Logistics Plus media partner, WP$E Radio, continues to air short audio clips from Jim Berlin and others within the company as part of its business programming. WP$E AM 1450/FM 107.1 is a commercially licensed radio station serving Erie County, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by the Penn State Board of Trustees, and it is operated by Penn State Behrend, under the direction of professional broadcast staff. In addition to providing a one-stop source for global and financial news, WP$E also airs ongoing commentaries from regional business leaders.
Here are some recent audio clips from WP$E Radio with Jim discussing our recent 2-million pound gas tanks shipment, new warehousing, and global logistics (click icons below to hear audio replays).
Logistics Plus Enters Sixth Year as a SmartWay Transport Partner
Company fulfills SmartWay Partnership environmental requirements for 2016.
ERIE, Pa. (September 29, 2016) – Logistics Plus Inc., a leading worldwide provider of transportation, logistics and supply chain solutions, is pleased to announce it is entering its sixth consecutive year as an approved SmartWay® Transport Partner after the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) recently renewed its membership status for successfully fulfilling the SmartWay Partnership requirements for 2016.
SmartWay is the EPA’s initiative to reduce the carbon footprint of the freight industry. It is a voluntary partnership between shippers, carriers, logistics companies, and the EPA created to reduce the amount of air pollution caused by the transportation supply chain industry, while also using technologies to help reduce fuel costs. Since 2004, SmartWay partners have saved over 7 billion gallons of fuel, lowered fuel costs by $24.9 billion and reduced carbon emissions by 72.8 million metric tons.
Logistics Plus first joined the SmartWay initiative in 2010 with the goal of improving its impact on the environment. Each year performance data is submitted and reviewed to qualify as a SmartWay partner. Approved companies are posted on the EPA website at https://www.epa.gov/smartway/smartway-partner-list and confirmed as an active SmartWay Partner.
“By measuring, benchmarking, and assessing our freight transportation activities, we’re able to make better choices that reduce greenhouse gas pollution,” said Steve Srnka, compliance attorney for Logistics Plus. “Our continued SmartWay approval confirms to our customers and partners that Logistics Plus is committed to doing its part for environmental sustainability.”
About Logistics Plus Inc. Logistics Plus Inc. provides freight transportation, warehousing, global logistics, and supply chain management solutions through a worldwide network of talented and caring professionals. Founded in Erie, PA by local entrepreneur, Jim Berlin, 20 years ago, Logistics Plus is a fast-growing and award-winning transportation and logistics company. With a strong passion for excellence, its 400+ employees put the “Plus” in logistics by doing the big things properly, and the countless little things, that together ensure complete customer satisfaction and success.
The Logistics Plus® network includes offices located in Erie, PA; Alma, AR; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; Riverside, CA; San Francisco, CA; Visalia, CA; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Detroit, MI; Kansas City, MO; Charlotte, NC; Lexington, NC; Buffalo, NY; Cleveland, OH; Charleston, SC; Greenville, SC; Nashville, TN; Dallas, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Houston, TX; Laredo, TX; Madison, WI; Bahrain; Belgium; Canada; Chile; China; Colombia; Egypt; France; Germany; India; Indonesia; Kazakhstan; Libya; Mexico; Poland; Saudi Arabia; Turkey; and UAE; with additional agents around the world. For more information, visit www.logisticsplus.com or follow @LogisticsPlus on Twitter.
U.S.-based less-than-truckload (LTL) carriers continue to announce their annual LTL general rate increases – or GRIs – earlier than in previous years. GRIs, which tend to be in the 4-6% range every year, are intended to offset carriers’ rising costs for new equipment, real estate, technology, and employee wages. Unfortunately, GRIs typically have the greatest impact on small- and medium-sized shippers who are not under contract with the carriers. The majority of LTL freight shipments that move under large-shipper contracts are usually not affected by general rate increases.
So far, here are the LTL carriers that have announced fall rate hikes:
ABF Freight – 5.2% effective 8/29/16
YRC Freight – 4.9% effective 9/5/16
UPS Freight – 4.9% effective 9/19/16
Old Dominion – 4.9% effective 9/26/16
Roadrunner – 4.9% effective 9/26/16
XPO Logistics (Con-way) – 4.9% effective 9/26/16
Estes Express – 4.9% effective 10/17/16
FedEx Freight – 4.9% effective 1/2/17
Most of the other LTL carriers implement similar GRIs without publicly announcing them. With the majority of LTL business moving among the top 25 carriers, pricing discipline in the industry remains strong despite sluggishness in the overall economy.
So how can small- and medium-sized shippers insulate themselves from these significant increases?
One sure-fire method is to work with a third-party logistics company that has pre-negotiated contracts with all of the carriers that fall outside the scope of their standard GRIs. At Logistics Plus, wehave agreements in place with almost all of the major LTL carriers that operate outside the influence of their standard, annual rate hikes. We do review these contracts periodically and, when warranted, allow our LTL carrier partners to increase rates slightly to offset their increases in costs. However, such increases are almost always well below the GRIs imposed on the broader shipping community.
So if you’re looking to mitigate annual LTL carrier GRIs and create greater pricing predictability for your freight transportation spend, click the button below to get started with Logistics Plus. Let us worry about LTL carrier rates and negotiations so that you can focus on growing your business.
Logistics Plus recently participated in an interview with Inbound Logistics magazine to provide shippers with LTL shipping advice. The article, written by Sandra Beckwith, provides shippers with tips on how best to save on less-than-truckload (LTL) freight shipping. You can read an online version of the article on the Inbound Logistics website using the link below.
A PDF excerpt of the article can also be downloaded and viewed by clicking the image below.
Shippers looking to work with Logistics Plus to save money on LTL shipping by implementing any of these 18 tips can click the button below to get started.
Logistics Plus Delivers four, 2-million pound gas tanks from South Korea to USA
Online video provides amazing footage of the logistics required for the move.
ERIE, Pa. (September 20, 2016) – Logistics Plus Inc., a leading worldwide provider of transportation, logistics and supply chain solutions, is proud to report that it has successfully delivered four 30x24x17 meter, 1038 metric ton (2 million pounds), empty ammonia (NH3) gas tanks from Onsan, South Korea to Portland, Oregon in the United States. The entire project took over a year of planning, engineering, and execution, and it is the largest shipment ever handled by Logistics Plus in its 20-year history.
At the origin port in South Korea, 48-axle lines of self-propelled modular trailers were used to move the enormous tanks from their storage location onto two barges in order to transport them to the main loading port. From there, they were carefully loaded sequentially onto a heavy-load ocean vessel. The vessel – one of only two in the world capable of handling the massive shipment – took 14 days to sail to the Vigor shipyard in Portland. Using the vessels two massive 1500mt capacity heavylift cranes, all four tanks were discharged and loaded onto specialized modular trailers and carefully moved into final storage.
“We manage many large cargo projects all around the world, but this is the largest one we’ve ever coordinated in our 20-year history,” said Frederik Geirnaert, project manager for Logistics Plus, and the leader for this project. “The Logistics Plus project cargo team has been at the center of this move in many ways. We handled the selection of the most skilled subcontractors, organized a tender for each part of the move, provided oversight and drafting of the method statement, liaised with the marine warranty surveyor, provided on-site supervision of every move, and we also found on-the-spot solutions to the few small issues that inevitably come up along the way. In the end, our passion for excellence came through once again.”
The project highlight video, which includes amazing live and time-lapse footage, can be viewed online at https://youtu.be/M1HwMlUKeOk (or by clicking the image below).
About Logistics Plus Inc. Logistics Plus Inc. provides freight transportation, warehousing, global logistics, and supply chain management solutions through a worldwide network of talented and caring professionals. Founded in Erie, PA by local entrepreneur, Jim Berlin, 20 years ago, Logistics Plus is a fast-growing and award-winning transportation and logistics company. With a strong passion for excellence, its 400+ employees put the “Plus” in logistics by doing the big things properly, and the countless little things, that together ensure complete customer satisfaction and success.
The Logistics Plus® network includes offices located in Erie, PA; Alma, AR; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; Riverside, CA; San Francisco, CA; Visalia, CA; Atlanta, GA; Chicago, IL; Detroit, MI; Kansas City, MO; Charlotte, NC; Lexington, NC; Buffalo, NY; Cleveland, OH; Charleston, SC; Greenville, SC; Nashville, TN; Dallas, TX; Fort Worth, TX; Houston, TX; Laredo, TX; Madison, WI; Bahrain; Belgium; Canada; Chile; China; Colombia; Egypt; France; Germany; India; Indonesia; Kazakhstan; Libya; Mexico; Poland; Saudi Arabia; Turkey; and UAE; with additional agents around the world. For more information, visit www.logisticsplus.com or follow @LogisticsPlus on Twitter.
What is volume LTL shipping? In general industry terms, a volume shipment (sometimes referred to as a partial truckload) typically weighs more than 5,000 pounds, is six (6) pallets or more or it takes up 12 to 32 linear feet of trailer space. As with most consumer or business purchases, buying the things you need in larger quantities is a simple way to save money. So, just as you’d expect to get a better deal on that case of bottled water at your local warehouse store, the same is true for freight. Ship a larger shipment and spend less than shipping multiple, smaller shipments. Unlike standard LTL shipments, where the rates and discounts are already pre-established, volume LTL shipments are generally “spot quoted” and can often help a carrier fill density in a “backhaul” lane where they need the additional business. This will generally result in lower freight charges than what might have been otherwise charged using standard LTL rates.
What information will you need to provide to get a volume LTL shipping rate? Like any standard LTL shipment, you’ll need the origin and destination zip codes, total weight, and freight classification (or a detailed description of your commodity). You’ll also need to provide the pallet count, shipment dimensions, and the date you’re planning on shipping. Quick and competitive access to carriers’ volume LTL rates are one of the many reasons to use an experienced freight management company (like Logistics Plus). They can save you money on your volume LTL shipping because they have ready access to many carriers that will provide the best volume rates, and they often know what type of freight carriers are looking to secure. Keep in mind, because volume quotes are spot-quoted, they are not automatic. They can often take an hour or so to obtain, so plan ahead.
Don’t be shy in requesting volume LTL and partial truckload shipments when you have the opportunity – they can help you save on your overall shipping costs! If you’ve got a shipment over 5,000 pounds or more than six pallet positions, click the button below and let the Logistics Plus North American freight experts go to work finding the best rates for you!
Logistics Plus media partner, WP$E Radio, continues to air short audio clips from Jim Berlin and others within the company as part of its business programming. WP$E AM 1450/FM 107.1 is a commercially licensed radio station serving Erie County, Pennsylvania. The station is owned by the Penn State Board of Trustees, and it is operated by Penn State Behrend, under the direction of professional broadcast staff. In addition to providing a one-stop source for global and financial news, WP$E also airs ongoing commentaries from regional business leaders.
