TNT STRESSES SECURITY, EFFICIENCY IN LATEST ROAD NETWORK INVESTMENT

TNT has announced that it will make a further 4.5 million euro investment in its Asia Road Network (ARN), which currently serves six countries in Southeast Asia and southern China. This brings the total investment to date in the fully integrated ARN to more than 12.5 million euros.

Most of the new investment will be to acquire a fleet of trucks specially designed to suit pan-Asian routes. Produced by Scania, the model R380 trucks were specially designed for TNT and tailored specifically for efficiency on pan-Asian routes. The trucks are also amongst the first Scania R-series assembled and sold in the region, coinciding with TNT’s requirement for double beds for the long, 7650km routes within the ARN.

The new trucks represent the “future of road transportation in the region”, says TNT, which collaborated closely with Scania on design and security features (provided by Astrata) and which it claims are “completely unique in the region”.

Some of the design features of TNT’s new trucks include: increased capacity – 20 percent greater than that of previous trucks; lighter – three tons lighter than predecessors, meaning reduced wear and tear; enhanced security – GPS-enabled security system that enables efficient, round-the-clock remote monitoring of the trucks; greener – improved fuel efficiency and reduced emissions.

The June 22 announcement coincided with the fifth anniversary of the ARN, with TNT saying it has had brisk and growing demand for its road solutions in the last five years. Capacity on the ARN has grown over 20 percent year-on-year. At the same time, volume between 2009 and 2010 (year to date) has grown by 70 per cent. Transporting goods by road on the ARN is, on average, 30 per cent cheaper than air transportation and three times faster than sea transportation, according to TNT, which says it expects to see a further shift in transportation from air to road.