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MAGA in the approach path
German technology remains highly regarded when it comes to rapid material handling, the elimination of weaknesses, and service quality. Following successful projects in Oklahoma and Texas, the steel trader " Steel and Pipe Supply " (SPS) in Kansas City once again relied on Kasto saws and storage systems.
Rent warehouse equipment instead of buying it
Bito is launching an offensive with an economical alternative for companies that want to re-equip, expand, or temporarily supplement their warehouse and production areas, but don't want to tie up their capital long-term: renting instead of buying is the motto. The advantages – especially in " dynamic times " – are obvious.
«Kanpai» with sake on the pharmaceutical chain
Logistics provider Yusen is presenting an expanded global platform for the healthcare sector at LogiPharma in Vienna, where companies such as Novartis, Bayer, Takeda, and hospital supplier UCB are currently participating. The platform focuses on the professional delivery of specialized healthcare solutions.
Streamlined logistics
Coop's own rail connection for urban logistics in Zurich, streamlined logistics vehicles and the outsourcing of all operating room logistics in a cooperation between the Seeschau Clinic and the Swiss Post are the projects that are entering the final sprint for this year's Swiss Logistics Award from GS1.
Vacuum technology makes mobility possible
Compressed air has traditionally been used primarily for fixed installations. Schmalz's vacuum grippers also mainly operate with lines that often have to run across halls and facilities. However, mobile robotics increasingly requires flexible solutions – a need that Schmalz now intends to address more effectively.
A foray into drive technology
Safelog, the specialists for software for controlling intralogistics processes, have entered into a cooperation with the drive experts from SEW Eurodrive at LogiMAT in order to jointly develop a high-performance software for controlling mobile and stationary processes in intralogistics.
Networking with perspectives
“Never walk alone” could be the motto of a networking event hosted by the consulting experts from “Adnovum”, where the Digital Product Passport (DPP), cybersecurity and IT opportunities with Petra Merino (GS1 Switzerland) and security expert Andreas Achterholt are on the agenda on May 7th in Zurich.
Maintenance in Austria
With a new workshop in Obersiebenbrunn near Vienna, rail manufacturer Stadler is expanding its capacity for the commissioning, approval, and servicing of modern rail vehicles in Austria. The workshop has been used to maintain Westbahn's high-speed trains since March 2026.
Idealworks pushes into the US market
Idealworks, part of the Munich-based Agile Robots Group, with more than 1,700 AMRs and AGVs worldwide and one of the pioneers in industrial automation through AI in robot-controlled logistics processes, has founded a US company headquartered in Greenville, South Carolina.
New chain belt sorting
At LogiMAT, conveyor technology provider Interroll attracted attention with a new chain-belt sorting system developed after the acquisition of Sortteq. Together with MCP Play, this creates a material flow ecosystem that combines single-item transport with intelligent sorting.
HHLA is looking for an "iron middle ground"
HHLA is looking for an "iron middle ground"
Port of Poti (Georgia)
, the transport market is seeking new routes – instead of via Moscow – from Europe through the Caucasus to the Chinese border. A new corridor has emerged as an alternative. Hamburg-based HHLA is participating in this route with its "hinterland transport" by rail.
An HHLA subsidiary called Metrans established a logistics center in Malaszewicze, Poland, in early January 2022, shortly before the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in February, to serve the northern rail corridor to China. Business there has now come to a standstill.
This brings the central corridor, known as the "Central Trans-Caspian Network" (CTCN), further into focus. The southern route of this CTCN runs overland through Turkey via Kars. A railway line from Kars, through Armenia and Georgia, to the Azerbaijani port of Baku on the Caspian Sea, was opened at the end of October 2017. Alternatively, there is a connection from the Romanian port of Constanța across the Black Sea to the Georgian port of Poti and then by rail to Baku.
All images: HHLA
Martin Koubek, Metrans coordinator for the Silk Road: "Since rail freight traffic between Europe and China via Russia has a transit time of about 14 days , we had to find a comparable solution."
Frank Busse, a partner at HHLA subsidiary Hamburg Port Consulting, describes the infrastructure along the entire route as "limited." He currently estimates the traffic volume on the central corridor at around 80,000 TEU. Various studies forecast an annual transport potential of between 130,000 and 850,000 TEU by 2040.
Calm in Malaszewicze (Poland)
To this end, the capacity of the Kazakh ports of Aktau and Kuryk is to be expanded to up to 120,000 TEU. Currently, Aktau handles only about 30,000 TEU per year. While Azerbaijan's western Caspian Sea ports of Baku and Alyat are "better positioned," the rail connection between Baku and Poti "is not designed to transport hundreds of thousands of additional containers," Busse explains. Therefore, the infrastructure along the Caspian Sea is being expanded further westward. Port expansions are also planned in Turkmenbashi (Turkmenistan) and Baku.
Here is the full report by HHLA author Kerstin Kloss
