NAUTOR’S SWAN Looked for a responsible logistics partner

Nautor’s Swan, located in Jakobstad on the West Coast of Finland, designs and produces luxury sailing yachts that are sailed all over the world. Managing the logistics of boat production is no simple task.

“Our logistics, as a whole, is quite extreme. Not only do we have material of all shapes and sizes coming in, but yachts and spare parts also need to be shipped all around the world, and a large amount of material is shipped to and from our subcontractors, explains Matthew Benton, logistics manager at Nautor’s Swan. Our production needs to be efficient, and here logistics plays a big role.”

The logistics partner gets a wider role to play

When analysing our logistics operation, it was clear that we need better control. Especially in Finland, where it’s mainly general cargo being transported, we wanted to limit our freight forwarders to just a few, but Nautor’s Swan wasn’t just looking for a main freight forwarder.

“We wanted to find a logistics company that could take on a bigger role, both when it comes to planning, coordinating other carriers, and communicating with the supplier. A partner that could help us with tracking the progress of every supplier and shipment”, Benton explains.

Nautor’s Swan has a long-standing relationship with Backman-Trummer and is very happy with the cooperation.

“One of Backman-Trummer’s biggest strengths is that they know the countries, the routes and the prices. They’re flexible and open in their discussion, always taking into consideration what works best for us at Nautor’s Swan”, Benton says. The collaboration is slowly expanding as Nautor’s Swan hands over more and more responsibility to Backman-Trummer, who now handles shipments all over Europe.

“There is a lot of competition in the logistics business, which of course affects the rates, but I believe that if we choose to work long-term with one main freight forwarder, it will save us a lot of costs in the end”, Benton says.

“Nowadays, we also do serial production at Nautor’s Swan, which changes the way we order and use material. So, the logistics at Nautor’s Swan is evolving, and the logistics industry itself is changing, as we’re all working towards lowering carbon emissions. This demands a lot of flexibility and reliability from a logistics company, and Backman-Trummer delivers just that”, Benton concludes.

Nautor’s Swan

Founded in 1966, Nautor Swan is recognized all over the world for its performance sailing yachts. The key elements of the brand are elegance, quality, performance, innovation and reliability.