The Global Cold Chain Alliance, representing third-party temperature-controlled logistics industry worldwide, held a mind-shaking Cold Chain Connection event on 18-19 November in Antwerp, Belgium. Nearly 50 professionals in the sector gathered in one of Europe’s most important trade hubs to address the current challenges of both temperature-controlled warehousing and transportation, as well as general market trends and opportunities.
During an executive workshop on ‘Disruptions In Cold Supply Chains & Outlook For The Future’, presented and moderated by Dr. Bob Castelein, Project Leader Supply Chain at Wageningen Food & Biobased Research, the participating cold chain experts shared their thoughts on the actual disruptions affecting their sector, the supply of perishables and pharmaceutical products and global trade. The group collaboratively discussed how cold chain, that is an essential industry, can be resilient and can find ways to turn challenges into opportunities to create the cold chain of the future, to become more innovative, and more energy and cost-efficient. With consumer behaviour constantly evolving, and current disruptions impacting the market significantly, the group of experts envisioned that cold supply chains will continue to adapt and the consumption landscape may look totally different in the coming years, with more regionalization, new value propositions, shifting customer needs, portfolios and products.
The European Warehouse Forum, a key component of the programme designed for logistics operators, shed light on critical sector issues across countries – cold storage labour recruitment and retention, driver shortage in transportation, energy cost, insurance, carbon footprint and sustainability, Brexit effect on import and export. At the same time, consolidation is going on across Europe, storage capacity is being increased through new buildings, automation is intensifying and the substantial rates of reefer containers are major concerns for the sector.
Visits to industrial facilities on the second day gave attending professionals a unique opportunity to experience innovative technology and operations within their field. The group was hosted by Luik Natie, in the port of Antwerp, that was recently equipped with a Tesla Megapack to run their refrigerated facilities. This huge battery helps them save a significant amount of energy and considerably reduce their annual carbon footprint. At Yusen Logistics Europe, also located in the port, the group was shown how pharmaceutical products are handled in a smart way through various types of automation and cutting-edge management systems. The Port of Antwerp gave an impressive showcase of its reefer terminals handling nearly one million TEUs in a year, ranging from fresh fruit to life science & health care products.
The Global Cold Chain Alliance also represents controlled-environment design and building companies, as well cold chain related equipment suppliers, technology vendors and service providers. This community works hand in hand with the logistics community to support the technical side of their business. This event, organized in partnership with one of its transportation members Port of Antwerp, was sponsored by technology members SSI-Schäfer, automation experts; Wagner fire detection and prevention; Stow industrial racking and automation company; and Fortdress Group GmbH, specialists in cold-protective outerwear.
Published Date
December 9, 2021