October 26, 2017: Jan de Rijk Logistics CEO, Sebastiaan Scholte took over as the new chairman of TIACA, with Steven Polmans, head of Cargo and Logistics at Brussels Airport Company (BAC), as vice chairman.

Both were formally welcomed to their new roles at last week’s Annual General Meeting, part of TIACA’s Executive Summit in Miami, Florida, USA.

Scholte, who has been TIACA vice chairman for two and a half years, takes over from Sanjiv Edward, head of Cargo Business, Delhi International Airport.

“TIACA is, and will be, the only organisation covering the whole air cargo supply chain, and in order to stay and become more relevant, we will now work on becoming more agile and engaging more with our membership base. There is a need for more transparency and visibility across the supply chain, and TIACA can play a role in facilitating this. In addition, we must ensure we are motivating the next generation of air cargo leaders, and you can expect to see TIACA putting an emphasis on training and encouraging young people to join the industry. We can collectively truly make this industry better,” said Scholte.

Scholte has worked in the air freight industry for over 20 years, including for Aeromexico, where he was vice president Sales.

He held senior management roles with Cargolux for eight years from 2002 and took over as CEO at Jan de Rijk Logistics in 2010.

He holds a Global Executive MBA from the IESE Business School and has been chairman of the Cool Chain Association.

“Collaboration and cooperation between all parties in the air cargo supply chain is the only way forward to solve many of today’s issues. TIACA is the only organisation representing all of those different players, and we are the natural platform to facilitate genuine collaboration and work towards a more innovative and quality-driven industry,” said Polmans.

Polmans has 20 years’ experience in the air cargo industry and is also the chairman of Air Cargo Belgium, an initiative bringing together airlines, handlers, forwarders, the airport authority, and other stakeholders for the greater good of the community.

Prior to joining BAC, Polmans worked for ground handler Aviapartner, before moving on to logistics marketing specialist GLU4 BV, where he managed the company’s Benelux operations.

He joined BAC in 2010 and was appointed Head of Cargo in 2012.

TIACA is governed by its Trustee members who elect the Board of Directors to manage the Association's affairs and establish its policy. The chairman and vice chairman are elected by the Board.

“TIACA is fortunate to have two such experienced Board members at the helm. We would all like to take this opportunity of thanking Sanjiv for his dedication and energy during his tenure as Chairman and look forward to his further contribution,” said Vladimir Zubkov, secretary general, TIACA.

Over 300 industry leaders from across the globe attended TIACA’s Executive Summit in partnership with the 14th Annual End-to-End Supply Network Summit from October 18th - 20th.

TIACA’s next event, the Air Cargo Forum (ACF), will take place in Toronto, Canada on October 16th-18th 2018.

Left Pic: Incoming chairman Sebastiaan Scholte with outgoing chairman Sanjiv Edward at TIACA's Executive Summit in Miami, Florida
Right Pic: Incoming vice chairman Steven Polmans speaks on a panel at TIACA's Executive Summit in Miami, Florida

Jan de Rijk LogisticsTIACABrussels Airport CompanyBAC

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