Posted on 17 January 2022
Martin Markus, Stolt Tank Containers’ Global Fleet Manager, talks about balancing supply and demand in an ever-changing environment.
Martin Markus is Stolt Tank Containers’ Global Fleet Manager. A position newly created in October 2021 to further improve coordination of our fleet and services around the world. Martin has been at Stolt Tank Containers since 2005, working in both fleet coordination and vendor management. This mix of roles, combined with Martin’s education in finance and insurance, give him the perfect grounding for heading up our pivotal fleet management department.
Right place, right time
The nature of our business means our tank containers are constantly moving around the world. It’s up to the Fleet Department to make sure the right types of tank containers are available, in the right places, as and when customers need them.
This doesn’t happen by chance. As Martin explains, “To remain efficient and price competitive, we must continually balance supply and demand for our different types of tank containers, in every region. We have to ensure the right tanks are available when and where customers need them, avoiding shortages in some areas and surpluses in others.
As a truly global provider of tank container services, Stolt Tank Containers prides itself on being able to guarantee the same level of safety, quality, reliability and sustainability to every customer in every single country we serve. The Fleet Department is central to this. Not just in terms of making sure the right tanks are in the right places, but also in terms of making sure customers always order the right type of tank and service for each shipment.
Martin continues: “It all starts with understanding what our customers need and making sure we deliver a suitable solution. This is actually a team effort between our various departments, including Operations, Commercial Teams, Vendor Management and SHEQ.”
Like so many of Stolt Tank Containers’ employees, Martin cites our company’s dynamic, inclusive and international environment as being what he most enjoys about working here. He also finds the industry, with its ever-changing aspects and impact on business dynamics, very stimulating. “When I leave the office at the end of the day, there’s no guarantee what I’ll come back to the next morning. The world could be completely changed as far as our industry is concerned. No two days are ever the same.”
“While all this is going on, I find it incredibly rewarding that we, as a company, are constantly working on improving our customer experience and able to grow our business further. I am proud of the team effort that goes into translating our various customers’ needs into suitable service offerings, delivered through cooperation with our suppliers all over the world. I feel this is an area we are particularly strong in.
“But we must never become complacent. It might sound clichéd, but every person and every company can always do better. There are always ways we can do things smarter, more efficiently and more sustainably. This drives me to always try to become better every day.”
Right place, right time
The nature of our business means our tank containers are constantly moving around the world. It’s up to the Fleet Department to make sure the right types of tank containers are available, in the right places, as and when customers need them. This doesn’t happen by chance. As Martin explains, “To remain efficient and price competitive, we must continually balance supply and demand for our different types of tank containers, in every region. We have to ensure the right tanks are available when and where customers need them, avoiding shortages in some areas and surpluses in others.
The right service for every customer need
As a truly global provider of tank container services, Stolt Tank Containers prides itself on being able to guarantee the same level of safety, quality, reliability and sustainability to every customer in every single country we serve. The Fleet Department is central to this. Not just in terms of making sure the right tanks are in the right places, but also in terms of making sure customers always order the right type of tank and service for each shipment.
Martin continues: “It all starts with understanding what our customers need and making sure we deliver a suitable solution. This is actually a team effort between our various departments, including Operations, Commercial Teams, Vendor Management and SHEQ.”
No two days are the same
Like so many of Stolt Tank Containers’ employees, Martin cites our company’s dynamic, inclusive and international environment as being what he most enjoys about working here. He also finds the industry, with its ever-changing aspects and impact on business dynamics, very stimulating. “When I leave the office at the end of the day, there’s no guarantee what I’ll come back to the next morning. The world could be completely changed as far as our industry is concerned. No two days are ever the same.”
Always improving
“While all this is going on, I find it incredibly rewarding that we, as a company, are constantly working on improving our customer experience and able to grow our business further. I am proud of the team effort that goes into translating our various customers’ needs into suitable service offerings, delivered through cooperation with our suppliers all over the world. I feel this is an area we are particularly strong in.
“But we must never become complacent. It might sound clichéd, but every person and every company can always do better. There are always ways we can do things smarter, more efficiently and more sustainably. This drives me to always try to become better every day.”
