Germany’s DB Schenker is setting up its own domestic network for procurement and distribution in Turkey, with automotive one of the primary industries covered, along with electronics and machinery.
According to the company, network expansion in the country is taking place in three phases. The first phase extends from Edirne in the northwest corner of the country covering Istanbul, and onto distribution nodes at Bursa and Izmir. The second phase covers transport between Eskisehir, Afyon and Antalya in the southwest. The company said that these phases are already complete.
Phase three, meanwhile, begins in Istanbul, extends from Ankara to Aksaray and Mersin, and out to Gaziantep, near the southern border with Syria, with further route dispersal in up to eight directions into the interior.
“This phase will go into operation in early 2014,” explained Erik Leiss, CEO of DB Schenker Arkas, the Turkish division. “We can thus offer our customers throughout Turkey regular departures, reliable lead and transport times, attractive prices and end-to-end consignment tracking in national land transports, in line with consistently high DB Schenker standards,” he said.
The main countries importing to Turkey include Germany, the US, China (including Hong Kong) and France, while exports from the country, which are led by automotive, go mainly to Germany, the UAE, India and the US.
“Having our own land transport network in Turkey will enable us to cover yet another important market for our customers, and further tighten our network," said Karl Nutzinger, management board member responsible for Land Transport at DB Schenker.
With more than 40 regular lines, DB Schenker Arkas offers one of the highest transport frequencies for groupage to and from Europe, and provides a direct connection for customers through its Euro-hub in Salzburg, including daily departures to Istanbul, Izmir, Ankara and Bursa.
Schenker reported that 85,000 shipments weighing a total of approximately 185,300 metric tons were moved by road and rail in 2012.
Last month the company also introduced its Bosporus Shuttle rail service, with three pairs of trains each week between Germany and Turkey. The trains cover the 2,300km stretch between Nuremberg and Istanbul in five days.
DB Schenker Arkas is also among the top three air-freight service providers in Turkey.
