Member Interview: George Pu of CelerityTank Logistics in China (Shanghai)
15th December 2016
CelerityTank Logistics have been our UFO members in Shanghai (China) since 2001 and the company are not just a freight forwarder, but a comprehensive logistics provider. This month, we will be interviewing George Pu (pictured right), Marketing Manager at CelerityTank Logistics.
How did you first get into the freight industry?
I started at Expeditors in 2005 which was my first job related to the freight industry.
Please describe your most memorable shipment to date?
One of my clients usually export their cargo from China to Europe with GP. But one time, he told me he wanted to use ISO tanks to load the cargo due to a request from his European consignee. However, this was his first time using ISO tanks and neither his factory nor him knew how to load cargo into the ISO tank. So I sent my client a loading procedure, complete with text and graphics and made a phone call to him, letting him know every loading procedure step by step. After a
two hour discussion, he seemed to understand how to load his cargo.
Just one week before loading, the client called me again and told me he was still not very confident loading this cargo by himself. So I decided to go to his loading factory with our safety manager on the loading date. We monitored the whole loading procedure and guided them on how to load it safely. Finally, my client exported his first ISO tank successfully and after this, the client then preferred to use ISO tanks to export his cargo every time. He now thinks this is the safest and most convenient solution for his cargo. This was also the first time I felt happy that I'd used my professional knowledge to help my client.
What motivates you most in your work?
If I think I have made a hit with the boss and my idea knocked him dead and helping meet company goals is a great feeling.
What is your most embarrassing professional moment?
I remember once that my client gave me his booking form on the Monday morning to book space for the following Monday. But he cancelled it on the Monday evening, due to some trade clause issues. On Tuesday morning, the client passed me his booking again and I got the booking confirmation and sent it to him on the same day. On the Thursday morning, he told me that he wanted to roll this same order to the next shipment due to a production problem. I had to make a phone call to our shipping line and cancel this booking and book the next shipment. Another week passed and I received a mail from the client on the Wednesday and he tells me that the factory can't repair the item within this week either and we had to roll over to the next shipment again. Yet again, I had to cancel the booking and book the shipment again. Until then, cancelling a booking twice would made me feel very embarrassed as this could have disrupted the good working relationship we have with our shipping line but as every client is important to us, we need to provide our best service so I made a phone call to our shipping line and told them the whole story. The carrier manager said he understood and we finally we exported the cargo and my client gave me the thumbs up!
What are the current trends that you see in transportation as far as China is concerned? What is its untapped potential?
In the past two years, the Chinese economy has grown at a slower pace and the freight industry is also depressing. We need to provide better service and more competitive prices to our clients.
What do you enjoy to do in your spare time?
Travelling, soccer and enjoying delicious food.
Finally, where would you like to see your company in the next 3-5 years?
I think we’d like our company to be listed in the next 3 to 5 years.
