Category: Cold Chain

Hedehusene, Denmark: Fast-growing Danish freight forwarder DSV is to acquire DB Schenker from Deutsche Bahn in a deal worth €14.3bn ($15.8bn).

The acquisition will be the biggest by a Danish company and, according to DSV, skyrocket it above DHL Logistics and Swiss group Kuehne+ Nagel in both volume and revenue, but will still only give the group between 6% and 7% of a highly fragmented global logistics market.

“In addition to greater reach and better opportunities to serve its customers, the acquisition strengthens DSV’s platform for growth and the development of a more sustainable and digital transport and logistics industry,” says a statement from DSV.

Jens H Lund, group chief executive of DSV, said: “This is a transformative event in DSV’s history, and we are very excited to join forces with Schenker. With the acquisition we bring together two strong companies, creating a world-leading transport and logistics powerhouse that will benefit our employees, customers and shareholders.”

“By adding Schenker’s competencies and expertise to our existing network, we improve our competitiveness across all three divisions: Air & Sea, Road, and Solutions. As well as enhancing our commercial platform across DSV, the acquisition will provide our customers with even higher service levels, innovative and seamless solutions and flexibility to their supply chains.”

Jochen Thewes, chief executive at Schenker, said: “DB Schenker is one of the most powerful and innovative teams in transportation and logistics with more than 150 years of experience. The recent years have been the most successful in our company’s history and we have proven that DB Schenker is fit for the future. Together with DSV, our goal is to transform the industry and build a truly global market leader with joint European roots for the best of our employees and our customers.”

In 2019 DSV completed the acquisition of Swiss logistics group Panalpina, creating the world’s fourth largest freight-forwarding company.

Completion of the transaction is expected in Q2 2025.

London, UK: Trade union Usdaw has won a Supreme Court battle against Tesco over so-called proposals to ‘fire and rehire’ workers on less favourable terms. This was the final stage of a long-running legal battle in England – a similar case involving workers at the Livingston site has been stayed in the Scottish courts.

Usdaw took legal action over the supermarket chain’s proposals to fire staff at Daventry and Lichfield distribution centres and rehire them on lower pay in 2021. The case affects roughly 50 people who work in those centres. After the High Court ruled in the union’s favour in 2022, Tesco successfully appealed against the decision the same year. The union then took the case to the country’s highest court, with five Supreme Court justices ruling unanimously that Tesco should be blocked from dismissing the staff.

The case arose after Tesco planned to close some of its distribution centres in 2007 and offered staff ‘retained pay’ for them to relocate. In 2021, the chain wanted to bring ‘retained pay’ to an end and told staff that the enhancement would be removed in return for a lump sum, or their contracts would be terminated and then reoffered on the same terms, but without the increased salary. Usdaw argued that ‘retained pay’ was described as ‘permanent’ in the workers’ contracts, meaning it could not be removed.

The Supreme Court judges ruled that it was “inconceivable” that both Tesco and the union members intended for the supermarket to have the right to fire workers and rehire them on lower pay “whenever it suited Tesco’s business purposes to do so”.

Paddy Lillis, Usdaw general secretary, said: “Usdaw has been determined to stand by its members in receipt of this valuable benefit that constituted a key component of their pay. We recognised that they had been afforded this payment because of their willingness to serve the business and it was on that basis that we agreed with Tesco that it should be a permanent right.

“When we said permanent, we meant just that. We were therefore appalled when Tesco threatened these individuals with fire and rehire to remove this benefit. These sorts of tactics have no place in industrial relations, so we felt we had to act to protect those concerned.

“We were very disappointed with the outcome in the Court of Appeal but always felt we had to see this case through. We are therefore delighted to get this outcome, which is a win for the trade union movement as a whole.”

Neil Todd, a partner at law firm Thompsons Solicitors, which represented Usdaw, says: “This is a fantastic judgement for Usdaw and the members concerned. Those in receipt of retained pay were promised unequivocally that they would be afforded a permanent benefit under their employment contract if they agreed to remain with the business and support it when it needed them most.

“They were then threatened with ‘fire and rehire’ when Tesco considered that the benefit had served its purpose. This decision illustrates that a court will intervene to give effect to the parties’ intentions when entering into a contract. It also demonstrates that a right to an injunction is available regarding a breach of contract of employment when damages are not an adequate remedy, as was the case here.

“The injunction will prevent this important right from being stripped away. The litigation has been hard fought, but we are delighted to achieve an outcome that we consider just in all circumstances.”

Blue Cube PCS has launched its new blast freezer that significantly reduces energy consumption and costs while also giving back to charity.

Manufactured in the UK, the all-new InnoBlast™ incorporates unprecedented levels of thermal efficiency and is predicted will save customers around 10% in energy costs – a figure that could easily translate to thousands of pounds per unit annually.

In addition, for every InnoBlast™ unit taken on, they will donate to worthy grassroots projects across the world through a new partnership with charity B1G1 – Buy One, Give One. 

Managing Director Alan Hunt said: “The InnoBlast™ will transform results for our customers across the Food, Distribution, Pharmaceuticals and Manufacturing sectors.

“Our trials have shown it will freeze faster, more consistently across products and use less energy. 

“That combination will give our customers back valuable time and money which will make a significant impact to their business, today and in the future.

“By also supporting B1G1 charities, the InnoBlast™ will create life-changing results for children and families across the world, today and in the future.”

Each InnoBlast™ features a unique and innovative air flow system including ceiling vents that create air ‘curtains’, blasting cold air directly to pallets below.

Tests to date have demonstrated this new design is between 10 and 12 per cent faster at freezing than existing methods – figures expected to be validated during our forthcoming customer trials.

Every other component of the fire retardant InnoBlast™ has also been improved compared to its predecessor, resulting in improved safety, increased product longevity and a unit that is easier to use, maintain and clean.

A full-length dynamic lighting system immediately alerts direct users to any issues, a newly defined floor structure makes the InnoBlast™ much easier to load, and additional features including internal cameras, energy monitoring, automated temperature management and a live data dashboard all come as standard.

Phil Pluck, Chief Executive of the Cold Chain Federation said: “Our figures show that in the six years between 2016 and 2023, electricity costs rose 183 per cent. That has had a significant impact on everyone in the cold chain.

“Blue Cube’s launch of InnoBlast™, which promises to make blast freezing faster and cheaper, could not come at a better time.

“Making this process more cost effective will also enable companies that use Innoblast™ to add to their efforts to move towards a more sustainable future and so I applaud Blue Cube in creating an innovative product that moves the industry forward.”

InnoBlast™ was officially launched at the Cold Chain Live conference, held at the Telford International Centre, where every conversation about InnoBlast™ resulted in a donation to a B1G1 project linked to cold chain customer activities including giving families clean water, children nutritious food and hospitals much needed medical supplies.

Co-founder of B1G1, Masami Sato, said: “All of our projects in B1G1 are linked to the17 Sustainable Development Goals designed to end poverty, fight inequality and injustice and tackle climate change. 

“Some people think meeting these challenges will require huge action in years to come. In fact, they will only be tackled if we start taking action now.  

“That’s what Blue Cube is doing. They are a team intent on making a difference today.

“Their insight, hard work and new technology is shaping the cold chain industry.   

“By supporting B1G1 projects, Blue Cube and their customers are also making life-changing differences to children and families across the world. This truly is innovation that gives back. We are so grateful.”

Plainfield, Indiana, USA: MD Logistics is converting half of it largest warehouse into cGMP warehouse space to meet growing demand from the life sciences and pharmaceutical industry,

John Sell, president, MD Logistics, said: “The need for cGMP compliant, temperature controlled facilities has never been greater in the life sciences and pharmaceutical industry. That’s why we are pleased to be adding 200,000 square feet  of state-of-the-art temperature controlled warehouse space through the upgrade of our largest in-network facility located in Plainfield, Indiana. This space will also include a 40,000 square foot, 2-8C cooler to store our client’s temperature sensitive product.”

Construction on the pharmaceutical coldstore began earlier this year with conversion anticipated to be completed by the end of the year.

“We have been fielding requests for additional capacity from new and existing clients, alike,  for quite some time now,” said Chad Hodges, vice president of life sciences and pharmaceutical operations.”

MD Logistics was acquired by Nippon Express in 2020.

Colchester, Essex, UK: Pilgrim Foodservice has officially opened its new depot in Colchester. It will enable Pilgrim Foodservice to expand its operations, ensuring more efficient deliveries of its products and services across Essex, Suffolk, and London.

Charles Bateman, managing director of Pilgrim Foodservice said: “The positive customer feedback we’ve received since the depot started operating reflects the dedication of our Colchester team, and the ribbon-cutting ceremony felt like the perfect way to celebrate this exciting new chapter.”

One long-standing customer said: “The new Colchester depot has significantly improved how we purchase our stock. The quality and freshness of the products are second to none, and we’ve noticed that all of our deliveries are arriving earlier which is great for us.”

Pilgrim Foodservice supplies a wide range of products, from fresh produce and pantry essentials to premium meats from the company’s in-house butchery, C.J. Butchers. The company delivers these products to independent restaurants, hotels, and cafés across East Anglia, the East and West Midlands, Yorkshire and the Humber, and London.

Pictured above are: Mayor of Colchester, councillor Lesley Scott-Boutell, who opened the site, with the Pilgrim Foodservice team

Haslingden, UK: Solomon Commercials has begun work on a new factory replacing the preparation and fabrication factory destroyed by fire fire on the Carrs Industrial Estate in Haslingden.

The fire occurred in June 2023, but following recent demolition, construction has begun on a new 20,000sq ft factory that will be operational later this year.

Anthony Clegg, managing director, Solomon Commercials said: “Without doubt, the fire caused upheaval within the business and reduced our manufacturing capacity and capability, but more importantly, we’re relieved that nobody was harmed.

“It’s a testament to our people that we were able to respond quickly and reorganise our manufacturing estate to ensure we could still engineer and produce the quality refrigerated vehicles we’ve become known for.

“While the fire presented a challenge to our business, we also saw it as an opportunity to review our manufacturing processes. Consequently, we have been able to invest in new machinery and implement new working practices that will make us more productive.

“Once the work is complete, we’ll return to our optimum output.”

Bonn, Germany: DHL Supply Chain has appointed Andries Retief as chief commercial officer for the EMEA region (Europe, Middle East, and Africa). He took up his role on 1 September.

Retief will focus on customer-centric supply chain strategies, developing 23 key markets and strengthening services for small and medium-sized enterprises

Retief joined DHL Supply Chain in 2009 and served in various leadership positions across finance, transport, operations, and country management in Africa, Europe, and Asia. Most recently, he led DHL Supply Chain in Southeast Asia, where he spearheaded the company’s accelerated growth initiatives in multiple countries.

“With the growth opportunities here, from multi-sector industries, strategic locations to rapid urbanization and increasing consumer demand, our customers rely on our solutions to simplify and scale their contract logistics operations,” said Retief.

An immediate key focus will be on the peak season, one of the biggest annual challenges for the logistics industry.

“We anticipate the peak period starting earlier this year where our e-commerce & omni-channel, returns operations including aftermarket business, serve in full gear.

“The primary focus will be ensuring scalable capacity for our customers through our network of warehouses, transportation, and value-added services to quickly accommodate fluctuating volumes. Our goal is to collaborate closely with our customers to develop sustainable supply chain strategies, through our Lead Logistics Partner offering, that allow businesses to confidently navigate the surge in demand during one of the most demanding times of the year.”

Bodmin, UK: Food wholesaler Bidfood has opened a 15,000sq ft depot in Bodmin, Cornwall, in a bid to ease the pressures on its Lee Mill depot in Devon. The company says the new site will cut delivery miles.

Bidfood is using vans initially for online deliveries to complement the road network in Cornwall and North Devon, with the aim of operating HGVS once the company has secured an ‘O’ licence for the site.

Richard Dow, business unit director for Chepstow, Swansea and Lee Mill, said: “As part of our strategy to grow sales and deliver service excellence to our customers, we’re always reviewing our infrastructure and where we can expand the local depot network.

“With that in mind, we recognised the opportunity to improve in the south west and I’m incredibly excited to assemble this new team to provide an even better service to the Devon and Cornwall area.”

Lutterworth, UK: Culina group business CML has opened a £2m chilled consolidation centre in Lutterworth to support the growth of Aldi and Lidl in the UK and Ireland. The company also operates a single site consolidation centre in Telford.

CML has created 140 jobs across warehousing, HGV driving and administration functions as a result of the move, and has already secured new customers for the centre, all of whom supply the discounters with chilled food and drink goods.

“Aldi and Lidl now jointly represent around 17.8% of the total food and drink retail market in the UK which is up from 13.6% just five years ago,” said Culina Group chilled division chief executive Steve Winwood.

“The new CML Chilled Consolidation Centre in Lutterworth has increased our capacity by over 40%.”

CML’s website states that the company “stores and delivers a wide variety of food products across the ambient and chilled temperature ranges, while it also offers a series of added value solutions”.