10.04.12
Air freight security – Logwin puts X-ray scanner into operation
- © Logwin: Since 26 March, Logwin has been
operating its own X-ray scanner at Stuttgart
Airport.
Grevenmacher (Luxembourg) – The international logistics service provider Logwin can declare air freight shipments as “secure” with immediate effect. Since 26 March, the company has been operating its own X-ray scanner at its location with the greatest export volume in Germany. Logwin is thus the first air freight forwarder at Stuttgart Airport capable of monitoring its customers’ shipments on its own.
The five-tonne unit is installed in Logwin’s warehouse in Stuttgart, where customers’ goods arrive and undergo customs formalities. The logistics specialist is now able to examine cargo with the X-ray scanner. “It is of enormous benefit for our customers,” explains Werner Sander, branch manager of Logwin in Stuttgart. “It will save them a great deal of time in future.” For an EU regulation is changing the way air freight is processed. As a result, the proportion of “non-secure” freight which must undergo time-consuming checks at the airport will increase significantly. This will cause large volume increases for X-ray scanners on site. Particularly at very busy times, companies must deliver their shipments up to three days prior to departure in order to ensure that the consignments can take off on time. With Logwin’s X-ray scanner, its customers will benefit from the fact that the logistics service provider will be able to manage processing on its own, speeding up procedures significantly.
Thousands of packages a month
German Federal Aviation Office regulations specify how large the opening of the unit may be, namely up to 1.80 m by 1.80 m. Logwin’s X-ray scanner also has this size. The company has obtained the radiation protection approval required for operation and also employs radiation protection officers. Only specially trained staff may operate the equipment.
Some shipments can be processed faster than others depending on size. Particularly long packages may need to undergo several X-ray operations, while several smaller boxes can be scanned simultaneously. The scanner can accommodate up to 20 boxes depending on their overall dimensions. The freight volumes passing through the unit are still relatively low. “However, we assume that we will have to inspect several thousand packages a month from April 2013 onwards,” says Werner Sander.
In addition to the X-ray scanner, Logwin also has an explosives detector in Stuttgart. The latter is used to inspect goods that are too large for the scanner or which cannot be subjected to X-rays because of their nature. Logwin also uses the explosives detector to check freight requiring a second inspection.
About the new EU regulation
EU Regulation 185/2010 changes the relationship between forwarding agents and consignors of air freight. In the past, the latter only had to sign a declaration of security in order to be able to ship their cargo as “known consignors” without additional inspections. Now, certification by the German Federal Aviation Office (Luftfahrt-Bundesamt – LBA) is required with immediate effect. The regulation came already into force on 29 April 2010. However, the approximately 65,000 “known consignors” at the time were granted a three-year period of transition. This status will be lost in April 2013. Experts anticipate that many companies will not go through the process of gaining certification as “known consignor” and will only have their cargo certified as “secure” in corresponding inspections at the airport.
More information on Logwin AG.
More information on the business segment Air + Ocean.
Your contact at Logwin:
Volker Hoebelt
Director Sales + Marketing at business segment Air + Ocean
Phone: +49 6021 343-9000
Fax: +49 6021 343-9008
volker.hoebelt@logwin-logistics.com
Logwin AG | ZIR Potaschberg | 5, an de Laengten | 6776 Grevenmacher | Luxembourg
