The People Behind the Process: How Sander Ouwehand helps Breweries reduce millions in demurrage costs

At Hillebrand Gori, we understand that Beer logistics is about more than just moving containers, it’s about managing volume, timing and infrastructure with precision.

For Malt shipments in particular, the stakes are high. Malt is a batch-produced commodity, often shipped in large volumes of bulk-loaded containers. That scale creates operational pressure at destination and if not managed carefully, it leads to costly demurrage and detention charges.

That’s where Sander Ouwehand, our Global Head of Beer, stepped in.

How do large Malt shipments create demurrage and detention challenges?

Bulk Malt imports typically arrive in large batches. While this supports production planning at origin, it can create serious bottlenecks at destination.

Breweries often face:

• Large peaks of inbound containers arriving at once
• Limited bulk storage availability upon arrival
• A shortage of trucks to evacuate containers quickly
• Extended free time still being exceeded
• High demurrage and detention costs

As explained in our article on demurrage charges, even with negotiated free time extensions, infrastructure constraints often mean containers remain at port longer than planned, triggering significant accessorial costs.

For some customers, these costs accumulate to millions annually.

How does an accessorial dashboard reduce demurrage costs in Malt logistics?

Sander recognised that visibility, not just negotiation, was the missing piece.

Rather than reacting to demurrage invoices after the fact, customers needed a way to proactively identify where and why accessorial charges were occurring.

Sander developed a dedicated Accessorial Dashboard, designed specifically to support Malt and Brewery customers managing high container volumes.

The dashboard enables customers to:

• Identify where unnecessary demurrage and detention costs are incurred
• Track container dwell times at port
• Monitor storage and evacuation patterns
• Detect recurring bottlenecks in infrastructure or planning
• Make data-driven operational decisions

Instead of guessing where money was being lost, customers gained real transparency.

What were the results of using the accessorial dashboard?

In one case, a customer reduced accessorial charges by 7 million in the first year of using the dashboard.

The impact was not only financial. The dashboard also helped customers:

• Improve coordination between port, trucking and storage
• Align arrival schedules with storage capacity
• Stabilise inbound flows
• Reduce operational firefighting
• Strengthen supply chain predictability

By shifting from reactive cost control to proactive visibility, Breweries were able to protect margins and improve operational efficiency.

Strengthened capabilities through DHL

Now, as part of DHL Global Forwarding, Hillebrand Gori can extend these insights even further.

Through enhanced digital tools, wider infrastructure access and global expertise, we are positioned to support the Malt & Brewery Industry with:

• Broader transport capacity
• Integrated warehousing solutions
• Advanced analytics and reporting
• Greater resilience across trade lanes

The Accessorial Dashboard is just one example of how we combine industry expertise with digital capability to solve complex logistics challenges.

How can Breweries manage demurrage and detention more effectively?

Demurrage and detention are not unavoidable costs but they are manageable when visibility, planning and infrastructure align.

If you’re importing bulk Malt or managing high container volumes, our Beer logistics specialists can help you:

• Identify unnecessary accessorial charges
• Optimise inbound container flows
• Align infrastructure with batch arrivals
• Improve cost predictability

At Hillebrand Gori, we do more than move Beer ingredients we help Breweries protect margins and operate more efficiently.

Ready to reduce unnecessary demurrage costs? Let’s talk.