Time to rethink ground handling

SCS GERMANY
N E T W O R K K N O W- H O W
When Swissport acquired Cargo Service Center last year it gained a company with an outstanding network of
stations around the world – the power
of which is nowhere better illustrated
than in Germany.
2–3
International customer journal
Swissport International Ltd., Issue 11, April 2003
AIRLINE PROCUREMENT
ONLINE AUCTIONS
British Airways recently invited suppliers to bid for its ground handling
business at several stations in France
using an online auction – a procurement tool the airline uses to rein in
costs and add value to operations.
6–7
MAINTENANCE MAGIC
TROUBLE-FREE GSE
Despite the turbulence that has beset
the industry, Swissport continues to
position itself for a bright future thanks
to careful planning in areas such as
ground support equipment maintenance.
9
SWISSPORT PEOPLE
THE OIL IN OUR MACHINE
From Kenya to the Dominican Republic,
Swissport’s outstanding employees
around the world use their specialist
skills to make a difference for customers
every single day.
12 –13
VISION ■ Changing the ground handling model
Time to rethink
ground handling
Providing the same high quality at
lower and lower prices is a tough
task to master. It is an issue on
which airlines and ground handlers tend to have differing views,
too. So, perhaps it is time to ask a
few basic questions about major
changes that might be needed.
T H E C U R R E N T C R I S I S situation is only adding – and adding substantially – to the pressure being
placed on ground handlers from all
quarters.
On the one side are the airlines who
are now willing to embark on electronic auctions to negotiate their handling fees as low as they can go; on the
other are the ground handlers who
are striving to secure the critical mass
they need to survive, while also seeking their own salvation through productivity increases and acquisitions (or
both).
It is a dangerous spiral and one that
may end up inflicting severe damage
to all concerned. When services are
degraded to little more than commodities and financial results become
the be-all and end-all of the business,
we are entitled to wonder and worry
just where our industry is heading.
This is especially so in a service industry where success depends first and
foremost on the extra efforts of frontline staff.
So, instead of blaming one another
and permanently locking horns over
the cost / benefit equation, perhaps
the parties involved should ask themselves some new questions: what services do we expect to obtain for a certain price? And what services are we
able to offer for the price concerned?
It is a crucial consideration: with financial resources clearly limited, it is even
more vital to offer and obtain the
right service package.
That is why it can no longer be
enough to simply demand the lowest
price; asking for the best possible
package for a particular amount could
be a far more viable approach. After
all, a youngster in a shop with a dollar
in his hand must also decide how to
spend his valuable but limited funds!
In fact, some airlines are already
going a step further and asking themselves an even more basic question: is
it really worth doing so much ourselves? Would it not make more sense
to entrust certain services to a specialist provider? The outsourcing issue
is one that is sure to concern us increasingly over the coming months.
Swissport welcomes all these new
thoughts and trends; and we will be
doing our utmost to provide innovative solutions in response. After all, a
partnership approach to optimising
our operations offers us all far better
prospects than the current cost/benefit spiral and expectations that have
become increasingly difficult to meet.
So, let us use the present difficulties as
an opportunity to ask new questions.
And let’s work together to find the
best answers – for everyone concerned.
Stephan Beerli
SWISSPORT CARGO SERVICES
COUNTRY PORTRAIT ■ SCS Germany
Network know-how
whom we provide full document and
physical handling services as well as
distribution products throughout
Europe for import and export cargo,”
explains Toralf Sonntag, Station
Manager, Frankfurt.
In just four years, SCS has nearly
trebled the amount of cargo handled
at Frankfurt. However, from 1 April,
the company will increase total volumes by a further 50 % when it
begins handling Swiss WorldCargo.
“To handle Swiss, we will increase our
warehouse space from 6,000 square
metres to 8,300 square metres and
add 30 employees,” explains a delighted Sonntag. “Swiss fits very well in to
our operation as we have a lot of
experience with such a hub product.”
Network integration
When Swissport International
acquired Cargo Service Center in
October 2002, it gained a company with an outstanding network of stations around the world
– the power of which is nowhere
better illustrated than in Germany.
IT HAS BEEN a roller coaster few
years for Heath White, General
Manager at Swissport Cargo Services
(SCS) Germany, formerly Cargo
Service Center. Since arriving in
1995, White has worked under four
general managers as the handler
developed from small beginnings into
one with the strongest network of any
operator in Germany.
And now it is White’s turn in the hot
seat. In January 2002, he took over
as General Manager from previous
incumbent and fellow Englishman,
Paul Arnold. Some 14 months on,
White leads a young, dynamic team of
station managers with its sights set
firmly on the next stage in the company’s development.
Today, SCS operates a powerful
network that allows White to crosssell services the length and breadth of
the country. Currently, SCS provides
terminal warehouse operations at
nine airports: Berlin Tegel, Dresden,
Düsseldorf, Frankfurt, Hamburg,
Hanover, Munich, Nuremberg and
Stuttgart.
It also partners with airport companies
at a further six, smaller locations:
Bremen, Cologne, Dortmund, Leipzig,
Munster/Osnabruck and Hahn.
Carriers such as Austrian Airlines
and KLM have already taken full
advantage and turned to SCS at up to
15 locations. In addition, most customers have multi-station contracts,
with all the associated benefits of simplified administration, a standard base
of services and one point of contact.
SCS handles close to 130,000 tonnes of
cargo in Germany with Frankfurt, the
company’s showcase station, accounting for roughly 40% of all revenue.
“Every station contributes to the
network’s overall strength, but Frankfurt is the absolute centre of our
activity,” explains White.
Currently, SCS handles close to
50,000 tonnes per year at Frankfurt,
of which 15% is transit cargo.
“Our customer base comprises 10 key
flown and trucked cargo carriers for
SCS has always adopted a flexible
management structure with station
managers working to a general service framework for basic contracting,
but free to suit the product to the
local market.
This approach will continue as integration with new parent Swissport
enters its final stages – a process
made even more challenging by
Swissport’s additional acquisition of
the German ground handling business of Menzies (see Swissreporter,
Issue 9) last year.
This move added operations at 10
German airports – including three that
were new to Swissport – as well as two
specific cargo operations, in Hanover
and Hamburg. For SCS, the incorporation does not add any new locations,
but it does bring several important airline customers.
White’s task is to bring the old
Menzies stations on board and integrate the additional customers.
T O R A L F S O N N TA G – S TAT I O N M A N A G E R , F R A N K F U R T
K AY S C H WA R Z – S T A T I O N M A N A G E R , M U N I C H
“We offer everything from planning
complex distribution products for our
largest customer, KLM, to simple acceptance products. Most importantly,
we give our customers the flexibility,
speed and care they require; quality is
not just what we talk about, it is what we
actually give. Unquestionably, there
have been difficulties in arriving at the
position we are in today, but we were strong enough to obtain operational
stability and a solid customer base. Now we can continue investing in our
position and good name.”
“The Munich station has grown to become one of SCS’s top five stations in
Germany. This has proved challenging,
but we have won our fight to obtain
all necessary licences. Today, we have
direct ramp access and offer full
physical and document handling from
our 1,500-square-metre facility. In the
spring, Lufthansa will open its new
terminal, which will help Munich develop further as the airline’s second
hub in Germany – a development that makes it even more crucial to keep
in close contact with potential customers.”
2 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
SWISSPORT CARGO SERVICES
Meanwhile, full integration of the
former Menzies operations into Swissport Cargo Services Deutschland
GmbH should be finished by 1 April.
It is part of a wider reshuffle that will
result in the amalgamation of all
Swissport businesses in Germany and
the neat packaging of passenger,
operations, ramp, cargo and other
related services into separate, limited
companies.
At Frankfurt, where the business is
predominantly flown cargo, much is
made of the need for direct ramp
access to attract customers. Having
begun operations off-airport, SCS
moved three times before gaining the
ramp access required to handle flown
products.
“By taking Swiss we know that our
current building is where we will
“Throughout our network, we
work with a strong but highly flexible
product at our core.”
Heath White
Flexibility
White is now examining the opportunity to sell ramp, passenger
and cargo operations as a package
throughout Germany and elsewhere
in Europe.
Such creative selling will add to SCS’s
reputation for flexibility, an important attribute that has helped the company secure a foothold in a
challenging market.
The situation is particularly interesting
at larger airports such as Frankfurt
and Munich where airport operators
not only function as SCS’s main
licencing contacts, but also the company’s chief competitors.
spend at least our middle-term future
at Frankfurt,” notes White.
Although the current warehouse is in
a constant process of change, White
points out that SCS has kept to its
original handling style, with the focus
on operating a quick, efficient warehouse building.
“We have not restricted ourselves
with high-flown technical systems
which would compromise our edge.
Throughout our network, we work
in the same way with a strong but
highly flexible product at our core.”
In Frankfurt, as elsewhere in the
network, White is keen to attract
additional key accounts. Already,
J O H N B A I Z E – S TAT I O N M A N A G E R , S T U T T G A R T
“SCS Stuttgart began life with a small
operation that was limited by the airport’s monopoly on airfreight handling
and space. However, with the implementation of EU handling liberalisation, we pursued all actions necessary to
obtain our service licence and the space
issue was finally resolved in June 2001
when we moved into a larger 1,000square-metre warehouse at the newly constructed Air Cargo Center. Today,
after a difficult period for the whole industry, tonnage is building back
to previous levels.”
both Cathay Pacific and Korean Airlines have agreed to sample the SCS
approach at seven stations across
Germany.
One important reason for their coming to SCS, says White, is that his team
can deliver all the required IATA
computer-messaging through an inhouse IT system, Cascade.
“More and more carriers require realtime information on the status of their
shipments,” explains White. “We are
not only highly effective in our warehousing, but also in the transmission of
information via SITA or the internet.”
Meanwhile, in other initiatives, SCS
has already developed a series of inhouse performance measurement
tools and is now implementing the
quality certification AHS 1000.
“These efforts will be used to really
bind us to customers and resolve any
weaknesses in the handling chain,”
explains White. “Above all, they help
us to change.”
Working with KLM has already
allowed SCS to become experts
in hub handling at Frankfurt and
Hanover, while contracts with Austrian Airlines and Qatar Airways
have enabled SCS to develop distribution products throughout Germany
and Europe.
OUR MAN IN GERMANY
Having graduated from the UK’s
Birmingham University with a
degree in German and History,
Heath White moved to Germany
in 1992 and pursued a two-year
Ausbildung, or apprenticeship, in
economics.
He subsequently landed a position
performing documentation work
at SCS’s Berlin operation, but was
soon representing the company on
a variety of domestic and overseas
projects.
When SCS changed from regional
to country management in 1997,
Heath was made Operations Manager, based in Berlin. In 2001, he
was appointed acting General Manager and then given the position
full time.
Today, at just 33, Heath manages
260 people and oversees one of
SCS’s most interesting and challenging operations.
With an outstanding team in place,
the SCS boss is clearly looking forward to the year ahead.
“The most important thing I learnt
in 2002 was how strongly bonded
our Germany team is,” explains White.
“We all stuck together during good
times and bad, with everyone helping
each other as a matter of course.
“It was fascinating and so positive. I
don’t know of any other company
that works so well together.”
Richard Rowe
C O N TA C T
Heath White
General Manager, SCS Germany
Gebäude 558 B
Cargo City Süd
Flughafen Frankfurt
60549 Frankfurt
Germany
Phone:+49 (0) 69 21 97 97 0
Fax: +49 (0) 69 21 97 97 99
[email protected]
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 3
GLOBAL GROUND HANDLER OF THE YEAR
AVIATION ACCOLADE ■ Three in a row
Swissport scoops
industry
Oscar
After a challenging
12 months, Swissport is delighted to
announce its success in winning the
Institute of Transport
Management’s Global
Ground Handler of the
Year Award 2003 – for the third
time in a row.
B Y T H E T I M E H O L LY W O O D
announced this year’s Oscar winners,
Swissport had already picked up a
similarly prestigious award in its own
highly specialised field.
Starting the New Year as it left off,
Swissport has won the Institute of
Transport Management’s (ITM) prestigious Global Ground Handler of
the Year Award for 2003. This follows
similar success in 2001 and 2002.
Piloted in 1995, the
ITM’s award programme recognises important
advances within
the global aviation
sector over the
previous 12
months.
Once again, Swissport scooped the
number one spot only
after an extensive research and selection pro-
cess among the ITM’s many members
in the aviation sector.
Swissport faced not only strong competition from its ground handling
competitors, but also a thorough
examination by senior ITM managers.
In particular, the judges focussed on
four key areas: customer service, marketing, project management and
investment.
Sheedy points to Swissport’s vast experience in the industry and its continued intention to invest in and
develop its international operation as
key reasons for this latest award.
“The awards committee was convinced
of Swissport being the correct choice
for this prestigious award,” he adds.
Not surprisingly, Stephan Beerli,
EVP, Swissport International, is delighted with the news. “Last year was
“To win the award for a third
time in a row proves that we definitely
hold top spot in the industry.”
as the ground handling industry continues its turbulent ride, Swissport
remains steadfast in its commitment
to groundbreaking customer service.
“We should feel immense pride, but
also be realistic,” warns Beerli. “We
now have even more of an obligation
to meet our customers’ requirements
at all our stations, every day and on
every single flight.”
Now with the integration of CSC and
the formation of Swissport Cargo Services almost complete, Swissport is
better placed than ever to provide a
full menu of ground solutions for airline customers. Carriers can benefit
from a broader range of services
across an even wider global network.
According to Patrick Sheedy, Chairman of the ITM’s Aviation Committee, Swissport scored highly in each
not an easy one for Swissport, so I
consider it a particular achievement
to win once again,” he comments.
Beerli warmly congratulates Swissport’s more than 18,000 staff around
the world, but also throws down an
area, although special mention was
also made of the outstanding customer service provided by staff
around the world, as well as the excellent reputation of Swissport’s management teams.
“You could say that the first time
was lucky, while the second was a kind
of confirmation,” adds Beerli. “But to
win the award for a third time in a row
proves that we definitely hold top
spot in the industry.”
additional challenge. “Winning an
award is one thing, but to continue
justifying it is entirely another,” he
says.
“We appreciate the contribution that
our aviation manager members have
made to the awards programme and
endorse their selection of Swissport
for this prestigious accolade,” says
Sheedy. “It is a true reflection of the
high esteem the company enjoys
within the industry.”
It was a year during which Swissport
has achieved success through innovation. The handler has worked hard to
develop flexible ground handling
solutions for an airline industry that
now more than ever demands higher
quality services at lower cost from
their ground handling partners. And
4 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
“If we fulfil our pledge to continue meeting our customers’
expectations in the best
possible way, then we
really will deserve
the crown again
and again.”
Richard
Rowe
FROM THE TOP
CEO COMMENT ■ Preparation pays dividends
Rising to the challenge
context. Carriers are taking action
already, reducing their capacities
to equip themselves to cope with a
worst-case scenario.
AS I WRITE these lines, the whole
world is worried about what is
happening in the Middle East and
its impact on the global economy.
The airline industry, again, seems
to be particularly exposed in this
With all the current uncertainties, it
is all too easy to adopt a policy of
defeatism and pessimistic passivity.
We think, however, that critical situations like the one confronting our
industry today should be considered
as opportunities to secure our future
success.
Despite worries about the war and
all the bad news surrounding the
world of air transport, Swissport is
preparing itself for the upcoming
challenges of a once again growing
industry. And we are doing so daily
through a variety of activities.
Those activities include assimilating
the recently acquired cargo company
CSC into the Swissport service portfolio, launching our franchising concept, expanding our network through
our collaboration with Cambata
in India, responding to airlines’ outsourcing enquiries, striving to create
an even better and more professional
sales organisation and much more.
It is the kind of attitude and approach
that we all need to adopt if we are to
master the challenges of tomorrow
and lay a sound foundation for our
future success. That same approach
may also be the reason Swissport has
just been named best global ground
handler for the third year in succession.
Needless to say, we will carry on
making every imaginable effort to
secure our – and your – success. So,
thank you for the confidence you
have placed in us. We look forward
to continuing to repay your trust in
the months and years ahead.
Joseph In Albon
President & CEO
Swissport International Ltd.
I N N O VAT I O N
FRANCHISING ■ Little and large
Local strength, global support
Franchising has become more and
more of a topic for the ground
handling sector and especially
for smaller, local providers keen to
secure a stronger regional, or
even global, market presence.
Swissport has devised a mouldbreaking new partnership model
for this promising field.
THE GROUND HANDLING
sector has a variety of major changes
and challenges ahead. Liberalisation, deregulation and consolidation
are daily topics in many parts
of the world. Airlines are under
massive pressure to minimise their
costs. In future, they are sure to want
to rely even more heavily on bigger
partners that can offer global solutions for their ground handling
needs.
So how can a small, local ground
handler fit into this scheme? Or perhaps they can’t? It could be that
extensive local knowledge and professional niche management is no
longer enough to remain attractive
and competitive in today’s ground
handling market. Maybe their very
survival in the medium term is under
threat?
The franchising system is simple
enough, but is one that should help
both parties reach their respective
business goals. Smaller ground handlers will derive the full benefit of the
brand and product profile, advertising, training resources, expertise, central support and management system
of a global leader in the ground handling sector.
Swissport is well aware of the changes
the industry is going through. But our
aim is to turn such changes to positive
effect by promoting collaboration in a
shared new direction. That’s why the
group has developed a new franchising concept – an innovative approach
that could prove excellent news for
some smaller ground handlers. It
could even help secure their longterm corporate futures.
At the same time, however, they will
continue to bear responsibility for
their own operations and provide
such services with that valuable local
thrust.
Swissport, on the other hand, will
benefit from collaborating with professional local partners, expanding its
own network while avoiding the kind
of risky investment that is often
required for a brand new “start-up”
operation.
It’s a win-win situation. And that’s
why Swissport will approach a number of competent, smaller ground
handlers over the next few months
to discuss this new franchising-based
partnership concept in more detail.
All in all, we believe the new model
is an excellent response to the challenges ahead, and one that skilfully
combines two key ingredients in any
successful business: local responsibility and strong global support.
If you would like further details about
Swissport’s new partnership concept,
mail us at [email protected]
Stephan Beerli
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 5
AIRLINE PROCUREMENT
BRITISH AIRWAYS ■ Online auctions
Handling under the hammer
✈
BA’s Darren Mayes and Jo Harvey.
British Airways recently invited
suppliers to bid for its ground
handling business at several stations in France using an online auction – a valuable procurement tool
used to rein in costs and add value
to operations.
S I N C E first introducing its eAuction procurement tool in 2001, British
Airways (BA) has used the concept to
buy a variety of goods and services
including IT equipment, training modules and third-party fuelling contracts.
The procurement solution – designed
to identify the best value for money
supplier – plays an important role as
part of a wider strategic sourcing
policy. BA reports savings of almost
£5 million since eAuctions were first
introduced.
In February, BA extended the programme into ground handling for the
first time when several pre-selected
ground service providers, Swissport
included, entered bids online to win
the carrier’s business originally at
three stations in France: Lyon, Tou-
executive charged with
identifying opportunities and working with
buyers through the preparation stages of each eAuction.
“If we can help suppliers
understand what we are
asking for upfront then that
makes life a lot easier
further down the line.”
Darren Mayes
louse and Bordeaux. However, following initial responses from prospective suppliers, the airline decided
to proceed with an eAuction for services at just Lyon and Toulouse.
Ambitious
“Until now, BA had not performed
anything as ambitious as an eAuction
for ground handling,” explains Jo
Harvey, Station Operations Sourcing
Executive. “Ground handling is a
notoriously complex business, so it
was a real challenge.”
Operating as part of a central sourcing team, Harvey has a broad procurement remit that covers most onairport goods and services. For this
particular eAuction, Harvey worked
closely with Darren Mayes, the BA
6 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
Understandably, ground service providers felt a little apprehensive taking
part in an eAuction for the first time,
reports BA. Such apprehension was
based partly on the belief that this was
just a way of being beaten down on
price and partly the unfamiliar technology and the perceived impersonal
nature of the process.
To counter this, as with all eAuctions,
BA conducted a mock auction ahead
of the real thing to help familiarise
suppliers with the process and technology.
Harvey is quick to point out that
eAuctions are just one of many sourcing tools available to BA and are
only used when market conditions are
right.
In the case of ground handling, three
criteria must be met before an eAuction is even considered: the market
has to offer sufficient ground handling competition; BA has to be able to
develop a clear specification for handlers; and the airline must be able to
establish a pricing model for suppliers
to bid against.
If anything, says Mayes, it is a process
that enhances rather than diminishes
a supplier relationship.This is because
of the reliance on transparency, thorough preparation and a rigorous follow-up procedure.
✈
Take the recent eAuction in France,
for example, which saw intensive
advance preparation. Harvey worked
locally with station manager, Claude
Hervault, to examine the market and
pinpoint BA’s specific needs.
During the review, Harvey pasted
specific station requirements on to
BA’s generic ground handling agreement to create a clear RFP for potential suppliers.
“If we can help suppliers understand
what we are asking for upfront then
that makes life a lot easier further
down the line,” explains Mayes.
As with all eAuctions, interested suppliers were contacted and taken
AIRLINE PROCUREMENT
✈
through the process step by step. The
preparation included the issue of
build-up sheets that outlined BA’s
specifications for each station and
enabled suppliers to consider their
pricing strategy.
“We stressed that handlers should
think about their opening price and a
walk away price,” explains Mayes.
“The auction is about how close they
get to that walk away – we are not
looking for a ‘win at all costs’ bidding
mentality.”
Suppliers were asked to bid a per
annum price for a total ground handling package over a fixed three-year
period for the French stations. Those
with an eye on offering services at
multiple stations were also encouraged to provide details of any incentives available.
Groundwork
With all the groundwork performed
beforehand, the eAuction itself only
took around 30 minutes. Harvey
admits it must have been a nervewracking experience for suppliers;
during the online auction, each handler sees just its own bid on screen and
a rank based on the lowest price.
But with suppliers challenged to
move closer to their walk away posi-
tions, BA sees the process as a much
easier and far quicker means of arriving at a market price rather than
through more traditional methods of
negotiation.
for the follow-up, I don’t have to worry
about price issues,” she confirms.
“I must stress, however, that it is
about the total cost of ownership and
“The really positive thing to emerge is
that when I go to those shortlisted
suppliers for the follow-up, I don’t have
to worry about price issues.”
Jo Harvey
Once the eAuction was finished, BA
examined each bid together with
returned build-up sheets to identify
how each handler arrived at a price.
This was followed by a thorough
reassessment of BA’s most important
non-financial criteria – such as service
quality, existing working relationships
and style of local management – in
advance of follow-up meetings with
the shortlisted handlers.
not just the cheapest price – there is
little point in buying the cheapest
option if the quality is not there.”
With discussions ongoing for the
French stations, BA says it is too early
to tell what cost savings have been
achieved, but is confident that the
eAuction process has identified “the
market price”.
The major benefit for Harvey at this
point is that she already knows the
financial position of each supplier and
so can concentrate on the softer, quality issues during the follow-up stage.
This is a procurement approach that,
by definition, favours full service suppliers.“One of our strategic goals is to
reduce our number of suppliers, so we
are not looking for multiple suppliers
for different ground handling services,” confirms Harvey.
“For me, the really positive thing to
emerge from the eAuction is that
when I go to those shortlisted suppliers
It is also a process that focuses the
mind of all parties; handlers have to
do more homework up front, while
Harvey admits that the process of
pulling together an RFP was even
more thorough than before because
of the need to be highly specific to
facilitate the eAuction.
While BA admits that handlers will
take time to adjust to this method, the
carrier remains convinced that auctions will not only foster best procurement practice but also allow it to
work more closely, and productively,
with preferred suppliers.
“Holding an eAuction is just a way of
achieving market price at a location
rather than batting backwards and
forwards on price,” comments Harvey.
“I think it definitely helps in terms of
building strategic partnerships.”
BA plans to carefully assess the
results of the inaugural ground handling eAuction before deciding on
adopting a similar tact elsewhere.
“This was our first eAuction for ground
handling and we need to take away
the learning from that,” says Harvey.
“I found it a very interesting process
and hope the suppliers enjoyed it. I
would definitely use it again given the
same criteria.”
Richard Rowe
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 7
B U S I N E S S SDAEDVFE L O P M E N T
SERVICE EXPANSION ■ ULD management
Pooling resources
Swissport recently became a majority shareholder in Unitpool, a
Swiss company that offers a variety of ULD management services
to airlines around the world.
SWISSPORT CONFIRMED
an agreement in March to provide
ULD supply, management and pooling services together with fellow
Swiss company, Unitpool.
Under the agreement, Unitpool will
retain its independence, but will look
to establish close links throughout the
Swissport station network.
Unitpool is now in a strong position
to accelerate its expansion by tapping
into Swissport’s global reach, while
Swissport is able to add comprehensive ULD management expertise to
its service menu.
“ULD operations are dependent on
good performance by ground handling agents,” explains Philip Hill,
Unitpool’s Managing Director and
CEO. “By combining our efforts, we
will be able to provide improved ULD
services to all of our customers.”
Unitpool was established in April
2002 following a management buyout
Current customers include Air Europe,
Sobelair, Aeris, Volare, SN Brussels
Airlines, Euralair and, most recently,
Aer Lingus.
Now with Swissport on board, Unitpool plans to broaden its appeal and
extend its global pool of ULDs.
Together with Swissport, Unitpool is now the industry’s biggest name in ULD management.
of the former SAir Group company
Globepool. Since then, Unitpool has
focussed on relieving the many ULDrelated headaches that plague airlines
such as loss, theft, unnecessary damage and stock imbalances.
divide by cooperating with all agents
in an airline’s network.”
Unitpool currently offers either a full
service where it takes over an airline’s
ULD supply, repair, control and
“We look forward to working closely
with Swissport and generating further
global awareness of our services,”
says Hill.
Richard Rowe
Y O U R C O N TA C T
“ULD operations are dependent
on good performance by ground
handling agents.”
The Unitpool approach is geared
towards improving overall control,
reducing loss and damage and managing station stocks. It also aims to
reduce the overall stock of airline
ULDs by operating a pooling system.
“Airlines might contract globally with
many different ground handling
agents,” explains Hill. “However, we
work across the ground handling
tracking, or a management control
only service. Unitpool also maintains
global contracts for ULD repair.
Already, says Hill, Unitpool has
received enquiries from a variety of
airlines, large and small.
“The operations and the headaches
are all the same – as are our solutions,” he says.
Philip Hill
Managing Director and
CEO, Unitpool
Steinackerstrasse 2
CH-8302 Kloten
Phone: +41 43 255 4144
[email protected]
IGHC SUN CITY
OUT OF AFRICA ■ Meeting and greeting
See you in South Africc a
Swissport executives are looking
forward to the IATA Ground Handling Council (IGHC) meeting in
South Africa from 25 to 28 May.
T H E A N N U A L I G H C meeting is a must for the ground handling
community and this year’s event in
Sun City promises to be no exception.
Swissport plans to send a high-level
delegation of top global managers
who will be on hand to discuss ways in
which Swissport can help customers
achieve their ground service goals. It
promises to be another busy meeting
with much to discuss, including:
8 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
■ An update on the integration of
the former CSC into our new
Swissport Cargo Services business line
■ Latest details on our network
expansion and joint ventures
■ And, of course, important negoti-
ations on a bilateral level
■ A variety of outsourcing possibil-
ities for airline customers
This year, Swissport will be present at
exhibition booths Nos. C1–C6.
■ The new Swissport franchise part-
nership programme and its benefits
Stephan Beerli
G S E M ASIA
NDT FE N A N C E
SUPPLY CHAIN ■ Performance management
Trouble-free GSE
Despite the turbulence that has
beset the industry, Swissport continues to position itself for a bright
future thanks to careful planning
in areas such as ground support
equipment (GSE) maintenance.
E V E R W O N D E R how many
ground support vehicles are not quite
in tip-top shape at an airport?
Ground handlers certainly know and
the number is often higher than
hoped. When Swissport took a look
at various airports around the world
recently, it was clear that many vehicles could benefit from additional
maintenance to increase their serviceable life and overall reliability.
Additional industry figures certainly
suggest room for improvement – particularly when you consider that
equipment failure between scheduled downtimes reduces the dispatch
reliability of GSE, overall performance and, of course, return on investment.
While performance and dependability may not necessarily top the
priority charts like safety, ground
Walk this way: Swissport’s new maintenance system allows the measurement of key performance indicators across its maintenance
operations.
We need the ability to forecast manpower requirements, schedule maintenance, analyse parts inventories,
develop budgets, and gather historical
information on each piece of equip-
As Swissport continues to streamline
and optimise its operations,
knowledge management increasingly
plays a key role in planning and
execution.
handlers surely tempt fate when
they operate unreliable vehicles. It is
crucial therefore that GSE owners
and operators stick to maintenance
schedules and recommended maintenance intervals to keep equipment
up and running.
Maintenance tracking
The first maintenance tracking system I was exposed too was a box of
index cards that my father-in-law
kept in his one-man automobile repair shop. He was a passionate auto
mechanic and was responsible for
keeping his customers’ cars running
safely. When I assisted him in his
business, I came to appreciate the
simple, but effective system.
In today’s ramp environment, however, we manage more than just a
small clientele of car owners. Similarly, a box of index cards is certainly
not an adequate tool to manage the
kind of large fleets of diversified
equipment found on airport ramps
today.
ment in order to maintain the expected high standards.
Promoting excellence
As Swissport continues to streamline and optimise its operations,
knowledge management increasingly
plays a key role in planning and
execution. Intelligent metrics in
maintenance operations and asset
performance are critical to ensure
predictable and consistent overall
operations.
basis. Beyond using our preventive
maintenance methods, this tool performs powerful duty cycle analysis
enabling us to prevent unscheduled
downtimes of our fleet.
While it was a challenge to purchase
the right system for our organisation, it didn’t necessarily have to
be painful. By adopting a methodical approach we obtained the required product while avoiding costly
extra features we didn’t expect to
use.
Of course, the new software would
be worth little if our shop staff were
not comfortable using it. As such,
we also invested in many hours of
training to ensure that our primary
users understood the system and
were fully comfortable with it. These
people have now become our functional experts and are able to help out
less frequent users.
Customer benefits
Enterprises today are focussed on
operational and procedural efficiencies to make them more competitive
and responsive across the board.
Systems must address business needs
both now and in the future, and be
suitable for use not only within the
organisation, but also together with
partners and customers.
With the implementation of our new
maintenance system, Swissport International is one such enterprise that is
confident of meeting the efficiency
needs of customers worldwide.
Mark Salathe
With this in mind, our GSE maintenance bases in Basel, Geneva and New
York have implemented an important
maintenance tool thatprovides a powerful yet flexible knowledge management capability that enables us to
measure Key Performance Indicators
(KPIs) across our maintenance operations.
We are now able to define and
configure specific KPIs for different
roles and locations, providing critical
performance data on a “need to know”
It is crucial that GSE owners and operators stick to maintenance schedules and recommended maintenance intervals to keep equipment up and running.
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 9
NETWORK
Calcary
Some of the more than 650 customers served by
Swissport International around the world
Adria Airways
Aer Lingus
Aero Lloyd
Aeroflot Russian Intl. Airlines
Aerolíneas Argentinas
Aeromexico
Air 2000
Air Algérie
Air Canada
Air China
Air Europe
Air France
Air India
Air Jamaica Ltd.
Air Littoral
Air Malta
Air Mauritius
Air Seychelles
Air Tanzania
Air Transat A.T. Inc.
Alitalia
All Nippon Airways
America West Airlines Inc.
American Airlines Inc.
American Trans Air Inc.
Anatolia
Arizona Fueling Facilities
Arkia Israeli Airlines Ltd.
Asiana Airlines
Atlas Air Inc.
Austrian Airlines
Avianca
Avioimpex
BAX Global Inc.
Belair Airlines AG
Biman Bangladesh Airlines
Boston Fueling Corporation
British Airways
Cargolux Airlines International
Cathay Pacific Airways
China Airlines Ltd.
China Eastern Airlines
Condor Flugdienst GmbH
Congo Airlines
Continental Airlines Inc.
Copa Airlines
Croatia Airlines
CSA – Czech Airlines
Cyprus Airways
Delta Air Lines Inc.
DHL Worldwide Express
EasyJet Switzerland S.A.
Egyptair
El Al Israel Airlines Ltd.
Emery Worldwide Airlines Inc.
Emirates
Ethiopian Airlines
Eva Airways Corporation
Federal Express Corporation
Finnair
Fort Myers Fuel Committee
Freebird Airlines A.S.
Ghana Airways
GOL Transportes Aéreos
Gulf Air
Iberia
Icelandair
Japan Airlines Co. Ltd.
JAT – Jugoslav Airlines
KLM Royal Dutch Airlines
Korean Air
KTHY – Kibris Türk Hava Yolari
Kuwait Airways
Lacsa
LAN Chile S.A.
Lauda Air
Libyan Arab Airlines
LOT – Polish Airlines S.A.
LTU International Airways
Lufthansa
Maersk Air
Malaysian Airline System
Malev – Hungarian Airlines
Martinair Holland
MEA – Middle East Airlines
Mesa Airlines
Mexicana Airlines
MNG Airlines
Nippon Cargo Airlines
North American Airlines Inc.
Northwest Airlines Inc.
Oakland Fuel Facilities
Olympic Airways
Orlando Sanford International
Pegasus
PIA – Pakistan Intern. Airlines
Polar
Qantas Airways Ltd.
Qatar Airways
Royal Air Maroc
Royal Jordanian
Saudi Arabian Airlines
Scandinavian Airlines System
Singapore Airlines
Skymaster
SN Brussels Airlines
South African Airways
Southwest Airlines Co
Spanair S.A.
SriLankan Airlines Ltd.
Swiss International Air Lines
Syrianair
TACA International Airlines SA
TAP – Air Portugal
Tarom
Thai Airways International
Trans World Airlines
Tunisair
Turkish Airlines
United Airlines
United Parcel Service
US Airways
Varig – Brazilian Airlines
Virgin Atlantic Airways Ltd.
Virgin Express
Volare Airlines SpA
World Airways Inc.
10 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
NETWORK
Latest contracts signed
Atlanta
JAL
Basel
Onur Air, Euro Ops / Euro Jet
Berlin
LTU, Air Transat
Brussels
China Southern Cargo
Cancún
Air 2000, Pace Airlines
Cebu
Peac, UPS
Chicago
Aer Lingus, Aeromexico, Air Jamaica,
Apple Vacations Inc, TACA
Frankfurt
Air Transat, Northwest Airlines, Swiss Cargo
Geneva
Aer Lingus, Antinea Airlines,
British Midland Regional, E.A.E.
Malmö Aviation, Nordic Airlink, THAI
Hanover
Air Nostrum, Iberia
Johannesburg
Phoebus Apollo
Las Vegas
Omni Air International
Liège
TMA Cargo
Lima
Avianca
London
Swiss Cargo
Los Angeles
Aer Lingus
Miami
Alaska Airlines, Pan American
Newark / EWR
Active Aero, BAX Global
New York / JFK
Austrian Airlines, Ghana Airways, Malev,
Pakistan Intl. Airlines, Universal Airways
Puerto Plata
Westjet Airlines
Punta Cana
Zoom
Santo Domingo
JetsGo
São Paulo
Aerosur, Lapa
Seattle
American Transair,
Scandinavian Airlines System
KEY FIGURES FOR 2003
SWISSPORT
Number of customers
Number of employees
Number of airports
Annual revenue (estimate)
Metric tonnes handled
Passengers handled per year
over 650
over 18,000
over 150
USD 860,000,000
2,500,000
60,000,000
Thessaloniki
British Royal Air Force
Vienna
Aer Lingus, Air Valee S.p.A., Iberia
Washington / IAD
Austrian Airlines, TACA
Zürich
Germanwings, Hahn Airlines, Volare
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 11
HUMAN RESOURCES
PEOPLE ■ The oil in our machine
So, you think you’ve got what it takes to become part of Swissport’s worldwide pool of talent?
Here’s how two outstanding people use their skills to make a difference for customers every day.
K E N YA
PA U L R U N G U
Crime busters
As Swissport Kenya’s Security Manager at Nairobi’s Jomo Kenyatta
International Airport, Paul Rungu
oversees the largest team of security
staff in the Swissport network.
Paul is 41 years old, married, with
three children. Brought up in
rural Kenya, he graduated from
Kenyatta University with a Bachelor of Education. Paul taught
in a secondary school and then
spent 11 years in the Kenyan
police force prior to joining
Swissport in 2000.
“A serious security person is on
duty 24 hours a day,” believes Paul.
Here is a typical day at Nairobi
International Airport:
6.30 am: Arrive at the airport and
look through the security report
book. Any incidents noted are
followed up with the supervisor/
agents on duty
8.00 am: Visit the ramp area for
the morning flights and oversee
operations
11.00 am: Return to the office for
administrative duties
2.00 pm: Back to the ramp area
to direct operations for the afternoon
5.00 pm: Speak with duty staff
about night operations. Impromptu
personal visits to check the team
guarding equipment overnight
sometimes continue to 1.00 am
It is a complex operation and Paul’s
security team has already grown from
50 to 80 agents in three years.
Prior to his arrival, damage to passengers’ property and pilferage from
sort areas and aircraft holds was
common at the airport, as was petty
theft from the aircraft cabin itself.
But Paul came to Swissport after
11 years in the Kenyan police force
and knows crime prevention inside
out: by the time Paul left the force
he had risen to the rank of superintendent in charge of training at
the CID headquarters in Nairobi.
The combination of investigative,
administrative and public relations
skills that typify modern-day police
work helped Paul adjust to life at
Swissport.
“That exposure has been key to my
easy integration into the Swissport
family,” he says.
Nonetheless, Paul still had to adapt
from a background in military train-
“This meant dealing not only
with local customers, but
also international clients,
which requires a very
open mind to different ideas,” he adds.
On arrival, Paul reorganised the security department, unified the work
force and channelled the
collective energy of the
group towards creating a
safer, more secure airport environment.
Today, strict measures are in place
to combat petty crime, including
thorough body searches for all personnel allocated duties at certain
points.
Paul Rungu with Security Supervisor
Josephine Wambua.
12 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
passenger and baggage
screening takes place, while
aircraft are guarded to the hilt and no
unauthorised persons are allowed
near them,” he explains.
“We now have a highly motivated,
disciplined and well-trained security
team, which is the envy of many
at the airport,” explains Paul. “What
brings me great happiness is the
fact that we have managed to bring
theft and pilferage cases down to
almost nil.”
Of course, as terrible events in
Mombassa last year demonstrated,
the threat in Kenya and other parts
of the world involves much more
than just petty theft.
“The fact that Kenya has been hit by
international terrorists twice means
that we have a very delicate and
tough job to do,” admits Paul. “That’s
why we don’t compromise on security
matters.”
FA S T FA C T
Swissport security customers at
Nairobi include South African
Airways, British Airways, El Al,
the British Royal Air Force, Alliance Express, SN Brussels Airlines
and Swiss.
ing to a civilian management
role.
While the government has beefed
up airport security, Paul believes
Swissport has made the airport
airtight. “We ensure that 100 %
Ready for action: Paul Rungu (centre)
together with colleagues Francis Koimburi
and Josephine Wambua.
The hard work has definitely paid off
and Paul is quick to congratulate his
staff: “We can now boast a unified,
committed team that is doing a really
commendable job for all of our
customers.”
HUMAN RESOURCES
DOMINICAN
REPUBLIC
HECTOR MERCEDES
Cana – but is considered one of a
kind. First, it is the only station in the
Dominican Republic where Swissport provides a full menu of ground
services that includes passenger, ramp
and executive aviation handling.
Plane sailing
Most Swissport managers expect to
oversee the handling of aircraft
during their day-to-day work. For
Hector Mercedes, however, this is
only half the job: as Station Manager
for Swissport Dominicana’s La
Romana station, he is also in charge
of a thriving cruise ship handling
operation.
Swissport has only operated at La
Romana since November 2002, but
Hector and his team have quickly
built the largest handling operation
at the airport, serving 80 % of all
traffic.
La Romana is Swissport’s fourth
station on the island – after Santo
Domingo, Puerto Plata and Punta
“Being in charge of so many areas
means that I have to be available
the whole day,” comments Hector.
But it is also a full service with a twist.
What really makes La Romana
unique is that Swissport is also the
only company entrusted to provide
full passenger and baggage handling
for cruise ships at the nearby port.
Airlines such as Condor operate
fly-cruise packages, and Swissport
coordinates all of the passenger and
baggage handling between the air
and seaports. On other occasions,
however, there is no onward connection at the airport and Swissport
operates as a 100% cruise ship handler – a non-aviation related service
that is unique within the Swissport
network.
Work began with the cruise ships in
December and Swissport handled
more than 2,470 passengers in the
first month. “We currently provide
the service four days a week,”
explains Hector. “The high season
for cruises runs between the end of
November through May.”
Thanks to Swissport, passengers
connecting from Condor flights enjoy
a smooth journey from the airport –
about 20 minutes drive by road –
before sailing away on ships bearing
evocative names such as Romantica
and Millennium.
La Romana is the only station in the
Swissport network to also offer pure ship
handling.
For Hector, variety really is the spice
of life and it is balancing the two operations, air and sea, that is perhaps the
greatest challenge.
“We meet the cruise ships and deliver
passengers and their baggage from
the pier to the airport and back
again,” says Hector.
Born in La Romana, 41-year-old
Hector Mercedes is married and
has three children. He entered the
airline industry from college and
worked for a local ground handling company at Punta Cana Airport. There, he rose to the post of
sub-director in charge of GSE and
ramp operations before joining
Swissport.
Here is a typical day combining air
and sea handling operations:
Swissport Dominicana’s 98-strong team
run a tight ship whichever “port” they
serve.
“We need to keep the bags secure and
coordinate the on-time arrival and
departure of trucks from the port and
the airport,” he explains.
Of course, La Romana is not just
about cruises and plenty of other
airlines serve the airport, each transporting holidaymakers wishing to
make the most of the island’s sunshine and beautiful beaches.
“It is important that we honour the
commitment that Swissport makes to
all the airlines that we serve,” says
Hector.
Such airlines include AirTransat,
Belair, Corsair, Air Canada, Lauda
Air Italy, Skyservice, USA3000,
Air Europa, Aeris, Britannia, JMC,
MyTravel, Monarch, Air Europe,
Ryan, Monarch and Eurofly.
6.00 am: Arrive at the port. Coordinate the secure movement of
trucks and baggage, and ensure
that the customs guard is present
8.30 am: Arrive at the airport.
Work through the executive aviation area checking the logbook
and verifying staff numbers for the
morning shift
11.30 am: Administration, then
oversee handling of passengers
from the pier and collection of
baggage for Condor check-in
2.30 pm: Visit maintenance area to
check status of all GSE
3.30 pm – 6.30 pm: Oversee operations on the ramp and ensure arrangements are in place for transport to the waiting cruise ships
7.00 pm: Final administrative
duties and return home close to
midnight
C O N TA C T
For more information about
joining the Swissport team worldwide, contact:
Peter Graf
Vice President Human Resources
P.O. Box
CH-8058 Zürich-Airport
Phone: +41 1 812 87 27
[email protected]
Richard Rowe
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 13
SWISS DIVISION
HOME FRONT ■ Zürich, Geneva and Basel
Swissport Switzerland
at work
performance of handling services via a variety of IT systems
does not just impact on passenger services; it poses quite a challenge for Zürich’s load control
operations, too. And innovative solutions are being devised in response.
Our Swiss division
now has its own page in Swissreporter to update readers on all
the latest news and developments
from the largest national organisation within the Swissport International Group.
■ SWISSPORT
SWITZERLAND
All together now
Swissport Switzerland – the amalgamation of our three stations in Basel,
Geneva and Zürich – has now become a reality, even if the foundation
of an “AG” Swiss joint-stock company
has been postponed.
Following our coming together,several
working groups are now exploring
ways to exploit the synergies available in our various marketing,
finance, IT, HR and training units to
ensure that we provide such services
faster, more efficiently and even more
cost-effectively.
■ ZÜRICH
Zürich’s centralised
load control
Swissport Zürich has discovered that
the ability of CUTE to allow the
Lufthansa, for example, introduced
new centralised load control from
Frankfurt via its Lufthansa Load
Control System on 8 January – the
day the airline’s check-in also switched
to the Starcheck system.
The centralised solution has already
been successfully pioneered at Frankfurt and Düsseldorf and we are proud
that Zürich has become the first
non-German Lufthansa station to
adopt this centralised load control
procedure.
Under the new arrangement, all basic
data on the flights is stored in the
Lufthansa weight and balance system. The relevant cargo, passenger
and baggage data is also processed in Frankfurt, with the
responsible coordinator at
the aircraft confirming
to Frankfurt what has
actually been loaded.
Frankfurt then transmits the ACARS
load sheet directly to
the cockpit crew.
Swissport.
The “simple” procedure had a few
snags to be ironed out, as discovered
following implementation. The arrangement also demands extreme
flexibility from our staff who no
longer have all the data in their own
hands, but are now reliant to some
extent on other parties.
We are confident, however, that the
new arrangement not only meets a
customer demand, but also helps us
perform our work more efficiently.
Pushback milestone
The date 15 November marked
a milestone in the Zürich station
operations when, at 12.30 pm, a
Malaysian Airlines Boeing 777 became the first aircraft to be pushed
back from its stand by a Swissport
Zürich pushback tractor. Previously,
this service was only provided by
SR Technics.
Extensive preparations were conducted in advance of the new operation, especially in the training of our
pushback drivers. Having completed
six weeks of theoretical and practical
instruction in Basel (by Swissport
Basel) and Zürich, our drivers are
now applying what they learnt to
ensure operations are as smooth and
safe as possible.
The full operation started on 1 January and 47 airlines are currently under contract to be pushed back by
Swissport at Zürich. A lot of our customers are still parked on remote
stands where pushback is not needed,
but this will, of course, change with
the opening of the new Midfield
Terminal.
Today’s situation means that we only
have an average of 40 pushbacks per
day. First experience shows that the
efforts we put in training and equipment have paid off and a reliable and
efficient organisation handles our
customers’ precious aircraft.
This new pushback service adds a
further component to the full range
of ground handling products offered
to our airline customers in Zürich.
■ BASEL
Swissport Basel is pleased to
announce:
The cutover on 8
January went smoothly thanks to a preparation phase that saw a
true collaborative effort
between all parties involved: Lufthansa, Sita, EDS,
Airport Authority Unique and
■ The signing of new handling
contracts with Air2000 and InterSky
■ The extension of our present
contract with Hapag Lloyd for
an additional two and a half
years
S W I S S P O R T S W I T Z E R L A N D FA C T S & F I G U R E S
2001
Personnel (incl. temp staff) per Nov 02
Departure production
Departed passenger production
Customer airlines
39,347
BASEL
2002
GENEVA
2001
2002
ZÜRICH
2001
2002
580
958
2,089
34,401
43,200
41,400
125,286
110,823
1,224,600 1,046,204
2,400,000 2,200,000
9,439,079 7,807,330
29
42
69
14 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
■ The return of Korean Air Cargo
with one weekly full-freighter service
Roland Etter, Roland Breitler
Martin Brügger
INTERVIEW: EUROPEAN COMMISSION
GROUND HANDLING DIRECTIVE ■ First report card
stakeholders felt it was
appropriate and timely to
undertake a survey some years
after the coming into effect of the
Directive; and, second, they praised
the consultant for the high quality
and the accuracy of the study.
UK consultant SH&E recently completed a study
reviewing the impact of the
European Commission (EC)
Directive on ground handling
at European airports. The study
involved visits to stakeholders at
33 airports as well as a postal
survey conducted with a further
48 airports. Swissreporter asked
Roderic van Voorst from the EC
(DG Transport and Energy) Airport
Policy and Security Unit about its
findings.
Swissreporter: Please explain why
the EC undertook this first report on
the impact of the Directive.
Roderic van Voorst: Article 22 of
the EC Directive on ground handling (Council Directive 96/67/EC on
access to the ground handling market
at Community airports) requires that
the Commission draw up a report on
the implementation of the Directive a
number of years after its coming into
effect, and that this report be accompanied by proposals for revision. The
study enables the Commission to
draw up that report.
Who was involved in the review and
how well was it received?
SH&E met with representatives of the
airport operator, the Airport Users’
Committee, the Airport Operators’
Committee, independent handlers
and self-handling airlines. At several
airports, the consultant also met
with worker representatives.
I would say it was welcomed positively, and for two reasons: first,
And how did the stakeholders provide input?
Stakeholders, as well as Member
States’ authorities, contributed by
some movement towards consolidation among handlers, have also had
a significant impact on quality and
price.
Does the study highlight Member
States where liberalisation has either
gone too far or not nearly far
enough?
Rather than singling out particular
countries or markets, the study finds
that in those places / airports where
“Stakeholders felt it was appropriate
and timely to undertake a survey
some years after the coming into effect
of the Directive.”
providing SH&E with all the information necessary to assemble the
relevant data and facts.This was done
through questionnaires and face-toface interviews.
Also, the Commission organised an
in-between meeting with SH&E and
stakeholders to provide an opportunity to comment on interim results
reflected in a draft final report and to
provide the consultant with corrections and additional information.
What were the key findings of the
review?
The main findings are that, in
general, airport users (i. e. airlines)
have noticed an improvement in the
provision of ground handling services since the introduction of the
Directive in terms of quality and
especially price.
However, it is viewed that it is not
just the Directive that has brought
about changes in the ground handling market. Changes in the industry
and the market itself, such as continuous cost cutting of airlines and
EDITOR’S NOTE
The full report and appendices submitted by SH&E can be found at:
http://europa.eu.int/comm/transport/air/index_en.htm
Click on: The functioning of the air transport market
Then click on: Proposals, studies and reports
liberalisation has taken place gradually and in full compliance with the
Directive, the effects have been the
healthiest.
been the losers in the liberalisation
process as their existing monopolies
were most affected.
The airlines and also the handlers,
however, are very positive. As far as
the Commission is concerned, the
main objective of the Directive i. e.
gradual liberalisation has certainly
been met. The findings, which follow
an extensive survey among all stakeholders, confirm this.
Certainly, there is always room for
improvement and the Commission
services will instigate the necessary
preparations for this.
What happens now in terms of future
action and policy decisions?
The Commission services will prepare the report and a proposal for a
revision of the Directive. Before
doing so, it is likely that a consultation
paper will be discussed with Member
“As far as the Commission
is concerned, the main objective of
the Directive i. e. gradual liberalisation
has certainly been met.”
On a more cautious note, it was found
that at airports where the ground
handling markets have been completely opened (at the initiative of
Member States and/or airports themselves) such as at the large UK airports and Amsterdam Schiphol, there
has been a sudden rise in service
providers, hence a drop in prices,
but also in quality. Then, over time
and after a “shake-out”, the situation
became balanced again.
States and stakeholders first, so as to
test the Commission’s ideas for
amending the Directive.
Interview: Richard Rowe
Also, some Member States have been
reluctant to fully and faithfully transpose the Directive into their national
legislation and as a result liberalisation in these Member States is
limited. With regard to these countries, the Commission is forced to take
legal action.
To your mind, how successful has
liberalisation of ground handling
services been in Europe?
We should bear in mind that any
negative comments have come mainly
from the airports, which may have
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 15
I N D U S T R Y SDA
ED
VF
ELOPMENTS
COMMON GOALS ■ Global voice for handlers
The IAHA is (re)born
After several rounds of meetings
over recent months, the independent ground handling community
now has a new vehicle for highlighting industry concerns and
pursuing best practice.
T H E I N T E R N AT I O N A L Aviation Handlers’ Association (IAHA)
is up and running. The new organisation is the successor to the Independent Aircraft Handling Association,
but promises to be a more dynamic
and broader-based body.
Its formation is based on the firm
objective of highlighting key industry
issues and helping drive our sector
towards the best possible solutions.
IAHA WORKING GROUPS
Several IAHA working groups
have already been formed, each
with a responsible board member
and chairman.
The working groups cover some of
the key issues facing the ground
handling industry today and include:
The new IAHA is the product of
several meetings over the last few
months in which key players in the
ground handling industry have sat
together to determine where the
sector is heading and how they could
Membership of the new IAHA is open
to any ground handlers around the
world that are not owned or controlled
by an airline or an airport.
■ Providing a forum for exchanging
views and concerns
■ Developing industry-wide standards and solutions
■ Cultivating contacts with other
associations
■ Training its members to further
raise the industry’s professional
standards
IAHA aims to put a special focus
on the needs of independent ground
handling companies.
■ Legal and insurance issues
■ IT developments
■ Regulatory issues
■ Health and safety,
environment, security and
training
■ Service level agreements,
benchmarking
■ Cargo
create an industry-wide organisation
to represent their interests and concerns. In doing so, the IAHA aims to
put a special focus on the needs of
independent ground handling companies.
But that’s not all. Further aims of the
new IAHA include:
■ Representing the ground handling
industry in the world air transport
and airport sectors
Membership of the new IAHA is
open to any ground handlers around
the world that are not owned
or controlled by an airline or an
airport.
The new IAHA was officially launched
during Ground Handling International magazine’s conference in
Rome last November.
Over 30 well-respected industry players have so far signed up as members,
including the ground handlers’ associations in the US and the Middle
East.
The IAHA board has already been
established and comprises a broad
base of senior members representing
ground handling companies from
the US, Europe and the Middle
East.
In addition, IAHA has also established several key working groups,
which means that the association is
now fully functional and ready to
begin its work. Current plans call for
two general meetings a year together
with regular communications to all
members.
The IAHA is keen to emphasise,
however, that it has no intention of
violating any anti-trust legislation or
engaging in any anti-competitive
activities.
For further details and information
on how to join, please visit the organisation’s website at www.iaha.info
Stephan Beerli
W W W. I A H A . I N F O
16 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
SWISSPORT WORLDWIDE
Network News and Views
■ SWISSPORT
EUROPE
European management
changes
John Mc Donagh will succeed JeanDidier Savioz as Head of Division
Europe from 1 April. Mc Donagh,
John
Mc Donagh
former CEO of Cargo Service Center
and currently Head of Swissport’s
cargo operations, will be responsible
for all European operations from
his base in Frankfurt. He will be supported by Michel F. Jansen as the new
CFO Europe.
Meanwhile, Jean-Didier Savioz moves
to Nice to assume overall responsibility for all of the Swissport Group’s
French operations. To complete the
picture, Georges Peter, who is currently in charge of Swissport France,
will take on new duties when he
moves to Crete to lead Swissport Hellas
South.
Elsewhere, a new management team
assumed responsibility for Swissport
Germany on 1 January. Hans-Ruedi
Moser left Havas in Turkey to take up
new duties as General Manager Passenger/Ramp Handling in addition to
taking on the role of interim Manager
at Swissport Germany’s Düsseldorf
headquarters. The Havas Board of
Directors has appointed Cüneyd Sen
as the company’s new General Manager.
Meanwhile,Swissport Germany’s overall cargo activities are now led by former CSC manager Heath White as
President and interim CEO (see full
report on page two).
Overall responsibility for Swissport’s
cargo activities remains with Dr. Ludwig Bertsch, who, as Executive Vice
President Corporate Services, is also
in charge of the group’s various corporate services units. In addition to
his regional and local cargo managers,
Bertsch will in future be further supported by two dedicated key account
managers.
Swissport also continues to assess
candidates for the position of CEO in
Germany following the departure of
Thomas Neff to take up an executive
management post at a Swiss public
transport company.
Finally, Paul Arnold, former Country
Head of CSC, has been designated
CEO of Swissport UK with overall
responsibility for both cargo and passenger handling, effective 1 June. Former CEO Mike Maguire will take
over new assignments within Swissport International.
After nearly three years of working
together, the two boards of directors
have decided not to prolong the
cooperation and terminated the
existing agreement, effective 1 February.
Claude Badan, currently General
Manager and the representative of
Swissport, will remain in the country
for two months to cover the busy Hajj
period and to ensure a smooth hand
over.
Swissport Germany continues to test the
new ramp communications unit.
■ MEXICO
Claude Badan
Mexican inroads
■ GERMANY
Wireless
communication
Swissport Germany is busy testing a
cordless headset for communication
between ground, cockpit and tow
truck during pushback and engine
start – the first use of such equipment
in Europe.
The headset is a noise-compensated
heavy-duty communication unit. This
kind of cordless equipment gives
ramp agents greater flexibility, not
least because they are able to move
around the aircraft or in the office
without the limitation of a cable.
In 2002, Swissport Mexico made
great strides towards reaching its
goal of market leadership in the country. Thanks to outstanding teamwork
and forging strong relationships with
current and potential customers,
Swissport Mexico’s customer portfolio increased 87% in the second
half of 2002.
In the period July – December 2002,
Swissport Mexico picked up a variety
of important customers, including
Lauda Air, Eurofly, Lloyd Aero Boliviano, KLM, Belair and Air2000.
Judging from customer feedback,
Swissport Mexico is now really reaching the desired quality levels.
Stephan Beerli
■ SAUDI ARABIA
Swissport and NFS
part ways
Hans-Ruedi
Moser
involved jointly exploring further
business opportunities at three stations in Saudi Arabia.
Since April 2000, Swissport International and Saudi-based Makshaff
Services have enjoyed close levels of
cooperation. Much of this centred
on a management agreement with
National Flight Service (NFS) that
Station Manager Irene Grell admits
that her colleagues even think she
has attached her beauty case to the
aircraft – as this is what the equipment resembles! Once she has retrieved her belongings, Irene will be
more than happy to provide information on the equipment to interested parties at other stations (contact:
[email protected]).
“We would like to communicate that
after initiation of our handling operations with Swissport we have seen
excellent results,” reports Iberia’s
Station Manager in Cancún.
Irene Grell
Silvia Fernández Da Silva
“Swissport provides services with
characteristics of security and quality
which have never been provided to us
by another company.”
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 17
SWISSPORT WORLDWIDE
■ S PA I N
✈
The Geneva Airport fire brigade welcomed the victors home with a special
fire hose salute on 8 March.
Avanza salutes
Swissport Spain
The Avanza Business & Communication Group has granted Swissport
Handling S.A. Spain its Avanza
Quality Award in the Category Gold.
Swissport was extremely proud to
handle the Malaysia Airlines B747
that brought the team back from
Auckland via Kuala Lumpur.
Beat Ruchti
■ C U S T O M E R C O N TA C T
New sales structure
The Avanza Award acknowledges
Swissport Spain’s continuous effort
towards quality, leadership and technological innovation.
María Luz Doce
As part of an ongoing endeavour to
enhance contacts with customers,
Swissport plans to introduce a new
sales organisation on 1 April. Under
the new concept, local Station and
Country Managers will also assume
commercial responsibilities, assisted
in their duties by an eight-strong specialist Global Sales Team.
The eight new Sales Directors, who
will report directly to their divisional
heads, will also be involved in global
key account management and in further enhancing sales activities all over
the world.
■ PERSONNEL
New VP for
IT Management
Joachim Aschoff has joined Swissport International as the group’s
new VP IT Management. The 38year-old Aschoff has spent more
than a dozen years in the airline
and travel industries and worked
The new Global Sales Team will be
led and coordinated by Tony Ivey
from his Washington base. Stephan
Beerli remains Executive Vice President Sales & Marketing, based in
Zürich.
At the same time and with immediate
effect, Dirk Jan de Roo, former COO
of CSC, will take over the responsibility for all operational issues
(including quality) as Vice President
based in Zürich.
Joachim
Aschoff
with high-profile organisations such
as Lufthansa, General Electric and
Swissair.
“My aim at Swissport is to help the
group reach cost transparency as well
as develop and implement a companywide IT strategy,” he explained.
Stephan Beerli
■ G E N E VA
Congratulations Alinghi
The success of Swiss challenger
Alinghi in The America’s Cup saw the
prestigious sailing trophy return to
Europe for the first time in 150 years!
News Ticker
✈
AWA R D S
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Britannia Airlines has awarded its 2002 On Time Performance
Award to Swissport’s Puerto Plata (for the third year in a row) and La
Romana stations.
N A I R O B I , K E N YA
Swissport Kenya has won the 2001 Safety Operations merit award
from the Kenya Airports Authority for its operation at Nairobi’s Jomo
Kenyatta International Airport. The award for 2002 will be announced
later this year.
ZÜRICH, SWITZERLAND
Delta Airlines’ Zürich operation, handled by Swissport Zürich,
has won the carrier’s international network Peak Performance Trophy for
the significant improvement in the reduction of mishandled baggage
during the third quarter of 2002. Separately, Swissport Zürich also
received a commendation from Japan Airlines’ head office for achieving
ramp incident-free operations during 2002 for the fourth year in succession.
CAPE TOWN, SOUTH AFRICA
Airports Company South Africa has awarded Swissport Cape
Town as Airside Operator of the Year 2002.
CANCÚN, MEXICO
Congratulations to Swissport Cancún for winning Air2000’s
Station of the Month award – just three months into the new contract.
MONTREAL, CANADA
At the annual CIFFA Forwarder’s Choice Awards for Eastern
Canada, KLM Cargo was nominated as preferred carrier to Africa,
Middle East, Mediterranean and Europe and also selected as the
Forwarder’s Choice to Europe. The airline beat off strong competition to
win, for the third consecutive year, the prestigious Carrier of the Year
award for its Montreal Dorval operation. KLM Cargo was quick to thank
its handling team at the airport, Swissport Cargo Services.
✈
I S O 9 0 0 2 C E R T I F I C AT I O N S
Hanover and Bremen have successfully passed the external ISO
9002 certification audited by TÜV, which brings the total number of
Swissport stations accredited to 57.
Stephan Beerli
■ INDIA
Cambata collaboration
Swissport has expanded its operations to the high-potential Indian
market in a multi-year cooperation
agreement with Cambata Aviation
Pvt. Limited.
Cambata, founded in 1959, is one of
the largest and best-known ground
handlers in India. The company handled some 8,000 flights on behalf of 18
airlines at its Mumbai and Delhi stations last year.
Swissport aims to use the new partnership to establish itself as a global
provider on the Indian market, developing both partners’ position in India
and representing Cambata all over
the world.
“We are very interested in further collaboration with high-quality companies in the region,” said Joseph In
Albon, President & CEO, Swissport
International.
■ Feedback
Editor’s note:
We are always happy to highlight positive feedback and include in this issue
a note from KLM Cargo’s representative in Mexico City to the former CSC
de México team (now part of Swissport Cargo Services).
Dear All,
I was pleased to read the following article in the recent KLM Cargo Newscast, an email newsletter distributed by CEO Michel Wisbrun. It is clear
that these awards are only given to airlines with a reliable air and ground
product, hence I felt that this award should be shared with CSC de México.
“On the evening of 6 December, KLM Cargo-Mexico received the yearly
award from the Mexican Association of Cargo Agents (AMACARGA) for
first place in Air Quality Service among domestic and international carriers.
“Maria Angin, Director of Sales and Service – Latin America, was present at
the award ceremony and heard personally from the agent community about
their appreciation for the excellent service received from the Mexico Sales and
Service Team.”
Therefore a special word of thanks to the entire former CSC Mexico team –
Aaron, Ignacio, Jorge, José Luis, Lilia and Pablo – for their contribution to
the substantial increase in KLM Cargo’s market share, and in achieving
recognition as the best performing carrier over the Atlantic.
Well done and thanks for your contribution to winning this award.
Nico van Wieringen, KLM Cargo
Stephan Beerli
18 Swissreporter – The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003
C O N TA C T S
HEAD OFFICE
EUROPE
L AT I N A M E R I C A
Swissport International Ltd., Joseph In Albon,
President & CEO, P.O. Box, CH-8058 ZürichAirport, [email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 2779, fax +41 1 811 1001
Swissport International Ltd., John Mc Donagh
EVP Division Europe, Building 558b,
Cargo City South, 6549 Frankfurt,
[email protected]
tel. +49 69 2197 9777, fax +49 69 2197 9799
Swissport Brasil Ltda., Dieter Altenburger,
EVP Division Latin America, Av. Vinte de Janeiro
s/n, Via de Servico – Rua T/103, Ilha do Governador, RJ 21941-570, Rio de Janeiro, Brazil,
[email protected],
tel. +55 21 3398 5934, fax +55 21 3398 5932
Swissport International Ltd., Stephan Beerli,
EVP Marketing & Sales,
P.O. Box, CH-8058 Zürich-Airport,
[email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 4950, fax +41 1 811 1001
Swissport International Ltd., Andreas Bühlmann,
EVP & Chief Financial Officer,
P.O. Box, CH-8058 Zürich-Airport,
[email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 4255, fax +41 1 811 1001
Swissport International Ltd., Cristina Feistmann,
VP General Counsel, P.O. Box, CH-8058 ZürichAirport, [email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 3858, fax +41 1 811 1001
Swissport International Ltd., Dr. Ludwig Bertsch,
EVP Corporate & Head Cargo Services, P.O. Box,
CH-8058 Zürich-Airport,
[email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 2694, fax +41 1 811 1001
Swissport Executive Aviation, P. O. Box, CH-8058
Zürich-Airport, [email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 0346, fax +41 1 811 1001
ASIA
MIDDLE EAST
AFRICA
Swissport International Ltd., Willy Hallauer, EVP
Division Asia/Middle East/Africa, P.O. Box,
CH-8058 Zürich-Airport,
[email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 2560, fax +41 1 811 1001
ISRAEL
Q.A.S. – Quality Airport Services, Yossi Raviv,
President & CEO, P.O. Box 136,
Ben Gurion International Airport 70100, Israel,
[email protected],
tel. +972 3 972 7777, fax +972 3 972 7772
K E N YA
Swissport Kenya, Dirk Olav Everts, CEO,
Jomo Kenyatta Intl. Airport/Unit 2,
P.O. Box 19177, Nairobi, Kenya,
[email protected],
tel. +254 282 2020, fax +254 282 2329
THE PHILIPPINES
Miascor, Juan C. Paraiso III, President & CEO,
Citadel Holdings, Inc., 4/F, SGV II Bldg. 6758
Ayala Avenue, Makati City,
The Philippines, [email protected],
tel. +63 2 851 9647, fax +63 2 851 9680
SOUTH AFRICA
Swissport South Africa (Pty) Ltd.,
Fernand Stauffer, President & CEO,
P.O. Box 5511, Johannesburg Intl. Airport 1620,
South Africa, [email protected],
tel. +27 11 928 8527, fax +27 11 928 8541
TA N Z A N I A
DAHACO, Gaudence K. Temu, General
Manager, P.O. Box 18043,
Dar es Salaam Intl. Airport, Tanzania,
[email protected]
tel. +255 22 284 4610/14, fax +255 22 284 4343
SWITZERLAND
Swissport International Ltd., Urs Sieber, EVP
Division Switzerland, P.O. Box,
CH-8058 Zürich-Airport,
[email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 6170, fax +41 1 812 9195
BASEL
Swissport Basel AG, Stefan Resele,
President & CEO, P.O. Box, CH-4030 BaselAirport, [email protected],
tel. +41 61 325 23 00, fax +41 61 325 23 07
G E N E VA
Swissport Genève SA, Ernest Hochuli, President
& CEO, P.O. Box 776, CH-1215 GenevaAirport, [email protected],
tel. +41 22 799 30 10, fax +41 22 799 31 67
ZÜRICH
Swissport Zürich AG, Urs Sieber,
President & CEO, P.O. Box, CH-8058 ZürichAirport, [email protected],
tel. +41 1 812 6170, fax +41 1 812 9195
AUSTRIA
Swissport Austria GmbH, Renate Mackay,
General Manager, World Trade Center TOP
112, 1300 Vienna, Austria,
[email protected],
tel. +43 1 7007 35521, fax +43 1 7007 35523
BELGIUM
Swissport Cargo Services Belgium,
Patrick Minsart, General Manager, Building
721, 1931 Zaventem, Belgium,
[email protected]
tel. +32 2 751 6066, fax +32 2 753 0608
FRANCE
ARGENTINA
Swissport Argentina S.A.
Hugo Schreier, CEO, Intl. Airport Ezeiza,
Ministro Pistarini, 1802 Ezeiza, Buenos Aires,
Argentina, [email protected],
tel. +54 11 5480 4433, fax +54 11 5480 4431
BRAZIL
Swissport Brasil Ltda., Lician de Mello,
CEO, Av. Vinte de Janeiro s/n, 1º andar-Pista,
Sala 1651A, Ilha do Governador, RJ 21941-970,
Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, [email protected],
tel. +55 21 3398 5933, fax +55 21 3398 5932
Swissport France, Jean-Didier Savioz,
President & CEO, Immeuble Communica,
455, Promenade des Anglais,
06299 Nice Cedex 3, France,
[email protected],
tel. +33 4 9229 4452, fax +33 4 9229 4451
CARIBBEAN
GERMANY
DOMINICAN REPUBLIC
Swissport Deutschland GmbH, Hans-Rudolf
Moser, General Manager Passenger Services,
Wanheimer Strasse 45, 40472 Düsseldorf,
Germany, [email protected]
tel. +49 211 4371 3110, fax +49 211 4371 3111
Swissport Cargo Services Deutschland GmbH,
Heath White, General Manager Cargo Services,
Cargo City South, Building 558B,
60549 Frankfurt, Germany,
[email protected],
tel. +49 69 219 7970, fax +49 69 219 79799
Aerogate Stuttgart GmbH,
Klaus Knöpfle, General Manager,
Flughafen Stuttgart, Terminal 1, 70629 Stuttgart,
Germany, [email protected],
tel. +49 711 948 2900, fax +49 711 948 24901
GREECE
Swissport Hellas S.A., Simon Lehmann,
General Manager, Athens International Airport,
“Eleftherios Venizelos”, 19019 Spata, Greece,
[email protected],
tel. +30 210 353 7086, fax +30 210 353 7821
Swissport Hellas Sud, Georges Peter, General
Manager, National Airport of Heraklion-Crete,
“Nikos Kazantzakis”, 71601 Heraklion, Crete,
[email protected],
tel. +30 8 133 6970, fax +30 8 133 6971
I TA LY
Swissport Cargo Services Italy, Sergio Squeri,
General Manager, Via R. Morandi 76, 20090
Segrate, Italy, [email protected],
tel. +39 02 2692 0271, fax +39 02 2692 0257
LUXEMBOURG
Swissport Cargo Services Luxembourg,
Oliver Hellwig, Managing Director, Luxembourg
Airport, Cargo Center West / Findel Airport,
2889 Luxembourg, Luxembourg,
[email protected],
tel. +352 26 426 2700, fax +352 26 426 2702
RUSSIA
Swissport Cargo Services Russia, Natalia
Feodorova, General Manager, Pilotov 32A,
Aviagorrodok, St. Petersburg, Russia,
[email protected], tel. +7 812 118 7591,
fax +7 812 118 7591
S PA I N
Swissport Spain S.A., Daniel Gut,
President & CEO, C/Gran Via, 71-3a dcha.,
28013 Madrid, Spain, [email protected],
tel. +34 91 548 7631/32, fax +34 91 541 5955
TURKEY
Havas, Cüneyd Sen,
General Manager, Prof. Nurettin Öktem Sk.
No. 2, 80260 Sisli-Istanbul, Turkey,
[email protected],
tel. +90 212 233 2422, fax +90 212 2233 3853
UNITED KINGDOM
Swissport U.K. Ltd., Michael J. Maguire, CEO,
Room 2411/Terminal 2, Heathrow
Airport, TW61HG, Hounslow, Middlesex, UK,
[email protected],
tel. +44 20 8607 5550, fax +44 20 8283 9981
Swissport Cargo Services Aruba, Gerhard
Goselink, General Manager, Reina,
Beatrix Airport, Cargo Building, Aruba,
[email protected],
tel. +599 9868 2244, fax +599 9562 9079
Swissport Dominicana, Omar J. Azar, CEO,
Avenida Independencia 1811, Santo Domingo,
Dominican Republic, [email protected],
tel. +1 809 508 2230, fax +1 809 508 3233
HONDURAS
Swissport GBH Honduras, Luis Calderon Curo,
General Manager, Terminal de Aduana, Aeropuerto Internacional de Tocontin, Tegucigalpa,
Honduras, [email protected],
tel. +504 668 8880, fax +504 668 8884
MEXICO
Swissport de México S.A. de C.V., Norbert
Bielderman, President & CEO, Cpt. Carlos Leon
s/n, Edificio B, Nivel 2, Local 31 y 32, Intl. Airport Mexico City,P.O. Box 39-290, MX-15621
Mexico D.F., [email protected],
tel. +52 55 2599 0290/91/92,
fax +52 55 2599 0293
NETHERLAND ANTILLES
Swissport Cargo Services Curaçao, Gerhard
Goselink, General Manager, Reina,
Beatrix Airport, Cargo Building, Aruba,
[email protected],
tel. +599 9868 2244, fax +599 9562 9079
IMPRESSUM
Published by:
Swissport International Ltd.
Publisher:
Stephan Beerli, Executive Vice
President Marketing & Sales,
Swissport International Ltd.
[email protected]
Editor:
Richard Rowe
[email protected]
Phone: +44 (0) 131 620 1174
Swissport coordinator:
Nicole Schneider
[email protected]
Contributors to this issue:
Joseph In Albon
Claude Badan
John Baize
Stephan Beerli
Roland Breitler
Martin Brügger
Roland Etter
Silvia Fernández Da Silva
Irene Grell
Jo Harvey
Philip Hill
María Luz Doce
Darren Mayes
Hector Mercedes
Richard Rowe
Beat Ruchti
Paul Rungu
Mark Salathe
Kay Schwarz
Patrick Sheedy
Toralf Sonntag
Heath White
Translations:
Paul Day
PERU
Swissport GBH Peru, Alfonso Garcia-Miro,
Executive Director, Av. Elmer Faucett 4800
Callao, Lima, Peru,
[email protected],
tel. +511 411 6800, fax +511 411 6820
VENEZUELA
Swissport Cargo Services Venezuela,
Oscar Lehmann, General Manager, Ed. Pascal
Torre B Local 4B, Planta Baja, Av. Romulo
Gallegos, Santa Eduvigis Caracas, Venezuela,
[email protected], tel. +58 212 285 4060,
fax +58 212 285 8491
NORTH AMERICA
Swissport North America/USA Inc.,
Erich Bodenmann, EVP Division North America,
45025 Aviation Drive, Dulles, VA 20166, USA,
[email protected],
tel. +1 703 742 4301, fax +1 703 742 4321
Swissport Fueling, Thomas F. Comeau,
President, 45025 Aviation Drive, Suite 350,
Dulles, VA 20166-7557, USA,
[email protected],
tel. +1 703 742 4392, fax +1 703 742 4388
Swissport CFE, John Wilson,
President, 4560 South Boulevard, Suite 202,
Virginia Beach, VA 23452, USA,
[email protected],
tel. +1 757 490 2465, fax +1 757 490 2543
Hallmark Aviation Services, Philipp Huber,
President, 5757 W. Century Blvd., Suite 860,
Los Angeles, CA 90045, USA,
[email protected],
tel. +1 310 215 0701, fax +1 310 410 5362
Layout and printing:
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Circulation 14,500
© 2003 Swissport International
Ltd., Zürich-Airport, Switzerland
Swissreporter Information Desk:
Phone: +41 1 812 4954
Fax: +41 1 811 1001
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www.swissport.com
CANADA
Swissport Cargo Services Canada, Jack Keery,
President, P.O. Box 86, Toronto AMF Ontario,
CA L5P 1A2, [email protected],
tel. +1 786 552 0095, fax +1 786 552 0093
The Swissport customer journal ■ April 2003 – Swissreporter 19
Value for money – through professionalism.
For a professional service provider there is a mantra that drives
quality like no other: The best judge of value for money is the customer.
So for Swissport the ultimate measure of success is customer satisfaction.
Drawing on 40 years of international experience, we take a professional
360-degree view of our customers' interests, because ultimately those
interests are identical with our own. In the past it was our focus on customer
needs that led our transformation from ground handler to full-service
provider. Today that same focus shapes our portfolio of professional services.
Becoming a one-stop source of ground handling, cargo, logistics, and
executive aviation services is Swissport's professional response to evolving
customer needs. Swissport: real value for money.
To harness our professionalism, contact Ms. Nicole Schneider on +41 1 812 4954
or [email protected]. Or visit www.swissport.com
* “Global Ground Handling
Company of the Year”
three times in a row.
Accredited by the ITM
Air Transport Committee.