Maersk Logistics is now Damco

The freight forwarding business of Danish shipping company Maersk is set for growth with the shipping giant integrating the Dutch freight forwarding company Damco Sea & Air with Maersk Logistics' forwarding business.

The combined business will trade under the name of Damco.

The A P Moller-Maersk Group acquired Damco Sea & Air in 2005 in connection with the acquisition of P&O Nedlloyd.

Damco Sea & Air was the forwarding arm of P&O Nedlloyd and was established in 1988.

Lars Sorensen of Maersk Logistics told Business Standard: "The integration will enable to make use of a huge global network with more than 200 offices across the work. Damco has presence in Europe, South America and Africa. The integration of Damco with Maersk Logistics will give the benefit of economies of scale."

The new Damco organisation will have approximately 3,600 colleagues in over 90 countries world-wide. Both companies have a long history of offering customer's ocean freight, air freight, and land-based service such as trucking, customs clearance and document management.

The new Damco will continue to provide freight forwarding services to existing and new customers through a global network of local branch offices with local staff who understand the local market conditions.

"In addition to huge network, Damco-Maersk Logistics combine can offer personalised services to the Indian customers. Moreover, this integration will also result in attractive freight rates," Sorensen said.

Besides supply chain management services, Maersk Logistics has been providing freight forwarding services for a number of years, since 2001 under the name of 'DSL Star Express'.

Together with Maersk Logistics' air freight and land-based services, DSL Star Express has renamed Damco.

In addition, Damco now has its own representation in India with this integration.

Maersk India's logistics division, formerly called Maersk Logistics India, currently has 13 offices with staff strength of about 380. Of this, the section called international transportation management (ITM) has about 160 members who will now represent Damco.

Documents of carriage like house bills of lading and house airway bills will sport the Damco logo.