Apart from the upgrade of Cargonaut and, in future, dedicated area development, Anne Marie van Hemert’s cargo team wants to invest in the air cargo community. This the executive told
CargoForwarder Global in reaction to complaints voiced by Ivo Aris, Chairman of Air Cargo Netherlands (ACN) jointly with other Dutch air freight experts (CargoForwarder Global 12SEP21).

CFG: Mrs. van Hemert, how do you assess cargo within the SPL strategy?

AMVH: The pandemic has testified to the robustness of cargo, and I really do not see it fading away. We think cargo is very important, and so does our management. We really want it to stay. We
are working on a system to make it function in a more efficient way. We will have to show our commitment in the end, such as with the slot ruling, but that takes time. That aspect, as well, is
highly endorsed by the management.

Area development

CFG: What investments are you planning, apart from Cargonaut? Any bricks and mortar?

AMVH: We are looking into this from a full-width perspective, together with other colleagues. It is linked to area development, and we will have to learn from the cargo community what their
wishes and demands are. We have our Smart Cargo Mainport Program, where we work together with the community in initiating and executing ideas which improve processes and efficiency. A perfect
example is the pre-announcement process, which was effectuated on 01SEP21. There’s also Cargonaut to invest in, and we also want to invest in people, working together with organizations like
ACN.

CFG: Weren’t there any plans to concentrate the entire cargo activity on one specific spot, swopping land?

AMVH: This is part of our future strategy, and it is linked to the construction of new passenger terminals. Area development is of the utmost importance. As a location, Schiphol is both
attractive and complex. Thanks to new players in our team, we will be able to bring in some creativity in this matter.

CFG: How do you cope with e-commerce as a growing air cargo segment in an airport that has never wanted to bring in an integrator?

AMVH: It is, indeed, a very important flow, but we think other flows are important as well, so we aim to give proper attention to all our important segments. We want to focus on cargo by
identifying a common denominator. We want to support the entire flow, looking at Schiphol as a location and asking ourselves “What does this mean for The Netherlands Inc.?”

CFG: How important are flowers?

AMVH: This remains a very important commodity for us, and we want to be involved in improving it, just as with the other segments. I can only conclude by stating that the cargo strategy is there
and talked through with the community. All the initiatives we embark on now must be linked to that strategy. We do not want to put together a to-do list of initiatives that then cannot be
delivered.

CFG: Thanks for the interviews. We will keep an eye on your announcements.

Marcel Schoeters in Amsterdam
 
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