The most interesting stories are always the ones we’re not allowed to tell, aren’t they?
But this month’s chat won’t make much sense unless I can at least allude to some of the work we do that I’m not allowed to talk about. So I’ll do my best and I ask you to please forgive the slight obliqueness. I’m sure there are enough clues for you to work it out..!
People from outside the industry often think that logistics is about moving the world’s daily goods. From food to furniture and motor cars to pickle jars.
And sure, nothing would leave the factory or the farm without logistics, would it?
But not many people outside the wonderful and varied world of logistics think about some of the more unusual items that we get involved with.
You will almost certainly have heard about the exciting exhibition that celebrates 800 years of British democracy. It’s all focussed around one of the most important, well-known documents in history, authorised by King John’s Royal seal on 15 June 1215 at Runnymede and considered to be one of the first steps towards parliamentary democracy, and includes the principle that no one was above the law, including the King.
Well, the four surviving original copies of that Charter took quite a journey to make this year’s public exhibition happen. In and around various London venues, up to the North and then to the South of the country, then some of them back to London.
Here’s my point. Priceless world heritage treasures don’t just need security against thieves. The real enemies are harder to spot. Heat, cold, humidity and sunlight can destroy an irreplaceable document, painting or even an entire stamp collection.
I’m not saying who was called in to use data loggers and radio transmitters to monitor and protect that thing I didn’t identify. And I can’t even say that people in Castles and Palaces use similar services. All I can say is that we are used to monitoring fragile artefacts for The Louvre, the Vatican and ‘many other world-famous venues’, and those unusual logistics monitoring jobs must surely be the jewels in our crown.
If you need something similar then a logger unit plus high-accuracy temperature and humidity probes will provide accurate and reliable measurement of your precious goods. Vital temperature and humidity data is wirelessly transmitted directly to a local PC for automatic and immediate notification and analysis with a logging facility to guarantee against data loss in the event of radio communication loss.
Monitoring the condition of precious goods is vitally important. After all, no one wants to wake up one morning and discover that their Penny Black has turned into a Penny Brown, do they?
Derek Richardson is International Sales Director at The IMC Group
