Transaid is searching for an additional ten people to join the 30-strong team taking part in the Cycle Zambia Challenge 2009, which will run from 7th – 16th May. Among those confirmed is Wendy Vaughan, HR services director at Wincanton. She will be joined on the expedition by a group of colleagues calling themselves the Zambian Pirates, who have banded together to raise £30,000 for Transaid in the run-up to the challenge. Other fundraisers include staff from Fraikin, Volvo Trucks, MAN Truck & Bus, Royal Mail, Bridgestone and ATS Euromaster. Participants are asked to pay a registration fee of £299 and make a commitment to raising a minimum sponsorship of £3,000. This covers air and most ground costs and will help fund projects in Zambia, such as Transaid’s Professional Driver Training Project in Lusaka.
Congratulations to Gary Keep, head of operations UK at Wincanton Records Management, who is the winner of our Salary Survey competition. Gary is winner of two Eurostar tickets to Paris, courtesy of Michael Page Procurement and Supply Chain. Turn to page 12 to see the results of the survey.
Logistics Manager’s property guru Liza Helps has, somewhat to her own amazement, agreed to run in the Flora London Marathon on 26th April 2009. She has pledged to raise some £5,000 for Epilepsy Action – a charity close to her heart as her five year old son was diagnosed with it in October. She’s looking for any offers of support for this cause. Just drop by her Justgiving page. All donors will get a special mention on her blog (though of course if you’re shy just tell her and she won’t embarrass you) and a chance to win a prize. The address is: www.justgiving.com/lizasmarathon
UPS has scored a hole in one after being named the Official Logistics and Express Sponsor of The PGA European Tour. The four-year global partnership will see UPS sponsor six golfing events each year across Europe and Asia, including the European Tour’s flagship event, the BMW PGA Championship, which takes place in the UK next May. UPS will also provide transport and logistics support for The Tour, which oversees an international schedule of 53 tournaments spanning more than two dozen countries on five continents.
FedEx Express has transported six polo horses worth some £2 million from São Paulo to Buenos Aires in Argentina, to take part in the World Polo Championship. The horses were sent on a three-hour flight, which called for the leasing of specific equipment, including transport bays and a special seat for the veterinarian and assistant.
Iveco has delivered six vehicles for the “Oltre – Beyond The Edge 2008” expedition to the Arctic. Four Massif five-door vehicles and two Iveco Daily 4x4s have been specially equipped for the freezing conditions expected on the expedition, which will travel from North Cape to Bering Strait to celebrate the 90th anniversary of the North East Passage completed by Norwegian explorer Roald Amundsen. Temperatures will routinely drop below -50°C, which can cause extreme dynamic stress, so Iveco has fitted special guards to protect mechanical parts against impact and the fuel systems have been adapted to ensure an adequate supply to the main systems whatever the conditions. The cab interiors have also been fitted with additional heating and demisting systems, while the electrical systems have been protected against possible impact damage and the cold, along with the provision of increased power to drive additional lights.
On the latest stage of its year-long round the world journey, the BBC Box has entered the port of Los Angeles, America’s busiest port, and the world’s second busiest after Singapore. The 40ft box was carried in the Starlight, a Panama-registered vessel as long as two football pitches, after carrying goods made in China across the Pacific Ocean. It is now making its way by train to New Jersey with a cargo of measuring tapes onboard.
Follow its progress at www.bbc.co.uk/thebox
