Direct result of offers standardization offered by large transport consortia, custom transport solutions, or Premium Freight, are now experiencing rapid growth. They aim to provide all customers with a personalised service, coupled with a commitment to availability, traceability and speed. The Sterne Group puts these requirements at the heart of its strategy, in order to provide customers with increasingly personalised transport solutions.
Guaranteeing the integrity, security and confidentiality of the transported products, alongside punctuality of the service, both at the loading and at the delivery, all are legitimate and essential expectations from shippers. Those imperatives directly depend on a factory production, a supply chain performance, a service continuity, or branding. In short, they are at the very heart of the competitiveness challenges facing businesses. This is why the Sterne Group bases its strategy on its ability to provide all its customers with a tailor-made transport solution, based on careful listening to their needs, the precise understanding of their challenges and the implementation of an ad hoc solution.
Demand and economy development
According to forecasts provided by Forum International des Transports alongside OECD, by 2050, international freight volumes will be multiplied by +4. As for distance travelled, regardless of the mean of transport, will increase by 12% on average. More specifically, as government study show, transport demand could increase from 2.428 million tonnes in 2012 to 3.256 million by 2030, an average annual increase of 1.6%. International transport increased even more significantly, with an increase of 2.2%.
Bespoke transportation industry also benefits from this trend : on a transportation market valued at 300 billion euros in Europe, Premium Freight has increased by 30% over the last 10 years. Today, it represents about 4 billion euros. On the BtoB market, flows never stop to accelerate. Considered as an exclusive privilege for assembly industries – such as automotive and aeronautics – speed has become a requirement regardless of the industry. Outbound logistics flows heading to logistics hubs and providers are now concerned by this phenomenon, all transport must be honoured as soon as possible.
More speed, more traceability, more trust
Tracking and live feedback are now commonly expected by customers. More than ever, loaders want to control their transport activity, which has become very strategic. Also, being able to load and deliver regardless of the distance – from across the street or around the world – has become necessary due to the markets internationalisation growth.
It is therefore essential for clients to be able to identify the right operator, the trusted service provider, capable of combining availability and responsiveness, a high-performance traceability system, savoir-faire and technical skills, on a global scale. This goal can be sometimes difficult to maintain facing a fragmented transport sector marked by a strong dispersion of companies. 97% of the 37,200 French transport companies surveyed in 2017 have fewer than 50 employees. Only 0.2% of them have more than 250 employees. With 1,100 employees, a €202 million turnover in 2018, an international network and a global offer, the Sterne Group is therefore an exception.
Avoid supply-chain breakdowns
Manufacturers, part manufacturer, Tier 1 and Tier 2 suppliers, assembly industries, work in just-in-time flows and are daily confronted with supply problems. In case of delays in delivery, the operation of their production line and their direct profitability can be seriously affected.
A survey by the Business Continuity Institute (BCI) showed that in the event of a supply chain breakdown :
- 55 % of businesses experience a loss of productivity;
- 46 % experience an increase in labour costs, particularly in the rapid search for new suppliers;
- 43 % receive complaints from their own customers and consumers;
- 32 % have lost revenue.
In this context, the biggest manufacturers have an imperative : to guarantee the functioning of their production tool. Only partners specializing in urgent and customized transport, internationally organized, have the means to secure and optimize their supply-chain to support them in their quest for excellence and competitiveness.
Maintain safety and integrity of the carried goods
The products or goods transported can be fragile or prestigious. They can also be dangerous, regulated or require a controlled temperature level. In all cases, they require special care, both during the handling phase and during their transport. In other words, it’s about respecting their integrity, ensuring their security, and maintaining their confidentiality.
To do so, the STERNE Group provides its customers with vehicles adapted for exclusive use, specially trained drivers, secure operating procedures, approved and qualified packaging, or even a system of thermoregulation and thermal traceability. Whether our clients are luxury or art professionals, medical actors, research, advanced industries, or organizers of fairs or show, all are waiting for a bespoke transport solution, adapted to their specific needs.
Handle oversized transport projects
Moving of a machine tool, relocation of a production line, shipment of heavy and/or bulky equipment, industrial relocation, transport of essential goods and materials to an external site : In the automotive, industrial, petrochemical and humanitarian sectors, non-standard or oversized transport is common. They all require a particular business expertise. In order to validate the project and ensure its success, preliminary studies, environmental analysis, recognition of sites, equipment and routes are often essential. The issue here is to plan, schedule and coordinate the action of the various stakeholders, whether it’s moving a plant or chartering a cargo plane in response to a humanitarian emergency. In this way, Premium freight overcomes purely economic stakes and becomes an essential lever for action to save lives.
From bicycles to planes, from urban transport to international freight, from the transport of folds to the relocation of a production line, Sterne resolutely positions itself as a Global Player, able to handle any demand for bespoke transport. Even the traditional carriers call on us, when they are without a solution, latein their transportation plan, or when they face a malfunction or an unforeseen event. Sterne then intervenes to manage the situation and allow them to meet their commitments.
