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Getting there safely
POSTED: 11:00 a.m. EDT, December 9,2006
“The most unique item we've ever had arriving here was a BMW prototype. We packaged the entire vehicle and sent it on its way by airfreight,” explains Peter Feldmeier, the branch manager of the logistics firm Geis SDV GmbH at Munich Airport.
From little packages weighing just 500 grams to five-ton machines – Geis has handled shipping logistics for this entire range. “There’s really nothing that can’t be shipped with us,” sums up Feldmeier.
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From air and sea freight to packaging and logistics services – the multi-faceted product range extends from a full program of conventional services to tailor-made solutions. “We take on network planning, IT integration and warehouse management, among other things,” says Feldmeier. Another advantage is the company’s tracking and tracing system. Customers can follow their shipments on the Internet.
Geis has been represented at Munich Airport since 1991. Feldmeier: “In the early days at the old Munich Riem airport there were just three of us. Now 34 employees handle approximately 12,000 orders a year here. That amounts to some 85,000 packed items weighing a total of 3000 metric tons.”
Services are often combined as well: Goods arrive in Munich by airmail and are then distributed across Europe by Geis. The most common products are electronics goods and parts shipped for industrial companies and automotive suppliers.
Since the early 1990s the logistics company has continually maintained certification under the DIN standard EN ISO 9001:2000. In July 2003 Geis was awarded the coveted “Bayern’s Best 50” prize by the Bavarian Ministry of the Economy as one of the fastest-growing companies in the state of Bavaria. “In Munich we have approximately 500 customers. In addition to our office at Munich Airport we are represented in 12 other German cities,” says Feldmeier. The company’s worldwide network covers five continents, with 85 countries and 500 branch offices.
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"An opportunity for the economy" |
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Perspectives in 2006: Munich Airport continues to expand airfreight infrastructure |
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Leading airfreight executives and airport managers predict a steady rise in the importance of airfreight for the competitiveness of the German economy.
The cargo business will continue to expand, particularly at the major air transportation hubs. Munich Airport is addressing these trends with the launch of two major projects in 2006: an additional freight center and a border control office for perishable goods.
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“The growth rates in the cargo segment are driven primarily by the booming passenger business,” says Markus Heinelt, the marketing director of the Airfreight Division at Munich Airport. After all, 40–50 percent of all airfreight is carried on passenger flights. For the airlines, the transport of co-loaded freight is a lucrative business. Up to one-third of all revenues are generated by the cargo segment.
Adding momentum to Munich Airport's rapid development as an airfreight hub, a 130-meter long express center went into operation last fall. The 45 FedEx and DHL employees already working in the new facility will soon be sharing it with 30 new colleagues when UPS moves into its own section.
“Negotiations are also underway for the construction of a freight forwarding building with more than 30,000 square meters of floor space. We already have queries from potential tenants for 13,000 square meters in the first phase,” explains Heinelt. Current plans call for the project to be completed in the fourth quarter of 2007. Heinelt points out that the new project will relieve the pressure on existing warehouse space while providing new opportunities for the approximately 80 freight forwarders operating at Munich Airport to expand their business.
Dr. Michael Kerkloh, the Munich Airport CEO, sees the advantages of the airfreight infrastructure in Munich as self-evident: “Everything is conveniently assembled under one roof: customs, freight forwarders, freight airlines, packing companies and trucking firms.”
A seamless airfreight site: a convincing concept – and that’s also the way Jean-Peter Jansen, CEO of Lufthansa Cargo, sees it. "The Frankfurt and Munich hubs are of dramatic importance to us. They boost the competitiveness of their regions and with it the demand for airfreight services."
| Logistical challenge |
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Spectacular loading operation: ice research satellite goes on board at Munich Airport |
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At the end of year, Munich Airport welcomed an unusual guest for the second time in 2005: an Antonov AN-124 – one of the world's largest transport aircraft. The giant freighter took a very sensitive cargo on board.
An ice research satellite named “Cryosat,” constructed by EADS Astrium on behalf of ESA, was loaded with the aid of the logistics firm Exel and FMG, the Munich Airport operating company.
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The Antonov then flew the Cryosat to a Russian space launching pad 800 kilometers north of Moscow, where it was scheduled to fired into space.
Unfortunately, the journey into outer space did not go as smoothly as the loading operation at Munich Airport. Nevertheless, the unusual ‘merchandise’ proved that the FMG professionals are more than a match for the toughest logistical demands.
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A job for cargo professionals |
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It weighed nearly 700 kilograms, was worth �136 million and was built to do a job 720 kilometers above the earth: Before being launched by a booster rocket, the environmental satellite first had to be placed in the belly of the Antonov.
The Cryosat was supposed to orbit the earth for three years and supply detailed data on the thickness and extent of the ice masses at the Earth’s poles.
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Because changes in the polar icecaps have a massive impact on global warming, the Cryosat readings would have been highly revealing for climate researchers.
But after the launch from the Plesezk Space Center, the second booster stage failed to ignite. The ice research satellite disintegrated and fell into the sea.
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Fine-tuned logistics |
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The loading of this highly sensitive cargo is a reflection of the immense growth Munich is currently achieving in the cargo segment.
At present the freight growth rates are actually topping the increases in passenger traffic.
In the first half of 2005 alone, airfreight turnover was up more than 30 percent over the previous year’s level to 97,000 metric tons.
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The contributing behind this outstanding growth include – among others – the freight routes operated by Cathay Pacific Cargo between Munich and Hong Kong, Emirates Sky Cargo between Dubai, Munich and New York, and Qatar Airways Cargo between Munich and Doha.
The extensive range of connections available at Munich Airport offer excellent transportation routes – and not just for the 80 local airfreight forwarders located there.
Appealing routes
Today, numerous freight shipments are trucked to Munich Airport via a dense feeder network from all over southern Germany, Switzerland, Northern Italy, Austria, Hungary and the Czech Republic.
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