Constant change
The Alha Group, an Italian airfreight provider, is diversifying. ITJ editor Andreas Haug met Lorenzo Schettini, CEO since 2014, and pharmaceuticals and special products development manager Nicola Caristo, who is also the secretary general of the Cool Chain Association.
Mr Schettini, please tell us a little about your latest activities launched at Verona airport (see page 6 of our Aviation Special in ITJ 21-22 / 2019).
We operate to high standards, so we will want to invest substantially there, to ramp up the hub’s cargo volume. Verona may ‘only’ be a small airport, but it’s very advantageously located from a strategic point of view – in a strong export / import region, roughly halfway between Milan and Venice. We’ve accepted the challenge of covering this part of northern Italy.
What areas remain uncovered by Alha?
We’re now represented at all of Italy’s important stations. Now it’s probably time to look for opportunities outside the country – and perhaps even outside Europe.
How do you plan to go about this?
As the world’s major airfreight platforms are already well served, in general, we’re keeping a lookout for niches that we can occupy thanks to our extensive experience. In so doing we’ll follow the airlines with which we already have very close business relations.
How far back in time do the Alha Group’s experiences go, overall?
The family-managed firm was founded in 1962; today it is run by the family’s second generation of executives.
At first our activities were made up of trucking services for the airfreight industry; at the end of the 1990s we added handling options, with a special focus on serving our country’s flag-carrier Alitalia.We’ve developed strongly since then, with the usual ups and downs – but every crisis also represents a new opportunity for us. We’ve acquired a series of major new clients, and have also continually adjusted our standards as we’ve progressed.
What are the special demands of the Italian market?
The standards our customers expect from us are very high, both in the import as well as the export sector. Electronic products are typical for the former; pharmaceutical goods and fashion products, for which Italy is world-famous, for the latter.
Which business fields represent the Alha Group’s best strengths?
Our ramp-handling business, which we launched at Milan Malpensa airport at the end of 2017, is a particularly strong suit. It allows us to cover the entire supply chain – from the warehouse to the aeroplane – for our customers. We can thus offer security and reliability. These services are very well-received by the market, as is reflected by our figures. We were very proud to sign our first contract in this field with Cathay Pacific Cargo. The latest new addition is Asiana Cargo, which has signed a five-year deal with us. There’ll certainly be other new acquisitions to report soon.
What’s the most persuasive element of your ramp-handling activities?
Our ramp-handling services help operators improve their processes for pharma- ceutical goods. We’ve recently invested substantial amounts of money and energy in developing a new cool dolly to transfer temperature-controlled consignments between terminals and aircraft. It can simultaneously transport two main-deck pallets with two different ambient temperatures. We call it a Ferrari amongst cool dollies.
How has the market reacted?
We’ve already deployed it at the airports in Milan and Rome; it’s also already met with great interest from non-Italian airports and other ground-handling firms here in Munich. It represents another important business diversification for us.
What’s your approach to certification?
We’ve been certified in accordance with Iata’s CEIV Pharma for three years at Malpensa; and we’re set to officially announce the extension of this quality seal to our entire network on 16 July. We’ve also launched the certification process for Iata’s new CEIV Fresh. Thus the Alha Group is set to become one of the first airfreight players certified in accordance with this standard in autumn.
