The fairs we attended in 2022 were a great success. We hope to maintain that success in 2023 by going to several international fairs again together with our community with the Brussels Airport booth.
 
You'll find more practical information and prices on the two-pager.

Is your company interested in attending one of the following fairs? Please, let Pauline Van Dun know.

The company strives to distinguish itself through high-level automation.
In the coming years, the company plans to focus even more on greener solutions.
 
A warm welcome and we look forward to working together

Are you curious about the importance of data in the logistics world? Do you want to know more about the digital twin and bundling of goods? In all aspects of logistics, data is key. Voka will take you on a discovery in this fascinating world on December 15th. 

 

Hi Nathan, on Linkedin we saw you’ve worked ten years for BAC, how did you end up here?

I actually started my career in air cargo 20 years ago as management trainee at Aviapartner, in the catering, airside handling, and compliance departments and then finally moving into the role of operations manager at Cargo. It is not really a coincidence that I ended up at BRUcargo, since I studied Business Engineering specialized in Operational Management and Logistics. I always had a passion for logistics and operational organization of processes. I worked for Aviapartner cargo in various positions for 9 years, which gave me a broad base to to start at Brussels Airport Company (BAC), 10 years ago.
At BAC, Steven Polmans and Piet Demunter were searching for someone who wanted to develop the cargo products and the account management with the forwarders. I had two different tasks: bring the community together and give Brussels Airport a clear image. The initial focus was on the pharma shipments, and later other niches such as living animals, perishables, and e-commerce as well.

In the pharma segment, we created a robust community strategy and co-developed the CEIV-certificate with IATA, which has now become a global standard for many airports worldwide. The CEIV pharma community certification really put Brussels Airport and the BRUcargo community on the map as the preferred European pharma gateway. This is something I am very proud of. 

On top of our niches, I also had the privilege to be actively involved in the start of the BRUCloud and the creation of Air Cargo Belgium and Pharma.Aero.  All those initiatives are admired by other airports around the world, so as a BRUcargo community we should be proud of what we achieved by joining forces and working together.

Doing all these projects, it seems you experienced a lot of progress at the airport. Do you feel like the airport is completely changed compared to when you started?
 
Yes and no, it is a little bit of a paradox. We were able to bring all partners operating at BRUCargo together and put our airport on the map.  So that is a big positive change, which has created a lot of momentum and attracted new investments.  But we still have a lot of room for improvement: the cargo processes and operations are still very similar to 20 years ago, despite our collective digitalization efforts. In that sense we still stand at the start of change and Air Cargo Belgium can continue to play an active role.

 
 

These projects are something you really care about it seems, are you going to miss that the most?
 
I say goodbye with trust and peace of mind because the ongoing projects and initiatives are mature and will continue to evolve and I leave them in the good hands of a strong cargo management team at Brussels Airport.
Besides that, I will probably miss the international networking and client contacts.  But at the same time, it is something I take with me.  To put things in a positive perspective, now that I am back at the handling side, I can benefit from the initiatives I helped built.

Of course, you continue working at BRUCargo, together with Luik. This happens more often, why do you think you stay in the same environment?

I think it is kind of a virus you get by working in air cargo.  You either walk away after six months or you stay and get infected by it. The latter happened to me. I have a lot of passion and drive for this sector, and I believe in the community. This is something I certainly cannot let go off. It feels like one big family, and I might say that I have experienced every branch of the tree, this helps me to have a wide overview of the sector.
 
You soon start at WFS Belgium. As Managing Director, you will have a great responsibility for a large group of people, what kind of director would you like to be for them?

I can say what my values are today, that is customer focus, teamwork, continuous improvement and collectively going for one goal. Besides this, communication is crucial: explaining why decisions are made and why some things are changed.
 
What are your future ambitions, do you have any prospects for the future?

At this moment, nothing specific apart from settling into the new job and getting to know the WFS culture.  I’m looking forward to that challenge and to working with the WFS team to further improve the handling services for the airlines and forwarders.
But once I’m settled at WFS, I will probably engage myself again within the community.  
 
To end this interview, is there anything you would like to add?

I have loved working at BAC, especially being able to have an actual impact in the cargo community. I have been abroad a lot promoting Brussels Airport and it stands out how much other airports admire us. I think we should be prouder as an airport community and recognize the accomplishments we have achieved over the past years. We are still progressing faster than the others, even though it does not always feel like it. In my opinion, Air Cargo Belgium plays a big role in this success.