Yes, there was something to be had

From 12 to 3 carriers. From long invoices with inexplicable fees to a simple and advantageous pricing structure. All managed from the head office in Denmark. And with 'reasonably good savings', as Henrik Gertz, Asetek, puts it. One year after the implementation of the new agreements, he takes stock of the collaboration with TransportRådgiverne.

More focus on growth than cost
Development is in Denmark, production primarily in China and customers are all over the world. This is everyday life for Danish company Asetek, which has created a global leadership position in computer water cooling and premium products for the growing SimSports™ Gaming market.

At Asetek, annual growth of 15-30% had become the standard, but transportation and logistics were not really on the company's radar. Most of it was handled from China, where most of the production is also located.

- At HQ, our focus was on revenue, revenue, revenue. But we could see that transportation was weighing down the cost side. So in 2022, we got TransportRådgiverne to look into it, says Vice President Henrik Gertz, Asetek.

Good savings - and peace of mind
When someone from Northern Jutland says that a new transportation setup has resulted in 'reasonably good savings', you know they're not exaggerating. But in the case of Asetek, there was also a large and complex transportation setup to contend with: Production in China and Malaysia. Supply chain primarily in China. Private sales via hubs in Denmark and the US. B2B customers in the US, Mexico, Poland, and Denmark. Internal freight in China, also to duty-free areas. Sea freight as far as possible, air freight when urgent.

Despite the complex picture, Henrik Gertz was optimistic on Asetek's behalf when TransportRådgiverne was assigned the task:

I figured we were doing just fine on our own. But gradually I realized that there was a lot of room for optimization. On the other hand, I can say today that we have a good foundation from which we can continue to work. And that has given us peace of mind, he says.

Strict contracts govern everyday life
TransportRådgiverne started with a comprehensive analysis of the entire flow, the thousands of complex invoices and opaque fees. With this as a starting point, TransportRådgiverne's quote template could now turn pricing completely upside down.

It became clear to us that our Chinese transportation buyers didn't really negotiate prices. The transports were spread across 12 suppliers, and it was difficult to see what we were actually paying for. So there was something to clean up, says Henrik Gertz.

Today, Asetek has brought responsibility back to head office. 12 carriers have been reduced to 3, and the new agreements have provided a completely different clarity on what Asetek pays for. Global ocean freight agreements are now based on publicly available Indexes - at a discount - providing Asetek with ongoing savings and administrative relief by eliminating the need to negotiate prices on a case-by-case basis.

Prices, procedures and service are clearly described in our global contacts. And we've got it all set up in a system that allows us to give a price to a customer in a split second, whether we're in Denmark or China.

It's money well spent

TransportRådgiverne have the skills and the know-how we need, also in the to our very specific transportation needs. They know the options and who is good for our needs. And they know the prices globally. Together, this has given us some reasonably good savings and a secure foundation for our future development. So I would definitely recommend them to others with global transportation needs.

Now we can do it ourselves!
However, the transition to new global logistics agreements was not without bumps in the road.

Henrik Gertz concludes:

In China, there wasn't much motivation to change from what they knew. And here in Denmark, we also had some issues with the contract that weren't quite in place from the start. But TransportRådgiverne took responsibility throughout the process - from tendering and negotiations to implementation and the adjustments we requested. So today, we have a foundation that we can continue to work with. We have cleaned up and we have learned so much in the process that we can now drive the development ourselves.

About Asetek
Asetek develops, manufactures and sells water cooling systems for computers worldwide. Water cooling is far more efficient than air cooling. That's why it's a sought-after solution, especially in the gaming industry where the CPU heats up quickly.

Founded in 1997, Asetek went public in 2013 and by 2023 is providing cooling systems for many computers - per day. In 2021, Asetek also entered the fast-growing SimSports™ Gaming market.

Asetek is behind premium products designed to give sim racers the feel of a real race car. Asetek is headquartered in Denmark and has operations in China, Malaysia, Taiwan and the USA

Why Asetek recommends TransportRådgiverne

• TR has all the skills and weight to take a project from initial flow analysis to new setup, tendering, negotiation and implementation.
• The project has cleaned up carriers, procedures and pricing.

• Asetek now has a foundation that enables the company to drive further development on its own.
  
  
• Calculating the price of a transport has become quick and easy - and the price is right.
  
  
• TR brings a highly qualified team that provides both highlevel transportation expertise and project momentum.