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AFTER
years of planning and buying the necessary equipment and
companies, the Aboitiz group’s logistics arm 2Go is
launching its cold-chain service.
An
official launch of the new service is scheduled on
Friday, a month after the company bought ScanAsia
Overseas Inc. The new service is expected to help 2Go’s
claim of being a total logistics provider.
Since
2006, 2Go has been studying the cold-chain market. It
has been using the vessels of sister firms SuperFerry
and Cebu Ferries to distribute dry goods.
2Go’
president and chief executive officer Sabin Aboitiz
earlier said they have not seen enough volume that
warrants a launch of the service as the local market
leans toward “live” pork and meat products rather than
frozen items.
He said
the cold-chain business might take off by next year.
The
company, however, has been preparing the groundwork for
the eventual offering of the cold-chain service.
Earlier
this year 2Go started investing on its P2-million
cold-chain base at the Manila North Harbor.
Last
year 2Go folded Cryo companies Reefer Van Specialist
Inc. and Reefer Trucks Specialist Inc. into the Aboitiz
group. Cryo has over a hundred reefer containers and 50
reefer trucks, which will be used for 2Go’s cold chain’s
load service.
Cold
chain, a temperature-controlled supply chain, is an
uninterrupted series of storage and distribution
activities under a given temperature range. Cold chains
are common in the food and pharmaceutical industries and
also some chemical shipments.
Aboitiz
bought ScanAsia for $8.4 million in June, on the premise
that 2Go would gain enough volume to run its cold-chain
business and all the facilities it bought in the last
two years.
ScanAsia
was formed in 1985 by Danish Carsten F. Pedersen to
mainly distribute natural cheese and other dairy
products from Denmark to various hotels and restaurants
in Metro Manila.
It later
expanded to include other imported food and frozen
products.
ScanAsia
currently distributes food items to hundreds of outlets
all over the country.
2Go’s
roster of customers, on the other hand, include
multinational firms such as Wrigley’s, Nestle Water,
Gerber and Mead Johnson infant products, J&J Vision Care
and Mercury Drug.
These
companies use 2Go’s facility as the single-stocking
point for distribution to other areas nationwide.
Earlier
this year 2Go announced it would be increasing the
capacity of its supply-chain hub in Pasig to 30,000
pallets by the end of the 2008, or more than four times
its current capacity of 6,500 pallet positions.
“We will
continue to expand our supply-chain facilities as we
believe that there is so much growth opportunities in
the supply chain, particularly here in the Philippines,”
Aboitiz said.
“Our
main focus now is to further develop our supply-chain
management nationwide as it already made 2Go a complete
logistics solutions provider.”
Aboitiz
One Inc., the company that operates 2Go, has an ISO
quality management certification for 2Go’s hangar
office, domestic outlet and its Durian gateway. |
