CH Robinson prepared for Brexit

Freight forwarder CH Robinson is preparing from the potential fall-out in additional Customs procedures as a result of the UK’s departure from the European Union (Brexit).
Ivo Aris, vice president global forwarding at CH Robinson, said: “Every change, including Brexit, will bring along challenges, but first and foremost presents opportunities for us.
“It will be interesting to see what impact Brexit will have on our customer’s businesses. After all, forwarding and moving freight is a derived demand.
“It is expected that there will be more stringent Customs requirements, which could have an impact on our business. It can bring us extra work. We welcome a smooth transition with minimal negative impact for our customers.”
On the challenge for freight forwarders from the giant e-tailers such as Amazon, Aris said: “We embrace e-commerce as this will be one of the drivers for airfreight growth in the future. Change in general is good for the airfreight forwarding industry.
“It brings innovative players with new opportunities for healthy growth. One needs to embrace life-long learning as well as market change as a source for opportunities.”
CH Robinson handled 57,300 tonnes of European import and export cargo in 2017 and is forecast to process 66,000 tonnes this year, a 15% rise. The ratio was 70% belly hold and the remainder main deck cargo.
Added Aris: “CH Robinson continues to grow airfreight services in Europe regardless of the market situation. We feel that our still relatively modest size, in combination with our future proof strengths in terms of people, process and technology, will enable us to continue to grow faster than the market at all times.”
Asked about the impact of slot congestion at European airports, Aris said: “Congestion across the main ports in Europe has certainly had an impact on our business. It is a more fundamental problem, related to infrastructure.
“A lot needs to happen to make sure that the main ports are ready for future growth. Freighter slots in Amsterdam also had an impact. We have seen disruption in the supply chain, mostly driven by delays and getting used to the new setup by the carriers.
He continued: “Now that the handling and road feeder services are fully up and running and everybody is used to the new setup – feeding from outer airports/cross border – it is running much smoother again.
“CH Robinson runs an operation with interconnected gateways. Through our tech-supported system, freight flows to the best point automatically, optimizing specs (transit time and rate) in line with customer requirements.”
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