PPI TS18: A Successful Forum for Key Issues
Senior industry executives agreed that the industry must work together to recover from the recession.
Published: July 25, 2010
The thinking in the industry has changed - no more business as usual. That message was clear from speakers and delegates alike during the four-day PPI Transport Symposium 18 in Liverpool, England, October 6 – 9, 2009. Whether the response by the industry was too slow, or could mistakes have been avoided entirely, are questions left largely to the theoretical. The debate now centers firmly around how to tailor business strategy to meet the "new world order," in part brought on or accelerated by the recession, and how to better prepare for the future.
Time for collaboration and communication
Organized by RISI and the IFPTA, PPI TS18 was attended by 625 senior executives and managers and 125 participating companies from the forest products logistics and related industries. The higher than expected participation, despite the still-fragile economic climate at the time, showed many executives see the period of economic recovery as the perfect time to increase collaboration and communication.
The conference and exhibition opened with remarks from RISI CEO Mike Coffey, IFPTA President Paul Doiron, and Managing Director, Port of Liverpool, Gary Hodgson. Keynote speaker Hamish Taylor followed to the stage, delivering an insightful and energetic presentation titled "Trains, planes and toilet cleaners." Drawing on years of experience and as former CEO of Eurostar and Sainsbury's Bank, Mr. Taylor pressed delegates to look outside the current environment for breakthrough ideas and approaches.
Leading the industry-leading conference program, titled "Steering the Right Course to the Future," Rod Young, RISI Chief Economic Advisor, portrayed an optimistic picture overall for the industry over the next 2 – 3 years. This was a much improved projection than six mothers earlier. In some sectors, such as fiber and recovered paper, the improved forecasts signaled relatively good news. However, much of the growth will be in fiber imports driven by the Asia and other developing countries, with North America and Europe leading exports for recovered paper. In other sectors seeing lagging or slow growth, such as paper and board in the developed world, the bread-and-butter for the traditional trade lanes, many companies will need to make drastic modifications.
Addressing issues to mark changes for the future
Taking advantage of the new global changes was a frequent topic by many PPI TS18 speakers. Companies should improve their flexibility to answer more quickly to market conditions, instead of waiting too long to take proactive steps. Increasing the ability to handle a wide diversity of forest products will also help offset short-term fluctuations. Investments should be directed to the processes that will directly lead to improving efficiencies of existing structures, such as reducing fuel consumption and optimizing operations.
Sustainability is no longer just a buzzword. Speakers from across the board pointed to their company's plans to add or increase sustainability initiatives. All delegates agreed that the new order expects sustainability to be included in any strategy. This extends not just to the ports or the vessels, but also across the entire supply chain. On this front, new technologies hold the best promise. Advances in logistics and sustainability technologies will be closely watched over the next few years as their adoption increases throughout the industry.
Change is hard, especially for the specialized industry of forest products transport; a phrase mentioned more than once during PPI TS18. Forest products and transport are notoriously unstable industries. Peaks and valleys are merely part of the cycle. All agreed it would take a complete approach to put most of the answers in place. If the mistakes of the past are to remain in the past, the industry's players must find better ways to collaborate through the good times and the bad.
A full review of all the PPI TS18 Conference Program sessions is available in the 4Q2009 and 1Q2010 issues of the IFPTA Journal.
