News roundup

One million trees in five years, pledges Avashya Foundation Environment conscientiousness is a value that drives Allcargo and its holding company Avvashya Group. As the company grows bigger, it aims not only to focus on business growth, but also promises to positively impact the environment and create sustainable surroundings. The group has pledged to plant one million trees in the next five years to restore the fast-depleting world green cover that in turn improves wildlife habitats, reduces carbon imprint on the planet, and provides livelihood opportunities for local communities. In 2015, the company planted 103,000 trees to live up to its green commitment.

Allcargo associated with Grow Trees, the United Nation’s Environment Program partner, to implement this tree-planting drive for all its business lines.

At ECU Worldwide, the project has been christened ‘MyTree’, wherein the plan is to plant a sapling in the name of every employee. The proceeds from MyTree will be passed on to local communities in the region. The peripheral region of the Sitamata Wildlife Sanctuary in the arid state of Rajasthan in India has been chosen as the site for the implementation of this project.

Avashya Foundation, the group’s philanthropic arm is implementing the initiative for the rest of the group. In association with Grow Trees, the foundation has chosen to support the project of planting fruit-bearing trees at a village in the Chintamani district of the South Indian state of Karnataka. Greening of this region with fruit-bearing trees will benefit nearly 40 villages. These villages receive scanty rainfall and trees are a vital source of livelihood for many families here. In India, the initiative is called, “Maitree” a local word which has two meanings – friendship and amity.

Across the group, this initiative will be audited annually and its progress report shared with employees.

Allcargo elevates Adarsh Hegde as Joint Managing Director

Allcargo Logistics Ltd recently elevated Mr Adarsh Hegde as joint managing director of the group. The decision comes at a time when the company is embarking on new initiatives to become a global market leader in logistics and transportation.

Mr Hegde is also a part of the ECU Worldwide’s leadership team that will drive international procurement initiatives and organisation-wide plans. His elevation comes close on the heels of ECU-Line rebranding itself to ECU Worldwide with a commitment to simplify geographies for customers. Mr Hedge’s guidance will be instrumental in helping the company tread through its ambitious global expansion roadmap.

Mr Hegde has been a force majeure in charting Allcargo’s growth journey since the company’s inception in the early ’90s. In particular, he is credited to have established six Container Freight Stations (CFS) and Inland Container Depot (ICD) facilities in different parts of India and helped set up the company’s Project Forwarding division.

Commenting on the appointment, Dr Shashi Kiran Shetty, chairman of Allcargo Logistics Ltd and ECU Worldwide said, “Adarsh’s aptitude and contributions have been invaluable to Allcargo’s growth journey. He espouses a hands-on management style and is greatly respected for his people management skills, simplicity and industry-wide relationships. We are sure that in the new role he will work with me more than ever before in the future growth of our business. I wish him well in his new position and success in his new role.”

As the joint managing director, Mr Hegde will oversee and craft business strategies for the company’s CFS & ICD business, Project & Equipments, and Coastal Shipping and Contract Logistics divisions, developing a strong leadership team, and supporting initiatives to accelerate business growth. Mr Hegde will also continue to play an active role in overall group governance and business development.

ECU Worldwide engages top IT provider to custom-design ERP application

True to its promise of simplifying geography for its customers, ECU Worldwide engaged Tata Consultancy Services (TCS), a top-ranking IT service, consulting and business solutions provider, to custom-design an advanced ERP application for its business. This ERP system will have an impact on ECU Worldwide’s business and enable the company to offer customers a seamless experience in cargo and logistics operations.

The ERP application was first deployed at ECU Worldwide’s UK office in early 2015. Subsequently, it was rolled out in Guangzhou, China and then in Spain. It is currently being rolled out in other countries.

Aptly named TOPAZ, the global implementation project of this ERP application will have a effect on ECU Worldwide’s business. The company will have standardized processes and improved operational visibility for better management control and decision making. There will be tighter financial integration, improved accuracy in financial data, and speedier reporting of financials. The intuitive business intelligence (BI) add-on will improve visibility across the company’s widespread network. All of this put together will give the company a competitive edge in an industry where technology adoption is passive and slow.

a.hartrodt, a leading logistics and transporter in Singapore became the first ECU Worldwide client to be served through this technology application. Mr Joseph Argiridis, managing director at a.hartrodt, personally made a booking through the application and expressed his delight on discovering its possibilities.

The first phase of this ERP implementation sets the ball rolling on ECU Worldwide’s objective of becoming a technologically driven logistics and transportation provider that will help simply geographies for clients.