Interview of the week – Spedition Thomas – Austria
this week we speak with
Thomas Fruehauf
Head of Air Freight, Ocean Freight, Projects, Customs
Spedition Thomas, Austria
THE "WHO-WHERE-WHAT" CHALLENGE
Thomas joined the family business company in 2012 after first completing his Masters Degree in Business and Economics in Graz and after working in a bank for a short while.
Tell us about Thomas Spedition. Who owns the company?
Spedition Thomas was founded in 1987 by my father (25%), my mother(25%) and the GAW Group (50%)– an industrial company based in Graz. Our clients are spread through all industry sectors – from food to timber, from raw materials to machinery and whole plants. Our business is about 50% FTL and LTL all over Europe and 50% Sea-Airfreight and Projects. Through our daughter-company Spedition Ferstl we can also offer all kind of customs procedures. We bought this company at the beginning of 2019. Spedition Ferstl is located within our main office and a branch is located at the customs point of the container terminal near Graz.
Where are your offices located?
Our Office is in Graz.
Tell us a few words about your experience, your expertise and your business in general.
I was always satisfied with the stories my father told me about his projects in the past. It was always his personal mission to get business which is more challenging and where he can score with good service and knowledge as well as his contacts he got over the years working in this business. It was interesting and I got to know some of his business-partners as they became friends of the family. His contacts made it possible for me to get experience in the first place.
I got the possibility to get a practical Training in Hamburg at the office of KOG, which is now Rhenus Projects and also a member of THLG. Furthermore, I had a small internship at a container carrier and at another project forwarder in Hamburg. Since then I am operating the seafreight and projects department at our company. My skills range from shipping standard Containers, over Breakbulk and RoRo to chartering Vessels or chartering a Boing 747. Every job is a new challenge and experience raises every day.
Which are the main routes that you serve?
There are no “main-routes”. We go where ever our clients want to deliver their goods. And as already said our clients are from different sectors and also their consignees are from different parts of the world. It doesn’t matter to us if we have to bring the goods just to the company next door or we need to bring the clients car to Vanuatu.
Tell us about projects that you have handled recently.
Due to coronavirus many of the big projects are on hold at the moment. We are waiting for a big one to the US with about 3000 frt but it is postponed at the moment. We had some smaller projects like mining equipment to South Africa or a sawmill to Russia.
Which are the main industries served in Austria?
Food, Automotive, Electronics, Wood, Pulp and Paper, Iron and Steel, mechanical engineering and also chemicals.
Is special transport a competitive sector in Austria? How do you ensure that you will stand out?
Yes, the transport sector is very competitive as we are a small market with many forwarders. And as the profit on standard containers and truck loads are at a minimum, more and more forwarders offer project logistics even if they never even have done it before. So we use our service and our experience to score at the customer. With over 30 years now, we have a name in the Industry and of course also being part of THLG is opening doors as we can offer good Partners all over the world.
What do you like the most about your business?
There is a new challenge every day. It will never get boring - you always try to find and improve logistics solutions for the customer. Working with people all over the world.
Who should be approached in Thomas Spedition for inquiries?
You can contact me directly at [email protected]
