The Rhenus Group, one of the leading international forwarding specialists, has had a successful year, with strong growth and major developments, and no indication of slowing down. Following a period of substantial investment in global acquisitions including The PSL Group (UK), World Net Logistics (South Africa), Rodair (Canada), and Freight Logistics (USA), Rhenus also went through a significant digital transformation.

Last year saw Rhenus UK’s new IT Portal designed and implemented, giving customers the option to book shipments straight from a quotation using its web order service. This allows customers to create simple templates, print labels, access loading lists and more, all while using the Rhenus traditional track and trace service.

Automation was, and continues to be, an area of significant growth for the Rhenus Group with its Tilburg facility. BREEAM named the warehousing location the world’s most sustainable building, which fits the digital integration vision of Rhenus. Containing nineteen robots handling the storage and picking of high-quality products for various sectors and customers, the AutoStore system from Swisslog is connected to Rhenus’ warehouse and transport management systems. In addition to this, Rhenus has been investing in its warehousing facilities and value-added services in the UK through its acquisition of warehousing and ecommerce solution specialist, Core Management Logistics (CML). 

In another development, 2019 saw Rhenus Germany receive its first e-trucks – a greener alternative to the traditional container trucks. In tune with this, Rhenus reached a new sustainable milestone when it released the first-ever worldwide carbon dioxide (CO₂) reduction programme for air freight, RHEGREEN. A free-of-charge service, offering customers the opportunity to choose a ‘greener’ aircraft for their shipment of cargo by air freight, offering CO₂ emission reductions between 10 and 40 percent.

Spencer Davern, director of air and ocean at Rhenus Logistics UK, said: “A key topic for Rhenus UK in 2019, and a particular focus for the year ahead, has been its temperature control division. Last year saw us transport a number of vital goods to a variety of global businesses, including 101 handmade chocolate stiletto shoes from Fulham to Dubai for Arab Fashion Week. With Rhenus continuing to expand globally and customer demand for international shipping growing, 2020 is set to be an interesting year for not only us but the entire logistics industry.”