We have carried out an interesting interview with Jonathan C. Williams, General Manager of FONASBA to explore the role of Ship Brokers and Agents in the international context.

You can download the English version.

In 2015, SRM carried out a scientific mission in Hamburg with the aim of gaining a better knowledge of the strategies and the issues regarding the maritime sector in a country like Germany, which is considered one of the top European countries as for maritime logistics. During the mission, SRM interviewed Bengt van Beuningen, Head of Communication & Information, Port of Hamburg Marketing Regd. Assn.

Maersk Italy operates in the maritime shipping of containerised goods to and from the rest of the world. In Italy it operates in 12 ports, and is currently establishing, together with MSC and CMA CGM, the P3 Network alliance, which will bring about important changes in the global balances of the maritime transport and port sectors. We discussed this, and many other topics, with Orazio Stella, the company’s Chief Executive Officer, who is always available to share with us his views on issues relating to the all-important subject of logistics.

We have interviewed again the General Manager of the Tanger Med port – Najlaa Diouri – to illustrate all the characteristics of the activities carried out, the strategies pursued by the Port Authority, and the goals laid out, with an overview of the projects under way and those in the pipeline, and of the implications they will have on the economy of the port and of the territory it is located in.

Windward is a maritime data and analytics company that offers specialized data and services to government agencies and private corporations. We collect and analyze over 200 million data points per day. We convert this massive amount of data into information that our clients can act on, in real time. The Windward team, 75 and growing, is comprised of data scientists and shipping experts who work together to shed light on what’s really happening at sea.

SRM has interviewed Emanuel Grimaldi, “at the helm” of one of Italy’s outstanding ship-owning groups.
The Grimaldi Group is a full-fledged multinational company active in the logistics sector, specialised in roll-on/roll-off vessels, car carriers, cruises, and ferries. It supplies integrated logistics services, based on maritime transport, to the most important vehicle manufacturers. Every year, the ships of the Grimaldi fleet call at over 120 ports in 50 countries of the Mediterranean, North Europe, West Africa, and North and South America.

Mare Straetmans is currently the managing director of PortXL, the World Port Accelerator. The Port of Rotterdam is the innovation hub for port business around the world. PortXL is aiming to develop an ecosystem for port startups worldwide. PortXL focusses on scouting the best startups, and bring them to Rotterdam for three months, to find their first clients. This way building the port business of the future.

This interview was released during the scientific mission carried out by SRM in Hamburg in order to have a better understanding of the strategies and problems affecting the maritime sector of Germany, which is considered one of the top European country as for maritime logistics. In particular, we interviewed Dennis Kögeböhn (DK), Partner at EMBA shipping & Logistics, HPC – Hamburg Port Consulting GmbH, who gave an “itinerant” interview in the HHLA terminal of Hamburg port providing valuable information about its structure and functioning.

In Italy, when talking about ports, usually one lingers on the territory where the port authority is located, failing to analyze in depth the surrounding and smaller ports which are nevertheless important on a strategic and economic point of view. One of these realities is the third port of Campania, the Port of Torre Annunziata, which is also internationally oriented. This and other topics were discussed with Giuseppe Rocco, General Director of SOLACEM Spa, a company of integrated port logistics, operating since 1967 in the port of Torre Annunziata, more specifically in the fields of debarking operations, the handling of cereals and flours and of their distribution in the south of Italy and in the Mediterranean in general.

One of the most sophisticated and cutting-edge sectors in innovation and international competitiveness is logistics. The interview with the CEO of the Italian branch of BLG Logistics Solutions, a multinational company operating in this industry, demonstrates the growing use of sustainable logistics to expand the competitiveness of enterprises.

Sustainable Logistics. This means logistics that aim to offer the service and economical conditions demanded by the market, at the same time seeking all the most appropriate solutions from the environmental and mobility point of view, connected with the transport, delivery and recycling of products and goods. Sustainable Logistics seeks, finally, to promote more efficient logistics that are, at the same time, more respectful of the quality of life. We spoke about this issue with Daniele Testi, President of SOS-LOGistica (Association for Sustainable Logistics).