A new Inland Container Depot (ICD) in Madurai has been opened with the help of which Maersk aims to get closer to customers in the hinterland of Tamil Nadu in the southern part of India. The ICD is spread over a large area of seventy acres, it is one of the country’s largest and will serve as a major cargo acceptance hub in South India.
Maersk is of the opinion that this latest ICD, which is also equipped with a warehouse to support faster cargo clearance, will bring the total logistic cost by thirty percent, which will also help them to provide operational benefits to the customers.
Until recent times, the importers shipped their cargo to Tuticorin Port, where it used to be cleared by the customs and de-stuffed and kept in a warehouse. Then as per the customer’s guidelines, the cargo was then generally moved by truck from Tuticorin to its final dispensing point in and around Madurai. Also, the exporters had to pick up the empty containers from the Tuticorin port and bring it back to them all the way to their factories.
With the new ICD Madurai as the new recognition point, Maersk will facilitate move the cargo directly to Madurai, which will speed up the clearance process and manage de-stuffing and storage at the ICD warehouse. The new ICD also provides customers with the choice of taking the container and delivering it back to the final delivery point or to return the container to the Madurai.
The Managing Director of Maersk South Asia, Mr. Steve Felder has also stated that their operations at ICD Madurai are aimed at reducing the logistic costs of their customer by cutting the cargo transport journey by approximately 150 km. They are also tapping the potential of hinterland by opening up new trade routes and possibilities, which will facilitate ease of doing business for the trading community in the region.
Compared to the Tuticorin, customers are also expected to benefit from the faster clearance of the cargo in Madurai, having the advantage of the same day clearance and gate-in terminal.