Den Hartogh goes global

EXPANSION With the economic recovery already in place, Den Hartogh is planning to take advantage of the growth in international trade by becoming a global operator

Netherlands-headquartered Den Hartogh Logistics has decided to expand its intermodal activity to become, for the first time, a global player in tank container logistics. The company has traditionally focused primarily on European markets. “Now is the time for the company to grow further into a global logistical operator role for bulk liquids, chemicals and gases,” says the company. “This is good news for chemical shippers and the Den Hartogh Logistics organisation. Following the global expansion of chemical shippers, this is a natural development for a company which has seen considerable growth over the past 10 years in Europe.”

Den Hartogh says its global transport operation will be organised as a separate business unit called ‘Den Hartogh Global’, with its main headquarters in the Netherlands. “From this home base, all global traffic from and to Europe, the Middle East and Africa will be served,” explains the company. “For the Americas, Den Hartogh will be based in Houston, and for the Asia-Pacific region it will be based in Singapore and Shanghai. Individual countries in mentioned regions will be served by an agent network.

“During 2011, the present organisation will be developed further and the existing modest global volume will be grown by increasing market development actively. In order to support the growth of the business, a newbuild programme for ISO tank containers is approved. Tanks are to be delivered during 2011, 2012 and 2013. The ambition in the Den Hartogh Logistics organisation is high, and the defined target for 2015 is to operate a fleet of around 5,000 tank containers globally. The build-up of the business will be two-fold: we will combine generic growth with working together, if possible, with others active on a global scale.”

Den Hartogh says that under the new arrangement, supporting activities, like fleet management and administration, will be shared across the company’s existing network. “This is designed to ensure the use of synergies between intermodal and global transport logistics, combining a European network with a global network,” says the company. “It is believed at Den Hartogh Logistics that these synergies can make a key difference in comparison with the competition. Furthermore, Den Hartogh’s outstanding ICT system developed for the intermodal tank container business is a proven system that will guarantee full transparency for customers and internal users, enabling an effective and low-cost operation, thus ensuring the competitiveness in price and quality of Den Hartogh Logistics. The system will provide analytical business tools and logistical know-how beneficial for customers and users.”

www.denhartogh.com