Director of Deakin University’s Centre for Supply Chain and Logistics

maturity of the environment being examined, says Hermione Persons, Director of Deakin University’s Centre for Supply Chain and Logistics (CSCL).

While the practical understanding of diversity may change from one context to another, she explains, in an industry such as logistics, achieving diversity will require input from the community, education establishments and employees – not just the board and senior management – and it won’t happen overnight.

“In male-dominated industries, such as logistics – the issue of diversity can often become confused, it simply means different things, depending on your perspective. For some it may mean equal gender representation, while for others it refers to the broader diversity

definition regardless of gender.”

Hermione adds that addressing diversity in its entirety in the logistics sector will be a long and complex process, and gender equality is a great starting point.

A new program from the CSCL – the Women in Supply Chains Initiative (WISCI) – seeks to redress the continued dearth of females working in logistics in Australia by helping the industry to reinvent itself.

“We want to help the industry reach the 50 per cent of the population whose talent is as yet untapped,” says Hermione.

Some in the industry believe that the fight for gender equality has all but succeeded, she adds, but the presence of women in offices and at conferences and functions does not

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mean that the logistics sector is now more gender inclusive.

“At an event held this year to celebrate women in logistics, I asked the room full of women to raise their hands if their role was in operations. I could count the number that did on one hand”.

“The women present were in admin, finance, HR – traditional career development areas for females. Getting women into operational roles is critical to getting them into senior management and onto boards. The women are being celebrated for making it – they may work in the supply chain and logistics industry, but finance isn’t supply chain and logistics, it’s finance – we need diversity of the decisionmakers in the workforce.”

While there’s still some way to go before the perception of gender in supply chain and logistics tallies with the reality, Hermione notes that companies do seem to understand the reason why equal representation is

so important, they just don’t know how to approach it.

“In developing the WISCI program, we spoke with many supply chain heads who are very interested in attracting new talent,” she says.

“They want guidance, support – they already get that it makes good business sense to appeal to people that haven’t traditionally entered the industry.”

There are several established career support networks for women in supply chain and logistics, including the National Association of Women in Operations, and Women in the Supply Chain, but WISCI is not seeking to reach women already in the industry.

“We’re focusing on the talent pipeline,” says Hermione. “We want to change the way the industry interfaces with the community, so that the women and daughters in the community understand the many potential career paths it offers.

“We need our own industry participants to

Dr Hermione Parsons, Director, Centre for Supply Chain and Logistics, Deakin University.

realise the true potential of the industry, and bring their friends and family in.

“We want to work with those who shape the career and training decisions of women, that have the potential to influence their thinking and broaden their horizons.”

As part of the program, the CSCL will update a logistics ‘career map’ originally produced in 2009 when the Centre was attached to Victoria University. At that time, 96 roles in the industry were identified and organised by seniority, pay scale and education requirements.

“We covered every position from the lowest to the highest levels of responsibility, now we want to do it again and help the industry see its own potential and understand itself,” Hermione adds.

While she concedes that conscious and subconscious hiring methods may currently be thwarting women already trying to break into the industry, Hermione stresses that their program is not only intended to impact women, but also change perceptions of the industry within the community.

“When we say we want to educate the community, the industry is part of that community. It is true that there are stereotypical views of logistics and the supply chain that discourage women from pursuing non-traditional roles and perhaps dissuade the industry from seeking alternative talent. Our approach is less about removing identifying features from CVs and more about awakening individuals and companies to what they’re missing out on.

“We’re aiming to address the perception itself, so that the situation can improve, and new talent can reinvigorate the industry.”

Building Transport Facilities Nationwide TO

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Changing

perceptions

Getting women to enter and prosper in industry was in focus in June at the Women in Industry Awards, and the inaugural Women in Industry Conference, both held in Melbourne.

T

he fourth-annual Women in Industry Awards event again celebrated the achievements of women across logistics, road transport, mining, manufacturing and engineering. For the first time, it was complemented by a Conference, which provided a forum for women in industry to share insights, advice and statistics on their respective sectors through a series of case studies, panels and roundtable discussions, and create action plans for tackling gender issues.

The Conference was held at the Melbourne Conference and Exhibition centre and hosted

by Bianca Dohnt, Editor, Trailer Magazine.

“Though our sectors are all very different, we came together because we share a common interest in advocating for our industries, the opportunities they provide for ambitious women, and how those women can make the industries better in return,” Bianca explained, as she welcomed the delegates and introduced keynote speakers Jennifer Conley, Executive Director, Australian Advanced Manufacturing Council; and Robyn Elliot, Senior Director – Strategic Expansion Projects, CSL. The keynote address took the form of a conversation between the two directors, who delved into the importance of balancing masculine and feminine character traits, speaking up against 20 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

discrimination and seeking a mentor.

“You have to think about what you want to achieve from your career, whether it is taking on a leadership role, or not – both options are perfectly okay, if it is what you want,” said Robyn – adding that staying true to your personal values can help provide guidance.

Later in the first half of the day, attendees heard from Amanda Rawstron, founder of Logar Consulting. Amanda began her own consulting firm off the back of a successful career in the transport and logistics industry, having held senior positions at the Toll Group, NBN Co. and Kings Transport, which made her a finalist for the Women In Industry Excellence in Road Transport Award in 2016.

Amanda shared her considerable experience in third-party logistics and spoke on the factors of success and key drivers that bring a business to the forefront.

“When we think about the factors of success, we often strive for our businesses to be innovative, transformative and revolutionary. But are we equally focused on bringing our supply chain to the forefront?” she asked delegates – reinforcing that is the combination of a structured business model and optimised supply chain that result in business success.

Amanda highlighted the potential of predictive

demand analytics, which she explained offers businesses the opportunity to expand the ‘justin-time’ model beyond deliveries, towards the creation of products. “This can reduce the stock on hand, lowering warehousing costs, and even create a continuous flowthrough where no storage is required,” she said.

After lunch, event attendees broke off into three ‘industry insight’ sessions to discuss topics on a industry-specific level, with Ben Creagh, Editor, Australian Mining, moderating the mining group, Syed Shah, Editor, Manufacturer’s Monthly in the Manufacturing session and Trailer Magazine’s Bianca leading the road transport group.

Though separated, the groups shared a focus on the shortage of women taking up STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) subjects at school, and how each industry’s public perception as male-dominated contributes to it staying that way.

“In the road transport session, we created some real action plans to encourage more women to pursue greater success, and spread the word of our industry’s potential. To encourage more women into male-dominated industries, we need the support of the male population, too,” Bianca explained – calling for support from all people across industries to help reframe the

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mindset and create a welcoming environment.

“Road transport, mining, manufacturing and engineering are major contributors to the Australian economy and if we don’t do something to create a more diverse working environment, it will affect us all. It is through the collaboration of men and women together that we can secure the country’s future.”

Amanda tells Logistics & Materials Handling that one of the most valuable takeaways from the day was seeing logistics recognised as an industry profession. “In the past, logistics has not been

widely accepted as an industry in its own right, therefore the opportunity to share knowledge and experience with likeminded professional women and build the profile as an attractive professional for women has immense value,” she says. “It was fascinating to meet and hear from such a diverse range of professional women in industry.

“To change the imbalance in representation of women in logistics and the wider STEM sectors, as senior leaders in the industry we need to be promoting the opportunities and pathways for girls to enter the industry to

build a career, and we also need to ensure that if women leave work to start a family, we keep them connected with the workplace and industry and employers need to be flexible when they transition back to work,” she adds.

“Diversity of professionals in logistics benefits everyone – individuals, companies, industry bodies and the economy overall.

The greater the diversity in working teams the broader the ideas, concepts and solutions, ultimately leading to better outcomes.”

Women in Industry Awards In the RISING STAR OF THE YEAR category, sponsored by Atlas Copco, the judges awarded the honour to Michaela Craft, Energy Coordinator, BOC South Pacific.

SOCIAL LEADER OF THE YEAR, sponsored by COG Advertising, was awarded to Beverly Williams, Industry Pathways and Placement Coordinator – Automotive Centre of Excellence, Bendigo Kangan Institute.

BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT MANAGER OF THE YEAR, sponsored by ABB, went to Shelley Hyslop, Major Account Manager, ATOM.

Clare Murphy (left) of Manark Printing presents the Excellence in Manufacturing award to Lisa Lamb, Manufacturing Director – Products of National Significance, Seqirus.

SAFETY ADVOCACY AWARD, sponsored by BOC Limited, was awarded to Catherine King, Country Health, Safety and Environment Manager, ABB Australia.

EXCELLENCE IN MANUFACTURING, sponsored by Manark Printing, went to Lisa Lamb, Manufacturing Director – Products of National Significance, Seqirus.

In the EXCELLENCE IN MINING category, sponsored by MMD, the award went to Gina Rinehart, Executive Chairman, Hancock Prospecting.

Winner of the EXCELLENCE IN ENGINEERING category, sponsored by Cummins, was Philippa Craft, Product Manager – Bulk Carbon Dioxide, Hydrogen, Helium, BOC Limited.

EXCELLENCE IN ROAD TRANSPORT, sponsored by NatRoad, went to Pam McMillan, Chair, Transport Women Australia.

Andrea Pidcock, General Manager – Light Weight Systems, CSR Lightweight Systems presents the Mentor of the Year Award to Penelope Twemlow, CEO, Energy Skills Australia.

Both the INDUSTRY ADVOCACY and the MENTOR OF THE YEAR awards, sponsored by MEGATRANS2018 and CSR Lightweight Systems, respectively, went to Penelope Twemlow, CEO, Energy Skills Queensland.

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CCTV 2.0 CCTV systems from network camera manufacturer Mobotix are highly intelligent and all seeing. Forget everything you thought you knew about CCTV.

F

or many years now, images captured by closed-circuit television (CCTV) systems, whether on public or private property, have been used to secure convictions, establish timelines, and identify suspects after crimes have been committed.

The technology’s main limitation until now has been the quality of the video and images produced: these have often been inferior to the point they cannot clearly establish a chain of events, or positively identify a suspect to 22 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

the standards required in courts of law. The cameras themselves have essentially been ‘dumb’ recorders of events, unable to identify or signal a security breach or incident in real time.

CCTV technology has now evolved to an almost unrecognisable state, says Chris Pearson, Managing Director of security consultant and design firm Quorum Security.

“Most people have no idea how smart and powerful CCTV camera systems can be, especially when connected to access control/

alarm systems,” he adds.

“Cameras nowadays come with video analytics (VA) software that can identify if people or vehicles are moving in the wrong direction, if a truck has exceeded the site’s speed limit or if persons have entered a restricted area, or breached a perimeter when the facility is closed. There’s software coming out now that can recognise if workers aren’t wearing their full PPE (personal protective equipment), or have products or items in their hands when leaving

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“The vast majority of our clients will double the size of their camera systems within four years of the initial installation. They originally only want surveillance in the distribution centre, for example, but after seeing the value and the capability of Mobotix cameras, they want it in the loading dock, the office, production areas, entry/exit points – everywhere.”

Chris Pearson Managing Director, Quorum

the production area, to deter pilfering and theft.”

Ross Head, Managing Director at security technology company nXient, says, “A human security guard can be in the wrong place when an incident occurs, or make errors of judgement – they might even be bribed to ‘look the other way’. Once you’ve installed modern cameras, they work 24/7, and don’t take coffee breaks or make mistakes.”

Chris adds, “Corporates have long seen security as a grudge purchase, but there really are good business cases now for investing in quality, well-designed systems – benefits include higher efficiency, increased safety and proof of due diligence. Although we’re a security company, we’re also about risk management and proving due diligence for our clients.”

A cut above Although both nXient and Quorum Security are consulting, design and installation companies that offer a range of security products, Mobotix is the brand of choice for intelligent digital cameras (called IP, for ‘Internet Protocol’) for both men.

“Mobotix cameras are tougher than a Russian tank,” says Chris. “They operate on Antarctic bases, in deserts in the Middle East, are strapped to the under-wing of fighter jets – they’re incredibly resilient, and can easily cope in the harshest cold-storage or logistics environments.”

Ross notes that the Mobotix cameras also boast protection from the elements.

“All Mobotix cameras have no moving parts, and Mobotix outdoor cameras are completely sealed against water and dust,” he says, adding that they also offer a great feature set – the latest IP technology and an “incredibly high” resolution

for a CCTV camera, six megapixels.

When implementing security systems, companies often think that any camera system will do, Ross adds.

“People understand brands and their relative value in fashion, cars and so on, but they are brand blind in a business like ours – they don’t know the difference between Mobotix and anything else on the market,” he says. “All they see is the price, but the truth is that the capability and quality differences in CCTV systems can be astounding.”

It was thanks to a request from a Quorum client that Chris and Ross now offer a unique combined CCTV and access management system.

“Martin Brower, global logistics provider for restaurant chain McDonalds, wanted its Mobotix CCTV cameras to be able to communicate with the Hirsch access control system,” says Ross. “nXient’s engineers wrote an integration between Mobotix’s in-built video management system (VMS) and the Hirsch Velocity software,” he adds. “This allows the system to act as an intelligent outlier, sending alerts to a monitoring team when it senses unauthorised presence or motion.

“Mobotix and Hirsch each have their own language, so we created a middle language, or ‘middleware’, to allow them to interacttogether.”

This integrated system has enabled deliveries and pickups at Martin Brower to be organised much like an airport runway – if a truck tries to gain entry too early or too late for its pre-designated time slot, entry can be delayed or denied – and the driver may need to negotiate a new time slot, enabling greater dock turnaround efficiencies for the logistics firm.

The importance of homework Chris believes that the first thing any company should do when considering a CCTV and/or access control solution is work out its true wants, needs, and pain points.

“It’s important to establish why you need a new system: whether it’s for safety compliance reasons; standard security concerns such as break-ins, theft and pilfering; or the need to restrict and control access for staff, visitors, contractors and drivers around a site – there could be dozens of different reasons” he says.

“Next, you need to get a licensed security consultant in to help you design a fit-forpurpose solution.”

Ross adds that many security firms with licensed security consultants will undertake a comprehensive site security audit and write a detailed report at no cost, or a minimal cost for large sites, which can then be credited back if the consultant wins the project to install the recommended systems.

“Get somebody in who knows the environment

ACCESS CONTROL Access control refers to technology used for the control of movement of staff, visitors, contractors and vehicles in both time and area, often gained through use of a tag, card or phone. Companies can use it to allow all-area access to a cleaner within specified time periods, for example, or to enable a senior manager to enter the facility at any hour, while restricting certain zones that don’t form part of that manager’s responsibilities.

Data collected by the system can help companies to track holiday leave taken by employees, remove access privileges granted to temporary workers when their contract period expires, as well as verify time claims made by contractors.

If visitors fail to leave the premises within a set time period, the system alerts staff who can then locate these visitors and escort them from site.

Site entry and exit events for staff can even be linked automatically to the payroll system, minimising costs of manual data entry and calculations, as well as eliminating costly errors and omissions.

logisticsmagazine.com.au | 23

Feature

Mobotix’s cameras – used in conjunction with the client’s access control system – enabled one major food supplier client to save around $600,000 per year on one site by eliminating the need for two round-the-clock site guards, shares Chris Pearson, Managing Director of security consultant and design firm Quorum Security.

“The client had guards patrolling the premises, opening gates and writing down number plates at this site – 24 hours a day, every day,” he says. “This was a huge cost to the site, and we developed a combined CCTV/access control solution that allowed the client to safely operate the site without guards.”

The large-scale project had a strong emphasis on safety – since human guards would no longer be present, extensive safety procedures & protocols were introduced, with a focus on employees leaving the facility at night, as well as rapid-response police or private security guards to certain situations.

and issues in your industry well, and who’s installed a lot of systems for similar companies to yours. They’ll be better able to understand your current and future needs,” he notes. “Both Chris’ company and my own regularly provide telephone advice to enquirers free of charge.”

After handing over its list of issues and requirements, as well as ‘pain points’ to the consultant, Ross advises that companies start asking hard questions.

“What’s the warranty, and what back-up resources are provided?” Chris suggests. “Will the system be compatible with future models? Are replacement parts stocked locally? Can you give me a list of reference sites I can talk to?”

Ross adds, “When choosing, it’s vital to go for something adaptable, as your needs today may change in the future. A flexible, expandable, feature-rich solution will service you better when the threat level changes and your needs expand. Sometimes our clients want to scale up their existing security system, but the product they are using is inferior, perhaps it’s not IP66 (all-weather) or safety compliant, or it simply cannot connect to modern systems.”

Chris says, “The vast majority of our clients 24 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

“People understand brands in fashion, cars and so on, but they are brand blind in a business like ours – they don’t know the difference between Mobotix and anything else on the market. All they see is the price, but the truth is that the capability and quality differences can be astounding.”

Ross Head Managing Director, nXient

will double the size of their camera systems within four years of the initial installation. They originally only want surveillance in the distribution centre, for example, but after seeing the value and the capability of Mobotix cameras, they want it in the loading dock, the office, production areas, entry/exit points – everywhere.”

The differences between low-cost camera systems and reputable models can be significant, Chris believes. “For example, low-light functionality (lux rating) is often all-important for clients, as it reduces the need for lighting large

areas at night. A low-cost product may offer a certain lux rating, with a 23° field of view and an effective visible range of 20m, whereas a highquality product may have a lux rating that’s ten times more effective than the cheap option, along with a high-resolution, 360° view and a clear visual range up to 40m. Price-based decisions are often a false economy, as a client may need up to three or four times the number of cheaper cameras to do the same job.”

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Feature

than their predecessors, Ross adds. “Memory used to be expensive, and cameras quickly filled hard drives. Now, memory is cheaper – we recommend saving a minimum of 30 days’ storage of images, for which companies with quite large CCTV systems will only need a few terabytes.

“Also, modern cameras are smart enough to only send images to the server/storage device when it’s necessary, so the required bandwidth on a client’s network is much lower – yet they’re sentient enough, for example, to instantly capture images of the driver and the number plate if a truck comes into the camera’s field of view. As a result of that, searching the database for a specific incident is now faster and simpler.

Once you’ve found a reputable system that offers the functionality you require and obtained a quote, it’s time to get more, Chris advises. “You must get competitive quotes, as with any business expenditure,” he says.

“There’s no need to rush into an agreement, but it’s critical to ensure that you’re being quoted on a like-for-like system. Don’t only look at price – check out the experience, skills and reputation of the bidding company, and take this information on board as well when you make a decision.”

When the new security system is installed and up and running, companies should nominate an appropriate staff member to take ownership of, and champion, the system, Chris says. “With training, he or she can have a good 26 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

“With this huge uptake, prices will come down and power and efficiency will increase – I see a future where we will have cameras everywhere.”

Chris Pearson Managing Director, Quorum Security

understanding of how the system works,” he adds. “If that employee moves, a new employee should be nominated and trained, so that the site always has skills to operate the system when a security breach or WHS (Workplace Health and Safety) incident occurs – and these events often come with a requirement to move quickly to secure the images for analysis and review.

“We’re only really now beginning to see security camera technology show its potential,” says Ross. “Fifteen or 20 years ago, the public was largely against CCTV, due to concerns about privacy intrusion. That perception has changed – people now view it as technology that helps solve crimes and keeps everyone safe. Today, more than 80 per cent of major crimes are solved with the aid of CCTV images.”

Chris adds, “Just like the computer industry, CCTV system prices will continue to decrease, while their power and efficiency increase. I think the next big technology change for this industry will be video analytics integrating with AI (artificial intelligence).

“Cameras will be more useful in a preventative sense, alerting us to potential danger before it happens.”

As an example, Chris says that ‘thermographic’ cameras – which can instantaneously detect minute temperature changes – are already being used as preventative tools. “They monitor the temperature of generators and other heatgenerating machines in factories, and send an alert if a change is detected, signalling the need for maintenance and reducing costly breakdowns,” he says. “Also, they’re being used in cold stores, to tell whether incoming or outgoing product is even a fraction of a degree outside of the mandated temperature range.”

Ross concludes, “In the future, we’re going to see cameras used as a multi-purpose tool in almost every area of life – public safety, commerce and industry, healthcare, transport, retail environments and in homes or apartments – and these systems will not just record events, but also monitor situations and signal necessary changes or problems in real time.

Exciting times lie ahead.”

Feature

Gaining momentum Nord Drivesystems’ newest drive system, the Nordac Link, fills a gap in Australia’s materials handling market for an adaptable solution.

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rive systems keep the world turning, in more than just a figurative sense.

Essentially, a drive system is an electronic device that controls the motor and gear in any number of mechanical and electrical systems, enabling them to produce movement. Drive systems power everything from rollercoaster cars and theatre stage swaps to the robots used to paint new vehicles.

In logistics and materials handling, intelligent drive systems control the movement in applications such as stacker cranes, automated guided vehicles, chain conveyors and roller conveyors.

A new innovation is being introduced to the Australian market to fill a gap for materials handling operations requiring a highpowered, flexible solution, Nord Drivesystems’ Nordac Link.

Nord was founded in Hamburg, Germany, in 1965. In the years since, the company has established a global reputation for producing unique drive system solutions to a high standard.

Already making waves in Europe since its launch last year, Nord’s Nordac Link is a decentralised field-mounted variablespeed drive (VSD), meaning it can be mounted anywhere, and does not need to be cabinet based.

“The Nordac Link offers flexibility as it fits in between the two types of VSDs currently available – those which must be mounted in a cabinet or on top of a motor,” explains Martin Broglia, Managing Director, Nord Drivesystems AU. “Usually, these types of drives must be kept together, in close quarters. Since the Nordac Link is decentralised it can be placed in the most convenient place for the user.

“All wiring can be connected via plug options, and it also supports most common fieldbus systems available for industrial communication,” Martin adds.

Conveyor system with fully pluggable Field The Nordac Link SK250 Field Distribution System.

A fieldbus communication system allows electronic devices to exchange data, giving plant managers an overview of the movements taking place across their facility, viewable on a master device.

By enabling the device to connect via plug, Nord has substantially reduced set-up and maintenance times and costs for users, especially for large applications where labour costs are significantly reduced thanks to quickconnecting plugs, Martin explains, adding, “as it’s a plug-and-play system, installation time and total cost of ownership is reduced.”

“The Nordac Link frequency inverter provides flexible mechanical and feature customisation options that can be configured to individual requirements,” says Martin.

“It supports local manual/automatic control, status LEDs (light-emitting diodes), I/Os (input/ outputs), STO (Safe Torque Off) and a range of other functions including encoder input for closed-loop control and sequential control managed by an integrated programmable logic controller (PLC), all of which function together to ensure that the unit communicates with the rest of the system, providing feedback on the status of the system and aiding with fault finding.”

Since the Nordac Link launched, several

Distribution System.

thousand have been sold. “It can now be found around the world,” says Martin. “A major European airport is using it to control its baggage handling operations, and the device is also being rolled out across the facilities of a major international logistics company and an automated car park solution provider.

“For its first application in Australia, it will support the baggage handling operations for an international airport.”

The device is well suited for demanding environments such as airports, Martin explains. “It’s a simple electronic drive for intralogistics systems. The motor starter is available up to 3kW, and the frequency inverter goes up to 7.5kW, so it’s powerful enough to control baggage handling systems and ideal for materials handling and intralogistics applications.”

The Nordac Link’s arrival in Australia is exciting, Martin adds, as there has not been such a comprehensive, adaptable and powerful drive system option available to the country’s logistics and materials handling industries.

“Nord is introducing the Nordac Link into a market where they are not many competitors,” he says. “It fills a gap of decentralised solutions that cannot be offered by others.” logisticsmagazine.com.au | 27

Promotional feature – Entrance systems

Addressing the

big issues Global entrance systems manufacturer Assa Abloy recently completed a whitepaper looking at the impact door technology can have on energy efficiency and safety. Logistics & Materials Handling has been given the opportunity to reveal the whitepaper in full.

28 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

Promotional feature – Entrance systems

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nergy use and worker safety are two of the biggest issues that today’s industrial plants must face. Energy prices are continuing to rise at a rapid rate, while at the same time there is increased awareness and regulation around industrial safety. This means that manufacturers need to take these things into consideration in each and every element of the plant, whether it’s something as small as the sensors they use, or as big as the doors to the plant. This whitepaper discusses the difference that the right doors can make for an industrial plant, and the perils of using the wrong doors.

Energy On average, energy costs for food manufacturers were up 30 per cent in 2016 when compared to 20101. And with increases to wholesale gas prices in 2017, it’s only getting worse – for everyone in industry. Industrial businesses need to be careful, and consider how their plants’ elements can help them save on energy.

Industrial cooling is actually one of the biggest potential areas for energy savings in industrial plants2. Doors are a big source of energy loss. Indeed, internal temperatures can drop by as much as 10°C when a door is opened.

This is because infiltration, the leakage of outdoor air into a contained space, causes air conditioners to work extra hard to maintain the temperature. This is especially costly for cold-storage warehouses, walk-in coolers and blast freezers.

In order to minimise energy loss, it is important to have a door that is high speed and easily repaired. The less time the door is open, the less energy the cooling system will need to expend. High-speed door systems can be seen as technical enhancements of PVC fabric doors and old-fashioned roller shutters. The difference is that the durable construction of high-speed doors enables a higher operating speed and an increase in production, while also requiring less maintenance and repairs.

High-speed doors are defined as non-residential, powered doors characterised by a rolling or folding action, that are high-

cycle. They also tend to be made to order and designed to be able to withstand equipment impact and sustain heavy usage with minimal maintenance. Their fast opening and closing times work to reduce energy loss, avoid airflow and allow a smooth operating procedure, while also creating an effective barrier against outside elements.

Safety Each year in Australia, thousands of people are injured in work-related safety incidents.

In 2015, 195 people died as a result of these incidents, with some of the most dangerous industries including transport, warehousing and manufacturing3. Fortunately, work-related safety incidents have decreased in recent years due to tougher safety regulations and increased awareness among business owners and their employees. However, industrial safety remains an important issue, simply due to the nature of the work being done and the equipment required.

As mentioned earlier, every element of the plant needs to be considered in a safety context, and this especially includes doors. Over the past few decades, industrial doors have morphed from slow, rigid doors to high-speed solutions that increase productivity and reduce energy loss. However, these big, heavy, highspeed doors could be dangerous if a person were to become trapped underneath. Therefore, it is important to consider a door with the proper safety mechanisms.

Currently, many industrial high-speed doors are made of fabric. On interior models, which are typically pulled from top to bottom by weighted bottom edges, the doors can usually be pushed back up quite easily if they close down on someone. Exterior industrial doors, however, are typically pulled down with belts, steel ropes or heavy weights with more torque to offset wind loads. Entrapment is more of a possibility with these doors because an object is subjected to their continuing downward pulling force.

In the early days of residential garage door openers, entrapment problems were addressed with reversing mechanisms. This same

mechanism has been incorporated into modern industrial doors. It is activated by an electric safety edge, or any additional safety sensors that work to detect an obstruction and reverse a closing door back to the open position.

Some doors even take things a step further by incorporating lightweight, soft and flexible leading edges. The flexibility of these edges helps to prevent entrapment, and their softness means they strike with lower force than doors with hard edges, which helps to prevent injury.

This is a good feature to have in case safety switches, photo eyes and warning signals fail.

A door with a soft leading edge is designed with a weighted bottom beam that utilises gravity to pull the curtain down. This weight is incorporated in a way that allows flexibility, and this flexible weight is often wrapped in rubber to further help mitigate the effects of the impact. Therefore, instead of experiencing the full weight of a door with a hard, rigid bottom edge during an impact, the soft leading edge flexes to distribute the load.

Another door safety issue to consider is lateral impact. This is where it is not the door’s downward movement itself, but rather a lateral collision with objects adjacent to a door that causes the impact. For example, forklifts can run into other workers as well as forklifts if visibility through to the other side of the door is poor. Vision panels or plastic windows built into the door can help to eliminate this kind of impact.

Opening the right door to safety and efficiency So where does the RapidRoll 500 come in? The RR500 from Assa Abloy Entrance Systems has all the features a plant needs to avoid energy loss, increased utility costs, downtime, costly maintenance issues and unsafe conditions.

The RR500 is a medium-sized high-speed, high-cycle industrial door for internal and external applications. With an opening speed of up to 2.4m/s and a closing speed of 1.2m/s, the RR500 has the fastest complete cycle on the Australian market. This makes it an ideal solution for saving energy whilst also enabling efficient movement of people and product. logisticsmagazine.com.au | 29

Promotional feature – Entrance systems

Although it can be used in a wide range of industries, the door is particularly suitable for customers who need to close large openings (up to 5,500mm x 5,500mm) in industry and logistics. It offers durability and minimal maintenance, while also being ultra safe with no risk of worker injury or damage to goods.

What makes it unique is its direct door drive system, which eliminates the need for weighted bottom bars, heavy padded springs or tension systems by actively driving the door curtain.

Its reliability and smooth operation is ensured by a frequency inverter–driven motor for a soft start and stop.

The door also has a soft leading edge with no rigid parts, which moulds around any obstruction to prevent injury or damage. In the unlikely event of an impact with the door blade, the door is designed to release itself from the side columns and will simply reinsert back into place automatically, reducing downtime and repair costs. What’s more, the RR500 is one of the only doors on the market that combines a

true soft leading edge and a touch-sensitive safety edge, for extra protection.

The RR500’s self-reinserting side guides do not protrude into the doorway, allowing full access to the facility’s daylight opening sizes.

In order to increase the admission of daylight and visibility, the door curtain can be equipped with windows or vision panels. Windows have fixed sizes in a grid, whereas a vision panel uses the full width of the door curtain.

In the standard version, the RR500 is equipped with a curtain made from PVC with vertical reinforcement strips on the left and right-hand side of the curtain. There are two classes – RR500A (Advantage) and RR500P (Pro). These doors are suitable for harsh environments, with up to Class 5 Wind capability, Class 2 Water permeation and Class 1 Air permeability. This gives the RR500 door true sealing capabilities whilst being able to withstand high winds and potential impacts, which is a real game changer for the high-speed door industry.

ASSA ABLOY ENTRANCE SYSTEMS Assa Abloy Entrance Systems is a leading supplier of safe, convenient, reliable and energy-efficient entrance solutions. The company supplies intelligent products which decrease energy loss, improve interior air, ensure sufficient daylight, and control air circulation, including the rotation of pollutants or potentially harmful particles to optimise facilities.

References 1. Australian Meat Industry Council - http://www.amic.org.au 2. Texas A&M University - http://oaktrust.library.tamu.edu/handle/1969.1/145904 3. Safe Work Australia - https://www.safeworkaustralia.gov.au/system/files/documents/1702/work-related-traumatic-injury-fatalities.pdf

30 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

Promotional feature – Entrance systems

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Interview

Capital shift Sydney’s logistics landscape is experiencing a rapid shift, according to real estate company The GPT Group – with major infrastructure projects on their way, logistics players relocating operations and the local freight task ramping up.

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nown nationally and globally for its sky-high land values, Sydney’s demand for residential property has long outstripped supply. To ease the crush, land in traditionally industrial areas is being rezoned as residential. Land values in these areas are now rising as a result of interest from residential developers, and for the areas’ existing logistics tenants, going west is an increasingly attractive prospect for lower land prices, modern fitments and better access to transport links.

Logistics & Materials Handling spoke to Darren Hunt, Head of Development Logistics at Australian real estate company GPT Group, to find out what’s ahead for Sydney’s shifting logistics landscape.

Q: What factors are driving the strong demand for logistics facilities in Sydney?

A: Population growth will be the key driver behind the demand for logistics facilities in Sydney – the city is expected to have an extra 1.7 million people and up to an additional 830,000 dwellings over the next two decades.

All of this adds up to more retail trade and the need for more warehouses. The high level of housing construction to cater for this population growth will also require more logistics facilities to store building materials and household goods.

The rise in housing prices in Sydney has been another factor that has already fuelled the demand for logistics facilities, with the so-called ‘wealth effect’ driving retail sales.

In addition to this, we expect the ongoing growth in e-tailing and online retail sales will continue to drive the demand for more logistics and freight facilities.

Q: What trends do you see emerging?

A: I expect to see the migration of larger industrial properties to Sydney’s west and southwest – the conversion of many traditional industrial areas closer to central Sydney for residential development in recent years has already helped this shift.

In the years ahead, the billions being spent on improving road infrastructure and reducing congestion across Sydney will accelerate this

GPT Group’s upgraded 21,000m2 logistics facility in Huntingwood, Western Sydney.

32 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

shift, and the construction of the new airport at Badgerys Creek will be a game changer.

Areas once considered removed from the rest of Sydney will now be connected.

Q: What will this mean for logistics operators looking to set up facilities there?

A: Companies considering relocating their logistics and warehousing operations to Western Sydney need to be mindful of the planned infrastructure that will be appearing over the coming decade. Rather than look at an existing map of Sydney, companies need to be looking at the areas of Sydney that will benefit from significant road upgrades and new motorways, such as the M12 and WestConnex.

The federal and state governments have outlaid tens of billions of dollars in road spending that will greatly improve the accessibility of Outer Western Sydney to the rest of the city and Port Botany. Logistics operators need to be mindful of which areas will be more accessible to their customers in future due to this infrastructure spending. They also need to be mindful of the industrial areas of Sydney, such as Rosehill and Camellia, that are likely to be rezoned for residential purposes in the coming decade.

Q: What will Sydney’s industrial landscape look like in future?

A: Much of Sydney’s industrial landscape a decade from now will be dependent on new land releases, the delivery of planned infrastructure – particularly roads – and how the state government’s plans for a Western Sydney Employment Area (WSEA) progress.

We expect to see significant demand for logistics facilities in Western Sydney close to the planned airport at Badgerys Creek, such as Eastern Creek and Erskine Park. This westward shift is illustrated by figures from NSW Ports that show that the number of import shipping containers being delivered to locations more than 20km from Port Botany increased more than 60 per cent from 2009 to 2014.

NSW Ports expects the number of shipping containers heading to these locations to more than treble over the next three decades.

Interview WSEA around the airport will be a major driver for the development of land for logistics uses.

The NSW Government has forecasted that the WSEA will create 57,000 jobs over 30 years. We expect the bulk of this workforce will be located in industrial facilities and business parks on land that at present is still predominantly farmland.

GPT Group’s new 18,000m2 logistics facility at Abbott Road, Seven Hills, Sydney.

Q: What will the construction of the new airport at Badgerys Creek mean for the development of logistics facilities in Sydney?

A: The construction of the airport at Badgerys Creek will be the catalyst for a significant wave of industrial development in Western Sydney.

One key reason for this is not just Badgerys Creek airport itself but also the significant level of planned infrastructure that will accompany the new airport. The Western Sydney Infrastructure Plan (WSIP) will see $3.6 billion spent on road upgrades and the new M12 Motorway will better connect Western Sydney with the rest of the city and Port Botany. These upgrades include the upgrade of Bringelly Road

and The Northern Road to four lanes and the M12 will provide direct access to the M7.

The significant level of infrastructure spending around Badgerys Creek will be a major incentive for some companies not only wanting to be based near the new airport but also looking for larger lots of industrial land that are well connected to the rest of Sydney.

Many companies that operate out of logistics facilities closer to central Sydney could start seeing the benefits of moving closer to Badgerys Creek given its relative lack of road congestion and less expensive land.

We expect the State Government’s allocation of a large area of land for the creation of the

Q: Why has GPT set its sights on logistics?

A: GPT has been in logistics property since 1980, though in recent years, we have significantly expanded our footprint. GPT now has 13 per cent of its property portfolio exposed to logistics – this is because we have seen how the growth of online retail and the outsourcing of supply chains has increased the demand for warehousing and logistics facilities.

This is a trend that we expect to continue and we are looking to grow our portfolio further, particularly in Western Sydney.

Aside from viewing logistics as a growth sector, we also see it as a relatively low-risk area to grow our exposure in. One attraction is the quick turnaround logistics developments have in comparison to retail and commercial office development.

The 24 properties in our logistics business house a mix of customers across the supply chain, including international and domestic freight operators, manufacturers, cold storage, food producers and automotive distributors.

One of GPT’s main priorities has been to secure sites and develop greenfield and brownfield logistics facilities in easily accessible strategic locations in Sydney and Melbourne that are close to planned and existing motorways. We believe that the growth of e-tailing and demand for speedier delivery times in these locations will drive demand for logistics facilities.

GPT’s planned 30,000m2 logistics facility at Lot 21 Old Wallgrove Road, Eastern Creek, Sydney.

logisticsmagazine.com.au | 33

Feature

Demand flexibility For over half a century, international container leasing company Seaco has been providing the containers that make the world go round.

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n the 61 short years since Malcolm McLean modified a large ship to allow it to hold containers of the same dimensions as those carried by his trucks, containerisation has been a driving force behind globalisation.

“These leviathan ships have created a smaller world, erasing geographic barriers,” wrote Alice J. Friedemann in her 2015 book, When Trucks Stop Running.

Sure, water routes have always shaped the world – many of the world’s major cities have grown around trading posts established along coasts and rivers – but the dawn of the containership made international shipping cheaper, more efficient and far less labour intensive.

International container leasing company Seaco has its roots in those early years

34 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

of containerisation. Its predecessor, Sea Containers, was founded in 1965 as a supplier of leased cargo containers. In the years since, the company expanded into various shipping companies until, in 2009, its maritime container interests were transferred to the newly formed Seaco.

“Seaco has been around for over 50 years,” John Bannister, Product Vice President – Tanks and Dry Freight Specials at Seaco tells Logistics & Materials Handling. “The company’s most recent history has been quite exciting, since [Chinese conglomerate] HNA Group acquired it from former shareholders GE Capital and Sea Containers. “As a result of joining HNA, Seaco was able to expand its product portfolio of specialised container types and availability of it fleet in one fell swoop,” he adds.

Shipped out It was almost inevitable that John would end up in a career based around water, he shares.

“My father was a marine engineer, and he used to travel to many different and interesting locations for his job – it was early on that I decided that I would follow in his footsteps.”

After a number of years working as a marine engineer, John realised that it wasn’t the career for him, though he was still keen to do something related to the sea and shipping.

“That’s when I joined Seaco, or Sea Containers as it was back then in the 1980s, and started a career in container leasing,” he says. “I have travelled the world through my work, including spending 25 years in Asia, living in China, Indonesia, Hong Kong and, now, Singapore. New challenges appear all the time, particularly

Feature

“Applying my technical experience to help customers set up reefer trades certainly helped me grow up fast in this industry.”

John Bannister Product Vice President - Tanks and Dry Freight Specials, Seaco.

when getting involved in new transportation projects – that’s what gets me out of bed every day.”

John shares that it was during a stint in Russia that he came across the most interesting container applications he has seen. “I was developing the reefer (refrigerated) application, and I had to travel to a fish farm on Sakhalin, an island off Russia’s south-east coast, close to the tip of Hokkaido in Japan.

“I helped to set up a salmon freezing and domestic storage process, then went to Norilsk, above the Arctic Circle, where they were using reefers to prevent chilled food from freezing in the -39°C temperatures.”

More recently, John has been looking after Seaco’s global tank fleet. “It’s involved a completely different customer base, and the carriage of a greater variety of cargo, including food grade, hazardous and non-hazardous bulk liquids,” he adds. “I’ve helped move all sorts, from Kevlar – a specialis chemical used to make body armour – to rum.”

“My father served in the United Kingdom’s Royal Navy and later worked at the Port of Southampton,” he shares.

“From a very young age, I would visit the Port with my father and board some of the ships.

From as far back as I can remember, I have always been fascinated by the global nature of shipping – but I didn’t have a clue what I wanted to be when I grew up.”

One thing he did know was that he wanted to travel and work in different places around the world, and that ambition eventually led him to shipping. Peter started his career with an engineering apprenticeship in road transport refrigeration in the UK, and joined Sea Containers in 1988.

“I started as a technical services engineer in London, and from there amazing opportunities opened up for me. I have travelled the world and worked with people from all walks of life.

“Applying my technical experience to help customers set up reefer trades certainly helped me grow up fast in this industry.”

Peter considers himself fortunate to have performed roles where he has been driven by problem solving.

“No matter how tough things got, no matter how different the challenges were, I can honestly say there has never been a day when I’ve not wanted to get out of bed and ‘make it happen’,” he says. “Every day brings a new set of challenges and problems, I recently had the opportunity to move from Miami to Sydney, and it has been interesting to get to know the diverse business in Australia.”

Through his career, Peter has also worked on various reefer projects across different countries and cultures.

“I have supported many customers who were getting involved in reefer container services for the first time, it was my job to get them up and running,” he says. “Clients included major fruit growers, for whom I would supply reefers for various banana and pineapple plantations in and around North, South and Central America.

“Recently, I have been engaged in special applications for the mining, oil and gas

Seaco’s bulk powder tanks are ideal for the storage and transportation of cement, lime and fly ash.

Challenge and opportunity For Peter Folkard, Regional Vice President, Marketing – Americas and Oceania at Seaco, it was also a matter of when – not if – he would end up working with the ocean. logisticsmagazine.com.au | 35

Feature

It takes all sorts Due to the diverse product range offered by Seaco, its customer base is wide and varied, John explains. “We supply large shipping lines, and small businesses buying a container for an ice-cream store, and just about everything in between,” he says. “That’s what makes this business so interesting for us – you never know what you’re going to come up against throughout the course of the day.

“There might be an urgent requirement for a specific piece of equipment for an emergency, or for us to move cement powder for a large construction project, salmon from Chile to Asia, or whisky from Scotland to just about anywhere.”

Half-height containers are the most common type leased in Australia, Peter shares. They are designed for dense and heavy cargo, making them perfect for the transportation of mine commodities from the mine sites to ports.

Leasing is incredibly popular for containers, he says, adding that some of his customers have leased for over 20 years. “It almost feels like I’ve grown up with them,” he notes. “New leases are

created, old leases expire or are extended, but the nature of the business is that you have an ongoing relationship all the time.

“Some customers will buy a portion of their container fleet, but continue to lease due to the additional degree of supply and demand flexibility and equipment options, allowing the customer to adapt their services to meet their customers’ needs.”

When companies are looking to lease a container, they must consider three important questions, John and Peter share. “If you want to lease, you need to ask yourself: How long will I need to lease this container?” says John. “What type and how many container units will I need?

And, once the container type has been chosen: is the size suitable for the transportation and storage of the type of application?

“Perishable products, commodities, minerals, hazardous and non-hazardous bulk liquids, food-grade, grain, powder, and over-sized, bulky and heavy shipments – they will each be shipped in a different way.”

When buying, Peter adds, companies must still consider how many containers of which size are required, but also the forecast application.

“Customers who require wind resistant and watertight containers for self-storage purposes or for turning them into living space or working

accommodation are best suited to buy, but it’s important in these cases that they first check with local authorities for planning permission,” he says.

The world of containerisation is often misunderstood, despite its contribution to modern life, John notes. “People both overestimate and underestimate the capabilities of shipping containers. Some customers underestimate reefer containers, where perhaps the product has not been stored or packed properly and it is loaded into a reefer and expected to arrive in a perfect condition, and most people underestimate how much containerisation and containers can indirectly change their day-to-day lives.

“Most everyday consumables – cars, electronic devices, clothes, food and more –have been shipped in a container, at some point or another – they make the world go round.”

There are approximately 2.4 million TEU (twenty-foot equivalent units) in the global Seaco fleet, including 123,500 TEU in containers specially designed for dry freight, and 43,500 TEU in tanks.

ADAMS ® indicates a registered trademark of HAVER & BOECKER oHG in Germany. Some of the trademarks are also registered in other countries.

industries here in Australia, involving the loading of iron ore into half-height containers, getting the cargo ready to be transported 800km by rail to the port for export.”

HAVER & BOECKER ADAMS® is for the filling of your powder bulk products into airtight PE packaging. www.packyourpowder.com

HAVER & BOECKER

HAVER & BOECKER Australia 35 Millrose Drive, Malaga, WA 6090 Phone: +61 8 6240 6900 Fax: +61 8 9249 4030

AUSTRALIA

Email: info@haveraustralia.com.au

36 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

WATERPROOF. CLEAN. PROFITABLE.

Feature

Back on track Over the next decade, Australia’s new Inland Rail is going to reinstate rail as a viable option for the east coast’s rural producers. The new InterLinkSQ Intermodal Terminal and Industrial Precinct in Toowoomba, Queensland, is strategically positioned to connect the country’s exports by road, rail, air and sea.

I

nterLinkSQ is a new intermodal and industrial precinct currently under construction in Toowoomba, 170km to the west of Brisbane, that will offer a Toowoomba-to-Port shuttle via rail by June 2018, and link with the Inland Rail in 2024.

InterLinkSQ is strategically located at the junction of three major highways – Gore, Warrego and New England, by the Toowoomba Second Range Crossing, and eight kilometres from Toowoomba’s new domestic and international airport. Crucially, the 200-hectare development sits along both the new Inland Rail route and the established Queensland regional rail network, including the West Moreton line, which connects directly to the Port of Brisbane.

Prior to the Inland Rail connecting to InterLinkSQ, the development will utilise the existing rail infrastructure by creating a shuttle from Toowoomba to the port of Brisbane, creating efficiencies in logistics by allowing for more goods to be exported. Transport inefficiencies are prevalent in the region – for example, approximately 200,000 tonnes of chickpeas were left in the ground in the Darling Downs region in 2015–2016 due to an inability to move the goods to port as a result of a lack of road transport. By creating a rail shuttle from Toowoomba to the Port of Brisbane, InterLinkSQ will allow road transport to move more efficiently in regional areas. By moving freight via rail from InterLinkSQ, trucks can be removed from Brisbane’s already congested roads, explains Michelle Reynolds, CEO, InterLinkSQ. “For every train from InterLinkSQ to the Port of Brisbane, around 54 trucks will be removed from the urban and passenger road networks,” she says, noting that a 2015 Deloitte Demand study reported that the Port of Brisbane was keen to promote freight on rail and the need for development of inland terminals, citing a need to avoid the road-based congestion expected to confront the port in the coming ten years, should no modal shift to rail occur.

“Along with increased productivity for road operators and improved safety standards on

urban roads, for every container (Twenty-Foot Equivalent Unit, or TEU) that is transferred from InterLinkSQ to the port of Brisbane by rail, rather than road, there will be a reduction of 125kg of C02 emissions.”

“These same trucks can then operate in higher productivity configurations in regional and rural areas to consolidate the increased freight volumes expected as our producers increase production volumes to meet the growing requirements of our export markets.”

InterLinkSQ features a Global Logistics Centre with an open-access rail terminal, plus a 140-hectare industrial park. Its $235 million rail transfer centre is currently under construction, with rail services set to commence in June 2018.

While the precinct is set to become a major freight hub for goods moving between major metropolitan centres such as Melbourne, Brisbane, Sydney, Perth and Darwin, a key goal of its establishment has been reaching rural producers.

“South East and South West Queensland, and areas of northern New South Wales have long faced freight transportation inefficiencies,” says Michelle. Unable to access rail freight services, these regions have been forced to rely on road transportation.

“Inland Rail is not only about connecting Brisbane and Melbourne, it’s about connecting region to region, and regions to ports.

“In talking to some producers, they have told me that freight costs can be up to 50 per cent of the cost of the product by the time it gets to port. InterLinkSQ will be a linchpin in helping those rural producers maximise supply chain efficiencies.”

InterLinkSQ will provide access to the key agricultural and mining regions to the west, as well as access to growing international markets via road, rail, air and sea, Michelle adds.

“Reduced transport costs will allow producers to lower the cost of exported goods, making Australian produce more competitive.

“Toowoomba acts as a funnel for the major export regions of the Darling Downs and Surat Basin, over the Great Dividing Range and to the Port of Brisbane,” she says. “This region mainly produces coal, grains, cotton, meat and pulses.”

The terminal has been planned to meet both current and forecasted future demands – initially it will have a capacity of 96,000TEU, this is expected to rise to 750,000TEU. Over the next ten years, the precinct will be positioned to become a “port of destination” for shipping, Michelle explains.

“InterLinkSQ is a game-changing project, primarily funded by 86 local families,” she says.

“The InterLinkSQ project has been developed to boost the Toowoomba economy and create much needed efficiencies in the rail freight industry. It is a community project, developed as a result of direct need from businesses in the region.”

InterLinkSQ will initially move freight from the Darling Downs in Southern Queensland to the Port of Brisbane, Michelle adds. “The project’s initial rail freight offering from June 2018 will save farmers around $50 per TEU, according to a report done by property and infrastructure specialist APP,” she says. “The ability to locate businesses on the InterLinkSQ site with direct access to rail will bring additional savings to local businesses, allowing the region to grow exponentially.

“The implementation of rail, both nationally and locally in Southern Queensland, creates efficiencies in the logistics chain allowing farmers to produce more goods at a lower cost, thereby enabling produce to be more competitive in the global market.” logisticsmagazine.com.au | 37

Logistics in Action

Logistics in action – Sunstate Cement Sunstate Cement’s dry-mix building, with storage silos.

filled by one of the filling modules, compacted during filling and hermetically sealed with pulsewelding technology.

FFS technology is fully automated and eliminates the need for bag applicators – other bag-filling technology must be supported by separate, spaceconsuming bag-placing equipment. With FFS, built-in gripper units accurately transfer the bags to filling spouts and, during filling, external and internal bag-vibrating units ensure the dry powder products are deaerated and compacted.

Sunstate decided on PE bags of 10, 20 and 30kg to enable its products to be easily palletised, and installed a stretch-hood system to wrap each pallet for maximum load integrity.

The results The challenge Sunstate Cement, an Australian cement product manufacturer and supplier, has been producing a large range of bulk and bagged cement products at its facility in the Port of Brisbane for over 25 years.

In November 2015, Sunstate commissioned a new turnkey state-of-the-art dry-mix plant to join its existing premises to introduce a number of ready-to-use dry-mix products to complement its product range, and to offer its clients the logistical advantages of purchasing product packaged in polyethylene (PE) bags, rather than paper.

Depending on the climate, storage and transportation conditions, up to 10 per cent of products packed in conventional bags can be expected to reach the end-consumer in an unsuitable condition due to bag breakage and humidity.

“We wanted to offer our customers a superior type of packaging, and PE offers a number of significant benefits,” said Michael Fullelove, Operations Manager, Sunstate Cement. “One huge advantage is that we can store product outside all year long, which means increased storage capacity and the ability to optimise overall logistic expenses.”

PE bags are watertight and frost resistant, so plants without sufficient indoor storage can continue to produce at full capacity from one season to the next, maintaining sales.

The added protection and high UV resistance offered by PE bags over conventional paper bags means manufacturers and end-consumers can buy products in bulk, as the bags are protected from damage during transport and the quality of the product is preserved over long storage periods.

38 | Logistics&MaterialsHandling August/September 2017

Sunstate’s technical requirements were complex – the new facility had a small footprint but had to allow for new storage silos and a bag filter, and integrate with the existing building.

Major equipment needed to be delivered from a single source, including the 2.5m3 IBAU M 2500 mechanical batch-type mixer, a packer and a palletiser, and all auxiliary equipment.

The new plant also needed to be easily expandable to meet future market demands. Sunstate was keen to get the project completed in as short a period as possible, while minimising disruption for its customers.

The solution After a comprehensive procurement process, the contract for the design, commissioning and supply of the plant’s main components was awarded to Haver & Boecker, a global developer and supplier of processing and packing solutions.

The heart of the solution designed for Sunstate’s packing and palletising plant is the Roto-Packer Adams Form-Fill-Seal (FFS) packing system – highperformance packing technology for powdery products. The packing system is equipped with two filling spouts, or ‘modules’, with a filling capacity of 600 bags per hour, and can easily be upgraded to four filling spouts with a 1,200 bags per hour capacity.

The packing machine forms bags from a continuous PE plastic tube – a flat PE tubular film is supplied from a reel by welding the side and bottom seams then cutting off the produced bag. This produces a very compact bag design for optimal storage. Once formed, the bag is then

The UV-, water- and tear-resistant bags are cleaner and emit no dust during handling and transportation. They also facilitate higher quality and more eye-catching and colourful branding, as the entire surface of plastic bags can be covered in photo-quality imagery.

“By shifting to PE, Sunstate has increased its storage capacity and that of its clients, reduced overall logistics expenses and offered an essential advantage at the point of sale with the bags’ high-quality appearance,” said Alan Arbotante, Sales Manager, Haver & Boecker Australia.

“Retailers and wholesalers can increase their stock level as additional undercover storage is not required, while construction companies can leave their bags outside in the open on work sites, even under harsh weather conditions,” he added.

While plants with similar requirements have an average timeframe of two years from order to operation, Haver & Boecker completed the project for Sunstate in just 12 months.

“In November 2016, Sunstate’s new plant became operational,” said Arbotante. “The new dry-mix plant is a proven example that state-of-the-art dry-mix plants can be easily implemented even when there is limited space available, and time is tight.

“All that is required is the technical capability and the availability of the raw materials for the dry-mix products. Plants can be installed on a turnkey basis, even when sub-sections of the plant such as silos and buildings already exist.

“Packing products in PE offers improved market opportunities thanks to its many advantages over conventional paper bags, and many major cement producers are completely shifting to PE.”

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