In 2022, TCE’s activity has indeed been fast evolving, in line with the market. In addition to its existing services, ranging from auditing to risk assessment and from operational process standards to dealing with the legal aspects of cargo, some new services were introduced due to the growing demand from airlines. The first one, on-site freighter turnaround supervision, was specifically customized to fulfil customers’ needs. TCE also started carrying out on-site third-party supplier audits at warehouse and ramp handling agents on behalf of its airline partners, a service including special ACC3 audits and validations. In accordance with its key principle of flexibility, TCE made this service available on-demand to any airline wishing to benefit from its specific audits. Finally, an entirely new dedicated customs reporting team was built to provide the ultimate guidance to customers.

Robert Van De Weg, Chief Commercial Officer of ECS Group is aware that flexibility is crucial:

“In these changing times, keeping abreast of the market shift has never been more essential to GSSAs. Taking our customers’ needs into account and implementing solutions to solve their challenges can only impact our business positively.“

These evolutions within TCE have indeed reaped some great rewards. That same year, as well as offering its services to a growing number of airlines, bringing it to a total of 14, TCE has successfully conducted 78 audits, performed 6 ACC3 validations and supervised 225 freighter turnarounds. Moreover, it has reported an impressive 3,631 flights to customs with 11,398 AWB in that period.

Continuing on this rising curve, TCE is gearing up to develop its network and serve more airlines in the future. With several European stations where it supervises full freighter aircraft turnarounds, TCE is currently expanding this service to North, Central and South America as well as Asia. In addition, the full 24/7 support it currently provides to one dedicated ATR freighter will soon be extended to a second one. As for the team of 13 fully trained experts, it is also growing as TCE is presently looking for more talents to hire.

Sarah Scheibe, Managing Director of TCE is delighted by the current state of affairs:

“I’m very proud of the constant evolution I have witnessed at TCE since its beginnings. To top it all off, 2022 has been an amazing year. Thanks to our expert staff, we have performed flawless services and we need to carry on building on this momentum. That’s why I’m very excited to expand our team in order to provide continuous support to customers and to satisfy all their requirements with regards to ground operations.”

Adrien Thominet, Executive Chairman of ECS Group says:

“The role of GSSAs has evolved from agents who arrange cargo bookings for airlines to strategic partners. By bringing its customers its full support and top standards of safety, TCE guarantees them the total peace of mind that they need to focus on their core business.”

With plans to expand its on-site supervision network, to further develop its product portfolio and to hire more talents, TCE is certainly proving the importance of keeping an ear to the ground in today’s fluctuating market.