Manpower - Employers - Case Studies

How airfreight companies protect their profit margins through training

By training drivers to Level 4 Aviation Security, Driving Power is helping airfreight clients avoid excess charges that would erode their narrow profit margins. "Any load without a Level 4 driver is automatically classified as 'unknown'. This means it must be re-examined by the authorities, and that costs us 5p per kilo - £375 for a full 7.5 tonne load. It's an ultra-competitive industry," Fritz Companies (UK) Limited said, "and Driving Power's service is therefore very important."

Using Driving Power gives Fritz and other airfreight companies:

• A flexible source of Level 4 certified drivers
• Protection against delays caused by searches
• A guarantee against up to £375 excess costs
• Continuity of driver supply because of high retention levels

The Challenge

All cargoes for airfreight must be classified as 'known'. This means that everyone in the freight chain must have been checked and registered as security cleared. Once a company has been cleared, all its loads carry the 'known' status. Without this status, loads are automatically classified 'unknown' and have to be re-checked and x-rayed before they can proceed. The cost for this for a full 7.5 tonne load, is £375.

And the deciding factor is often the driver delivering the load to the airport. Unless they have Level 4 Aviation Security certification the load will become 'unknown' and incur the excess.

Newcastle Airport, with over 20 airfreight companies, was experiencing a driver crisis. Agencies couldn't supply Level 4 drivers - and wouldn't send drivers for training because poor retention levels made it uneconomic.

The Solution

Driving Power's new Newcastle Hub stepped into the breach. Firstly, they have excellent retention levels - some drivers have been with Driving Power for 10 years - so the cost of Level 4 training was acceptable. More importantly, Driving Power invested in training for their own executives to deliver Level 4 Training in-house and develop a ready supply of certified drivers for the most short-notice demand. They have also extended Level 4 training to drivers of Class II vehicles, where the penalty for 'unknown loads' is even greater - and they are now coupling this with ADR training for some specific client.

The Benefits

"We can ring up Driving Power and always get a Level 4 driver," Bob Anderson, the Air Export Manager of Fritz Companies (UK) Limited, said. "What's just as important, we know they'll be responsible, professional drivers, too. This matters because, even if a driver is Level 4, and the cargo is 'known', if he is sloppy and doesn't have the load tied down correctly, for example, the airline will reject it. It will become 'unknown' because it might have been tampered with and we'll have excess costs, even though we've got a 'known' certificate attached to the airway bill.

"Driving Power drivers are professional, sensible, well-turned out and they all know the area thoroughly."

"We know we can ring up Driving Power and always get a Level 4 driver," Bob Anderson, Air Export Manager, Fritz Companies (UK) Limited

"We know they'll be responsible, professional drivers"

"Driving Power drivers are well-turned out and they know the area thoroughly

>> Download Case Study as Adobe Acrobat PDF

To return to the Case Studies menu click here
 

Adobe Acrobat Reader