Don’t Fence Me In: Efficiency advice from one of the world’s largest ground handlers
If a more-efficient cargo facility is the goal, then airport operators, carriers and forwarders should speak with Barry Nassberg, group chief commercial officer for Worldwide Flight Services (WFS), one of the largest cargo ground handlers in the world.
In an interview at TIACA’s Air Cargo Forum in Toronto, Nassberg told Air Cargo World that, “There is hardly a warehouse in our system where we don’t feel space constraint. At many locations, we’re virtually at capacity, so we have to get creative.” The demand is not just about e-commerce. “We’re seeing a lot of growth in general cargo, and in cool-chain requirements.”
Every available square meter of space must be evaluated, he said. “In some places, we open onto an airside where we don’t really need the space for freighter operations. So, we try to do expansions there.”
One unconventional way to help eke out more throughput is to look up, Nassberg said. “Building heights are often the most underutilized aspects of a facility,” he said. “This is where the automated systems really come into their own. You can go up 10, 12 meters with automated storage and retrieval systems. You can usually build right up to the roof of the facility.”
Consolidating operations is another helpful strategy. At New York’s JFK Airport, “we’re working at nine different cargo facilities, which is inherently inefficient,” Nassberg said. “We’re trying to get more efficiency out of each unit with automated solutions, but we’re also looking at consolidation.” In the next two to three years, Nassberg said he hopes to have at least three or four of those nine JFK operations merged into “one new very big facility.”
Nassberg also advises that stakeholders should try to partner with airport owners and airport authorities to give the proper attention to cargo development. “Some airports are extremely good at that and, for some, it’s a complete afterthought,” he cautioned. “We spend a lot of time trying to get airports focused on the right kind of infrastructure investment – to convince airports that an extra lane to an access road will make a difference to truck waiting times.”
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