Sp

ring

2016

56

AQUAVIVAA NEW GENERATION OF CONTAINERS

18

CMA CGMGROUP MAGA ZINEN°56SPRING 2016

Editorial and publication Director: Tanya Saadé Zeenny Editor: Marianne Lacroix Coordination: Olivia Simonetti Graphic Design: CMA CGM Studio – Eric Zuber, Damien Boulanger, Margaux Esposito, Bastien Régis Printing and distribution supervision: Christine Nunes, Marianne Zeenny Contributeurs: Alexandra Beaumont, Eric Le-gros, Alexis Michel, Patrice Mittard, Sylvain Ono Dit Biot, Emmanuel Pitron, Véronique Touze, Olivier Tretout Ed-iting: Hervé Gallet, Paul Molga Photos crédits: CMA CGM, Shutterstock, Thierry Dosogne, Philip Plisson, Jus-tine Michel, Golem Images et Corinne Vezzoni & Associés, Panama Canal Number of issues: 22,000 – quarterly ISN : 1287-8863

Printed on paper manufactured using a minimum of 60% recycled fibre and 40% virgin pulp from certified souces.

CMA CGM Marseille Head Office4, quai d'Arenc 13235 Marseille cedex 02 France Tel: +33 (0)4 88 91 90 00 www.cma-cgm.com

ED

ITO

RIA

L

CO

NT

EN

T FARID T.SALEM

CMA CGM Group Execut i ve O f f i c er.

FOCUSPANAMA CANAL EXPANSIONA positive upheaval in store for maritime trade!

TRAVELCARGO CRUISEAn authentic voyage

GROUP LIFECMA CGM: THE REEFERENCE

INNOVATIONTHE CAMP: CMA CGM INVESTS IN THE DIGITAL WORLD

THE EXPERTSAQUAVIVA: A NEW GENERATION OF CONTAINERS

AROUND THE WORLDOn April 20th, our Group announced that it had signed an operational agreement with COSCO Container Lines, OOCL and Evergreen. Ocean Alliance is a ground-breaking agreement pooling 360 vessels on 45 different services deployed on the world’s busiest sea trade routes.

The Alliance will enable us to offer our customers an unrivalled service with more weekly sailings, wider port coverage, and more direct calls thereby reducing transit times, all ensuring a reliable service. It also allows each partner company to optimise operations by positioning vessels to ensure capacity is best matched to each service.

The signing demonstrates once again how CMA CGM is leading from the front, despite a difficult economic situation for the whole industry and extremely volatile freight rates, as confirmed by the first quarter of 2016.

In this constantly changing industry, our Group remains strong and continues to grow. Operating in more than 160 countries on all continents, CMA CGM maintains a business policy based on being geographically close to customers and responding to their needs. We are continually upgrading our services with increasingly innovative solutions to best meet their expectations.

Hence why, ahead of the opening of the expanded Panama Canal, last year CMA CGM signed an agreement at a new hub in Kingston, Jamaica, able to accommodate and operate the big ships that will make the crossing via the enlarged canal. A strategic location in the heart of the Caribbean it enables us to offer services tailored to our customers.

We are also meeting their growing demands, notably in refrigerated transport where our reefer experts bring all their expertise to the table, providing them with personalised day-to-day support that goes far beyond a purely business relationship.

We also integrate the best technology in our industry. Yes-terday, we launched the first world-connected containers equipped with TRAXENS technology. Today, thanks to a new type of container, we can transport live lobsters in optimal conditions and offer customers new opportunities to grow their business.

Backed by this breadth of expertise, acquired over the years since our company was founded, and a determina-tion to be a driving force in changing the shipping world, we want to be the leading carrier for our customers. It is for them that we adapt our rotations, launch new lines and open new inland corridors; it is for them that we keep on investing and innovating.

It is with them that we are building the shipping of the future.

CMA CGM maintains a business policy based on being close to customers and

responding to their needs. “

“

SPRING 20162 3

Present in the West Indies for several decades, the CMA CGM Group has

developed a diversified and extremely reliable network of services dedicated to

this region.This year the Group upgraded its services to the West Indies. During the first quarter of 2016 capacity on the direct PCRF line,

connecting the Caribbean to North Europe, was increased when two older 2,200 TEU

vessels were replaced by ships able to carry up to 2,800 TEU. Two extra European

calls have also been added at Zeebrugge and Rotterdam, providing more import

and export opportunities to West Indies customers.

By upgrading its fleet serving the West Indies, CMA CGM is responding both to the 3% year-on-year growth in the

Caribbean market and that on the intra-Caribbean trade.

There are now five of the Group’s lines calling into this region, linking the West Indies to the rest of the world, and also providing efficient transshipment relays

through three regional services reaching the whole sub-region.

For several years now, the CMA CGM Group has been pursuing a strategic

decision to develop its services in Africa, the acquisition of Delmas

in 2006 being a strong sign of this ambition. With its skilled teams, a

dense agency network and rapidly expanding inland inbound services,

CMA CGM has become a recognized player in the transport sector on this

continent. In order to continue offering ever more innovative transport solutions adapted to customer requirements, the Group decided to bring all its shipping activities to and from Africa under the

CMA CGM brand. Since March 1st 2016, the Delmas brand

is now CMA CGM. For the Group’s customers nothing has changed, as

shipping and overland services remain the same as do the staff, all committed to guaranteeing a quality service close

to their clients.To support the transition, CMA CGM

launched a publicity campaign focused on Africa which will appear in more than

23 African countries.

At Long Beach mid-February, CMA CGM launched a new giant of the

seas named after a historical figure in America. “I name this ship CMA CGM

Benjamin Franklin. I wish all her crew and those who sail on her a fair wind.” The

date was February 19th. After pronouncing this ritualistic phrase, the containership’s

godmother released a bottle of champagne which in time-honoured

fashion broke on contact with the hull. “By bringing this ship to the United

States we are confirming our commitment to strengthening our presence here,”

explained the Group’s Chairman Jacques R. Saadé, minutes before the ceremony.

Present on both seaboards and in the Gulf of Mexico, CMA CGM has set a goal

to provide rapid and efficient responses to American market expectations and

continue its development. In this context, the Group is paying homage to the

country’s history by naming its new vessel “Benjamin Franklin”, one of the founding

fathers of the United States.

The CMA CGM Group is the principle partner of Monumenta 2016, a major

contemporary art event being held at the Grand Palais in Paris from May 8th to June

18th 2016. This year, the spotlight is on French-

Chinese artist Huang Yong Ping and his work entitled “Empires”. When exploring

globalization, he often uses metaphors inspired by the maritime universe in his works. Monumenta 2016 confirms this

approach, integrating shipping industry elements into the piece itself. It was the

strong presence of CMA CGM within the same sector that convinced the Group

to be the main sponsor. CMA CGM has been involved with the project from its genesis to production,

making available its expertise, industrial resources and knowhow when it comes

to extremely complex logistics.

CMA CGM RESPONDS TO GROWTH IN WEST INDIES MARKET

THE GROUP PURSUES EXPANSION IN AFRICA

WELCOME BENJAMIN FRANKLIN! CMA CGM: MAIN PARTNER OF MONUMENTA 2016 AT THE GRAND

PALAIS IN PARIS

AROUNDTHE WORLD

SPRING 20164 5

The name says it all: Aquaviva is a means of transporting live aquatic animals by sea and is the brand new container launched by CMA CGM. The device was developed at the instigation of Jacques R. Saadé and designed in partnership with a company specialised in water filtration systems for the shellfish farming sector, in other words the production of shellfish such as oysters and mussels. “Based on two principles, the combination of which has produced this global innovation, the Aquaviva container is the fruit of several years of R&D projects jointly led by our reefer teams and those at EMYG,” explains Alexis Michel, Senior Vice President Logistics, Containers, Intermodal & Reefer at CMA CGM.

The first product to benefit from opportunities presented by this innovative container type are lobsters. Until now they have been transported frozen or live on a block of ice by air. Now they can be taken by sea in optimal conditions with no break from their natural habitat. “The new containers are filled with salt water, the temperature of which is maintained by reefer technologies employed by CMA CGM, and recreate the lobster’s natural habitat. Each animal has its own individual space as it does when lying low under a rock on the seabed,” says Alexis Michel.

Aquaviva: A revolutionary mode of transport for live lobsters

From the fishing trawler to the final customer, live lobsters are carried safely

in the containers filled with Sea Water that will be filtered and maintained at

constant temperature during the whole journey.

THE EXPERTS

PRINTEMPS 20166 7

With its new “Aquaviva” technology, designed initially to transport live lobsters by sea, CMA CGM is once again leading the way as a pioneer in the container sector: an innovation that opens up many new prospects.

SPRING 20166

At the end of a 12-day crossing, the health authorities in Rotterdam found the lobsters to be in excellent condition and particularly robust. “In effect it gave the green light to our project,” sums up Sylvain Ono Dit Biot. He was however still determined to further improve the system by combining refrigeration and temperature regulation for when normal cold conditions reach extreme levels, as they do in Canada for example. “We built a version 2 Aquaviva container with an inner glass door to make it easier to inspect the animals and also a new drainage device. Then we built a version 3 that was even more robust to withstand the fiercest storms without having to worry about the occupants.” The first target markets for the equipment will be those in North America and Europe, but according to Alexis Michel this new generation of containers will in the medium term also be open to transporting other seafood products by sea: “In short, Aquaviva will enable us to convert other products to container transport and access emerging demands for transport.” Exports from France of blue lobsters, clams and oysters to Russia or Japan, etc., the prospects are many and currently being investigated. Among them are those concerning the ultra-delicate transport of rock lobsters.

A final note on technical aspects: for every kilo of lobster carried in the new Aquaviva containers only 406g of CO2 is produced, compared to nearly 3,960g when transported by air. It’s a figure that proves yet again that the CMA CGM Group really is fully committed to controlling the carbon footprint linked to its business.

In the wake of Traxens, which transforms containers into connected objects, CMA CGM continues its innovation strategy with Aquaviva. Not only is it a significant development but also a global innovation making the Group the only ocean carrier able to offer this type of service to its customers.

In the 17th and 18th century, lobster was so common along the Atlantic north coast of America it was considered food for servants, slaves and even prisoners! Times have changed dramatically for the lobster which has become rarer, both as a dish and in its natural habitat, the cold Atlantic waters on European and American shores. They live under rocks in coastal zones, from areas that become exposed when the tide is out up to depths of 50m.

To date no farming method has proved profitable, due to the time it takes for an animal to reach a commercially-viable size. However, aquaculture farms, particularly in Canada and Norway, help maintain stocks by intro-ducing lobsters raised in captivity to the wild. Considered by many to be almost immortal, no-one really knows the true lifespan of lobsters. What is known is that these crustaceans are very sensitive to their environment and the quality of the water in which they live. That’s what makes this new mode of transport developed by CMA CGM with EMYG so innovative and promising for the future.

A TECHNOLOGICAL FEAT

NO STRESS CROSSING

More about lobsters

These specialised reefers are equipped with a mechanical, biological and natural continuous water filtration system based on EMYG’s unique Aquapure expertise: the salt water in the container is being continuously filtered, without the use of any chemical element, guaranteeing its purity and ensuring live lobsters are transported in optimal conditions.

It all started three years ago at a meeting between managers from the CMA CGM Group and EMYG. The company had recently ins-talled a mobile filtration system on an articulated lorry to relocate an oyster farm in the Arcachon region in France. The idea then came to transpose this concept to a standard-sized container. “The main challenge was immediately obvious as the system had to be made “sea-proof” and strengthened, given that a container is subject to continuous movement in a corrosive environment,” explains Syl-vain Ono Dit Biot, Support Reefer Manager. Systems devised to avoid any leakage were soon added to other customs and phytosanitary obligations. Another major consideration was that an in-depth understanding of the lobster’s metabolism was required to ensure the animals would be in the best conditions throughout the journey. Having overcome all the technical and administrative obstacles, the first trial was arranged between France and Morocco in 2014. A few months later in January 2015, a prototype version 1 Aquaviva container was shipped to Canada, a major lobster exporter. In fact, the government of New Brunswick on the east coast was already committed to a strategy to upgrade its lobster production, while keeping a careful eye on preserving this resource and respecting the animal. At the end of 2015, there was another loading, this time of 2,800 crustaceans heading for the Netherlands in the version 2 prototype.

THE EXPERTS

SPRING 20168 9

PANAMA CANALEXPANSION

FOCUS

SPRING 201610 11

It was an event that took the world by surprise when on October 22nd 2006, the Panamanian people gave the nod in a referendum to a project launched six months previously by their President to expand the Panama Canal. With 66% of voters saying “yes”, everyone understood that the face of international trade was about to undergo a sea change.

Ten years on and the titanic works are nearing completion, a prelude to the official opening of new locks, essential to international shipping. “The expanded canal will turn international trade on its head, and it is shipping lines that will be affected the most, particularly those involved on the Asia / East Coast United States routes,” explains Farid T. Salem, CMA CGM Group Executive Officer.

In the former configuration, the canal could take what were referred to as “Panamax” vessels, with a length of 294m and 32m wide. Tomorrow, ships measuring 363m x 49m with a draft of 15m will be able to use it. It’s a major evolution as traffic moves from a TEU capacity of 5,000 to 14,000. It would have been an unimaginable volume to the captain of the steam-powered cargo ship, the Ancon, which on August 15th 1914 was the first to cross the Panama Canal, ensuring a place in the history books. By crossing from the Pacific to Atlantic without having to go round the whole of South America via Cape Horn, the Ancon realized a dream the conquistadors had in the 16th

century. During this period of discovery and conquest, the Isthmus of Panama that was under Spanish domination was a passage route for gold and silver from Peru. But the road was long for overland convoys, and galleons loaded with treasure on route to Europe were exposed to storms and proved heaven-sent victims for pirates.

While Holy Roman Emperor Charles V had dreamed of doing something in 1534, it all really began in 1881 as the result of a French initiative. Given that Ferdinand de Lesseps had led a successful project to build the Suez Canal in Egypt, which opened in 1869, why not repeat the feat in Central America? Work began but had to stop in 1888, due to the monumental scale of the project and the financial problems that dogged the company responsible for the project. Geopolitics then intervened as a separa-tist movement supported by the United States broke with Columbia. In 1903, at the same time as Panama gained its independence, a deal was reached giving the US “rights in perpetuity” over the canal zone that remained to be completed. It took another 11 years to finish the construction which was beset with problems. It was not until 1914 that ships could finally navigate the 77km canal and its locks to go from one ocean to another without ha-ving to take the interminable detour. For example, where a boat sailing from New York to San Francisco via Cape Horn would have had to travel 24,500km, now it had a 9,700km alternative, less than half the distance, if it chose to take the Panama Canal that could be crossed in eight to ten hours.

THE PANAMA CANAL EXPANSION

PROGRAMME IS NEARING COMPLETION

AND SOON THE NEW 14,000 TEU NEO-

PANAMAX VESSELS WILL BE ABLE

TO CROSS STRAIGHT FROM THE

PACIFIC TO THE ATLANTIC. A MAJOR

RESHUFFLE OF ALL THE CARDS HELD

BY INTERNATIONAL SHIPPING, THE Μ

CMA CGM GROUP HAS ANTICIPATED

THIS SEA CHANGE, PARTICULARLY WITH

ITS KINGSTON HUB.

Reordering maritime trade

Every year some 15,000 vessels cross the canal, around 40 a day, carrying over 200 million tons of merchandise. As soon as the project was announced, CMA CGM started examining the different options. Up until then, the canal’s dimensions set the rules of the game as they limited the size of ships. “Whether it’s the Kingston hub, other ports in the Caribbean region or shipping connections between the United States’ East and West Coast, the region’s technological and commercial strategies were all intimately linked to the size of the Panamax ships,” explains Olivier Tretout, CEO of the Kingston Terminal.

“The moment President Torrijos received the support of his electorate to expand the canal, we started studying the cascade effects this major change would have in order to adapt our capacities and strategy in the best way possible,” continues Patrice Mittard, Vice President Operations at CMA CGM.

Destinies are linked between the Panama Canal and CMA CGM, as the Group is its fourth largest customer, even number two when talking container transport. Now the very large vessels will be able to make this rapid connection via the Pacific and Panama Canal. “The increase in capacities will be gradual,” explains Patrice Mittard, with vessels passing first from 5,000 to 9,000 or 10,000 TEU before the even larger ships, time for the port of New York to finish its project to raise the height of the Bayonne Bridge. CMA CGM is already set to integrate 13,000 TEU containerships on this route and six 14,000 TEU giants are currently being built. For Farid T. Salem: “The new situation will allow us to adapt our offer to global economic fluctuations even better and faster than ever before. It has reshuffled the cards and led us to rethink our traditional lines between Asia and the rest of the world.” When questioned further about whether new markets will develop or emerge given the new opportunities, and how customers will react, he says: “It’s not that simple. While it may be an evolution it’s not a revolution. For sure, between New York and Shanghai, going via Panama shortens the route compared to Suez (10,582 miles as opposed to 12,366). On the other hand, between New York and Hong Kong the difference is only one day at sea. It’s a subtle choice between Panama and Suez and requires a lot of thought on our part to give our customers the best service.”

Obviously, such a significant reduction in distances and navigation times had a major impact on the international shipping trade, to such an extent that the canal had to be continually altered over the years to adjust to economic contingences and changes to transport. In 1939 for example, the United States launched a project to build new locks to allow passage for larger ships. When the Second World War broke out, work was suspended and in 1945 the giant USS Missouri battleship squeezed through with a margin of just 15cm either side of the hull at the canal’s narrowest point!

Simply trying to widen it was not enough and it became essential to find a more radical solution to significantly increase the canal’s capacity: namely to add a third set of locks with larger basins. However, it was not the Americans who passed the act but the Panamanians themselves. In fact, Washington agreed to renounce its “rights in perpetuity” drawn up in 1904, as the result of a treaty signed in 1977 which culminated in the US completing its withdrawal in 1999. On December 31st 1999, the canal came under the sole control of Panama which was finally able to make the passageway a central element of its economy and vital source of revenue. But it had to act quickly as neighbouring Nicaragua was planning to open its own competing canal. “The canal is our oil ! ” declared Panama’s Head of State General Torrijos in 2004. “Its capacity needs to be expanded to absorb the growing demand of cargo ships and to generate more wealth for the Panamanians.”

FOCUS

Evolution of shipping routes

15cm either side of the hull

SPRING 201612 13

The canal’s expansion will also have a major impact on imports coming from Asia to the United States West Coast. As goods unloaded at Long Beach or Los Angeles are then taking inland links to the East where two thirds of Americans live, the delivery chain could be turned upside down by the development of direct Asia-USA East Coast trade. “With their higher volumes, the Post-Panamax ships will offer major price advantages.”

Regarding the Kingston hub in Jamaica which is centrally located in the Caribbean Sea, opposite the Panama Canal just one day’s sailing away, CMA CGM decided long ago to make this a strategic location. “Establishing a hub in Panama would have lengthened the route for certain lines plying the region, while Kingston has all the advantages, both for the very big ships and all the others,” explains Olivier Tretout.

While around 10% of goods unloaded at Kingston are for the local market, 90% of volumes transhipped onto other vessels are heading off in all directions, East Coast and Gulf of Mexico. A 30-year concession was signed between the Jamaican authorities and the CMA CGM Group (and its subsidiary Kingston Freeport Terminal Limited) to develop the container terminal’s staffing and technical capabilities: more than 900 employees, 2,400m of dock, 14 then 18 gantry cranes and a deeper channel, will all help to meet the new challenges. “It’s a whole new network for everyone, that’s the issue,” says Olivier Tretout.

For CMA CGM, everything is now in place and it’s just a question of waiting until June 26th 2016 , the date set for the official opening of the “new look” canal. As well as the widening and deepening of existing navigational channels, the makeover sees new lock systems that will be nothing like the old ones. Two sets have been built, one Pacific-side and the other on the Atlantic side, each comprising several water retention basins.

On the administration side, the old lock gates, “curved centenarians”, have been replaced by new rectilinear gates that slide into the walls once open, thus increasing the usable width. Another notable change: while the old locks took eight minutes to fill, the new ones, although much larger, will fill in just 10 minutes. There are many anecdotes related to this massive project, including the meticulous operation to clear 400 hectares rigged with explosives in a former US Army shooting range along six kilometres of the channel leading to the Pacific coast. In a few months, all these technical details will be forgotten and priority given to the new opportunities it provides for global trade. It’s important to remember that 90% of goods on international markets are carried on the world’s shipping routes: it is the safest and most economical mode of transport, facts that made it imperative to modernize the Panama Canal. But to properly assess the consequences will take around three to five years, the time it takes for a gradual evolution to occur. The era of the Neo-Panamax is only just beginning…

CMA CGM AND THE PANAMA CANAL

FOCUS

SPRING 201614 15

Number of CMA CGM lines that cross the Panama Canal

Number of TEU carried on the Panama Canal for the CMA CGM Group

Number of vessels a year which cross the Panama Canal

Customer ranking for the CMA CGM Group for the Panama Canal

11 331

n°4 OF 582 CLIENTS

835,177

Kingston: a strategic crossroads

By choosing a cargo cruise, you are no longer a tourist but a traveller – taking time to look around you, intensely aware and savouring every moment of life at sea, as land fades into the distance and the vastness of the oceans opens out before you.

The profile of travellers varies widely from freedom-loving hedonists to painters and writers in search of an inspiratio-nal space; all adventurers at heart. The aspect they have in common is a need for new horizons; a desire to embrace the vastness of our oceans as they appeared to the great explorers of bygone eras; the desire to experience the mariner’s way of life by sharing in the daily lives of the crew and learning about their way of life. Ahead lies the surprise of the next port of call, for there is always a new world waiting beyond the horizon.

By inviting passengers aboard the ships in its fleet (1), CMA CGM is reviving an era of travel when the pleasure lay not in the destination but the journey itself.

With 450 ports of call in more than 160 countries, the Group’s containerships ply the world’s oceans, dropping anchor on all continents. If the mission of these giants of the sea is to transport goods from one side of the globe to the other, their size and capacity allow them to accommodate a few privileged guests. Who would imagine that these impressive ships have several private cabins and that passengers can travel in comfort with relaxation areas, TV room, even sports facilities available, and meals prepared by the head chef and taken in the officers’ mess. There is no need to have a definitive programme, any voyage is possible from a few days to several months. You can get off at any port of call and stay for 24 hours, one week or longer, and wait for another ship to continue your journey.

“Having travelled by cargo nine times, including two round the worlds, dare I admit that I am totally hooked on this way of travelling on CMA CGM container ships! Spacious cabins, service worthy of a multi-star hotel. The pleasure of sharing meals with the captain and his officers. The professionalism of the crews who even when they are really busy are always smiling. I am often the only woman on board and have always appreciated the kindness and respect shown by these men of the sea: a passion we have in common!” confides Mary R.

“As you enter a port you leave behind the earthly world,” ex-plains Fabien G. on the CMA CGM Médéa - French Asia Line 2. “Not just anybody can come into a terminal, so you hold tight to the boarding card, that indispensable “open sesame” to a big adventure. At last, we’re at the dock – and there she is! Viewed from the bottom of the gangway, the Médéa doesn’t look like a ship. For a moment she looks like a wall of metal. I can’t distinguish the front or the back. Some 40 metres higher up I glimpse movements. Containers seem to be flying, sus-pended by a huge gantry crane that lifts them up off the ship and lowers them on to the quay. The first phase of my journey is about to begin as I ascend the boarding ladder (long, very long!) giving access to the bridge at an angle of 45°. No point counting the steps, better to take care and not commit a faux pas! The ocean awaits me in my mind, already I can hear those magic words: “Cast off!” After a stop of barely 24 hours in Le Havre, the Médéa will be heading to Dunkirk tomorrow, then Zeebrugge. Then there will be Hamburg, Rotterdam, Zeebrug-ge again, then Southampton.The big containerships will then head south to Gibraltar, Lebanon, the Red Sea, Jeddah. Di-rection Indian Ocean and Asia! I am going to another planet.”

(1) Information and reservations Cargo Cruise contact: partirencargo@cma-travellers-club.com

TRAVEL

SPRING 201616 17

Forget packaged tours, impersonal hotels, beaten

tracks and paths that have been trodden a million times

Welcome Aboard one of CMA CGM’s containerships to

explore oceans, seas and ports of call, and gain a whole new

perspective.

AN AUTHENTIC VOYAGE

WHAT OUR PASSENGERS HAVE TO SAY

Cargo CRUISE

BACKED BY ITS EXPERTS, UNIQUE KNOWHOW AND A DIVERSIFIED FLEET EQUIPPED WITH THE

LATEST TECHNOLOGY, CMA CGM STANDS OUT FOR THE QUALITY OF ITS SERVICE IN REFRIGERATED CONTAINER TRANSPORT. THANKS TO A REEFER

FLEET DESIGNED TO MEET ANY REQUIREMENTS FOR CONSERVATION AND PROTECTION, FROM ULTRA-

COLD TO TIGHTLY CONTROLLED CHILLING, THE GROUP OFFERS CUSTOMERS TAILORED SOLUTIONS FOR

THEIR PRODUCTS.

Bananas, apples, pears, shellfish, frozen meat and fish, cut flowers, but also wine and medicines - over 150 products and categories of consumer goods travel every day by sea in a temperature-controlled or refrigerated environment. As the logistics become ever more accurate, reefer containers that first appeared on the market in the 1950s have really taken off in the last few years. World number 2 in this expanding sector, CMA CGM operates 113,000 of these technical containers. With 900,000 TEU in Reefer containers carried last year, their share of the total flow of CMA CGM containers has risen from 4.5% to nearly 10% in a decade.

“It’s an area of expertise in which we have invested significant resources,” explains Eric Legros, Deputy Vice President in charge of this department. But over the last ten years not all the hard work has gone into increasing volumes. From simple refrigerators replacing chilled holds in cargo vessels, Reefer containers have become tools for maintaining optimal conditions for preserving sensitive goods from point of production to consignee by containership, barge, train or truck. “We now have a cold chain,” sums up Eric Legros.

Reefer container design has evolved to provide a consistent, uniform flow of chilled air from the floor to reach every cubic centimetre of volume. Temperature control is to within half a degree, from -60°C to freeze the flavours of the tastiest goods up to +25°C to keep oils and beverages in a stable atmosphere whatever the weather throws at them during the crossing.

From ultra-cold minuses to temperature-controlled pluses the distribution of electronic sensors in the boxes enables them to cover the full spectrum of conservation requirements à la carte, from tropical fruits that must be prevented from ripening, to chocolate that will not tolerate the slightest discrepancy. It’s not just about food products, but also preserving the nap of leather goods for example, or, an extreme case, adhesives for the aerospace industry. For it is in these hi-tech boxes that the necessary conditions for transport are recreated to ensure the chemical composition of adhesives bound for major assembly factories remains stable.

It is not just about temperature. “By modifying the nature of the air in the container, we can control the ripening pro-cess of fresh produce and increase shelf life,” adds Eric Legros. Thanks to partnerships with global air conditioning giants and research bodies such as CIRAD (Centre International de Recherche Agronomique pour le Développement) to develop refrigerated containers, CMA CGM can offer several types of container to meet very specific needs. While more conventional systems can regulate the flow of air and temperature, others are able to control the composition of air, be it the CO2 level or more recently that of oxygen. In ambient air which contains 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.03% carbon dioxide, agricultural goods transpire and dehydrate, aerobic micro-organisms thrive threatening decay, ethylene is produced causing ripening, while respiration leads to ageing. The air inside Reefers is constantly renewed by ventilation systems linked to sensors and electronically controlled to maintain the optimal environment. For example, a CO2 level of 8% to prevent avocadoes from ripening, 65% humidity for some early vegetables, 4% oxygen to keep bananas in hibernation, and so on.

GROUP LIFE

SPRING 201618 19

TRAVELLING IN A CONTROLLED ATMOSPHERE:

To maximise the benefits of Reefer technology, CMA CGM has a dedicated organisation in 85 countries and in several of its regional offices (Hong Kong, Durban, Sao Paulo, Miami, Dubai, Norfolk). “They study the requirements of shippers and consignees before giving technical advice on chilled transport. They can even provide specific trai-ning courses to shippers both in the agricultural or sea-food product sectors,” comments Eric Legros.Seafarers also have a role to play in monitoring shipments: on the dock reefer experts ensure refrigerated containers are loaded properly and are functioning correctly.

On board, staff regularly check the parameters recorded by electronic data-loggers every 30 minutes: supply air, return air and ambient air temperatures, humidity levels, etc. If there is a problem an alarm immediately alerts the crew who take the appropriate action. “All data is recorded to show that everything went smoothly during the crossing,” says Eric Legros. “It gives our customers confidence, as they are putting their perishable goods in our hands and rely on us to control the entire cold chain.”On the 200 lines operated by CMA CGM, all vessels are

able to deliver the energy required to operate reefers as they have plugs and on-board generators. The Group’s Reefers going overland are also equipped with portable generators (gensets). Alongside the fleet of conventional Reefers, most of which are low-energy, the Group also has specialised equipment including a 1,700-strong fleet of 45 feet containers adapted to multi-modal transport in Europe, allowing the largest number of pallets to be loaded (32). On the main Reefer routes, CMA CGM is committed to deploying a high-quality service that res-pects strict criteria regards punctuality. Even after several days, sometimes several weeks at sea, vessels arrive at the right port on time ready to supply supermarkets the day before a weekend or major festivals.

Every day more than 200 million tons of refrigerated goods travel by sea, of which half are in Reefer containers. Their share of the market continues to grow with the increased demand for quality and freshness. CMA CGM transports nearly 9% of the global volume.

GROUP LIFE

Impossible not to include them in any diet: packed with vitamins, practical and with a rich velvety texture, for years the banana has been the product with star ap-peal standing out among other fruit and vegetables. No question of missing even one weekend in the year. Su-permarkets demand weekly deliveries on a fixed day. Picked before they are ripe in the Ivory Coast, but parti-cularly in the West Indies, Costa Rica, Mexico, Colombia and Ecuador, the fruit must cross the ocean and not look a day older at the end of the journey. In dedicated ree-fer containers the air is replenished every two hours to get rid of the ethylene which could rekindle the ripening process, and the temperature maintained at 13.6°C, the optimal environment for conserving them. The Group ex-cels at transporting bananas.

CMA CGM has deployed five connections with 14 weekly sailings to support the citrus fruit export season (oranges, clementines…) and spring vegetables (toma-toes, courgettes, peppers…) from Morocco to Great Britain, Russia, the Middle East and North America. By careful synchronisation of timetables, vessels leaving Agadir reach North Europe – one of the biggest markets for fruit and veg from the sunny south – at the same time as trucks, increasingly at a disadvantage due to tougher border controls. Advantages: reliability, security and less impact on the environment. The Reefers employed have the same capacity as refrigerated lorries: 45ft allowing a stuffing capacity of 32 (European) pallets against the usual 23 for standard Reefers.

Imperative not to export parasites with the fruit. For several years now the big citrus importers (Japan, Korea, United States, China, Taiwan…) have been protecting their own plantations, with agreements varying from state to state requiring shipments to be treated to eradicate pests and their egg-layers. The solution adopted by CMA CGM avoids fumigation and insecticides. During 12 to 16 days at sea, a steady temperature close to zero destroys all living parasites without ever freezing the fruit. The term is “steri-shipment” or cold treatment. Twice daily reports from sensors planted in several fruits feeds into a database that can be consulted by the buyer. If values are exceeded, he may decide to divert his cargo to markets not subject to these protocols.

Bananas from Ecuador The challenge: PRECISION

Citrus fruit from South Africa The challenge: SECURITY

Fruit and veg from Morocco The challenge: SPEED

Fish from the Indian Ocean The challenge: CONSERVATION

5 CHALLENGES WHEN

TRANSPORTING SENSITIVE

PRODUCE

REEFER EXPERTS IN THE FIELD

REEFER CONTAINERS HAVE BECOME TOOLS FOR MAINTAINING OPTIMAL CONDITIONS FOR PRESERVING SENSITIVE GOODS

THANKS TO PARTNERSHIPS WITH GLOBAL AIR CONDITIONING GIANTS AND RESEARCH BODIES, CMA CGM CAN PROVIDE SEVERAL TYPES OF CONTAINER TO MEET SPECIFIC NEEDS

SPRING 201620 21

Looking as if they’ve just come out of the water despite several days on a ship - only a handful of operators know how to handle fish with the delicate flesh that delights discerning gourmets. CMA CGM deploys a fleet of ultra-low Reefer containers that freeze the product to below zero temperatures beyond -40°C. In these hibernation conditions, the fish arrive on the stalls with bright eyes and no blemishes. Everything is “ultra” in the Reefers transporting them: the insulation material to withstand the difference in temperature of up to 80°C between the inside and outside of the container, the compressors… Despite that the service remains very competitive when compared to air transport: 40ft fitted-out containers can take 25 tonnes of produce, whereas the price is given per kilo by the airlines.

With competition on this market from the airlines, CMA CGM’s maritime solution is both more economical, when transporting large volumes, and useful as the time taken for the crossing is put to good use to eliminate undesirable fungi. In an atmosphere at 1°C, shipments requiring it are ionised by ultra-violet lamps to partially transform the oxygen present in the containers into ozone, a sworn enemy in the battle against fungal and bacterial growth. Ozone acts like a natural disinfectant. It’s like breathing the air after a thunderstorm where the lightening will have ionised the atmosphere.

Grapes from California The challenge: KEEPING IT FRESH

The Camp: CMA CGM invests in the digital world

Destined to become a laboratory of ideas focused on the digital universe, The Camp is due to open its doors in Aix-en-Provence. Even before it has a physical location, The Camp is already a think-tank bringing together blue chip companies, start-ups, teachers and researchers, an initiative CMA CGM wanted to invest in and be involved.

Is how Emmanuel Macron, France’s Mi-nister of the Economy, Industry and Digi-tal Affairs described The Camp project, a whole new genre of campus for Europe. Dedicated to the digital revolution and city of the future, The Camp aims to be inter-national, cross-disciplinary, cross cultural and cross-generational, in short a centre for inspirational exchange where people from all backgrounds will come to col-laborate. The idea is to bring together in one place blue chip companies, start-ups, academics, teachers, researchers and students to create a think-tank of ideas focused mainly on the digital world.

Being a non-standard project with a global ambition centred on innovation and based in Aix-en-Provence, it was only natural for CMA CGM to be involved. Indeed, the Group wasted no time joining the project, wanting to invest in it, not only as a res-ponsible major economic player but also as a visionary company that has made in-novation one of its trademarks. Alongside CMA CGM are other big groups such as IBM, Cisco, EDF, Sodexo, Vinci and Crédit Agricole: partners united round innovation to build the environment of our future.

For this project, CMA CGM aims to promote a global, forward-looking vision for shipping: “What will the future be like for our profession in ten years? What impact will the digital universe have on industrial and commercial basics underpinning our industry? How can we encourage innovative processes? How can we break down the barriers between private and public sectors? How can we create a new learning experience by ensuring CEOs, managers, teachers and students cross paths? These are the type of questions (and many others) that this new genre of university will help us address. The remit is not set in stone and we are expecting a lot from the ambitious promises put forward by The Camp,” explains Emmanuel Pitron, CMA CGM Vice President Strategy and Development.

Other issues such as the “sustainable city” or “the position of logistics and shipping in the digital world” could be the topic for case studies.

Although everyone must be patient for a few more months before The Camp is up and running within the walls of Aix-en-Provence and a catalyst for the whole region, 2016 will be more than just the construction phase. Each founding member has already set up an internal network of contributors, and workshops have started.

The campus will be a driving force for innovation, an area of project development and experimentation: the ideal place to “think outside the box”.

Innovate, anticipate, accelerate together to succeed“ “

THINKING OUTSIDE THE BOX

SPRING 201622 23

INNOVATION

WWW.CMA-CGM.COM