The rising demand for transport and logistics excellence – especially in the Asian market – was reflected in full at transport logistic China 2010 in Shanghai. This event attracted an increased number of visitors despite the severe downturn in the sector in 2009.

The 4th International Exhibition for Logistics, Telematics and Transport took place between 8 and 10 June 2010 at the Shanghai New International Expo Centre. It attracted 13,500 trade visitors from 67 countries. This is a rise of 20per cent compared to the last transport logistic China in 2008.

Said Eugen Egetenmeir, Managing Director of Messe München International (MMI), “At last the signs are now all pointing towards recovery. Transport Logistic China 2010 will, therefore, be able to pick up on the success of the last event. After two years of a severe downturn felt right across the transport sector, the fair has managed to equal the number of exhibitors and the amount of exhibition space it achieved in 2008".
For three days a veritable Who’s Who of the international transport and logistics sector converged on Shanghai for this industry gathering. Along with the German pavilion, which was supported by the German Federal Ministry of Economics, the trade fair also featured joint stands from the Czech Republic, France, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Russia and Spain.

Representatives from industry and politics underlined the significance of the exhibition for the transport and logistics sector: “Since 2004, transport logistic China has been regarded as Asia´s most influential event for the transport and logistics industry. As a barometer for the sector, it boosts development in the industry on the domestic front, and also plays an important role in strengthening international cooperation,” said Qian Yongchang, Chairman of the China Communications and Transportation Association (CCTA) at the opening ceremony of transport logistic China.
Andreas Scheuer, Parliamentary State Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Transport, Building and Urban Development in Germany, stated when opening the show: “I am convinced that transport logistic China will make an important contribution to the further development of freight transport and logistics processes in China and Germany, and I believe that it will also help to further intensify German-Chinese cooperation.”

Compared to the previous edition - which attracted 431 companies - the number of exhibitors in 2010 recorded even a slight increase despite last year's sharp decline of the sector. The exhibitors showcased their latest innovations as well as fast, safe and flexible solutions for the global movement of goods. Solomon Cai, CEO of Globelink China Logistics Co. Limited: “transport logistic China surpassed the last shows in many aspects. The international exhibitors are of a larger scale and higher level; many local companies joined the show for the first time, which is really positive for the Chinese domestic industry. The global transport and logistics industries are still experiencing the downturn after the financial crisis. However, as reflected by this exhibition, the industry is definitely coming back to recovery.”
The Czech Republic, France, Germany, Italy, Latvia, the Netherlands, Spain and Russia all presented their expertise in the sector at national pavilions. Bruno Le Gurun, Area Manager China of the Port of Le Havre, who took part in the French pavilion said: “In China there is for us only one exhibition to be at and that is transport logistic China. China is our first market, we need to be here.”

In particular the high profile of the local and international visitors came in for praise from the exhibitors this time: “transport logistic China has been a superbly efficient platform for international networking. The quality of the visitors was very good,” commented Markus Muecke, Corporate Commercial Air Manager and Senior Vice President of Panalpina Air & Ocean from Switzerland. Juan Manuel Gonzales, Managing Director of Hapag-Lloyd (Asia) in Singapore added: “transport logistic China reflected the dynamic of the Chinese market. It offered an excellent opportunity to meet the main players in the transport and logistics industry.”

The Air Cargo China exhibition, which was held as part of transport logistic China, attracted over 50 of the world’s leading airlines, airports, logistics hubs and aircraft manufacturers. Among this number were renowned companies like Air China, AirBridgeCargo, Air France Cargo-KLM Cargo, Alitalia, Avicon, Cargo Italia, Delta Cargo, Etihad, Eurex Airlines, Korean Air Cargo, Saudi Airlines, Shanghai Airlines, Thai Airways, Turkish Cargo, ULS Airlines and leading logistics hubs like the airports of Amsterdam, Atlanta, Frankfurt-Hahn, Moscow, Munich, Paris and Vienna, as well as leading aircraft manufacturers such as Boeing and EADS.

According to Ömer Faruk Kilic, Cargo Marketing Director, Turkish Airlines, Turkey, “The exhibition matched our expectations very well. This year we are going to expand our business in China.”
Besides the exhibition, the Air Cargo China Conference also served as a platform for discussing the latest developments and trends in the air cargo business with special reference to the growth market of Asia.
Among the exhibitors of maritime logistics section were Beluga Shipping, the world leader in project and heavy-lift shipping, the sea ports authorities of Bremen and Hamburg, each with a joint stand, duisport, the trading and transport hub in the Rhine-Ruhr region (Europe´s largest industrial conurbation), plus the ports of Riga (Latvia), Koper (Slovenia), Rijeka (Croatia), French ports such as Marseille, Le Havre, Bordeaux and Paris, the Dutch transport hubs of Amsterdam, Groningen and Rotterdam, and Italian ports such as Ravenna, Trieste and Venice. The International Tank Container Organisation (ITCO) and the Container Owners Association (COA) will be represented at a Container Pavilion. Also taking part in the event was the China Ocean Shipping Company (COSCO), China's largest supplier of container shipping.

Also represented at the fair were the world´s largest transport and logistics services suppliers – such as Agility Logistics, Dachser, Geodis, Kühne & Nagel, Panalpina and Schenker, as well as many small and medium-sized Chinese companies. Among the companies exhibiting IT and software solutions were Riege Software from Germany, Gillon from China and RedBerry from England.

"Today, as a sign of the upswing, we are seeing that Chinese exports are rising again, and that the market is recovering. For 2010 we are expecting further stabilisation in the market," said Robert Song, Vice President Asia & Pacific Region of the Russian air cargo carrier AirBridgeCargo. "We will of course be further expanding our business in China, ready for the time after the crisis."

A range of synergies have resulted from this timing – deriving also from the motto of Expo which is 'Better City, Better Life'. For what would such a giant display be without clever, efficient logistics? A shuttle bus service for the delegates was organised to visit the Expo 2010, leaving after the trade fair closed each day.
The event was also preview to the ACW World Air Cargo Awards 2010. The award ceremony held in the Pudong Shangri-La Hotel in Shanghai, saw the awards being awarded in 10 categories namely:

1.Cargo Airlines of the Year Award 2010: Emirates SkyCargo
2.Airfreight Forwarder of the Year 2010: Geodis Wilson
3.Intl. Express Operators of the Year 2010: FedEX
4.Air Cargo Handling Agent of the Year 2010: Swissport
5.Air Cargo Charter Broker of the Year 2010: Chapman Freeborn
6.Airport of the Year 2010 : Hartsfield Jackson Atlanta
7.Air Cargo General Sales Agent of the Year 2010: Air Logistics Group
8.Air Cargo Ind.Customer Care Award 2010: Etihad Airways
9.Air Cargo Ind. Newcomer of the Year 2010: AirAsia.Com
10.IT for the Air Cargo Ind. Award 2010: RedBerry Software.

To sum up in the words of Laurent Simon, Senior Vice President, Contract Logistics, Asia-Pacific Region, of Kuehne + Nagel from Singapore, “transport logistic China has been a very good forum for the exchange of ideas and for meeting partners and providers from the Asian region as well as from outside Asia”.