Tobacco Asia

44 tobaccoasia / Issue 4, 2018 September / October When the sourcing of raw material supplies stalls or if a lack of stored raw materials creates sudden bottlenecks, production slows or may even have to be halted temporarily. Ensuring that new supplies are flowing and enough tobacco is always available are therefore indispensable aspects in keeping fac- tory floors humming. Likewise, tobacco shipments may have to be shifted in a timely manner between different manufacturing locations that sometimes can be countries, regions or even continents apart. This is where dedicated logistics providers come in, supporting their tobacco industry customers through expertise, professionalism and well-oiled forwarding and warehousing systems. Andromeda: focusing on tobacco since 2006 Dutch company Andromeda Participations BV runs three operational centers, in Rotterdam (its home base), Antwerp, and Dubai. While the Rotterdam location only provides forwarding services, Dubai and Antwerp are fully operating warehousing and forwarding logistics centers. Although the compa- ny's core business traditionally has been in the area of frozen foods-forwarding, it some time ago began specializing in handling all types of tobacco. "In or- der to survive in the forwarding business, one must focus on a particular industry and its commodities. Therefore, we have been focusing on tobacco since 2006," reasons director Erik van Nueten. Although Andromeda today controls about 35,000 sq.m. of storage space, the company does not actually own any of its warehouses but in- stead has taken out long-term leases with third- party warehouse owners. "These warehouses," van Nueten assures, "are fully equipped and fit- ted especially for tobacco storage, which means they impart infestation control, humidity control, monitoring and fumigation facilities." They also are properly cleaned on a daily basis and any dam- age is repaired without delay. Tobacco Logistics and Warehousing: Smoothing the Way By Thomas Schmid Forwarding and warehousing are two of the most important aspects to ensure a smooth production flow in the tobacco industry. Tobacco Asia picks the brains of some providers. Loading dock at Krishnapatnam Port Container Terminal

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