Picture credit: Marina Bay Sands
The ASEAN nations are developing markets which require logistics solutions and this development provides business opportunities for those who can provide the right services.
For this reason, Messe München, organiser of transport logistic is launching transport logistic Southeast Asia and air cargo Southeast Asia.
The new show will be held at the Sands Expo and Convention Centre from 1-3 November, which will feature an exhibition hall and conference sessions for visitors to learn about the latest industry trends.
When launching a new show, market demand is a key consideration, says Michael Wilton, Managing Director and CEO of MMI Asia, who says that from a shipper’s perspective, south east Asia has unique challenges and they have demands that require solutions.
This creates the demand for an event, combined with the region’s importance geopolitically and geographically, as well as the growth of the ASEAN nations.
Wilton says, “This is a region that is growing, it is becoming more and more significant in many different facets, especially supply chains and distribution channels. So transport logistic and air cargo Southeast Asia will provide shippers in the region, distribution managers and supply chain networks with access to some of the leading service providers for these solutions. We, Messe München, through our shows, like to provide the opportunities for certain geographies to get access to these solutions.”
With its leading airport and seaport, Singapore is a world-class logistics hub, making it an obvious location for the new show.
A stable business environment and wide-spread knowledge of the English language makes it an attractive place to do business.
“When putting on a trade show or business event, we need to consider where is the most convenient place for the potential visitors to get to. Singapore is very accessible, it is an easy place for people to do business and safe to bring all parts of south east Asia into one place. It stands out as the place in south east Asia to do that,” says Wilton.
The logistics and air cargo ecosystems are well-established in Singapore, with many leading players having operations there.
Several major shippers have their headquarters in Singapore, making it the hub for decisions about distribution.
For hosting an event, there is nowhere else in the region which can match the Sands Expo and Convention Centre at the iconic Marina Bay Sands hotel.
The new show will complement the existing Asian shows, air cargo China and air cargo India, which are focused on their respective domestic markets.
The ASEAN region has 10 countries which are all different with their languages, cultures and business environments so the best way to serve these markets is to have a separate show, says Wilton.
He says, “To really penetrate this market and understand the demands that face shippers here, this show is the place you need to be. It completes a gap in Asia with the China show being very effective for China and the Indian show for India, the Singapore show will be focusing on south east Asia.”
South east Asia is growing as a production and manufacturing hub, with this changing landscape providing challenges for businesses.
Supply chains are evolving as companies evaluate their businesses, reducing their reliance on China often by having additional operations in another country.
“We see a shift from China coming into south east Asia, that might be multinational companies that have factories in China and Chinese producers themselves are looking at south east Asia to diversify their manufacturing base,” says Wilton.
Leading exhibitors
The new event has attracted the attention of several major international companies and regional companies. Changi Airport, Singapore Airlines Cargo, Garuda Indonesia Cargo and MAB Kargo will have a presence and other global players including Emirates SkyCargo, Turkish Cargo and DHL will be present.
There will be country pavilions for Germany, Dubai, China, the Netherlands, Indonesia and Singapore where groups of companies can exhibit together.
For the air cargo section, there will be plenty of airlines, airports, freight forwarders and other companies to see.
With its leading seaport, maritime freight will be the other main focus area, so the sea ports and their agents will be represented by companies including DP World, German ports such as Bremen ports, port of Hamburg, Seaports of Niedersachsen, Jade-Weser port and companies on the Indonesian pavilion such as Krakatau International Port, Sinarmas Shipping and KAI Logistics.
A number of technology, cold chain, freight forwarders and logistics companies will be on the Singapore pavilion representing Singapore based logistics companies.
At the time of conducting the interview, Wilton said 125 booths had been booked, including joint booths and the pavilions.
On the Dutch pavilion alone, there will be at least 14 companies and across the whole show, more than 150 entities will have a presence. The split between air and sea is around 60/40.
Messe München is projecting 4-5,000 unique individuals to attend who may be interested in visiting the conference, which will discuss issues facing the industry in the region and internationally.
The conference themes will be sustainability, digitalisation and resilience, which Wilton says will manifest itself with a ministerial opening to open the show and conference together.
Singapore Minister of State for the Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth, and the Ministry of Trade & Industry Alvin Tan will open the show with the German Parliamentary State Secretary to the Federal Minister for Digital and Transport Oliver Luksic and there will be a keynote speech from author and supply chain and logistics expert Mark Millar, which will be followed by country sessions for Singapore, Dubai, Vietnam, Malaysia and Indonesia.
On the Project Cargo Conference, which takes place on 3 November 2023, the subject of breakbulk and heavy lift challenges and opportunities in the south east Asia will be on the agenda.
Feedback from the market has been encouraging, with Wilton saying that local stakeholders knew of the Munich and Shanghai shows, so were excited for a south east Asia show, especially when they heard it would be in Singapore.
Wilton says, “We were able to set up an official government sanctioned Singapore pavilion which sold out very quickly. There is an official German and Indonesian pavilion, which for a first edition of an event is quite rare. It has exceeded our initial expectations, we have had to expand the space three times now and make a few adjustments for the logistics of putting on a show. We have had to change plans a couple of times, although it is quite tricky to do, it is a consequence of the response we have had for this event.”
This article was published in the August issue of Air Logistics International, click here to read the digital edition and click here to subscribe.