A veteran of our network work is entering its 15th year: participants of the Working Group Shipping, Foreign Trade and Logistics (VAL for short) met on March 5, 2025 in our port room to review the past years and discuss current topics.
Our network was still in its infancy 15 years ago when several purchasing managers had the idea of putting the freight sector out to tender and inviting logistics experts from their own companies. This interdisciplinary workshop resulted in the first framework agreements with UPS and Schmidt-Gevelsberg. This was also the first step towards a very committed and dynamic working group, which today operates under the name AG VAL (Shipping, Foreign Trade and Logistics).
Over the past 15 years, there have been valuable exchanges of experience on current topics, online events and interesting excursions.
At the beginning of the working group, the areas of parcel shipping, general cargo and packaging were targeted and tenders for parcel shipping and general cargo were issued. At the beginning of October 2010, the framework agreement with UPS was concluded, which remains an important part of our purchasing pool to this day.
The agreement with Schmidt-Gevelsberg followed at the end of October 2010 – this framework agreement is also one of the most successful in our purchasing pool.
Since its active start, the working group has consisted of managers from several member companies. It was and is important to them to gain new insights into the world of logistics, be it through visits to NIRO member companies and other good practice companies with innovative solutions, or through impulses and presentations by experts. The daily challenges in logistics are a permanent theme of the meetings, including close networking and mutual support.
On March 5, 2025, we held a small retrospective in the port room and Ludmila Riewe rang in the anniversary year – with cake and small gifts, as is fitting, before moving on to the upcoming topics.
Bettina Borsig from ABP Induction Systems GmbH and Thomas Voigt from Stromag GmbH were presented with a flowery thank you: both have been active in the working group since the first meeting.
Regular meetings are on the agenda for the anniversary year and new excursions are already being planned.
Here are some highlights from the past 15 years:
AG VAL can continue to be so successful, inspiring and varied for at least another 15 years… Image: NIRO e. V.
