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Category Archives: Press center

VCHD  /  Press center
Categories New-posts, Press center

VCHD Cargo has been certified according to GDP Pharma

The international transport company VCHD Cargo has successfully completed the certification process and received authorisation to transport pharmaceutical products in accordance with GDP Pharma. The Good Distribution Practice (GDP) for this segment includes a range of measures to ensure product integrity and quality and also sets out rules for transport. VCHD Cargo has thus extended its range of services to a very specific and demanding market segment.

GDP Pharma stands for Good Distribution Practice for products in the pharmaceutical industry. It contains the minimum standards that a transport company should fulfil to ensure that the quality and integrity of pharmaceuticals is maintained throughout transport, that contamination is prevented and that the right products reach the right recipient within a certain time frame.

‘We consider certification for the transport of pharmaceuticals to be a significant step for our company,’ says Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a.s., and adds: ’GDP Pharma opens the door to this demanding segment and we are ready and equipped to fulfil the requirements of our customers.’ This type of highly complex transport requires special vehicle technology that, among other things, enables the semi-trailer to be opened and closed remotely and brought to a complete stop if the driver loses control of the vehicle. The vehicle must also be equipped with temperature control. High demands are also placed on the management of the entire transport process.

‘In connection with the GDP pharma transports, we had to thoroughly train our drivers and dispatchers and ensure a different approach to data handling than is the case with normal customers,’ explains Petr Kozel. The company must not only provide the customer with all information about the consignments, including, for example, a record of the temperature profile during transport, but also keep it for five years after the transport.

VCHD Cargo’s fleet comprises more than 240 tractor units and dozens of trailers and swap bodies. The new transport service – GDP pharma-compliant transport – is offered in both export and import mode.

Author michal zakostelecky
Categories New-posts, Press center

VCHD Cargo uses hydraulic platforms for swap bodies

The international transport company VCHD Cargo has deployed a hydraulic platform on its new line, which enables the loading and unloading of swap bodies even in areas without loading bridges. The technology, which is hidden in the chassis of the tractor unit, is used by the company in regional transports within Germany. For VCHD Cargo and its German subsidiary, Völker Logistik, the platform means greater flexibility in the use of swap bodies, as well as the convenience of being able to serve customers in smaller logistics areas.

A hydraulic platform is a device that is placed in the chassis of a tractor unit designed for transporting swap bodies. The platform is extendable and easy to operate and allows loading and unloading of swap bodies even where it is not possible to bring the vehicle to the ramp. The truck driver is trained to operate the hydraulic platform and by lowering it, the customer’s ground handling equipment can enter.

The new line, on which VCHD Cargo has deployed the equipment, makes regional deliveries in northern Germany, near Alsfeld. It is one of the regional lines operated by VCHD Cargo through its subsidiary in Germany. “The launch of another new local line allows us to cover our customers’ needs in the region even better, ” says Niko Völker, managing director of Völker Logistik, adding, “Thanks to the hydraulic platform, customers can plan their local shipments with even more flexibility and minimal restrictions. The equipment is also lightweight and does not represent any significant increase in gross vehical weight.”

Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a.s., explains, “The hydraulic platform solution is beneficial for all parties involved. The swap bodies usually run on our long-distance overnight lines, which are loaded in large logistics centres at customers in the manufacturing or logistics sector. Their use for regional daytime lines has not yet been possible for any destination. By using a hydraulic platform, we have turned a special solution – a tractor with swap bodies – into a universal solution that can serve any consignee or shipper in the region.”

The Czech family-owned company VCHD Cargo has been operating in Germany since 2019, when it established VCHD Cargo GmbH, which, like its Czech parent company, specialises in long-distance overland liner transport. In 2021, the company acquired the family-owned transport company Völker Logistik, a specialist in German regional transport, by acquisition. The combination of the two solutions – long-haul and regional transport – brings VCHD Cargo significant synergies, particularly in the German market, which are crowned by stable double-digit growth.

Author michal zakostelecky
Categories New-posts, Press center, Social responsibility

VCHD Cargo: Fifth year of helping SAR team rescuers

International transport company VCHD Cargo supports the association of volunteer rescuers Czech SAR Team for the fifth year. This year, it contributed to the volunteers of this largest Search & Rescue organization in the Czech Republic for educational aids and a professional defibrillator.

The Czech SAR Team was established as an independent SAR type association in 2019 and three years ago became part of the integrated rescue system of the Czech Republic. The main principle of its work is to search for missing or lost persons, especially in inaccessible forested and mountainous terrain, but also in cities and other built-up areas. Rescuers also help in natural disasters such as floods, forest fires and others. With their own transportation equipment, the organization's volunteers can even get into dense areas such as forest cover. They are trained in first aid and need professional equipment to intervene in complicated natural environment in many places in the country.

„One of our employees is a member of the Czech SAR Team and this was the first contact our company had with this beneficial volunteer organization,“ explains Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of Directors of VCHD Cargo a. s., and adds, „its activities make a lot of sense to us, which is why every year we support the purchase of equipment that rescuers in the field need the most.“

This year, thanks to VCHD Cargo, SAR Team members were able to purchase a LIFEPAK 1000 semi-automatic external defibrillator (AED) from a leading manufacturer in the field of defibrillation technology. It is a sufficiently powerful and adaptable defibrillator with simple operation and advanced features that can help improve resuscitation outcomes and speed the transition of cardiac arrest patients to the next level of care. VCHD Cargo’s support also went into teaching aids for first aid training and situations with people in critical condition in remote terrains. In past years, for example, VCHD Cargo has also contributed to special trailer equipment for transporting the injured from inaccessible areas.

Since the beginning of its operation, the Czech SAR Team has carried out 127 search operations and 28 technical interventions, found 24 persons and 1 humanitarian deployment. This year, at the request of the Police of the Czech Republic and the German police, the rescuers also participated in preventive cross-border checks of forest roads and trails in the Erzgebirge Mountains. The Czech SAR Team can be called upon for cooperation by any major component of the Integrated Rescue System, as well as by relatives or loved ones of the missing person. The departure of the team to the incident is within 60 minutes from the report (unless the team is already with another intervention)

 

About VCHD Cargo:

The family business VCHD Cargo a.s. was founded in 1997 in the Czech Republic and specializes in international export and import road transport. Since 2019, it has been operating in Germany through its subsidiary VCHD Cargo GmbH. The company offers system transport, operating 112 regular freight services to many European countries. The company’s own fleet of more than 240 trucks allows for both FTL (Full Truck Load) and LTL (Less than Truck Load) transport, including ADR shipments. Thanks to a balanced customer portfolio and Europe-wide know-how, the company can transport pallet shipments of small volume in record time. The VCHD Cargo Group employs 440 people in Europe. For more information about VCHD Cargo, visit www.vchd.cz/en.

Media contact:

Andrea Pitronova
Public Relations
Industrion Boutique
tel.: +420 731 613 614
e-mail: andrea.pitronova@industrion.cz

Author Roman Opet
Categories New-posts, Press center

VCHD Cargo maintained growth curve in 2023

The international transport group VCHD Cargo closed 2023 with organic growth of 3% and achieved a turnover of €50.6 million.

It made a significant contribution in Germany in particular, where it achieved a turnover through its subsidiaries that was tens of percent higher than in the previous year – Völker Logistik closed last year with a turnover increase of more than 34 percent, VCHD Cargo GmbH of around 16 percent. The growth was driven by new acquisitions and expanded cooperation with existing customers. The successful year is also reflected in the highest ever investment volume in fleet renewal and branch development of more than €8 million.

The year 2023 brought a challenging market environment. Continued inflation, low unemployment rates and a shortage of professional drivers – challenges VCHD Cargo faced – were common to many eurozone countries. “In the Czech Republic, there was a 0.4 percent decline in GDP, and the 10.7 percent inflation in our industry was often not passed on to customers,” says Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a. s., and adds, “as a result of the Ukrainian-Russian war conflict, there has been a long-term shortage of drivers from these countries on the market, and this, together with the retirement of an entire generation of drivers, has further exacerbated the upward pressure on wages. On top of this, the excise duty on diesel was raised again, and at the end of the year there was a sharp increase in the German toll. These were all factors that significantly impacted our cash flow last year. In spite of this, we managed to maintain our growth curve.” Exchange rate differences also had an impact on the results of the company, which trades 70 percent in euros.

The VCHD Cargo Group achieved a 3 percent increase in turnover, with German companies contributing the most. Völker Logistik, the subsidiary that VCHD Cargo acquired by acquisition in 2021, had a record year. Its turnover increased by 34 percent to €5,8 million. VCHD Cargo GmbH did similarly well, closing 2023 with a nearly 16 percent increase in turnover (€ 6,3 million). The Czech company VCHD Cargo a.s. generated sales of over €38,6 million, down 2.7 percent from 2022.

The VCHD Cargo Group invested significantly last year despite the challenging conditions in the freight market. The largest share of investments went into renewing the fleet of trucks and technology to speed up delivery processes. In total, the company acquired 109 tractors and trailers, including swap bodies, and handling equipment for unloading at the customer’s site. Additional funding went into branch renovations and refurbishments. The investment amounted to more than €8,3 million.

The company also addressed the sustainable aspects of its business. “We are aware of the trends and pressure to reduce the carbon footprint of freight transport and are paying attention to this issue. We are preparing for the opportunities that technological advances will bring to long-haul transport and are testing alternative fuel vehicles that are gradually entering the market,” explains Ing. Petr Kozel Jr., Chief Operating Officer and member of the Board of Directors of VCHD Cargo a.s. Last year, the company tested trucks with electric drive and LPG, and further tests are underway this year.

In 2023, the VCHD Cargo Group will employ a total of 436 people, of which 318 in the Czech Republic and 118 in Germany. The company has been systematically developing and training them for a number of years, particularly with regard to safe and economical driving of professional drivers. It has set up programmes and training courses for its employees that appropriately complement those required by law. To increase comfort on the road, the company has company flats along the backbone routes throughout Europe, which its drivers use to spend quality time during mandatory breaks and which also allow for quick crew changes. “Our experienced people are our biggest competitive advantage, so we try to create conditions that make their demanding work as easy as possible,” adds Ing. Petr Kozel Jr.

This includes the high standard of the fleet, which includes 242 towing vehicles and dozens of trailers. All of them meet the highest emission standard EUR VI and are equipped with a number of safety features to protect the driver and promote road safety. The company operates more than 5,000 transports per month and guarantees delivery within 24/48 hours to almost any destination in Europe.

The company will continue to renew its fleet in 2024. Planned investments will also be made in photovoltaics at branches and the installation of charging stations. The company will continue to focus on training its people and on employee programmes and will complete further digitisation projects.

 

Information for editors:

The company VCHD Cargo a.s. was founded in 1997 and specializes in exports and domestic ground transportation. The company has branches in Kladno, Brno and Havlíčková Brod and carries out transport on 112 regular European scheduled connections to many countries. It provides full truckload and LTL export and import transportation and terminal-to-terminal or supplier-to-customer domestic transportation with regular departures. The company VCHD Cargo a.s. operates its own fleet with more than 240 vehicles, including those for transporting ADR shipments and shipments with a regulated temperature regime. The company is also a carrier approved by the Civil Aviation Authority of the Czech Republic for the transport of the cargo of postal items subjected to security control. VCHD Cargo operates its own gas station, professional service and a washing line for passenger and truck vehicles.

In 2019, it founded VCHD Cargo a.s. in Germany by the subsidiary VCHD Cargo GmbH. It then bought the German transport company Völker Logistik in 2021. The entire VCHD Cargo group achieved a gross turnover of 1.281 million crowns in 2023 and currently employs almost 440 people in the Czech Republic and abroad. Further information is available at http://www.vchd.cz/cs

 

For more information contact:

Author Roman Opet
Categories New-posts, Press center

VCHD Cargo Runs on Emission-Free HVO Fuel

The international transport company VCHD Cargo has begun testing the operation of its long-distance route exclusively on HVO, a hydrogenated diesel from renewable sources.

The nearly 2,000-kilometer-long route from Germany to Denmark and back runs five times a week with 80 percent fewer emissions compared to conventional fuel.

HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil) is a renewable fuel produced from used vegetable oils and animal fats from the food industry or agricultural residues. It is made through a hydrogenation process that removes impurities and undesirable compounds. HVO is a high-quality synthetic fuel characterized by its low sulfur content. HVO manufacturers report that HVO has better cetane number, improved combustion, reduced deposit formation, and better long-term storage stability compared to conventional diesel. Most importantly, it has significantly lower greenhouse gas emissions (up to 70-90%).

“We are aware of the demands of modern society and international climate protection efforts and are looking for ways to implement freight transport in the future,” says Ing. Petr Kozel, CEO and Chairman of the Board of VCHD Cargo a.s., adding: “For long-distance transport to destinations thousands of kilometers away, there is no mature zero-emission series technology on the market yet, but the use of combustion engines with 100% biofuel could be one of the solutions. That’s why we decided to test HVO fuel.”

VCHD Cargo specializes in long-distance line haul transport. The company operates a fleet of 330 vehicles, running 112 regular line hauls to numerous European countries. The HVO test route to and from Denmark was chosen by the company specifically because of the high density of HVO filling stations in the Scandinavian countries.

Interim results from the HVO fuel on VCHD Cargo’s long-distance route indicate that HVO is an equally sustainable option to conventional diesel, does not change the driving characteristics of the vehicle, and – most importantly – provides an option to reduce the carbon footprint of freight transport without switching to alternative fuels. The drawback is the lack of filling stations. “Our experience shows that consumption varies and vehicles may have higher consumption compared to diesel. However, the slightly higher price and consumption of HVO is still much cheaper than an electric truck and also brings the significant benefit of lower emissions. From our perspective, it is currently the only sensible low-emission solution for international long-distance transport where vehicles hardly stop. Additionally, by collaborating with a fuel supplier that offers excellent reporting and other additional services, we can demonstrate the actual benefits of environmentally friendly transport to our customers in the form of figures and certificates,” concludes Petr Kozel.

 

About Völker Logistik:

Völker Logistik, headquartered in central Germany’s Alsfeld, has excellent connections to the German highway network and manages 1,300 m² of storage space for short and long-term storage or transshipment. The company has its own fleet and places great emphasis on using the latest technology; all vehicles meet the EURO VI standard, and it prioritizes economy and environmental consciousness. As a family business, Völker Logistik has earned an exceptional reputation in the industry over the past fifteen years, primarily due to its high level of expertise, first-class consulting, successful training measures, and punctuality. For more information about Völker Logistik, visit www.voelker-logistik.de.

 

About VCHD Cargo:

The family business VCHD Cargo a.s. was founded in 1997 in the Czech Republic and specializes in international export and import road transport. Since 2019, it has been operating in Germany through its subsidiary VCHD Cargo GmbH. The company offers system transport, operating 112 regular freight services to many European countries. The company’s own fleet of more than 220 trucks allows for both FTL (Full Truck Load) and LTL (Less than Truck Load) transport, including ADR shipments. Thanks to a balanced customer portfolio and Europe-wide know-how, the company can transport pallet shipments of small volume in record time. The VCHD Cargo Group employs 428 people in Europe. For more information about VCHD Cargo, visit www.vchd.cz/en.

 

Media Contact:

  • Andrea Pitronova
  • Public Relations
  • Industrion Boutique
  • Tel.: +420 731 613 614
  • E-Mail: andrea.pitronova@dachser.de

 

  • Niko Völker
  • Managing Director
  • Völker Logistik GmbH
  • Tel.: +49(0)6631 77665 27
  • E-Mail: nvoelker@voelker-logistik.de

Author michal zakostelecky
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