Providing aid in the network
DACHSER transports relief supplies for Ukraine from Turkey to Slovakia for the International Organization for Migration (IOM). The logistics provider operates a large warehouse there, which was expanded again in 2023.
A strong European logistics network can also provide extraordinary help. For IOM, DACHSER therefore transports and stores large quantities of relief goods for the people in Ukraine. For this purpose, the warehouse capacities in Košice, Slovakia, were expanded by 3500 m2 in a record time of just four weeks in 2022 - another 3500 m2 were added at the beginning of 2023. The urgently needed beds, blankets, or cosmetics are largely produced in Turkey. Upon IOM´s request DACHSER Turkey picks them up there, consolidates the goods, and transports them to Slovakia - as many as 138 complete truckloads have made the journey since March 2022.
"A large proportion of the goods are produced in Turkey near Gaziantep in the south of the country. We learned about this at the beginning of the project and brought our local colleagues into play," explains Stanislav Balog, Branch Manager DACHSER Košice. "The fact that DACHSER Turkey is responsible for the transport promotes smooth operations. Systems and safety measures are already synchronized in the DACHSER network and fit together perfectly."
To fill the warehouse, additional goods are also being delivered from all over the world. Around 700 trucks with almost 20,000 pallets have since left the warehouse in Košice and been transported by DACHSER on behalf of IOM to the several IOM warehouses in Ukraine such as Uzgorod, Kyev, Lvov and Dnipro.
Development of the successful cooperation
With the outbreak of the war in Ukraine in 2022, the need for relief goods in the country and in the border areas increased exponentially. The willingness of the population and companies to help was great - but the infrastructure for the transports was not yet established.
"I therefore approached various humanitarian organizations and non-governmental organizations to see if we could assist with transport. We wanted to use our expertise to help the people in Ukraine," Balog explains. A few days later, an IOM team arrived in Košice. In addition to aid transports, IOM as the UN Migration Agency, was primarily looking for a suitable logistics hub for distribution of humanitarian assistance to Ukraine, DACHSER Slovakia made a convincing case and expanded its warehouse capacities in Košice within just four weeks. In March 2022, the 3500 m2 warehouse for IOM was put into operation as the IOM Supply Chain Hub in Košice.
"The project was implemented in record time. A realization of this size usually takes ten to twelve weeks. In just four weeks, the branch was expanded and the IT infrastructure implemented. In addition, we hired five full-time employees as well as twenty part-time employees - which is a challenge, especially in times of a shortage of skilled workers. In this way, IOM, was able to help quickly and in a needs-oriented manner," Balog continues.
About a year after the warehouse for IOM was put into operation, it was expanded by the same area of 3500 m2 to meet the enormous demand for relief supplies.
In addition to the proactive approach of the branch manager and his team, DACHSER 's expertise was particularly convincing. Thanks to this, all of IOM's requirements - that is, handling customs procedures, unloading, transshipment, and loading, all the way to delivery of the goods to the IOM warehouses in Ukraine - can be handled from a single source. The distance to the Ukrainian border is only 60 kilometers. Košice further also has its own airport.
Positive summary
"Our transport and warehouse services go far beyond the usual business processes. With this project, we can support the United Nations and, above all, reliably deliver aid supplies to where they are needed," concludes Stanislav Balog.
The aid for Ukraine will not stop in the near future. On the contrary, with the expansion of the Warehouse capacities in 2023, even more space is available for the humanitarian aid project. Every week, about 50 fully loaded trucks reach the warehouse in Košice and thus another 2,000 pallets are already ready to be delivered to Ukraine.