Latest News from Omni

Facundo Urtubey and Santiago Bosche have advised that their warehouse was seriously damaged on Christmas night as a result of a fire that started at a neighbour’s factory.

They explained that despite the fire prevention system being activated and the efforts of the fire bragade who were there before the fire reached their building, they had to stand by and watch 22 years of work burn in front of them. As a result, their offices, the permanent storage section and the air transit storage area, were completely lost.

However, the company has begun its contingency plan and, thanks to the proper protection of the server and record filing areas, it is now business as usual as the company works from temporary offices.  All the company’s surface shipments were kept in a separate area that was not touched by the fire.  The company’s own crews and trucks were operating as normal the following day.

Nobody was injured in the fire.  The Lift Van family is deeply touched by this tragic situation and asks for the cooperation of its OMNI friends to help in overcoming this sad and difficult situation.

Staff at the company have added their cell phone numbers to email signatures for urgent matters.

Orphee Beinoglou in Greece has just completed the construction of another big Logistics Hub & Storage Facility in Athens for accommodating its operations, located in the industrial area of Aspropyrgos, around 20 kms from the city and 10 kms from the Port of Piraeus. 

The new facility has 16,000 square meters of covered space on a 51,000 square meter site.  It has 31 loading docks monitored around the clock by 70 CCTV systems and special fire detection and burglary security systems.  

Including this new establishment Orphee Beinoglou operations in Greece are spread across six locations in Athens and Thessaloniki with a total covered space of 105,000 square meters.  The company’s services include: logistics, freight forwarding, household goods, fine arts and exhibitions.

AIReS has announced that Laura May Carmack, Quality Manager, was awarded Global Mobility Professional of the Year by the Forum for Expatriate Management at the EMEA EMMA Awards ceremony. Laura May was chosen from a competitive shortlist of eight nominees in this category and was recognised for her vast leadership experience within the relocation industry and at AIReS. Laura May has also been previously recognised as ‘highly recommended’ in this category at the 2016 Americas and APAC EMMA Awards.

“All of us at AIReS are very proud of Laura May, who is the consummate professional,” said Aires President, Jeff Wangler. “She is the perfect example of someone who got involved with relocation at a young age and has flourished, grown, and become one of the premiere executives not only at AIReS but also in the relocation industry. We are honoured to have her work at AIReS and also to be an important part of the relocation community in EMEA and around the globe.  We look forward to Laura May contributing to AIReS’ future success as she continues to support the industry she loves.”

Laura May has overseen the company’s quality initiatives since 1994 and is a Certified Lead Auditor through the American Society of Quality (ASQ). She is actively involved in many industry organisations, including recent leadership roles with FIDI and the Pan-American International Movers Association (PAIMA). 

Upon receiving the award, Laura May said, “I am honoured to accept this award from the Forum for Expatriate Management. FEM has created a powerful program matching the list of candidates and the esteemed global mobility expert judges panel, who are top in class. To be among this group is a thrilling and humbling experience which I will cherish for the rest of my life.”

John Mason International has been awarded the ‘Consultants Choice Award’ at this year’s Graebel Relocation Alliance.

The award was presented to John Mason International’s chief operating officer Noel Briscoe at the 16th annual Graebel Relocation Alliance in Denver in October. Each year, the Graebel Relocation Alliance recognises top performing global relocation and mobility service partners for the past year.

The winner of the ‘Consultants Choice Award’ is selected based on votes from Graebel move managers around the world who individually vote for their best partners. 

Noel commented: “Last year we were presented with the quality award based on performance/quality scores from Graebel’s assignees, which was a great achievement. To also be recognised by Graebel move managers across the world is another huge achievement, which recognises all the hard work put in by our staff involved on a daily basis.”

Pictured: International move managers Mary Wright and Amanda Hilton.