Dhruv Tanwar

Individual supply chain functions operating as separate business units in Tata Steel have been brought together in TM International Logistics, a pioneer in the international logistics business

If you have cargo to deliver, they handle it, on a door-to-door basis. TM International Logistics (TMILL) is an integrated logistics service provider, offering ‘single window’ services for international trade, by sea, air, rail, road and inland waterways. “Our vision is to be ‘the most preferred and competitive logistics solution provider," says managing director Dibyendu Bose.

A joint venture between Tata Steel and IQ Martrade Holdings of Germany, TMILL was formed in January 2002, and caters to a variety of clients, including promoter, Tata Steel. The activities of the company’s four main divisions — port operations, ship chartering, shipping and clearing, and freight forwarding — were once part of Tata Steel. Its operations are spread across the country in Paradip, Haldia, Jamshedpur, Kolkata, Mumbai, Delhi, Bangalore, Chennai, Hyderabad, and Pune.

Delivering the goods
TMILL owns one berth and manages another at the Haldia port. Apart from applying for new berths on the eastern coast, the company is exploring opportunities on the west coast and overseas. It is also augmenting services at its existing Haldia berth, speeding up loading and unloading time, going into warehousing and building a 16-acre-stockyard with own railway sidings.

TMILL plans to offer its services to the Dhamra port in Orissa, which will be one of the few deep water ports on the east coast of India capable of accommodating 1,80,000 tonners. The company is working on innovative solutions for the last mile logistics of the supply chain for the steel industry, including inland water transport using barges.

International Shipping and Logistics (ISL), the ship operating and chartering arm of TMILL, is headquartered at the Jebel Ali free trade zone in Dubai. It charters ships on voyage as well as on a long-term basis. The company is targeting new markets and routes, and commodities. It is also planning to increase its ship operating activities.

TKM Transport Management Services, the company’s freight forwarding arm, is based in India and Hamburg in Germany. The business is spread over Europe, South East Asia, the Pacific coast, USA and Latin America.

To drive business growth in this area, TMILL will consolidate operations in automobiles and auto components, construction equipment, steel and downstream products, telecom equipment and media, hotels, and retail. It has also planned an office in China, and Milan in Italy.

Challenges
Big-ticket government projects such as port privatisation are challenging. “Apart from the risks associated with high gestation period, these projects are heavily regulated which makes them risky with regard to any unforeseen change in policy matters and market dynamics,” says Bose. “The bidding for these infrastructure development projects has its bottleneck in terms of lack of common understanding among the bidders, leading to a large spread of revenue sharing and incorrect valuation of projects,” he adds.

But these challenges have not stopped the company from forging ahead. In the last five years, TMILL has evolved from a port services operator to an integrated logistics service provider with a wide domestic network and global reach. With a 49 per cent compound annual growth rate (CAGR) in revenues, and 30 per cent CAGR in profit before tax, TMILL has been growing fast, with steel, automobiles and chemicals as its principal verticals.

Serving the community
TMILL is equally committed to its social responsibilities. It organises regular health camps at Haldia and Paradip, and is associated with ‘Operation Muskan’, which offers free reconstructive surgery of cleft lips and palates. It is also identifying rural areas in and around Haldia and Paradip that can be adopted for providing safe drinking water, assistance in better agro management, self employment skills training and other areas.

When it comes to delivering the goods, cargo or community development, TMILL always holds its own.