Investments, innovations, initiatives - Raben Group sums up 2018

Problems dealt with by the logistics industry for years, related to, e.g. the deficit of employees or to EU regulations, have not disappeared with the coming of another year. However, Raben Group coped well in these difficult conditions, as evidenced by many investments.

“2018 was certainly a challenging year. Difficult situation on the labour market, shortage of drivers and warehouse staff, as well as rising costs combined with the desire and even necessity to invest in new solutions and development, mean that the coming years will be a period of tests and a constant struggle for logistics operators and transport companies.” – summarizes Janusz Anioł, General Director Raben Logistics Poland.

Raben in Germany

After an intense year 2017 on the German market, Raben did not slow down at all. January 2018 brought about the launch of its own independent transport network, consisting of 32 branches and 46 locations, employing close to 3,000 employees and a fleet of approximately 2,000 vehicles. This undertaking is a milestone for Raben Trans European Germany because it has provided the company with the position in which it can offer independent transport and forwarding services to customers throughout the country and on international connections. The launch of the own network was possible thanks to the organic growth and acquisitions of local logistics companies carried out since the end of 2016. As part of the network supplementation and development, in autumn 2018, TGL TransportLogistik in Schüttorf joined the business, which was taken over by Raben Group from THE GREENLINE Group. In September, Raben Trans European Germany opened a new company head office in Mannheim and expanded its subsidiary in Gütersloh.

“I am very happy with our steady and sustainable growth in Germany. The reactions of our customers after the launch of the independent network are very optimistic because we optimally achieve our customers’ economic goals and we meet their expectations. What makes me personally happy is the fact that we are observing a growing sense of pride in the employer brand among our employees; in the past year the engagement rate in Germany increased by as much as 22%.” - says Ewald Raben, CEO Raben Group - “We are currently conducting further investments which will complement our network with modern logistics centres and we will soon open a new branch in Fahrbinde. We are also planning to expand international connections within the Group, but I will be able to say more on this subject at the Munich Trade Fair in June.”

The last quarter of last year was marked by the launch of daily, regular connections between Germany and Italy, which are to support existing customers from these countries in the trade of goods. The Ruhr area, Stuttgart and Nuremberg were connected to Milan in Lombardy and Verona in Veneto, ensuring delivery of shipments between those key regions within two business days.

Raben in Poland

In April the facility in Chlebnia was officially opened, where the branch from Grodzisk Mazowiecki was relocated. The investment project completed by Panattoni Europe consists of the cross-dock warehouse with the capacity of ​​approx. 8,000 m² and a high-storage warehouse with the capacity of ​​34,000 m², which can store approx. 50,000 pallets. As a result, the facility can service more than 4,000 shipments daily and handle approximately 265 trucks.

Less than half a year later, the branch in Czechowice-Dziedzice moved to a new location in 7R Beskid Park - a modern complex in which Raben Logistics Polska has 3,440 m² of an A class cross-dock warehouse and over 500 m² of offices.

Both facilities are located in really convenient locations and during their construction, special attention was paid to safety and ecology. This was the reason behind the installation of modern fire protection solutions, roof skylights, LED lighting and gas radiators to heat the rooms. In the meantime, a new location of the Opole branch was opened, which is situated in the newly built CTP warehouses. Over there, Raben uses a warehouse with the capacity of 3,000 m² and with 20 loading ramps.

“We are satisfied with the results and the growth ratio which we managed to achieve in the past year. We are particularly happy with the portfolio of our loyal customers and long-standing cooperation with many of them. A good example of such cooperation is Nivea Polska or Henkel, with whom we have been cooperating for over 20 years. A new warehouse for handling cosmetics is currently being built in Robakowo for the latter company.” - says Janusz Anioł - “In 2019 and in the following years we will continue our strategy consisting in stability, high quality services and competitiveness based primarily on partnership with our customers.”

Raben in Europe

2018 was also very dynamic on other Raben markets in Europe. In April, Raben Logistics Czech officially opened a new head office in Nupaky near Prague. The new logistics centre with the capacity of over 27,000 m², located in the strategically positioned CTPark Prague East, is one of the most modern facilities of this sector in the Czech Republic and Slovakia. It consists of warehouses with a total capacity exceeding 20,000 m², an independent cross-dock warehouse with the capacity of over 5,000 m² and offices with an area of ​​650 m². The new head office of Raben Czech boats not only modern solutions and high safety standards, but also the unique, green and ecological surroundings.

The festive opening ceremony in Nupaky coincided with the celebration of the 10th anniversary of the company operations on the Czech and Slovak markets. Meanwhile, Ukraine celebrated the 15th anniversary of the company operations on this market. Raben Ukraine, which started operations in 2003, currently employs approximately 500 employees in 6 regional depots. The transport fleet has about 600 trucks and the warehouse capacity is 65,000 m². In turn, in Hungary, during the summer, a 1,200 m² warehouse was built in Dunaharaszti to store flammable materials as a result of cooperation with a new customer of Raben Hungary.

Raben business in Romania, Lithuania, Latvia and Estonia is also developing very intensively and the company is also investing heavily in new connections to Italy, where from 2017 it has been a 20%-shareholder in Sittam.

Awards

The last year was also important due to an array of awards presented to Raben. First of all, Ewald Raben, CEO Raben Group, was awarded the LEO 2018 title in the “Entrepreneur of the Year” category by Deutsche Verkehrs-Zeitung. What is more, the operational activity of Raben Logistics Poland was awarded with the Code of Innovations in the TFL category, presented by GS1 Polska, with the title of Logistics Leader in the category “The most competitive company” in the Logistics Operator of the Year survey, and Raben Group was awarded with the Emblem of the Consumer Leader of Quality 2018. Also, the Raben logistics centre in CTPark Prague East turned out to be the best in the country - it won Best Warehouse Development Award at the CIJ Awards in the Czech Republic in 2018.

Innovations

Innovative thinking and actions are indispensable in the logistics industry in order to meet the requirements of customers. Already in 2017, the Research and Development department was established in Raben Group which deals with both the optimization of already existing processes and the creation of completely new models of operations. Transport and logistics virtually without paper, application of early warning mechanisms to predict possible changes in delivery times, using advanced image processing algorithms to measure shipment height on entering the warehouse. Genius Lab is conducting research on IoT and RPA (Robotic Process Automation) solutions, which have great potential to transform many processes in logistics companies. The result of the department's work is also the ETA (Estimated Time of Arrival) functionality, an advanced tool allowing for tracking shipments in real time, launched in January this year (www.etafairway.com).

At the end of 2018, Raben Group shared its vision of the future of the TFL industry by presenting the film "Raben - future of logistics", which can be viewed on the Raben Group website.