Freight Forwarding Group Offers Logistics Apprenticeships and Opens New Supply Chain Facility

UK - SOUTH KOREA - LAOS - News from Deutsche Bahn subsidiary DB Schenker this week, as the freight forwarding company announces the fourth annual intake of apprentices to be schooled in logistics across the UK, whilst in Asia the group opened a new centre in South Korea to provide healthcare and pharmaceutical supply chain services and strengthened its hand in Laos.

The British scheme will see thirteen brand new opportunities for young people available via Schenker UK's National Apprenticeship Programme to start a career within the logistics industry. The new group of thirteen will be based in a variety of locations up and down the UK including five vacancies at Heathrow, three at Basildon and one each at Felixstowe and Nuneaton. This year for the first time, there will also be three opportunities in the warehouse environment at Heathrow. They all will undertake a two year long apprenticeship with the global logistics provider.

At the conclusion of the programme the apprentices will have completed extensive training and gained a full appreciation of the DB Schenker organisation. Each apprentice will be assigned a ‘buddy’ within the branch to oversee their workplace wellbeing. The buddy will also act as their own point of contact within the company, and will be the person they can go to for advice, coaching or support. UK Managing Director, Helgi Ingolfsson, commented:

“Our apprentice programme is a significant way to get young people into the logistics business, which is crucial to long term development of our company. With the introduction of the warehouse positions, this should create even more employment opportunities for those taking part.”

Meanwhile in Gunpo, near Seoul, South Korea, Schenker has opened a new 6,100m2 facility to provide supply chain services to the healthcare and pharmaceutical sectors. The logistics centre is fully equipped for Healthcare operations, including cold storage range of 2-8⁰C and 15-25⁰C products, specialised vaults for sensitive Pharmaceutical products (such as Psychotropic and Radioactive items) with emphasis on quality, compliance and safety. It is already TAPA-A certified and has also attained the Korean Good Supplying Practice (KGSP), which certifies security, efficacy, safety and stability in healthcare logistics services.

The logistics centre is one of the twenty six Schenker managed contract logistics sites in fifteen countries offering specialised services for the Healthcare/Pharma customers. The group’s global healthcare logistics network is being expanded continuously with more specialty hubs recently opened in India and Philippines, as well as planned key additions in countries including Singapore, Sweden, Australia and The Netherlands. Peter Logan, Vice President Healthcare Vertical Market, Contract Logistics/SCM, at DB Schenker, said:

“Healthcare Logistics is more than just moving boxes. It is a critical part of our job to deliver safe, effective Healthcare products to save lives. We combine our global network and our industry experience to fulfill our customers’ expectations, by delivering innovative end-to-end transformational solutions, leveraging visibility platforms and enabling globally competitive supply chains.”

Schenker also announced it will shortly establish a 3,000 m2 logistics facility in Vientiane, the capital of Laos, now that formalities have been completed to establish its own legal entity in the country to operate under the name of Schenker (Lao) Sole Co., Ltd. Victor Lim, DB Schenker’s Managing Director for Thailand, Myanmar and Laos, said it was an important milestone for both the German group and Indochina, adding:

“With Laos holding a key geographical position and sharing its borders with some of the most important economies in the region, it is imperative that we grow our international trucking services to let our customers have the choice of using the most cost effective mode of transport for their goods.”