A Handle On Dubai Cargo

Kevin Ennis is Business Development Manager At Dnata Cargo, the busiest handling company in the Middle East and one of the top ground support companies in the world.
What that also means is that here is one executive who eschews the trappings of position preferring to situate himself where the action is, upstairs at the Free Zone Logistics Center, located in a large and busy air cargo complex just off Dubai International Airport’s main runway.
Freighters are lined up downstairs, appearing like obedient B747 school kids awaiting dismissal from assembly.
Gateway Dubai has expanded as fast as it can in the face of an onslaught of airlines companies queuing for space.
Currently the flags and liveries from the world’s greatest airlines and others that are moving on up, call around the clock at Gateway Dubai.
It is not only a burgeoning commercial center Dubai has emerged as Gateway Middle East where the best and the brightest transportation people from all over the world reside in big numbers.
Demand leaves little camouflage when things go wrong.
But as Kevin reveals in this wide ranging Question and Answer session , he is determined to both maximize performance and minimalize the mistake factor as Dnata handles its way to greatness.

FT:  What is most important to your effort at Dnata right now? How is business?
KE:  In the wake of such challenges as fuel hikes and stiff regional competition, Dnata Cargo has maintained a strong performance.
  For us, the key to success in this business environment is efficiency and the drive to keep providing quality services at top value-for-money.
  Dnata Cargo continues to register growth in the volumes handled at Dubai's four terminals - Main Cargo Terminal, Free Zone Logistics Centre (FLC), Freezone Air Cargo Terminal (FACT), and Express Handling Centre (EHC).
  During our first half of the financial year (Apr-Sep 2005) Dnata Cargo handled 196,073 tons - a 15% increase in volumes handled compared to the same period in 2004.
  Import volume claimed the larger share with 122,481 tons, while Export accounted for 73,592 tons.
  This significant increase in activity is also a challenge to us.
  Dnata Cargo must forge ahead in its plan to upgrade existing facilities in order to meet growing demand. To combat space constraints at the Main Cargo Terminal, compounded by the ongoing construction of the Mega Cargo Terminal, Dnata Cargo has recently introduced some measures to optimize utilization of its handling capacity.
  The initiatives include:
  Facility improvements at the Main Cargo Terminal.
  Enhancements are abuilding at both the Main Cargo Terminal and at FLC, with the addition of a dedicated mail handling and storage area offering six level racking with bins and an adjacent documentation office.
  However this activity does not replace activity at the Express Handling Center, as mail for example is still handled at the Main Cargo Terminal.
  Elsewhere Dnata is adding provisions for installation of 160 lazy rollers for the storage of ULDs along the ramp side as well as having Special Storage, Export (build-up) and Import (break-down) supported by additional roller staging lines with a capacity of 12 pallet or container positions for each (bringing the total to 36 positions).
  Additional multi-layer ULD racks are also being built on the Export and Import Area, which will make storage and retrieval easy, thereby minimizing tractor movements inside the warehouse substantially.
  Provisions for 6 new Break-down and 5 Build-up stations have also been earmarked inside the Terminal to integrate slave pallets to the existing system.
  Dnata's FLC terminal was the first to introduce slave pallets (storage pallets with rollers) in their warehouse back in 2002.
  The Sea-Air area has also been moved to away from the construction activities around the Mega Air Cargo Terminal to a more convenient location (west side of the MCT) to provide easy access and exit for larger trucks to and from the highway.
  The new Sea-Air area features an array of docks that can simultaneously accommodate up to eight container trailers.   In addition, there are four docks with rollers for easy retrieval and loading of pallets and containers, and another four docks positioned on the ground level.
  Five weighing scales integrated into the docks, with individual passages for easy dolly movements, expedite acceptance and delivery processes. A dedicated team of staff, deployed at the Sea-Air dock office, round the clock, supplements these features.
  In the coming days, the Sea-Air dock area will be further enhanced with a dedicated three-level racking for the storage of out-sized shipments.
FT: What impact has fuel and/or Iraq et-al had on your business?
KE: As mentioned, Dnata Cargo has maintained a strong performance despite fuel hikes.
  Iraq and Afghanistan are promising markets for Dnata.
  Wide-bodied aircraft bring in cargo from different parts of the world to Dubai.
  From here smaller aircraft transport it to Iraq and Afghanistan. This is currently a big business for us as well as for other airports in the region, although (like Russia and CIS), this may be only a temporary niche condition.
   As soon as Iraq and Afghanistan get their supply lines organized and their infrastructure straightened out, the situation may change.
  The African market has also been growing steadily over the past years and we expect it will stay that way in the foreseeable future. Businessmen from Africa have found that their supplies can be easily and competitively sourced here and shipped at short notice.
FT: Give us a sense of the number and variety of say new airline operators at The Freezone Logistics Center?
KE:: Dnata Cargo recently welcomed six new carriers to the Freezone Logistics Centre (FLC), bringing the number of operators at its facility located in the Dubai Airport Free Zone to 45.
  New arrivals operating at Dnata's FLC include:
    • Al-Rais Cargo, operating flights between Dubai and Tehran.
    • Ocean Airlines, an Italian-based operator, operating a bi-weekly 747-200 from Italy via Dubai into Shanghai and on the return leg as well
    • UK-based Jet Set Cargo, which has started once-a-week operations with a DC-8 freighter from the newly opened Robin Hood airport in Doncaster.
    • Galaxy Air, operating an IL-8 freighter thrice weekly between Dubai and Delhi.
    • FAB Air, a new entrant to the Iraq market, operates an AN-12 thrice weekly to Baghdad, Mosul and Tikrit.
    • Dolphin Air, which operates to Karachi and Peshawar with an AN-12 twice weekly.
FT: What are the expected construction completion dates and what will new space mean in day-to-day terms?
KE:: To cope with the immediate demand, currently a new phase of expansion at the FLC is underway to build a fully automated cargo-handling centre with 350,000 tons per annum capacity.
  Dnata had previously doubled the FLC's capacity in 2003 by adding over 12,000 square meters of warehouse space, airline office space and a business centre to the original facility.
  The FLC's 2nd phase of expansion, set for completion towards the end of 2006, will triple the handling capacity of the existing facility and bring its annual throughput potential to 500,000 tons.
  Upon completion, Dnata's FLC will be the only terminal in the region to offer tailor-made services to charter operators at competitive rates, a provision for tenancy and self-handling privileges, plus an option for premium services—all under one roof.
FT: Any new wrinkles in the services package?
KE:: In a booming air cargo market like Dubai, the challenge is to manage the growth while maintaining high service standards. Dnata Cargo has invested in equipment, manpower training, infrastructure and backend technology to ensure we are well positioned to support this growth, and even introduce new and better services to our customers.
  Perishable shipments arriving in Dubai are now delivered more speedily and ever fresher to customers, as Dnata   Cargo applies express handling standards for all perishable shipment at its cargo terminals in Dubai.
  This improved service comes at no extra cost to customers.
  Dnata Cargo has introduced a more personalized service facility for all its airline customers, where they will no longer need to liaise with the various divisions and departments within Dnata Cargo. Instead, all airline customers will have an assigned Key Account Manager as their one-stop contact with the Company.
FT: How have the initiatives to handle perishables worked out—blankets for cool chain etc?
KE: Customers have welcomed Dnata's initiative in introducing special thermal blankets to maintain the temperatures of perishable products during the short handling process between the aircraft and the cargo terminals.
  Electronic temperature probes are also placed inside the ULDs of perishable cargo to record temperatures and upload the information to Dnata's computer systems, providing customers access to the shipment temperature throughout the ground handling process, thus ensuring full transparency, control and customer confidence.