Speedy Spare Parts
A consignment for a shipping customer from Vorarlberg (Austria) to the mouth of the Yangtze is nothing strange in itself. But when it is flagged as being “at very short notice” and “extremely urgent” then it is a case for Logwin’s Ship Parts Logistics specialists.
Hamburg, 13th August 2009, 10 a.m.:
Stefanie, Export Manager in Logwin’s Hamburg airfreight office, takes the call. On the other end of the line is Katrin from a company in Bremen. A motor vessel, a multi-purpose heavy lift cargo shipto be precise, desperately needs a new shaft for one of the two heavy duty cranes on board. The challenge lies in the fact that the ship is in Shanghai, while the requisite part is in Nenzing (530 m above sea level) in the Austrian Alps. Furthermore, the ship will only be docked in Shanghai for two more days. Consequently, the replace ment part absolutely must arrive within 24 hours.
Feldkirch, 13th August 2009, 10:30 a.m.:
Stefanie has the coordination under control. She immediately informs her colleague, Tobias in the Austrian town of Feldkirch. He arranges the urgent pickup of the consigned express item from the supplier in Nenzing 50 km away. Then Tobias and his team check whether the part is suitably packaged for the flight and apply airfreight and express labels to the consign ment. At the same time they have already prepared the transport documentation.
Feldkirch, 13th August 2009, 3 p.m.:
The special consignment sets off from Feldkirch headed for Frankfurt Airport. The delivery deadline is 8:05 p.m. – time enough for the 500 km trip under normal circumstances. But then: Traffic jam on the A8 motorway at Stuttgart! Nothing is happening and the schedule is under severe pressure.
The Logwin team in Hamburg is in constant contact with the driver and Lufthansa, who are to fly the replacement part to Shanghai. They do everything possible to ensure that the consignment can still go on board despite the delay.
Frankfurt, 13th August 2009, 9:50 p.m.:
The consignment reaches Frankfurt airport almost 2 hours behind schedule, but the Lufthansa aircraft is still waiting. 12 hours after the initial phone call in Austria, the plane lifts off for Shanghai with the shaft stowed securely on board.
Shanghai, 14th August 2009, 3:20 p.m.:
Flight LH 732 lands in Shanghai on time. The customs formalities organised in advance go without a hitch, so the ship crew is able to take receipt of the consignment shortly afterwards. “Assignments such as this are routine for our Ship Parts Logistics Team, but are still always something special”, explains Stefanie. “Unforeseen circumstances really motivate us!”
