13 Years with the Company

Raj George
Sr. Vice President – Ocean Freight
I am proud to be associated with CSS; I thank all the staff and clients for their continuous support.

Paul D’Souza
Sr. Vice President – Sales & Marketing
My experience with the Group has been quite pleasant and I have seen the company grow heaps and bound through the able leadership and vision of the Group Chairman. The success of CSS Group has been mainly due to team work, dedication and hard work put in by each and every member working in the company and also because of the support and loyalty of our overseas partners and clients.

Sharbuteen
Driver
I consider myself truly privileged to be a member of the CSS family. Thanks to the Management for all the support

14 Years with the Company

K. Manish Kumar
Manager – CFS & Operations
It was a wonderful journey of 14 years with CSS wherein my career too has grown along with it. I have enjoyed every moment here and I feel proud to be a part of the achievements CSS has attained over the years.

15 Years with the Company

Anil Kumar
Director – Finance & Admin
CSS started as a small organization with limited personnel, infrastructure and resources. What kept us all focused was good leadership within a professional environment. I dedicate our growth over the past 15 years to our team spirit and healthy human relations. The main thing that attributed to our growth is our relationship with our partners, agents, customers and suppliers. We are a part of esteemed associations like NAFL, FIATA, GPLN, and THLG to keep us abreast with latest developments. Back in 1995 all our jobs were outsourced due to lack of staff and resources but over the time we have established our own in-house IT department and back office in India. Now, we have over 700 plus people working for CSS worldwide and we have surely grown from strength to strength in the past years and will continue to grow as there is no looking back.

U. B. Prince
COO- Twin Info Solutions Pvt. Ltd.
There are many factors which attributed to our growth. One major step was the implementation of technological infrastructure. The vision of our Chairman to invest on these infrastructures leveled the tolerance to meet the fast growth of volume seen in the later years. Today our software is regarded as the backbone of our operations at CSS, which brings in pride. Diversification was yet another remarkable achievement over the years. Now we are not only into Shipping and logistics, we are into IT & ITES, BPO services and many more.

Radhakrishnan (Babu)
Senior Manager – Air Freight
Integrity and fruitful reputation is very important to hold a company through good and bad times. The management has always taken good care of its employees and I believe that having smiling faces in the organization for about 15 years now is a big achievement for any company. The 21st century bought in glory for the Air Freight department when we acquired our own bonded warehouse facility at the Dubai Cargo Village, being close to the terminal 1 and 2 helped us develop close relations with Airlines and evade any restriction on size of cargo. Another achievement that we are proud of is the ability to handle dangerous goods cargo owing to our years of experience and well trained experienced professionals.

Santhosh Kumar
Team Leader
I began my journey by learning about shipping industry background, terms, import and export operations and moved on to handling B/L and D/O. To me, CSS means family and I truly cherish the times spent with my colleagues and management.

Celebrating 15 Years Of Excellence

Consolidated Shipping Group is honoured to commemorate 15 years of excellence with a mission to achieve the highest level of customer satisfaction and a vision to continually innovate and adapt to the latest trends within the industry. Providing cost effective and professional solutions has made CSS the most preferred service provider globally. Over the past 15 years, CSS has grown to be recognized as a complete logistics solutions provider and a trusted partner within the Shipping and Logistics fraternity. The Group’s strong conviction, drive to succeed and the ability to foresee the needs of its patrons has secured it an undisputed place in the market. CSS would like to take this opportunity to thank all its Customers, Global Network Partners, Shipping Lines, Airlines, Land Transport Operators, Business Associates / Institutions and Employees and the Government of the United Arab Emirates for their continuous support and commitment as it has been instrumental for our success. To extend our gratitude and mark the glorious occasion, CSS has planned a gala event for all its top agents and associates from across the world. The event is scheduled for the 16th, 17th & 18th of April, 2010. The guests will be welcomed by the hospitality of the Movenpick Hotel, Bur Dubai during the three day celebration. The conference is scheduled for the 17th April and will begin with a welcome note followed by CSS Presentations and open discussion opportunities with CSS Management and Senior Management. The festivities will continue through the evening with gathering of senior officials from the shipping fraternity followed by a grand gala dinner and entertainment night. A tour of Burj Khalifa, the world’s tallest tower is reserved for the 18th morning followed by a warm reception at the Arabian Desert resort Bab Al Shams. The spectacular sunset, Arabian night themed dinner, traditional Shisha, Belly dancing, Falcon show and Camel riding will make the CSS 15th anniversary celebration memorable

CSS Group Awarded THLG Membership

The Heavy Lift Group (THLG) has welcomed CSS Group to become a part of the prestigious association. The Heavy Lift Group is an international group of specialized heavy transport companies which combine their forces to offer the best expertise and service according to customer needs. The Heavy Lift Group was CSS Group awarded THLG membership founded in 1987 by a number of West European heavy lift operators in anticipation of the single European market and has since then expanded into a worldwide group having members in the United States, South America, the CIS, the Middle East and Asia. With the united know how, skills, experience and equipment of its membership THLG can cover any movement or transport requirement from a single domestic job to the largest international multimodal project. THLG members specialize in heavy lift transport by sea, air and overland, outsize cargo movements, crane operations, rigging, machinery installation, and large-scale project forwarding. The aim of THLG is to offer clients the united power of its members ensuring a world-wide service of excellent quality at realistic prices.

CSS Group Portal Launched

CSS Group launched its Portal, designed and developed by Twin Info Solutions Pvt. Ltd, an India based BPO Company specialized in IT & ITES. This portal aims at meeting the customer service requirements of the group company with more ease. The entire system is divided primarily into three different sections or modules. The first module is exclusively created to satisfy the requirements of customers/agents and shippers and is named the customer portal. The second section is exclusively for the CSS Group staff and is called the employee portal, while the third module is crafted for the system administrators and it’s called the admin portal. The CSS portal carries innumerable features at launch level itself and is aiming at enhancing its features and incorporating new ones shortly. The portal can be accessed using the link http://www.cssgrouponline.com

Features of Customer Portal

Freight Forwarding

• Job view: To list the jobs in a specific period (max 90 days), or a specific job. Can be navigated to sub jobs from this if applicable.

Documentation

• Invoice view: To view the invoices in a specific period or specific invoices.
• Credit note view: To view credit notes in a specific period or specific credit notes.
• Cargo arrival notice view: To view cargo arrival notice in a specific period or job number or BL number must be specified.
• Manifest view: To view manifest in a specific period or job number or BL number must be specified.
• BL view: To view HBL/HAWB in a specific period or job number or BL number must be specified.
• EDI in CSS specific format: Job number must be specified or BL details.
• Outturn report: To generate outturn report for a job number or BL number must be specified.

Warehouse

• Stock register: Warehouse item stock for a particular item or a group of items or in a specific period.
• Goods receipt note (GRN): Specific GRN or GRNs in a specific period can be listed.

Focusing North India

Strategy adopted for the business augmentation

Extensive market analysis was done and the most prospective clientele was filtered out. All efforts were given in grabbing the business out of the fierce competition. Thrust was given in the line of imports, since the profit margin is higher in this segment. That doesn’t mean that we were not giving importance to exports. Yet another strategy was to target the direct consignee which in turn helped us a lot to increase our revenue part. Our agents’ world wide supported us a lot with providing the most competitive import buying rates, which enabled us to penetrate the market in an effective manner. Another important factor was the volume of nomination support from the overseas agents. The confidence in our team was wonderful, which in no case can be ignored despite of all down turns happened around generally.

About the new office in Ludhiana

Ludhiana is one of the most sought after markets for the African Sub continent. The decision to start an office in Ludhiana can only been seen as a wise judgment from CSS Group’s Senior Management. The major trade from this part of the country includes machinery, hand tools, cycle parts, tyre & tubes. Considerable amount of sports goods and hosiery are also traded here. Ludhiana lies close to the excise free zones of Kaleamb & Baddi which are going to be the export hubs in the near future. This region is also a potential market for LCL export as well.

The freight movement prospects in North India

The prospects in this region are bright. Delhi takes the 2nd position after Nhava Sheva in terms of total volume of both imports and exports. North India is a multi-product market and it has got a lot to offer to the freight forwarding fraternity. The ICD and the CFS- Delhi now act as the focal point for the entire North India operations. All major MNC’s and Corporates do have their presence in Delhi or in the suburban areas. The major exports and prospects are towards the US, Europe, Gulf region, China and the South East Asian countries whilst imports are from US, Europe, Mediterranean and China. Moreover Delhi is the capital city and lot of decision making happens here in the administration level.

Network strengths

CSS Group takes pride to have an effective agency network globally. This gives momentum to our operations from both North and South. We have confidence in our agents and vice versa. Constant networking sessions do happen inside and outside the country through agency visits and trade fairs. This keeps the relationships lively and meaningful.
Agenda to tackle recession

Recession as such has not affected much in the Indian scenario. The scientific studies are also showing positive signs in the Indian shipping and logistics industry. We have adopted certain procedures to constantly monitor the growth graph. The reporting structure is defined in such a way that we are able to point out the flaws happening, if any the moment it happens during the entire process flow and to effectively rectify it. We update ourselves with constant market research and surveys. On the other hand, we have a brilliant team of professionals to penetrate the existing market and to find new markets to pursue in this region.

CSS Started functioning from Ludhiana

Console Shipping Services India Pvt Ltd. has started operations from its new office in Ludhiana from 15th July  09. This is CSS India’s 12th Office. Console Shipping Services India Pvt. Ltd. established in 2004 with its operations from Tirupur, Tuticorin, and Coimbatore, further expanded its horizons in 2007.  In an industry with ever increasing demands Console Shipping Services India has proved itself to deliver the best to its clients around the globe.  Today, regarded as one of the leading players in the  industry Console Shipping Services operates from all major gateway ports and commercial hubs of India.
Ludhiana Office Address is as below:
Console Shipping Services India Pvt Ltd
155, Venus Street No – 9
Opp. Urban Estate Nursery
Jeevan Nagar, Focal Point
Ludhiana – 141010
Tele Fax : +91 161 5016004 / 5 / 6

Aman Parhawk – Branch Manager
Mobile: +91 9317803031
Email: aman@cssindiagroup.com

CSS Kolkata moves to a new office

Console Shipping Services Kolkata has started functioning form its new office from the 01st of August 2009. All trade partners are requested to take note of the change in Address.

The new office address is as below:

Console Shipping Services India Pvt. Ltd,
36A , 1st Floor, Bharatiya Bhasha Parisad Building
Shakespeare Sarani, Kolkata – 700 017
Phone No : +91 33 40648300 – 29, Fax No : +91 33 22900104
Email: mailkolkata@cssindiagroup.com

Breakbulk Announcement

CSS Group will be participating in the 2nd Annual Breakbulk Asia Transportation Conference & Exhibition to be held in Singapore on the 26th & 27th of January 2010. The event is forecasted to attract over 150 exhibitors from around the world and over 3000 trade visitors.

CSS India becomes FMC Registered

CSS India becomes FMC Registered which gives an added impetus to activities in shipping and logistics for the company. The Federal Maritime Commission (FMC) is an independent regulatory agency responsible for the regulation of ocean borne transportation in the foreign commerce of the U.S. CSS India operates from 12 cities in India which includes 5 gateway ports of the country.

CSS Middle East Budget Review Meet

CSS Middle East delegates met at Devas Farm House, Thrikkunnappuzha, Alleppy on the 09th and 10th of August for the half yearly review meeting. Sales figures achieved were analysed and new possibilities were discussed during the two day session. The meeting was attended by T S Kaladharan (Chairman), Anil Kumar (Director- Finance), Raj George (Senior VP- Ocean freight), Ahmed Al Rais (Senior VP- Air freight), Rakesh Menon (Senior General Manager- Sales & Marketing), Siby Kurian (Dy. General Manager- Sales & Marketing), Sreenath V (General Manager- Projects, Oil & Energy), Narayan R.T (General Manager- CSS Bahrain), Suku Sudhakaran (Asst General Manager- CSS Abu Dhabi), Radhakrishnan ‘Babu’ (Senior Manager- Air freight) Qais Abdulla (Branch Manager- CSS Logistics), Amith Horra (Marketing Manager) & Unnikrishnan G (Head- Corporate Communications)

Fostering Strong Relationships

CSS works closely with a host of affiliates and agents who are leaders and experts in the region they operate. Some of CSS Group’s top agents include Shipco, FPS Group, SAGA, Leschaco, IFS, Trans glory etc.
CSS has always believed in maintaining healthy relationships with its agent’s world wide, while creating a healthy professional environment to nurture business relations that promise mutual growth.
In the direction to strengthen relations with its esteemed agents Paul D’ Souza (Sr. VP Sales & Marketing) along with Siby Kurian (Dy. GM Sales & Marketing) recently organized a business trip to Hong Kong and China. The main highlight of the meet was to examine growth and collaboration opportunities in the region as there are strong prospects that China’s rapid economic growth and trade expansion could be sustained well into the future that could bring prosperity to the Middle East market.
According to Siby Kurian this business meet was a perfect platform for CSS Group to network and analyze business prospects that can be taken advantage of in the coming years.

CSS Abu Dhabi – Rising on a new Horizon

CSS Group’s Abu Dhabi office has started functioning from its new premises following a soft launch. The soft launch was a close knit affair where prominent CSS staff attended the ceremony. The function commenced by a formal inauguration and candle lighting by Suku Sudhakaran (Asst. General Manager – CSS Abu Dhabi), Anil Kumar (Director – Finance), Paul D’Souza (Sr. VP – Sales & Marketing), Rakesh Menon (Sr. GM – Sales & Marketing) and Siby Kurian (Dy. GM – Sales & Marketing). The CSS staff was hereafter introduced to the new office, which was appreciated by all as this is the first time that CSS has acquired a traditional villa to handle its operations. The villa is built on an extensive area covering more than 5000 sq. feet and is easily accessible from anywhere in Abu Dhabi. CSS takes pride in its strategically located office in the plush capital of U.A.E with close proximity to the Airport as well as the Seaport; not to mention it is within walking distance from the main Abu Dhabi Transport Terminal & Al Wahda Mall.
After the subtle launch CSS Abu Dhabi welcomed members of the Shipping fraternity for a tour and presentation of the new premises. Here the clients and agents were given the opportunity to interact with the staff and learn more about CSS and its services offered. Some of the associates to have attended the session include key contacts from Salem Freight Int, Expeditors, Khalidia International Shipping L.L.C., Capital Star, Al Ghaith Oil Field Supplies & Services Co., Arabital Shipping, RHS, China Airlines, and Emirates.  CSS Presentation promoted healthy discussions where growth opportunities were analyzed and synergy prospects were discussed. Key networking sessions had clients and staffs indulge in one on one discussions and exchange of ideas for potential business needs. The tour certainly proved to be a significant start to establishing strong connections that will encourage mutual growth.
With the level of expertise available CSS Abu Dhabi is quite confident of extending value added services in the field of Logistics. CSS intends to cater to a vast and varied clientele in Abu Dhabi with its highly competitive man power and state- of the art facilities.
Moreover, CSS Group would like to takes this opportunity to thank its clientele for continuous support and well wishes extended. CSS Abu Dhabi looks forward to serving its patrons within the areas of their expertise.

CSS Abu Dhabi Recharged- Embarking a journey to success

With the whole world bearing the brunt of recession, Abu Dhabi has been able to shun the crunch and emerge as a winner. Needless to say despite economic downturn, it is witnessing economic boom and attracting huge investments in every possible sector.

CSS AUH has been in operations for the last 7 years to capitalize on Abu Dhabi’s growth CSS Group has now acquired a new, better and bigger office to serve its customers, clients and partners.

The new office will act as the focal point for all Abu Dhabi related operations. It is strategically located in the plush capital of U.A.E on an extensive area covering more than 5000 sq. feet; easily accessible from anywhere in Abu Dhabi and conveniently located behind the prestigious Zayed University, close to the Airport as well as the Seaport. Housed in the traditional Arabic villa with the state of the art facilities, it is within walking distance from main Abu Dhabi Transport Terminal & Al Wahda Mall.

As a trading economy Abu Dhabi has a long and proud tradition. Given its primary location, this is a tradition that Abu Dhabi will expand, becoming a logistics hub for businesses and industries in the region. The Emirate lies at the heart of the Middle East, with South Asia and Africa close by and well-developed links to the Far East and Europe.

Over the past 40 years, Abu Dhabi has developed its port infrastructure, its road network, and more recently its airports to ensure it is well-connected to trading partners in the region and beyond. Abu Dhabi will continue to capitalize on its strategic geographical position and excellent transport infrastructure. Abu Dhabi’s economy is thriving with an advanced new port under construction, expansion of the airport under way, and development of the extensive road and rail network moving ahead.

With Abu Dhabi’s massive expansion plans and transportation being a niche sector for CSS, growth of already well established CSS Projects Management division is inevitable as it is entirely sustainable and does not rely on any finite resource. Considering the fact that Abu Dhabi is one of the world’s most significant hydrocarbon suppliers and ranked among the top five exporters of crude oil will only contribute to the success of this division. CSS is well equipped with advanced capabilities in maintaining an efficient transport system and connections with global markets, which gives the company a strong base to provide its customers with hassle-free and absolute logistics solution.

Along with world class transport and Project Management system, CSS Group’s interest in Abu Dhabi also covers NVOCC Management, Ocean Freight Management, Air Freight Management / Air Charter Services, Multimodal Operations (Sea/Air, Sea/Land Management) and CFS Management to name a few.

Supported by CSS Group’s firm Global network base and renowned reputation in the Middle East Market and Indian sub continent together with the goodwill of the existing branch in Abu Dhabi, the new office will indisputably cater quality service to its clients in a way that will lead to increasing its competitiveness over other logistic providers.

Moreover, CSS Abu Dhabi’s strength lies in well qualified and experienced professionals, dedicated to customer service and satisfaction. Helmed by Suku Sudhakaran, Asst. General Manager, CSS Abu Dhabi has a team of experienced bilingual workforce speaking more than 5 different languages.

With a value added chain of strong relationships with local authorities, be it ports or customs, documentations and on-line accessibility, CSS Abu Dhabi promises its patrons commitment and satisfaction that will foster strong and long term relationships benefiting mutual growth.

Focusing on Abu Dhabi

Suku Sudhakaran, The AGM for CSS Abu Dhabi, is optimistic about the recent trends in the industry. He mentioned his views and ideas about the prospective market and the larger opportunities waiting beyond what we actually see in the current scenario in his article to Light House. Suku has been with the group company for more than a decade now.

About the New office of CSS Abu Dhabi

The decision for a second office in the capital was taken not looking into the economic meltdown and the present downward trend of business in Dubai and the exodus of people moving to grab opportunities in the still stable Abu Dhabi market. Plans of expanding CSS’s presence in Abu Dhabi was put into motion during the latter half of 2008 when the branch was showing record growth. CSS’s Abu Dhabi branch established in 2002 which was accommodating 7 staff has been witnessing a steady growth until 2008 when the graphs shot up.

While the expansion plans were midway the economic crisis hit out, while most of the market became pessimistic CSS went ahead with the plans of expansion and now have a new bigger and better office at the heart of Abu Dhabi City. In order to fully capitalize on the positive trend in the Abu Dhabi economy a decision was taken to intensify the sales efforts in this market and that meant expanding staff strength in all departments including the Sales & Marketing team which invariably meant a larger office to accommodate the expected future staff strength of 25.

Being close to the Zayed University and Central Taxi Depot the location is quite strategic as it being in the central area makes access easy for all (both our clients and suppliers from the city and the industrial areas) and also there is ample parking space which is a very rare commodity in the city.

The booming Abu Dhabi economy

Abu Dhabi hold more than 90 percent of the oil reserves in the UAE and a strong backing from the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority which injects funds to balance budgets especially during times of crisis ensure that the economy stays stable. But this is where the capital is changing its policies. Abu Dhabi has plans to develop the non oil sectors and is projecting a growth of 6 to 7 percentage until 2015. They are already in the process of developing the metal industry with projects like Emal, and other industries that are going to be promoted are aviation (Etihad Airlines), tourism and entertainment, pharmaceuticals, education, telecommunication and many more. Abu Dhabi has got long term planning like the 2030 plan which is projecting a strong economy. They also are having plans to improvise their monetary policies. With all these aspects and the well planned policies we are sure that Abu Dhabi is going to grow as per forecasts and projections and we at CSS are all geared up and ready to be part of this growth.

The competitive edge of CSS
With over 6 years of freight forwarding service to the oil & trading industries CSS has built a name for itself in the Freight Forwarding industry offering un paralleled service to its clients by boasting a team of highly skilled multi-lingual and motivated professionals who all share in the company’s vision to be leaders in the industry. With the establishment of our new office we reiterate our commitment to our clients to continue our high standards of service and open up new avenues to service our clients better and move forward with them hand in hand into what we believe will be a brighter future. Also the new state of the art logistics facility in Mussafah will also help us by being able to cater to the logistics requirement of the market.

Growth Plans

At present CSS Abu Dhabi has a strong team engaged with jobs in the oil industry but there are plans to appoint more professionals to look into other sectors as well, like developing the consolidation sector. Focus will be directed on formulating and implementing expansion strategies to provide complete storage and logistics solutions to the Abu Dhabi market (The logistics facility taken up in Mussaffah is the first move in that direction). More attention will also be given in improving the company’s presence in the Local and International Land Transportation sector.

Opportunities in the Freight forwarding industry

The feeling at the moment is that the freight forwarding industry, in this part of the world should be looking at capitalizing in the alternative energy sector. This will definitely be rated as the number one opportunity with more and more corporate companies and governments setting regulations to counter the silent environmental crisis. This is not just an opportunity but also a requirement that is quite delayed as it is true that the effects of global warming and pollution are taking it’s toll on the environment and unlike portrayed earlier are effecting our generation rather that the generations to come. It is an obligation towards our own conscience.

CSS attracts significant attention at Breakbulk Conference

CSS recently participated in the 4th Annual Breakbulk Europe Conference & Exhibition 2009, which was held by the Journal of Commerce Conferences in Antwerp, Belgium.
The Breakbulk Europe conference featured a line up of key breakbulk industry executives and leaders who examined the challenges faced by the industry and how the industry is working towards recovery.
A total of 109 companies participated as exhibitors, including the likes of Scan Trans, Big Lift Shipping B.V., Nordex Energy GmbH, Beluga Shipping, Rickmers Lines, SDV, Cord Strap, and DP World Antwerp. In addition, it attracted more than 3000 attendees, giving CSS the perfect platform to interact with key market players, shippers, forwarders, carriers, and other transportation provider’s world wide.
CSS Group delegation was led by The Group Chairman, T.S. Kaladharan and the team included Anil Kumar (Director, Finance & Admin), Raj George (Senior VP – Ocean Freight), Jairam K. R. (Director – CSS India), Rakesh Menon (Senior General Manager – Sales & Marketing), Sreenath V. (General Manager – Projects, Oil & Energy), Narayan R.T. (General Manager – CSS Bahrain), , Suku Sudhakaran (Asst. General Manager – CSS Abu Dhabi) Amith Surya Horra (Marketing Manager), and Cheryl D’cunha (Asst. Manager – Oil & Energy Division). CSS Booth # 228 was strategically located to showcase its strength and competencies in the areas of expertise for Projects, Oil & Energy. With a wider audience visiting the exhibition, it was the perfect platform for CSS to highlight the presence it has as an Integrated Forwarder in the Middle East and Indian Sub Continent. Furthermore, key networking sessions took place at CSS booth for interaction among its clients, associates & visitors.
CSS had made arrangements to raffle a traditional Dhow ship out of the business cards that were dropped into the bowl at the CSS booth. The Dhow ship also called traditional Arab ship rightly reflects the UAE culture and ethnicity; it played an integral part in showing the values we carry.
The response received in Antwerp was so overwhelming that CSS Group has already registered for the next Breakbulk conference to be held in Singapore and this time the booth will be double the size of the one in Antwerp.