Following the successful expansion of PST CLC Mitsui-Soko into Slovakia, the company plans to relaunch services in Hungary next fiscal year. Romania is also on its long-term radar. The current focus is on completing digitalization processes and improving efficiency in warehousing and transport. It is also working on a project that will allow employees in all logistics centres to have the most important information about company events on their screens. And last but not least: the automation of warehouse and customs management is also planned.
“Our activities in Hungary ended some time ago because our biggest client there had problems with production after the covid period. We still have a company there, but it is not currently active. The Hungarian market is not entirely easy. We are currently trying to find an experienced, fluent Hungarian-speaking manager to manage the branch there,” says Vít Votroubek, CEO of PST CLC Mitsui-Soko, who is also Chairman of the Board of Directors of the Czech Freight Forwarding and Logistics Association. “We also thought about actively entering the Polish market, but Poland is also very specific. Due to our significant activities in Slovakia, we will proceed step by step, so in the next phase, Hungary will come first,” says Vít Votroubek.
Targeting co-packing pays off
PST CLC Mitsui-Soko, which has warehousing capacity across the country, is focusing on developing co-packing services. It has recently recruited experienced co-packing manager Petr Fejk for the newly created position and already has its first major customer, a drugstore chain, for which the company is providing co-packing services.
Currently, PST CLC Mitsui-Soko is also offering this service as part of its business activities, so the company expects to soon agree on cooperation with other clients.
More capacity for maritime transport thanks to new ships
So far this fiscal year has been a successful one for PST CLC Mitsui-Soko. “The fiscal year is going very well, which is related to the expansion in Slovakia. Customs is also doing great. Sea container transport is also doing very well, and we are also successful in the air freight segment. In shipping, the results are good, although we are dealing with a number of problems. For example, large shippers are refusing to ship containers at previous prices, and we have to negotiate with them,” says Vít Votroubek.
A large number of large-capacity container ships are in production and should be launched later this year. This will increase the capacity,” adds Vít Votroubek.
Logistics and customs automation projects
Another plan is to automate the individual logistics centres. “In the first wave, we focused on process automation and evaluation, which is related to our dashboard project. Now comes the automation planning, which is a clear way to further increase efficiency, but for now we are waiting for higher warehouse occupancy, which we are working on commercially, because only then will logistics automation make sense. There will never be enough warehousemen,” says Vít Votroubek.
He adds that PST CLC Mitsui-Soko is already working on a customs automation project.
Logistics chain recovered after covid
Vít Votroubek further states, “The logistics chain has recovered after the covid. Companies no longer need pre-stocked warehouses to such an extent because delivery dates are relatively reliable. Demand for shipments has fallen. In my opinion, people have stopped spending so much on things from Chinese e-shops and prefer to enjoy life, which is reflected in the growth in tourism.”
