Our footprint in key port cities such as Dar es Salaam, Durban, Walvis Bay, and Beira sets us apart from our competitors. While most may have a presence in one or two ports, our extensive network covers multiple entry points. This strategic advantage allows us to leverage various transport options, select the most efficient routes, and optimize cargo flows to landlocked countries.

Alistair Group’s strength lies not only in its multi-port presence but also in our agility and unique approach to seamless cargo imports. Recognizing the complex nature of landlocked trade, we have developed innovative strategies to overcome logistical hurdles and ensure the efficient movement of goods. By understanding the specific requirements and challenges of each landlocked country, we tailor our solutions to meet the needs of diverse industries, whether it’s mining, agriculture, or manufacturing.

Our commitment to excellence goes beyond logistics. We place great emphasis on trip expense management, providing our clients with comprehensive support throughout the import process. From handling documentation and customs clearance to managing transportation and warehousing, Alistair Group’s end-to-end service ensures a seamless experience for our customers.

Moreover, our unparalleled service is characterized by our ability to adapt swiftly to dynamic market conditions. By utilizing our extensive network and expertise, we are equipped to handle unexpected challenges, such as disruptions in supply chains or changes in regulations. This adaptability, combined with our unique capacity to import through multiple ports of entry, solidifies Alistair Group’s position as the partner of choice for import needs in landlocked countries.

The post HOW ALISTAIR GROUP IS REVOLUTIONIZING IMPORTS TO LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES first appeared on Alistair Group.

The transport industry is a critical component of Africa’s economy; it is responsible for the movement of goods across the continent. Cross-border drivers are becoming increasingly important in this industry, as they bring a wealth of experience, knowledge, and skills to help companies improve their supply chain efficiency. Carrying goods from one African country to another is often a lengthy and expensive undertaking.

Truckers are often the unsung heroes of the African workforce. Although most truckers enjoy life on the road their profession is filled with unique challenges, especially in Africa. Alistair Group understands and appreciates the dedication of our drivers in ensuring our client’s cargo reaches its final destination successfully. We interviewed a group of Alistair Group truck drivers to get their perspective on what it is like to “drive Africa” and be a cross-border truck driver. This is what they had to say.

When asked why they love what they do a majority of the drivers shared the sentiment that it gave them the means to provide for their families and that they have always had the dream of becoming a truck driver from a young age. Being a truck driver in Africa, however, comes with its fair share of challenges. Our drivers are exposed to environments that can often be classified as “undrivable” and they face relentless infrastructure challenges. As most in the industry are well aware, delays at the Kasumbales border are currently causing queues of 50-100 kilometres long which increases their transit times and thus the amount of time spent on the road and away from their families.

Another common challenge that drivers are facing is the imminent risk of safety while transporting high-value cargo. With an increasing number of highjackings taking place, our drivers are constantly on alert as assistance from authorities is often limited and circumstances are unpredictable. One driver commented that “In DRC a driver becomes a security guard, there is no sleeping or resting once you get into DRC” another stated that “anything unpredictable can happen”.

Apart from these looming struggles associated with their job, our drivers made it evident that their days are also filled with excitement and new opportunities. One driver explained; “I love my job, we are exposed to different cultures and norms and subsequently we learn more.” Others commented on their love for travel and how this job fulfils that, how they get to experience different seasons in different countries and how they constantly get to meet new people and regardless of where they go football always seems to be a common language and activity they partake in.

See what our driver has to say about working at Alistair Group in these testimonial videos below.

01 March 2022

The post DRIVING AFRICA first appeared on Alistair Group.

Alistair Group’s infrastructure investments have allowed us to achieve our development and scalability goals. Quantity and quality of infrastructure investment has been a key driver of growth for Alistair Group and going forward we will continue to invest in the facilities, locations and infrastructure to best serve our clients. Amongst the many, two key infrastructure investment examples that aid Alistair Group operations include our workshop facility in Kapir Mposhi, Zambia and our tracking room in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania.

1. Kapiri Workshop:

In 2022 we invested in a new workshop in Kapiri Mposhi, Zambia. This location features a 15,000 square meter yard hosting a workshop, spare parts store, office and accommodates our drivers on overnight stays. This location is key for Alistair Group and our clients as it is the connecting point to all major routes to the copper belt; as it links all the main ports to DRC and Zambia. It serves as an important pit stop for our trucks to receive the needed attention before heading out on the road again.

Our maintenance facilities include

• Painting/panel beating workshop
• Tyre/wheel alignment department
• Ten working pits and bays including two drive-throughs
• Welding/fabrication workshop
• Accommodations, offices, warehouse and laydown areas etc

2. Tracking Room:

Alistair Group has invested in a centralised tracking room in Kurasini, Tanzania that monitors our entire fleet 24/7 and 356 days a year.  These tracking facilities are equipped with displays that show Alistair Group’s telematics software while it tracks each of our assets (light and heavy). The tracking team is tasked with continually updating truck/shipment information. They immediately escalate any driver issues, delays, breakdowns, or accidents to the operations team for resolution. Our team carries out these updates a minimum of four times a day, using phone/radio/system updates. 

Our tracking team works in four shifts throughout the day with each shift composed of eight trackers. We have found that with a combination of dedicated IT and Tracking teams, we are able to provide complete transparency to both our operations team and clients about the current location and status of all vehicles/shipments.  We believe that Alistair Group is the only logistics solution provider with the capability to track a fleet uninterrupted through the entire Sub-Saharan region. This infrastructure investment has aided Alistair Group in providing around-the-clock real-time visibility to our clients and giving them peace of mind regarding the safety and whereabouts of their cargo.

| 01 February 2023

The post OUR PLAYBOOK FOR SCALE first appeared on Alistair Group.

A CONTINUOUS 120-HOUR OPERATION OF PIPE TRANSPORT

Transportation of cargo can sometimes be a challenging task; this is especially true when it comes to delivering cargo on time. Once a charter vessel has berthed there is a limited time to get the cargo to the offloading location at the port. 

Our customer, one of the largest players in the Mozambique energy sector, was in search of a transport and logistics provider who would deliver exceptional support in performing this time and safety-sensitive task. They have a globally diverse, world-class portfolio of operations and projects and Alistair Group has all the experience and credentials they were looking for. 

Our client’s business challenges: 

Our customer required the lifting, loading and transportation of pipes, of several diameters, from their base in Pemba to CFM Pemba port. The operations needed to be conducted continuously on a 24-hour basis to meet the vessel’s deadlines. 

This operation comprised of multiple elements; 

• Safely handling, lifting and loading the cargo on the trucks 
• Ensuring the goods are suitably packed to prevent damage during transport to the site 
• Ensuring continuous operation on a 24 hours basis for  5 days straight to meet deadline requirements.

Our key actions to meet our customer’s expectations: 

Alistair Group is an asset-based business and thus mobilised all the necessary resources to successfully execute this project. A total of 3 cranes, 4 escort vehicles, a telehandler with pipe clamps and 15 trucks were involved in successfully completing this operation. Our key strength whilst executing this project was our health and safety procedures, resulting in 0 incidents during the continuous 120-hour operation.

Tangible results: 

Alistair Group was able to perform the operation within the expected timeframe and budget, with 0 incidents, resulting in a satisfied client. 

Pauline Desmet | Material Handeling Lead | 01 Decemebr 2022

The post PIPE TRANSPORT CASE STUDY first appeared on Alistair Group.

Our international client was in search of a regionally established partner to assist with the supply, installation, construction and management of their pioneer temporary facilities in Temane, Mozambique.

Our customer’s business challenges: 

Our client required an all-inclusive turnkey solution where Alistair Group was the main point of contact. 

The scope of work consisted of 

• Supply, delivery and installation of modular units 
• Civil works, such as fencing, electrical works, etc
• Managing the campsite in terms of daily consumptions, generator, waste management and more.

Our key actions to meet our customer’s expectations: 

Alistair Group has been established in Temane since 2013 and therefore has the required knowledge and assets to operate in this remote area. 

Together with our experience and safety procedures, we are able to comply with the strict health and safety requirements set forth by the client.

Tangible results: 

Alistair Group was able to execute the operation within the expected timeframe and budget, managing the campsite up until January 2023.

Pauline Desmet | Material Handeling Lead | 01 Decemebr 2022

The post PIONEER FACILITIES INSTALLATION AND MANAGEMENT first appeared on Alistair Group.

Alistair Logistics has a presence in and services its clients at several major Ports along the sub-African and East African coastline – including Dar es Salaam, Walvis Bay, Durban and Richard Bay.

In the first quarter of 2022, a decision was made to establish activities on the Beira Corridor to cater to our already existing client’s needs, who prefer to run through this corridor via the Port of Beira. This was facilitated by an already existing fleet of Alistair Mozambique registered vehicles which had previously been working in the Northern parts of Mozambique until all work came to a halt due to the attacks at the Port city of Palma, Cabo Delgado, in March 2021.

Our Customer

Our client(s) on this corridor are mainly involved in the movement of mining chemicals. For example, Sulphur from Beira to Zambia or the DRC and return minerals from these countries back via the Port of Beira. From a strategic perspective, Beira Port is the closest port to any of the hinterland destinations as opposed to all other neighbouring ports, already mentioned.

Our Goal

In line with our values as an organisation, being able to supply reliable, consistent and additional capacity to assist in the movement of goods to and from Beira to the countries of the hinterland has been one of our major objectives and will become one of our core focuses moving forward.

Warren van Heerden | Head of Operations (Road Freight) | 01 December 2022

The post ALISTAIR LOGISTICS – BEIRA CORRIDOR ACTIVATED first appeared on Alistair Group.

Alistair Group’s trading journey started in 2021 as an occasional chemical sale to service key clients. However, it was only in 2022 that we decided to fully integrate trading into our core competencies, as opposed to being a per-client / project-specific offering.

Our focus is on chemicals for the mining industry; mostly high-volume orders of chemicals, such as sulphur. We source from manufacturers all over the world, stockpile in key locations at major ports and warehouses and provide an all-inclusive solution to bring the desired quality and quantity to the customer’s site.

This service line was birthed after meeting with a number of our clients in DRC and Tanzania and recognizing their need for an end-to-end chemical solution. We discovered that sourcing the chemicals from their place of manufacture was not particularly difficult, but the task of consistently moving that order to DRC / Tanzania on time and within budget was a major challenge for most of them.  

With our network, assets and expertise on the ground, we were able to package together competitively priced solutions to source and deliver these chemicals – with a particular advantage in the final mile delivery, at a time when demand for trucks far outweighed the capacity available. With the fierce competition for trucking capacity and the rising cost of transport in the region, our competitors would equally struggle to deliver their orders on time. We have proven to be one of the most reliable options in that regard.

Alistair Group also found synergies between the needs of the clients and the trading companies buying the metals. We essentially created various ’roundtrip’ scenarios for these clients, giving them peace of mind that they did not have to go to the market to source and compete for fresh trucking capacity every month.

Matt Edwards  | Commercial Lead – Road Freight  |  01 December 2022

The post 2022 VENTURE first appeared on Alistair Group.

The mining industry has witnessed an increased demand for more copper and this has partially been attributed to the advent of electric vehicles (EVs), which use copper for batteries and wiring. Alistair Group’s extensive experience and proven expertise in this industry have allowed us to recognise the Copperbelt’s significance for African mining expansion and beneficiation. Contrary to a few decades ago, a large portion of output, in the form of copper raw materials, is transported by truck, as opposed to rail, to destinations outside the DRC.

The transportation of Copper comes with its own set of challenges and any transporter handling this commodity will have effective round trips, cargo safety and reduced costs at the forefront of their minds. With more than a decade of experience providing an end-to-end logistics solution to our copper clients, we would like to share the top 5 tips that come to mind when thinking about the transportation of copper.

1. Visibility & reachability
When a driver is transporting a load to a value of over $300K, the reachability of the driver and visibility of the cargo becomes paramount. In Africa, considering the lack of infrastructure and development, it is easy for transporters to unwillingly go off the grid. Alistair Group has made it their first priority to ensure that this never happens and that we are able to provide our clients with the ease of mind that they know where their cargo is at all times.
Once goods are placed on our trucks and are ready for transport, tracking becomes fully automated by using our track & trace technology and GPS systems. The Alistair Group’s Track and Trace system is a modern, fully web-based platform with real-time status and location information of goods, personnel, and vehicles. This information is available to each client. We are also looking into setting live alerts that would notify us as soon as someone tries to temper with the GPS units.
In addition to this, we have an Alistair Group human tracking team that works in day and night shifts to ensure tracking occurs 24 hours a day. Our team carries out driver updates a minimum of four times a day, using phone/radio communication. We have found that with a combination of dedicated IT and Tracking teams we are able to provide complete transparency to both our Operations team and clients about the current location and status of all vehicles/shipments.

2. Convoys
When transporting a high-value commodity like copper Alistair Group has a strict convoy policy. The term convoy refers to a group of vehicles travelling together for mutual protection and support.
Trucks carrying high-value cargo, such as copper, always move in a convoy of at least three trucks. It becomes more difficult for perpetrators to attack/hijack trucks that travel together at all times. This is not only safer for the cargo but also our drivers.

Alistair Group has taken it a step further and implemented convoy trackers who are part of the tracking team but dedicated to monitoring high-value cargo convoys. They don’t call or speak to drivers, they merely monitor the GPS and escalate incidents where a convoy is broken.

3. Escorts
More increasingly we have noticed the importance of escorts when transporting copper cross-border. Copper is a highly targeted commodity and theft attempts have increased considerably over the past few years. Therefore we advise all our clients to add this additional safety measure when transporting with us.
Depending on our client’s willingness and need; escorts can be organized from point of origin through to the final destination, or only added to a certain stretch of the route eg: DRC. Alternatively, some clients provide their own escorts from the point of origin to the final destination.

4. Approved parking locations
Trucks parked in unclassified or unsecured parking places are involved in over 50% of the cargo losses reported annually and involve thefts of products valued at tens of millions of dollars. Our no-night-driving policy prevents drivers from being on the road after dusk. Therefore safe parking and overnight resting areas for our drives and trucks are a necessity. Alistair Group has identified safe areas and parking locations throughout our routes that we utilise as dedicated and preapproved parking areas. Parking in another location is strictly prohibited.

5 – Master the Basics
When it comes to transporting copper it is crucial to master the basics so that full attention can be given to the safety and security aspects that accompany the logistics behind this commodity.

• Ensure that loading and offloading happened effectively and efficiently.
• Lash your copper securely and cover it with a tarp.
• Conduct a proper briefing with each driver, carried out by a fleet manager, to ensure they know what to do and who to call in case of an emergency.
• Upskill your drivers and ensure they are trained to stay alert and conquer the terrains they will be driving in.

 | 01 November 2022

The post TOP FIVE TIPS FOR TRANSPORTING COPPER/COBALT first appeared on Alistair Group.

We are currently a top mover of copper from the Copperbelt in DRC to the three main corridors; Walvis Bay, Namibia, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, and Durban, South Africa. Whilst systematically adding more routes to our operations; Beira, Mozambique being the most recent addition.

Our efforts to optimize transit time are aimed at reducing exposure to any risk while cargo is in transit, and minimizing any additional costs for our clients. We are able to demonstrate a 20% improvement in the overall transit time for our copper clients by utilizing our complete logistics solution, through our proactive border clearance process and dedicated handling operations. 

Our own cloud-based Warehouse Management System (WMS) is used to provide a fully integrated multi-location solution, and can easily adapt to our client visibility needs. Our WMS is integrated into our Customer Dashboards and allows the clients to track their cargo on a per-bundle basis – providing visibility into each bundle as it arrives at the warehouse and as soon as it leaves. Read more about how this technology works HERE.

We have strategically placed loading equipment in the DRC to further improve loading efficiency. We also provide clients with advanced, pe-bundle copper tracking from the loading site to warehousing stock and the final port of discharge. We make the industry work better by providing an efficient solution to clients with time-critical cargo that needs to safely reach site. 

Freight | 01 November2022

The post A TRANSPORTER OF CHOICE FOR COPPER first appeared on Alistair Group.

A LEADER IN SULPHUR SUPPLY CHAIN MANAGEMENT.

| 01 November 2022

Project Overview:
sulphur is a major by-product of oil refining and gas processing. It also happens to be a vital input for the processing of cobalt and copper ore. For this reason, our customers are always seeking the fastest, most cost-effective solutions to bring this chemical to their processing plants.

One of our key customers was running short of stock and required quick action to avoid a stock-out, which would have led to serious consequences for their production.

Our customer’s business challenges:
Our customer required the timely delivery of bagged granular sulphur to their plant in Kolwezi, at a time when the rail service between Dar es Salaam and Zambia was not fully functional and demand for trucking capacity far outweighed supply.

We were required to source their sulphur at a competitive price and with a lead time that would still match the desired delivery schedule.

Our key actions to meet our customer’s expectations:
Drawing upon strong relationships with a global network of manufacturers and distributors, as well as our in-house expertise in integrated logistics solutions throughout the SADC region, Alistair Group has worked tirelessly over the last few years to develop a competitive integrated solution for our customers in the mining sector.

Having sourced the sulphur from the Middle East at the right price, we had to ensure the right logistics plan was in place.

Ahead of the sulphur vessel departing for Dar es Salaam, Alistair Group reorganised truck planning to divert significantly more mineral exports to Dar es Salaam in order to coincide with the discharge of the incoming sulphur consignment.

Tangible Results:
With close coordination between multiple internal departments and external suppliers, Alistair Group was able to deliver a competitively priced parcel of sulphur 3 weeks ahead of schedule, ensuring that the customer had enough stock to maintain normal production levels for the rest of the year and without the need to buy from more expensive and less reliable alternative sources.

The post ALISTAIR GROUP CASE STUDY first appeared on Alistair Group.