Lying just O.5 km from Hong Kong's Lok Ma Chau border, in Shenzhen's Futian Free Trade Zone, this cargo handling facility enables Hactl to gain a long awaited foothold in the Chinese mainland's manufacturing heartland and further enhances Hong Kong's position as the premier gateway to the mainland.

Developed by Hongkong Air Cargo Industry Services (Hacis) - a wholly owned subsidiary of  Hactl - in strategic partnership with the Airport Authority, the logistics centre is part of the SuperLink China Direct service portfolio. This innovative service, launched in mid-2000, was set up specifically to enhance connectivity between Hong Kong and the catchment areas in the PRD by providing daily scheduled consolidated trucking services in conjunction with fast track customs clearance. The role of the ACCC is that of a bulk cargo receiving depot for cargo destined for Hactl's Super Terminal 1.

Streamline cargo flow
 
"ACCC is an exciting project which will boost the efficiency of handling and transportation of cargo from factories throughout the PRD to Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA). This is great news for exporters and cargo agents who demand time-assured reliability," explains Summit Chan, Director, Corporate Development, Hactl.

The ACCC is able to capture the cargoes at source, thereby facilitating the flow of goods to HKIA and upholding Hong Kong's position as the primary cargo gateway for the mainland. It also helps to streamline the existing handling and transportation of south bound air cargo crossing the border from the PRD to Hong Kong, thereby further enhancing the connectivity within the HKIA catchment area.

"Cargo agents benefit from reduced resource requirements and hence cost savings in their Hong Kong warehousing operations. This direct delivery from PRD factories to HKIA also adds up to considerable time savings by missing out warehousing in Hong Kong," says Mr Chan. Hactl calculates this can add up to a saving of as much as 20% in transportation and handling costs as there is also no need for the more expensive double-license trucks.

Currently, ACCC is in Phase 1 - the "proof of concept" stage - of its operations with Phase 2 of operations scheduled to begin in 2004. Phase 2 will cover acceptance of pre-packed units and cargo consolidation within the centre.

"The response from the industry has been very encouraging and we are now in negotiations with Mainland authorities on the requirements for phase 2. We are also considering other locations in the PRD for setting up similar facilities to serve other catchment areas," concludes Mr Chan.

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