Enno D. Osinga has a long and distinguished track record in aviation and logistics. The Dutch national joined KLM Royal Dutch Airlines in 1978 and held several positions there over the next 20 years before moving to DHL Express as managing director for the Netherlands. In 2005 he joined Client Logic as interim CEO, Continental Europe, and in 2006 joined the Schiphol Group as senior vice president – cargo, where he has been responsible for the long-term cargo strategy of the airport. In May, Enno stepped down as vice-chair of TIACA; next month, he will do the same as head of cargo at Schiphol, handing the reins to successor Jonas van Stekelenburg. As he prepared to leave, Air Cargo World spoke with Enno about his long career, the challenges the industry faces, data-sharing issues and what the future might bring for Schiphol.
What do you consider your greatest accomplishment during your tenure at Schiphol and why?
Air cargo is now being recognized by national and local government as a very important driver for the economy. As a result, they are actively involved in innovation projects and economic promotion. In addition, it has become clear that, globally, Schiphol has become an important benchmark when it comes to airport and air cargo, and many airports are now beginning to implement similar strategies.
What are some of the most important innovations at Schiphol?
At Schiphol, we have the mother of all communities. We believe the role of the airport is to act as a catalyst to make sure all the elements of the supply chain run smoothly. We don’t physically handle the cargo, but we bring all the parts of the cargo community together to agree on a common process. We need very good data transparency and data availability throughout the entire system, and one of those examples is a product called eLink. With this system, all the information from the shippers and the forwarders is captured on a smart card and given to the driver of the truck. When the truck arrives at the airport, the customer and the handling agent know that the goods are there at the same time. Also, we are in the final phase of our SmartGate project, which has been a collaboration with customs, the airport and the cargo community to facilitate a very smooth process of getting through the inspection process. The system will use remote-sensing and roller-bed scanners at the Joint Inspection Center, which is now under construction and will be operational in 2016.
What are some of the toughest challenges the air cargo industry now faces?
There is an enormous amount of information out there, but it’s not shared between all the parts of the supply chain. So we need to determine, before we create standards, whether we have a system in place where the information that we get from the shippers is also made available to the forwarders and the airlines. It’s not enough to just have standards. I’m concerned about what’s happening with data transparency. The concern is that its completely unregulated. Also, we have to pay more attention to our shippers. Everything we hear from them, as an industry, is that we aren’t doing nearly enough to meet their needs. And do we listen to them? You look around at the [air cargo] conferences, and where are the shippers? Why don’t we sit down with shippers and know what the industry wants?
Will we be ready for the implementation of the advance data-sharing regulations in 2016?
There is a concern about firewalls and accessibility, driven by genuine concerns over privacy and the fear of giving up trade secrets. But I think our industry has been overprotective of our data. The integrators are all on the same channel – all of them have access to everything. We can’t be a professional industry unless we can get past this. We also have to make sure we harmonize all the additional layers of security. Even with all the scanning, we still couldn’t prevent the Yemen bombing attempt. That was stopped by intelligence work, not scanners.
What are the main benefits of the MoU recently signed between Schiphol and Delhi airports?
Northern India is very active in the pharmaceutical market, and Delhi Airport is one of the very few global airports that has a robust cargo strategy in place, with a single-window customs system. We think Amsterdam can be a gateway for Indian goods destined for Europe, as well as other markets, including the U.S., Africa and Latin America. We want to build a trade lane between Amsterdam and Delhi, making Delhi a hub and a global gateway. We want to identify what the shipper in the Northern Indian market wants, so we regard Delhi as a natural ally, with many common goals.
What are your plans after you step down next month?
I will stay on the Board of the Holland International Distribution Council as well as a non-executive director of Cargonaut, the Dutch Cargo community system. My plans are to definitely take a short break and then focus on non-executive and/or advisory roles. But not limited to the air cargo industry. It is a great industry, but there also is another big and exciting world out there.
Do you have any parting advice to give to your successors at TIACA and Schiphol?
Change, change, change. Our industry is very slow to adopt change or be truly innovative.