TRANS POLAND 2014, More than a Fair

Between East and West

It is widely known that Poland is one of the European leaders in the field of road and rail transport. It is estimated that the transport sector generates up to 5% of the Polish national income. No wonder that every year the interest in the TSL (Transport, Shipping and Logistics) industry is growing in our country. The best proof of the aforementioned is the success of the International Trade Fair for Transport and Logistics organized for the first time in 2013, in Warsaw. The popularity of the last year fair was so big (the fair attracted over 60 exhibitors from 16 countries and 2000 guests) that their organizer decided to organize another edition of the event without any hesitation. Just like last year, it will be held in Warsaw EXPO XXI and it will last three days (5-7 November).

What singles out our country in the field of transport and shipping? One of the elements is the fact that we are on the border between two zones of transport – the western (EU) and eastern zone (CIS). Poland serves as a link between these zones, which on one hand is a great opportunity, and on the other it is related to a number of barriers for carriers.

Carriers traveling between EU and CIS zones face many difficulties. We decided to take up this important issue during this year’s edition of Trans Poland. Together with the Association of International Road Carriers in Poland we are working on organizing a conference that will address this issue in many aspects and will present a holistic view of the current situation. For instance, we plan to invite the Customs Policy Department of the Ministry of Finance, whose representatives could introduce the strategy for 2014-2020, as well as they would present key solutions that affect the introduction of facilities for the business. Another point will cover solutions for the issue of TIR Carnets. Our plans also include a debate about the involvement of the Ministry of Infrastructure and Development in a section of the A2 motorway to the border with Belarus.

We want the conference to touch on the practical issues also, that is why the idea of addressing the subject of the viaTOLL system, in a comprehensive way – from the perspective of the operator, its beneficiaries, and the legislator. According to our plans the last point of the conference is the topic of the transport Poland = CIS. This is an issue we plan to prepare with the participation of the Polish-Belarusian Chamber of Commerce and commercial offices linked with the Embassy of the Russian Federation and the Embassy Kasahstan. While preparing the program of special events we assume to make our fair some kind of a business platform linking the markets of the CIS and the EU – says Paweł Konowałek, Project Manager of the Trans Poland fair.

Problems In the Sector

It would seem that if the Polish transport is among the European leaders, it is easier for the companies operating in the TSL sector. Nothing could be further from the truth. The industry still faces many difficulties, such as predatory pricing, strictly regulated cost or lack of precise regulations. All this makes that a lot of companies operate on the margin of profitability. The Trade Trans Poland Fair is an opportunity for the people managing companies learn about models of action from industry leaders – both from domestic companies and international corporations.

Examples of the companies that have confirmed their participation in the Trans Poland 2014 are, for example, the Lithuanian Transimeksa Group (it brings together 8 companies and offers a full range of logistics services from the EU to the CIS through the Baltic countries), the German DLS Land Und See (international road and sea transport), and the Dutch Samskip Multimodal (a multimodal transport). What, apart from the same industry, have these companies got in common? All of them took part in the last year’s edition of the fair and decided to return to Warsaw this year as well.

More than a Fair

The overview of the best companies in the transport and logistics is of course not the only attraction that awaits visitors of the Trans Poland 2014 fair. Thanks to a series of special events – conferences and debates – they will also follow the most recent trends in the industry. This year, the theme of special events will focus on the problem of transport safety. This issue will be devoted to, among others, during the discussion forum “Safe transport = Safe business” organized by the monthly magazine TSL and Partners will be dedicated to the aforementioned issue.

On the Forum Euro TSL Manager 2014- Security of the Multimodal Transport of Chemical Products, the subject of the intermodal transport will appear again – as in the TSL sector it enjoys a great popularity. The organizer of the conference will be the Cluster of Innovation Infrastructure Transport Logistics (Klaster Innowacji Transport Logistyka Infrastruktura) and MDRK Trusted Advisers Group Sp. z o.o.

More information about the fair can be found on the website www.trans-poland.pl.

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