Q&A with the CEO: The Rise of Shipping Costs

Q&A with the CEO: The Rise of Shipping Costs Shipping costs continue to increase rapidly, and this has become a sore point for many importers and exporters, and ultimately impacts businesses and economies. We chatted with TSI Central Station’s CEO, Clifford Blackburn, to get his take on shipping costs. Q: What are the main drivers […]

Study finds a third of companies will retain hybrid working models

Study finds a third of companies will retain hybrid working models The ‘Digital Corporation in South Africa 2021′ study, undertaken by technology market research firm World Wide Worx, shows that one-in-four medium-sized and large companies in South Africa are fully digitally transformed and that about one-third of companies will not insist that employees return to […]

R640m Musina ring road project set for 2022 completion – Sanral

R640m Musina ring road project set for 2022 completion – Sanral The R640-million Musina ring road project is set for completion in the second quarter of next year, says the South African National Roads Agency Limited (Sanral). The road will serve to alleviate traffic congestion in the Musina central business district (CBD), and reduce the […]

Supply Chain Functioning During Civil Unrest

Supply Chain Functioning During Civil Unrest Just when we thought things couldn’t get worse after the third wave of the pandemic in South Africa, they did. Over the past few weeks, there has been significant civil unrest throughout the country, and especially in KwaZulu Natal. The rioting and looting during this time caused major damage […]

Spotlight On: Why do you need a freight forwarder in an increasingly digitalised world?

Spotlight On: Why do you need a freight forwarder in an increasingly digitalised world? There’s no stopping or even slowing down the rate that the world is digitalising! You’ve either got to get with it or get left behind. This is especially true in the logistics industry, which has become more reliant on technology since […]

Ports authority to become an independent subsidiary of Transnet

Ports authority to become an independent subsidiary of Transnet President Cyril Ramaphosa has announced that the Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) will become an independent subsidiary of Transnet. During a site visit to the Port of Cape Town on June 22, the President commented that the creation of a separate subsidiary would allow the ports […]

What Will Be The Biggest Innovations by 2022

What Will Be The Biggest Innovations by 2022 Predicting the future is hard and risky. Predicting the future in the computer industry is even harder and riskier due to dramatic changes in technology and limitless challenges to innovation. Only a small fraction of innovations truly disrupt the state of the art. Some are not practical […]

Embracing Digitalisation in Warehousing

Embracing Digitalisation in Warehousing Warehousing and distribution are some of many elements of logistics that have been influenced by Covid-19, and this has changed the way they are viewed by manufacturers. Due to supply chains being disrupted and consumers swapping in-store purchases for online purchases, many manufacturers have moved towards creating a more direct-to-customer (DTC) […]

Spotlight On: Cheaper is Not Always Better

Spotlight On: Cheaper is Not Always Better You’ve probably heard of the saying “cheaper is not always better” at least once in your lifetime. Well, this is true when it comes to logistics too! In this blog post we’re putting the spotlight on WHY cheaper isn’t always better, and how you can make sure you […]

Acid blaze engulfs ship in ‘preventable disaster’

Acid blaze engulfs ship in ‘preventable disaster’ The X-Press Pearl’s owners say the unfolding disaster off the coast of Sri Lanka could’ve been avoided. Source: Sri Lanka Ports Authority In one of the worst shipping disasters of the year, an unknown number of crew members and 12 firefighters were evacuated from a brand new 2 […]

Note To C-Level Executives: Get Serious, Or Get Seriously Hurt!

Note To C-Level Executives: Get Serious, Or Get Seriously Hurt! Overall, CEOs and C-level executives are not happy about soaring freight costs, and they have questions about the CODE RED conditions in the transportation marketplace. They also are questioning what their companies should be doing to address how supply chain issues are impacting their operations […]

Spotlight On: Maputo Port Embraces Automation

Spotlight On: Maputo Port Embraces Automation There are many lessons that we have learned from COVID-19, and while it has brought with it its fair share of challenges, it has also presented some important opportunities in many industries, including logistics. Maputo Port has taken advantage of the opportunities and taken automation to the next level! […]

Current Look at Freight Transport in SA

Current Look at Freight Transport in SA The Ctrack Freight Transport Index (The Ctrack FTI) tracks 6 of the major logistics sectors of the South African economy, and we’re putting the spotlight on the most recent results and what these say about logistics in South Africa currently. Here are some of the key findings from […]

Study: 85% of CFOs Expect Digitization to Improve Cash Flow, Profitability & Revenue

Study: 85% of CFOs Expect Digitization to Improve Cash Flow, Profitability & Revenue Digitization can bring many benefits to supply chains, such as speed, cost and transparency. When carried out correctly, it can be massively transformative for a business. As the world becomes more connected and digital-based, digitization is the next logical step. A recent study on how finance executives […]

Engen to shut refinery and repurpose KZN site as an import terminal

South African petroleum products group Engen announced on Friday that it would shut the Engen Refinery and convert the site, located south of Durban, into an import terminal and product storage facility by the end of 2023. Engen said the refinery-to-terminal (RTT) repurposing initiative was based on a strategic evaluation, which confirmed the refinery was […]

TSI Spotlight On: Demurrage and Detention

Update: What is detention and demurrage? This is the most confusing for most importers and exporters, Demurrage is what you pay when you don’t collect your container on time out of a port. Mostly because your clearing and forwarding agent hasn’t received the clearance documents or the transporter/haulier has not collected it on time, so […]

E-commerce Expansion Causes Rapid Growth in the Courier Industry

Have you shopped online in the past 6 months? We are guessing that the answer to that question in this day and age is yes, and if you haven’t personally then someone in your family probably has bought something online. While shopping online was gaining popularity before the pandemic, this only helped to accelerate its […]

Top 5 Supply Chain Security Concerns and Best Practices to Address Them

The average cost of a data breach is nearly $4 million, so companies need to protect their supply chains with security comprised of a combination of layered defenses. A recent report showed us that the 2020 threat landscape was largely shaped by the pandemic. As businesses raced to transition to cloud environments to keep their businesses’ […]

Preparing Your Data for AI, Blockchain, and other Emerging Technologies

One of the biggest mistakes companies often make is chasing after the next, new shiny technology application without first clearly defining the business problem or opportunity they’re looking to address — and without first getting their data in order. Why do companies still struggle with data quality management? How do you get over the change […]

How Solid is Your Supply Chain?

With the massive expansion of the supply chain, the risk has also increased due to a greater attack surface. More common threats such as cyber security, are still around and even more sophisticated, and natural disasters have and will always be a threat to the supply chain, but COVID-19 has been one threat that has […]