LOGISTICSTO THE FUTURE

panoramaThe Magazine of the M+R Spedag Group

November 2015

2 PANORAMA

CONTENTS

Editorial 3

Logistics to the Future 43D-Printing is a new technology that makes rapid advancements. How will it

infl uence logistics in the future?

Hydropower at the Rio Cuanza 8A new hydroelectric power plant is the fi rst of a series of projects

designed to boost Angola’s power supply

Celebration: 25 Years in Southeast Asia 10We are looking back to our anniversary celebrations last year

in Bangkok and Jakarta

The Iron Silk Road 12The land route from Asia to Europe has the potential to move cargo

in just half the time it takes by water

Hovercraft 14Heavy Lift handling using hovercraft technology.

Panorama shows how it is done.

On to Vietnam 16M+R Forwarding Co. Ltd, Vietnam is the latest addition

to the growing network of M+R in Asia

Corporate Social Responsibility 18The most fulfi lling years of my life - An Interview with the founder and

thriving force of “Future for Children” in Bali

PANORAMA - THE MAGAZINE OF THE M+R SPEDAG GROUP

November 2015 issuePublisher M+R Spedag Global AG, Kriegackerstrasse 91, 4132 Muttenz / Switzerland

Editor Bernadette Jourdan Design + Layout Stephan Schneider Copyright M+R Spedag Global AG.

Contact panorama@mrspedag.com Internet www.mrspedag.com

Skechers Logistics Hub 8Just outside of Los Angeles, footwear giant Skechers runs an impressive

Ddstribution center serving all of the United States and Canada

Cover Logistics

to the Future

PANORAMA 3

I am writing these lines on 21st October, 2015 – the day on which Marty McFly ar-

rives in the future in the movie ‘Back to the Future’ II. And fi nds nearly everything

diff erent from what it was 30 years earlier. Today we know that the fi lm producers

were wildly off the mark on the topic of individual mobility, for example. We are a

long way off having our own private means of transport to electronically cruise us

over the airways. And fl ying skate-boards only exist in the dreams of our children.

One of our guest articles introduces us to the latest developments in 3D print-

ing. Sometimes I feel as though we really are in a fi lm of ‘Back to the Future’; it all

sounds like science fi ction – but it is not fi ction. In future, anyone will be able to

design Lego toys on their computers and afterwards simply print them out them-

selves. No logistics will be needed for that. These trends could become even more

dramatic in the IT sector. Uber’s business model can, in principle, be utilized in all

service sectors. Here, too, we are only at the beginning of drastic changes in the

relationships between market participants.

If we today want to imagine what our business will be doing in 30 years’ time,

it needs courageous predictions that will probably not come to pass, anyway. Or in

the words of the famous Italian philosopher Dante: ‘The horizon is our imagination’.

With this in mind, let us set off together on the path to the horizon. I am looking

forward to the numerous challenges that we will be able to master together, back

in the future.

Daniel Richner

GUEST ARTICLE

4

WHAT CAN LOGISTICS EXPECT FROM 3D PRINTING?Technology has always been the driving force behind logistics, whereby new logistics technologies are often aimed

at moving larger units of goods faster and cheaper. 3D printing brings new technology to the production process.

Although this technology is still in its infancy, it makes rapid progress and above all, it has the potential to infl uence

the future of logistics decisively.

The term ‘3D printing’ describes the production of compo-

nents by means of additive methods. Various technologies

are used for this, the three most common being selective

laser sintering (SLS), fused deposition modeling (FDM) and

stereolithography (SLA). Only certain materials are suitable

for the diff erent processes. To date the industrial use of 3D

printing is used principally for the manufacture of prototypes

in, for example, aerospace and medical technology. Rapid

market development is forecasted for 3D printing. Not only

has the media presence of the topic risen steadily since 2012;

according to ‘Frenus’, a german institute of market analysis,

the market volume of additive manufacturing should come

to 6.5 billion euro by 2019 – at present it is around 288 mil-

lion euro. In principle, the process will retain its topicality for

sectors such as prototyping that have been using 3D printing

for some years. Its establishment in new business segments is

anticipated to take place equally rapidly.

In comparison with conventional production processes,

3D printing has both advantages and disadvantages. It can

support many businesses in terms of extending their respec-

tive services. Thanks to this process, new, customer-individu-

alized design possibilities arise, makes it possible to produce

more complex geometries, for example. The work steps are

generally faster, purchasing and setup times saved and Sup-

ply Chain process stages skipped. In addition, one-off s and

small lots can be manufactured considerably cheaper by re-

ducing tooling costs, transport and warehousing costs, pur-

chasing, import and customs duty and scrapping costs. 3D

printing is more sustainable in comparison with traditional

methods of production – weight reduction arising from com-

pact guidance for logistics in use in low-weight construction

development leads to kerosene saving for aircraft. Further-

more, resources can be deployed more effi ciently through

needs-synchronized production. Thanks to the elimination of

transport, emissions are reduced. In principle, the 3D printing

process should not be viewed as a substitute for but rather as

a supplement to mass production. In the opinion of experts

like Franz-Josef Villmer, Professor for Innovation Management

and Rapid Technologies at the Ostwestfalen-Lippe University,

it will not completely replace conventional manufacturing

processes. In particular in the manufacture of mass products,

3D printing is not economic enough compared with tradi-

tional manufacturing. There is also the risk that too much

material would be wasted in making ‘unnecessary gadgets’.

What are the key challenges and problems? The greatest

problem for additive methods at the moment is the ambigu-

ous legal position: copyright and patent rights, standards

and certifi cations as well as liability issues are unclear. Apart

from the subject of IT security, i.e. a guarantee of secure data

transport when transmitting digital product data, the issue of

prevention of product piracy is very relevant, as there is the

possibility to scan products and make copies of them. With

regard to the quality of the components, according to Profes-

sor Jan Borchers of the RWTH in Aachen and other experts,

the standards have not yet been reached of articles manu-

factured by traditional methods of plastics technology. Many

products have defects such as visible ribbing (similar to wood

grain) and are not of suffi ciently high quality.

3D printing will have an impact on Logistics and Sup-

ply Chain Management. The greatest change caused by 3D

printing will be from the discontinuation of the complete

‘traditional’ Supply Chain. The product in demand could be

printed direct at the customer’s. In principle, the production

location will gradually shift towards the place of use due to

the process. This will above all lead to a reduction of long

transport fl ows (Near Sourcing), interim storage and buff er-

ing. The employment of 3D printing means on the one hand

the loss of transport revenue for the logistics service provider;

on the other hand there will be new business sectors where

a logistics provider can make a place for himself, for example

by supporting his customers when integrating 3D printing

into their current value networks, or specializing in Digital

Warehousing. The possibility that customers will be able to

print individual components or small lots at their own loca-

tions (e.g. special spare parts), is very interesting for many

companies with respect to their level of service. If a spare part

is needed, the customer can for example download the re-

quired CAD drawings from the internet of the company or

special online dealers and immediately produce it by means

of their 3D printer. To what extent this method will actually

catch on will mainly be due to further developments in qual-

ity, liability and certifi cation. The Federal Logistics Association

will be following up this subject – in particular with regard to

Logistics and Supply Chain Management – in the future.

Sophie Witzleben, Bundesvereinigung Logistik

5

Mikroskopisch kleine Teile lassen sich heute bereits per 3D Drucker produzieren

PORTRAIT

6 PANORAMA

SKECHERS DISTRIBUTION CENTERSKECHERS is one of the really big names in the footwear industry, and in the USA it is one of most successful sup-

pliers in the sector of athletic and lifestyle shoes. M+R Spedag Group is a long-standing and proud logistics partner

of the company for the goods fl ow from East Asia to the USA and Europe. Skechers runs an enormous distribution

center outside Los Angeles, from where the entire North American market is served. Daniel Richner, owner and CEO

of the M+R Spedag Group, went to Skechers recently where he met with Paul K. Galliher, Senior Vice President, and

toured the facility.

Skechers USA, Inc., with its head offi ce in Manhattan Beach,

California, designs, develops and markets a wide range of

lifestyle footwear for men, women and children, as well as

performance shoes for men and women. The business was

founded in 1992 and in a relatively short time became one of

the leading companies in the branch. The market is aimed to

reach a trendy, style-conscious popolation and is renowned

for its commercials with well-known people from sports and

entertainment. M+R has been the logistics partner of Skech-

ers for many years now.

The Skechers North American distribution center is situ-

ated in Moreno Valley to the east of Los Angeles, a little more

than 100 km from the port of Long Beach. Although the

nearly one kilometer long, snow-white building stretching

along the Moreno Valley Freeway can be seen from afar, it still

fi ts nicely into the surrounding desert landscape. The dry cli-

mate is ideal for the storage of footwear, and from the point

of view of transport logistics the location is virtually optimal

for a gateway operation to distribute consumer goods to the

whole of America. Any locality in North America can be sup-

plied by truck within a maximum of three days. No wonder

the area is developing rapidly and one logistics center after

another is being built.

With its 167,000 m2 fl oor space, the Skechers distribution

center can hold a total of two million pairs of shoes, and up

to a quarter of a million shoes can be dispatched daily from

the facility. Extrapolated to a full year, this means a turnover

of 100 million pairs of shoes! In average, 30 to 40 containers

of freshly imported shoes are unloaded at the Distribution

Center, day after day.

PANORAMA 7

Eco-Factsheet Skechers Distribution Center

• 26’000 m2 of solar power generation systems on the roof

• The lighting in the interior of the facility is regulated by motion

sensors and operates as needed. The lighting system is partly

powered by solar panels.

• A warehouse ventilation system utilizes outside air drawn

through louvers facing the prevailing winds, increasing the

effi ciency of the heating and cooling systems.

• A solar refl ective white “cool roof” and light colored on-site

pavement helps to reduce heat, thus saving energy needed

for cooling the facility and in turn having a positive impact on

global warming.

• The landscaping around the building is based on water ef-

fi cient and drought tolerant plants, which reduces irrigation by

50 percent compared to a lawn

• A water pollution prevention program captures and treats

storm water runoff from 90 percent of annual rainfall

• For the construction special eco-friendly colors, glues and seal-

ing material was used

• Low-emitting paints, coatings, glues, and sealants that comply

with LEED standards were used during construction

• Recycled and regional building materials were sourced within

500 miles of the construction site. The majority of on-site

construction waste materials were recycled as well

Inside, the facility is divided into two main sections. In one

of these lies the goods reception and the main warehouse

for shoes in large boxes; in the other the shoes are repacked

and labelled before being loaded onto a truck at one of the

80 loading bays. Within the plant where 750 employees work,

shoes are moved around by a modern conveyor with an inte-

grated, automatic sorting system.

The Skechers distribution center is not only the largest

of its type, but also counts as one of the most modern, eco-

friendly warehouses in the USA. It is in any case the largest

with the ‘LEED’ (Leadership in Energy and Environmental De-

sign) certifi cation awarded in the USA.

Chad Sprecher, Los Angeles

AFRICA

8 PANORAMA

HYDROPOWER ON THE RIO CUANZAAngola is the third largest economy in sub-Saharan Africa. Measured by its natural resources and prime petroleum

reserves, this country in the south-west of the continent belongs to the richest countries in Africa. After decades of

civil war, Angola has today noticeably come to the attention of foreign investors and in the past few years has re-

corded a strong economic upswing.

The current economic growth of Angola is the strongest

in Africa. However, the inadequate power supply – hardly

30% of the population has access to electricity – is a great

obstacle to further expansion. And the need for energy is in-

creasing with the continuing economic growth, especially in

and around the capital, Luanda. The Government of Angola

has now tackled an ambitious project to massively expand

the country’s power supply. The percentage of people with

access to the power supply should be doubled by 2025.

The target is to increase the production of electricity from

the present 2,000 megawatts to 9,000 megawatts over the

coming 12 years. To this end, the country – with 24 million

inhabitants – is building a total of 15 new power plants, of

which one is the Lauca power plant on the River Cuanza in

the northwest. With six turbines, the power plant should one

day furnish over 2,000 megawatts and thus enough electric-

ity for 750,000 households. The project is already in full swing;

so as to be able to build a dam across the valley, two tunnels

had fi rst to be dug to enable the River Cuanza to be diverted

during the construction work. This initial step was completed

in autumn 2014 and work on the dam could begin. The tech-

nical equipment for producing power, i.e. turbines, genera-

tors etc. for the plant were supplied by ANDRITZ HYDRO, a

company belonging to the Austrian Andritz Group. Andritz

Hydro again charged Spedag Interfreight with the transport

of its machines and equipment, including consignments

from Germany, Portugal, Austria, Hungary and Mexico. Ship-

ping is of normal containerisable goods as well as oversized

and heavy items; the latter can only be carried as specialized

transport. The shipments will last from the beginning of 2015

until probably spring 2017; the fi rst shipments have already

been successfully delivered to the construction site.

As with every large project, thorough investigations

and analyses were carried out in advance. In particular, the

most suitable equipment for transporting oversized or heavy

goods must be chosen and the route to be taken checked

PANORAMA 9

carefully. An important aspect is the provision of transport

and other documents required by Angolan law. Especially in

connection with the import customs clearance, all the docu-

ments had to be checked by the local representatives of the

Spedag Interfreight Project Team in the port of Luanda.

A delivery for the hydroelectric powerstation is being transshipped at the port of Luanda

Spedag Interfreight put a new web-based communication

platform into operation for the Lauca project that makes it

possible for the parties involved to provide and exchange in-

formation, status, data etc. through the internet, regardless of

their location.Stefan Krattiger, Muttenz

Energy Production in Africa

Power generation in Africa has seen a remarkable growth in past

years. Yet still some 590 million people across sub-saharan Africa

live without access to electric power. Entire regions simply go dark

when the sun sets in the evening. More than 80 percent of the

population cooks their food using open fi res fueled by wood and

charcoal. But even a hookup to the national power grid does not

guarantee a steady source of power.

More than half of the countries in Africa have been going through

severe energy crises, or are experiencing them right now. And a

population growth of over 2 percent combined with an economic

growth of up to 7 percent result in demand for power outpacing

the building of new power plants or the extension of the power

grid. Chronic shortcuts in power supply put a serious damper on

eff orts to fi ght poverty and advancements in sustainable develop-

ment.

Electrifi cation in sub-saharan Africa is at an average of just about

26 percent, compared to an average of 95 percent in Northern Af-

rica. Reliable and suffi cient power supply is an important factor

for reaching the Millennium Development Goals set by the United

Nations. To cope with this situation, the African Union (AU) has de-

veloped a strategy on how to upgrade national and transregional

power infrastructure across Africa over the coming years. Power

sources are spread unevenly. To develop and make accessible the

most economical and also ecological of them would require to set

up a grid that crosses borders and spans an entire region. A region-

al market for energy would enable the trading of electricity among

African nations, or potentially also with Northern Africa and even

Europe.

10

CELEBRATION: 25 YEARS IN SOUTHEAST ASIA25 years ago, M+R Asia ventured into Southeast Asia and opened branches in Thailand and Indonesia. Over a

quarter of a century, they have developed into important pillars of the organization. The economy of Southeast

Asia is growing at a steady pace, and the region is generally seen as one of the rising stars in the world economy.

Today, M+R is represented in Southeast Asia not only in Thailand and Indonesia, but also in Singapore, Malaysia

and Vietnam. In November of last year, we have celebrated the anniversary with events in Bangkok and Jakarta.

ASIA

PANORAMA 11PANORAMAAMAORO 11111

THE IRON SILK ROAD The new Trans Eurasia Express now brings goods to Europe over the continental bridge at comparable prices to

traditional sea transport – but twice as fast. The key to smooth handling is an experienced international partner like

M+R, who goes the extra mile for its customers.

ASIA

12 PANORAMA12 PANORAMA

(12,000 km) and Kazakhstan (10,500) considerably short-

ens the transport times for goods from central and western

China. From an ecological point of view as well, rail transport

makes sense: according to the DB Environment Center, the

CO2 emissions for rail freight from China are 95% lower than

with airfreight (with predominantly electric traction and tak-

ing into consideration the various energy mixes of the transit

countries).

Direct trains from Chongqing to Duisburg have been in

existence since August 2014. In this way, goods from West

China reach Russian markets in two weeks and Western Eu-

rope a couple of days later. This is an interesting alternative for

urgent industrial goods, building materials, chemicals or food

– although in reasonable quantities. There is no competition

with sea freight because of the volume: the capacity of a train

is around 100 TEU (twenty foot equivalent units), whereas a

container ship carries up to 14,000 TEU. The sea journey from

Shanghai to Rotterdam takes some six weeks; with compara-

tive costs, rail delivery off ers a great advantage to customers

who are unwilling to pay for airfreight that is fi ve times more

expensive.

How quickly the goods actually arrive depends on the

interaction between the parties when loading, dealing with

customs clearance and handling. For the urgent delivery of

pumps to Whirlpool France, the M+R offi ce in Chongqing

coordinated the freight ex works and the loading on route

to Germany. The French partners ECT were kept informed

daily of the train’s position: which stations had been passed

and the distance still to be travelled to the destination. At

the point of arrival in Duisburg, M+R’s partner network once

again showed itself to be a market advantage. Interfracht

In autumn 2014, the production plants of Whirlpool, a lead-

ing European producer of household appliances, were faced

with a problem: the factory in Amiens, France, needed com-

pressors and pumps for its clothes dryers as quickly as pos-

sible from its Chinese suppliers in Chongqing, but was reluc-

tant to pay the additional cost of shipping by air.

The logistics partners of Whirlpool, Group ECT, turned to

M+R China with this complex demand for delivery time and

price, who then proposed using the Trans Eurasia Express that

has been running regularly since 2010. After a thorough ex-

amination the customer agreed to commission ECT and M+R

for this – for him – fi rst operation of this type. As it turned out,

Whirlpool hit the bullseye with this concept and the experi-

enced partners.

3,000 kilometers west of Shanghai, at the confl uence of

the Yangtzekiang and Jialing, lies Chongqing, one of the larg-

est and fastest-growing cities in the world. The administra-

tive area of this 30-million metropolis occupies 82,000 square

kilometers – nearly the size of Austria. In this industrial center

of south-west China are located a myriad of export-oriented

concerns and suppliers for automotive construction and

mechanical engineering, chemical, electronic and high-tech

industries. Like Whirlpool, half the ‘Fortune 500’ companies

have a branch in the area and manufacture here. Thousands

of goods containers leave Chongqing every day eastwards,

to the Chinese seaports. Rail transport there takes three days.

Since 2012, however, more and more train containers

head directly westwards. In three days the Trans Eurasia Ex-

press has already covered half its distance through China.

Compared with the well-known Trans-Siberian route (about

13,000 km), the new rail network with lines via Mongolia

ROTTERDAM

DUISBURG

HAMBURG

BERLIN

BRESTMOSCOW

PANORAMAPANORAMA 13

Germany and Intertrans Belgium ensured that the complex

customs clearance was handled rapidly and the goods sent

on time to Whirlpool for fi nal assembly in Amiens.

After this positive experience a further rail convoy was

ordered for Amiens, this time with 20-foot containers from a

factory in Shanghai. This operation was handled by the offi ce

of M+R Forwarding Bejing. As it turned out, however, dur-

ing the peak season from October to December, only 40-foot

containers could be loaded in Zhengzhou central station. The

supplier then had to rearrange the goods’ placement, but

was thereby able to load onto an earlier train than planned. In

this way the delivery time could be shortened by another few

days, and the container reached Amiens in good time, de-

spite a railway workers’ strike in Germany and a public holiday

in France. A further groupage freight delivery from Zheng-

zhou went as smoothly and was confi rmation for Whirlpool

that their choice had been the right one.Fabienne Rossignol

ECT S.A., Le Havre

Movie recommendation

In 1985, Marty McFly used a time ma-

chine - a DeLorean sports car with a built

in “Flux Compensator” - to travel back 30

years in time to 1955. In the second epi-

sode of the fi lm trilogy, Marty travels 30

years into the future, to visit us in the year

2015.

Many of us know and love this classic fi lm

- the biggest hit at the box offi ces in 1985.

3D Printing, the topic of our guest article in this Panorama epi-

sode, is no less futuristic than some of the devices we have saw

in Back to the Future. Maybe we will all still be around to see the

Flux Compensator?

Back to the Future 1 - 3

Michael J. Fox, Christopher Lloyd

YEKATERINBURG

OMSK

PETROPAVL

ASTANA

NOVOSIBIRSK

IRKUTSK

ULAANBAATAR

BEIJING

SHANGHAI

CHONGQING

URUMQI

ALASHANKOU

WUWEI

SHIJIAZHUANG

XIAN

Trans-Siberian Route

Trans-Mongolian Route

China - Kazakhstan Route

HEAVY LIFT

PANORAMA

HOVERCRAFT FOR HEAVY LIFTSThe challenge: A machine weighing 90 tons sitting inside a factory workshop has to be moved outside and lifted on

to a lowbed chassis. The ceiling crane cannot hold the weight of the machine, and the building is to small as that a

mobile crane could be brought in to lift the machine. The solution: Using hovercraft technology, the machine can

be pulled to outdoors where there is enough room for the mobile crane to lift the machine on to the waiting vehicle.

14

The machines is ready for

loading inside the workshop.

Weighing 90 tons, the ma-

chine is too heavy for the ceil-

ing crane.

Using a total of eight «hover-

boards», an air cushion is to

be generated underneath the

machine, strong enough to lift

the machine!

A hydraulic jack is used to lift the machine, making

room for the boards to be placed underneath

The individual boards are positioned so that the entire weight of the machine

will be evenly spread.

Once in place, the boards are connected

to a compressor with pressure hoses. At

the bottom of each board is a ring-shaped

rubber gasket, creating a seal between

the board and the factory fl oor. The air

cushion will build up inside this ring. The

cushion will lift the machine just enough

so that it «fl oats» on the air cushions. The

remaining friction with the ground has

been reduced to a level where the ma-

chine can be pulled and shifted with mini-

mal eff ort.

15PANORAMA

A tractor hooks up to the front of the

machine to pull it, while another truck in

the back will exert a minor pull in the op-

posite direction. This is necessary in order

to avoid the machine swerving sideways

when being pulled. The speed of the ma-

neuver is kept at a crawl.

The hovercraft technique requires a clean, even and smooth sur-

face. Where necessary, a «glide path» made of sheet metal is laid

down.

As the sheet metal is not anchored to the fl oor, it can happen that

during the move the sheet is accidentally pulled up and needs to

be fl attened again

Success! The machine has been moved out of the building. From here, two mobile cranes are taking over to lift the machine on to the

waiting lowbed chassis.

EXPANSION INTO VIETNAMThe spring of 2015 saw the opening of M+R Forwarding Co. Ltd., Vietnam, the most recent country organization

within the M+R network in Asia. With its own offi ces in Ho Chi Minh City and Hanoi and a supporting offi ce in the

port of Haiphong, it has since off ered all transportation and logistics services for in- and outbound shipments, by

airfreight and sea freight.

ASIA

16 PANORAMA

Vietnam can look back on a considerable economic upswing

over the past 30 years. This started with the ‘economic revival’

at the end of the 1980s and then, after the resumption of dip-

lomatic relations with the USA some 20 years ago and the

resultant lifting of economic sanctions, went ahead at light-

ning speed.

In the past 10 years, Vietnam’s economy has grown on av-

erage by 6.4% per year. The country, with 91 million inhabit-

ants, has also had great success in the fi ght against poverty

and the development of a health system. With its relatively

low labor costs Vietnam enjoys a continuously growing fl ow

of investments from abroad. In exports, the textile segment

is market leader. Vietnam is consistently becoming more im-

portant as a location for the electronics industry. Major Japa-

nese and South Korean companies are increasingly selecting

this country as an alternative location to China for the manu-

facture of their products.

M+R has been working in Vietnam for many years with a local

network as partners. Three years ago a commercial delega-

tion was set up in Ho Chi Minh City and in March this year an

operational company was established. With the simultaneous

opening of offi ces in the metropole Ho Chi Minh City and the

capital Hanoi, with a total staff of 40, this was the largest new

opening in the history of M+R Asia.

The complete switch of all operational logistics services

for the whole country from a local partner to our own organi-

zation, in one swoop, was obviously planned well in advance.

In the course of the preparations a local company was regis-

tered and all the necessary licenses applied for from the ap-

propriate authorities. Renting and equipping suitable offi ce

premises, setting up hardware and installing our fi rm’s own

systems, as well as recruiting professionals, obviously all took

time. One of the most important aspects of the preparations,

and therefore one of the most diffi cult, was training staff . Of

M+R THAILAND OPENS NEW OFFICE

In June of this year, M+R Thailand has opened up a new offi ce

in Laem Chabang. The opening comes in response to the strong

growth in Southeast Asia, and is a further step in the company’s

expansion in Asia. Laem Chabang is located some 130 km south-

west of Bangkok, the capital city of Thailand. It is the country’s

only deep water port, and is the most important gateway for sea

freight cargo moving in and out of Thailand. Handling over 6

million TEUs per annum, the port ranks No. 22 on the list of the

world’s largest container ports. The new M+R offi ce is staff ed by

a professional team of experts, serving local clients directly and

also acting as a link to customs, port authorities and terminal

operators, boosting M+R Thailand’s service qualities even further.

17PANORAMA

M+R TIANJIN RELOCATION

In early October this year, M+R Tianjin has moved to a new and

bigger location.

The port of Tianjin, situated at the mouth of the river Hai He is one

of China’s largest ports, and is serving not only nearby Beijing, but

is an important gateway for large parts of Northern China. The

port is located some 50 km from the center of Tianjin, a city of

some 6 million people. Tianjin is also an important traffi c hub for

railways and road traffi c. Over the past two decades, the city has

developed to an important logistics center for the entire region.

M+R Tianjin was opened in the year 2000, and was one of M+R’s

fi rst offi ces in China

course these were all sector insiders, but they still had to be

trained in our systems as well as becoming familiarized with

our internal processes and procedures so that from the very

fi rst day our customers and partners could be given the ser-

vice they know and appreciate from our company, and to

ensure a smooth transition to the new M+R Forwarding Co

Ltd. Vietnam.

After a successful changeover, M+R Vietnam today of-

fers a complete range of services. The new country organiza-

tion reports to the regional management of M+R Singapore.

Singapore has a very special function as logistics hub for sea

freight transport to and from Southeast Asia. These days, the

big shipping companies call only at the most important ports

in Asia. This means that these ports now have a hub function

and take containers by so-called feeder ships to the regional

harbors where the large ships no longer call. For Southeast

Asia Singapore is this hub and serves as the transhipment

port for containers to Indonesia, Thailand, Vietnam, Cambo-

dia, etc.

It is now nearly half a year since M+R Vietnam started op-

erations. After a hectic initial phase, the offi cial inauguration

ceremonies will take place this November. We look forward

to telling you about this event in the next issue of Panorama. Stephan Schneider, Muttenz

18 PANORAMA

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY

“THE MOST FULFILLING YEARS OF MY LIFE”In the fall of 2014, on the occasion of its 25-year anniversary in Southeast Asia, the M+R Spedag Group decided to

sponsor the ‘Future for Children’ project in Muntigunung, Bali. This Swiss Foundation has been working since 2005

in the extremely dry and poor northeastern region of Bali. With a whole range of projects the Foundation works to

improve the standard of living for 5,500 inhabitants in this disadvantaged region of Bali. The following interview

with Daniel Elber, the founder and driving force behind the Foundation, recently appeared in the Swiss magazine

‘HANDELSZEITUNG’

You worked as a banker for 35 years, and in the end headed

1,200 employees at the UBS. Why did you give all that up to

work with impoverished children?

Daniel Elber: I liked being a banker. However, by the end of

the 90s I got the feeling that the sector was changing. The

focus was no longer primarily on customer needs, but rather

on selling products. Benefi ting the public had been lost sight

of, and that was for me the real purpose of a bank.

And then you decided to opt out?

I was 52 at that time. I wanted to shape the rest of my produc-

tive life really more usefully. In 2003 there was reorganization

at the UBS and I realized that this was the moment to go. It

was now or never!

You actually came to Bali for one year, to think about how

your life should go. When did you realize that you wanted

to stay here?

I was stranded in Ubud, a town in the center of the island, and

I noticed begging women with children. We know Bali as a

fl owery tropical paradise, and the people are family oriented.

Why did anyone have to beg? It worried me and I went deep-

er into the matter; in the mountains in the Muntigunung re-

gion I saw a diff erent Bali: dry, barren, almost like a desert. The

people there live in dusty huts and own nothing. 9% of the

children die before they are fi ve.

And you couldn’t forget these people?

I wanted to help them. My time-out break turned into a new

mission in life.

For the past ten years you have been working with the ‘Fu-

ture for Children’ Foundation in Bali. Has it been worth it?

What results have there been?

I was terribly naïve and thought everything would go faster.

I’m an optimist. But these village people are under-devel-

oped, under-nourished and think diff erently. These are things

I just couldn’t get my mind round, coming from Switzerland.

My conclusion is that everything takes longer, but it does fi -

nally happen – and that’s the most important thing! I’m very

enthusiastic about what we do, and am happy about what

we’ve managed to realize. But satisfi ed? I won’t be satisfi ed

until I’ve achieved all the targets.

What does that mean in practical terms?

6,000 people in 36 mountain villages have no water, no work,

and no education. They

suff er from disease and

under-nourishment. In

19 villages we have put

up rainwater tanks to en-

sure water supplies and

taught the locals how to

catch water, retain it for

the eight month-long dry

season, and keep it clean.

This is not luxurious water

coming out of a tap, but the water no longer causes sickness

and nobody has to walk for fi ve hours to fetch 10 liters of wa-

ter from the nearest lake.

Can you use any of the managerial characteristics from

your UBS time in Bali?

Yes, the ability to recognize and encourage the strong points

of individuals. Networked thinking, motivating people, a pas-

sionate commitment to the job – only in this way could I

manage to make any diff erence here.

Which factor was most important for you to be taken seri-

ously here?

The banking profession taught me that every problem can

be solved if you understand what it is and work together with

the right people. The most important decision was to work in

collaboration with the local Indonesian NGO (Non-Profi t Or-

ganization) Dian Desa. This partner carries out the projects on

the ground, Indonesians talk to Indonesians. If I managed the

projects myself, we would be doomed to failure.

So you’re the manager who holds everything together in

the background?

I’m responsible for the networking, and present our project

to western hotel managers and Swiss companies. I speak the

same language and know precisely how a Swiss manager

thinks – after all, I was a part of that culture myself for many

years.

Were you a strict boss in Switzerland?

I think most of my employees liked me as boss. I like people,

enjoy contact with them, I’m interested in them. And I have

confi dence in my staff to do things themselves. Trust in peo-

ple is as encouraging in Bali as it is in Switzerland. People are

Daniel Elber

PANORAMA 19

then really involved in the tasks and can develop their own

capabilities.

How can you motivate the people who often live in dread-

ful conditions?

A good example is hygiene, which was a really diffi cult prob-

lem. And with a moralizing tone you won’t get far. We under-

stood how to show people what their own potential was; in

workshops we explained that they would get ill if they did

their business just around the house. Every family had to

think about it: how can we solve this problem? Can we get a

toilet and what sort?

And did it work?

Each family that built its own toilet was photographed with it.

This photo was put up as a poster in the center of the village,

and everyone who passed by saw it, including the people

who didn’t yet have one. It was really motivating.

The toilet became a status symbol?

Yes, and they were really proud to have solved the problem

by themselves, in their own way. We want to give them re-

sponsibility for their own lives, and fi nd appropriate solutions

together. As a beggar you are used just to hold your hand

out, begging for alms, and we want to change this mentality

as time goes on.

Were there also managerial characteristics that tended to

stand in your way?

In the old days I wanted to do every task 100 percent well.

I still want to do this, but in Bali nothing happens as we’re

used to it in Switzerland. You just have to learn the hard way

to be happy to take small steps forwards. First of all 80 per-

cent is OK, then perhaps 81, then 82. Otherwise the system

is overwhelmed. I had to lower my expectations, and there

the Swiss manager inside me wasn’t happy. However, with

time you learn to deal with things calmly – in fact, become

a bit Balinese.

Are you planning to go back to Switzerland one day?

I won’t be able to aff ord to go back completely. My pension

fund will be exhausted in seven years time, and then I’ll be

70 and have only my old-age pension to live off . But if the

project can by then be run autonomously by the locals, I’ll

be happy.

Is there anything you regret?

Well, courage and doubt were often close, but I don’t regret a

single thing. If you feel you’re doing things every day that you

really don’t enjoy doing, then it’s time to change! The years on

Bali were the most fulfi lling of my life.

Interview: Sira Huwiler. Erschienen in der HANDELSZEITUNG vom 3.9.2015

www.muntigunung.com

The aim of the aid project in Muntigunung is for people to take res-

ponsibility for their own lives, to generate income themselves. Various

projects include cultivating and processing Rosella (above), Cashew

nuts and Palm Sugar

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