MAERSK LINE : UK & IRELAND
This business unit of the multinational conglomerate is using digital channels to offer a modern and convenient service to its customers
The UK is generally two and a half to one in terms of imports and exports
Maersk Line , one of the world ’ s leading container shipping companies , is ensuring it maintains its position as an enabler of trade by investing in its fleet and developing the ecommerce side of its business . Having only started operating out of Great Britain in the 1980s ( everything being previously coordinated from headquarters in Denmark ) the UK & Ireland unit is still relatively young . Its first direct service from the UK began sailing in 1988 , and today roughly 2,000 containers a day pass through British and Irish ports thanks to Maersk Line services .
Brian Godsafe , Managing Director of Maersk Line UK & Ireland , said : “ With global trade the way it is , the main challenge is to fill the ships . The UK is generally two and a half to one in terms of imports and exports . If you ’ re a niche carrier you may be able to balance that out on one particular trade , but because we offer global coverage , that ratio applies to us , so we have to send back more empties than we receive when it comes to full containers .
“ Apart from the imbalance , with the pound being so strong it means the exports get more expensive and that has put more pressure on the exporter . If you ’ re trading as a shipping company into the UK , you will have to accept that there is going to be an imbalance if you offer global services , that ’ s just the nature of the trade . You have to build the round-trip into the cost , that ’ s what all the carriers do .
30 November 2015