SriLankan Cargo has added to its wide range of facilities at Colombo’s Bandaranaike International Airport, with the recent introduction of an air conditioned storage area.
Johann Wijesinghe, head of cargo at SriLankan, said the new facility at the BIA Cargo Centre had a temperature range of 15-25 degrees Celsius, and was ideal for temperature-sensitive items that should not be placed in traditional cold rooms where the temperature was below freezing.
Janaka Munasinghe, manager cargo operations, said the new facility had enhanced the airline’s capabilities in handling sensitive cargo and it was now enjoying a high level of demand for handling sensitive items  such as pharmaceuticals, which needed to be stored at a particular temperature.”
The BIA Cargo Centre already has facilities such as freezer rooms (0 to minus 30 Celsius), and Cool Rooms (0 to +10 Celsius).
Customers with perishable or temperature-sensitive items of cargo are advised to instruct their agent or supplier at the point of origin to indicate the required storage temperature range in the Airway Bill.
SriLankan Cargo is the freight handling arm of SriLankan Airlines, and has positioned Colombo as the “Hub in the Ocean” to carry all types of cargo into and out of South Asia, in particular linking the fast-growing Indian economy with the rest of the world. SriLankan Cargo is also the handling agent for cargo carried by all airlines through BIA.
SriLankan Cargo handles the full range of cargo, including general cargo, express cargo, courier items, dangerous goods, live animals, perishables, valuables, and vulnerable items.
SriLankan Cargo’s system for the management of cargo logistics - SriLankan SkyChain - enables customers to use the Internet to check schedules and space availability, make bookings on-line, submit and print airway bills, communicate with key people, update status and track each consignment through every stage of its journey.