by logisticsplus | Aug 21, 2015 | News
Logistics Plus (LP) provides logistics services within and across all national borders and using all modes of transportation. Air freight forwarding and ocean freight forwarding services come into play more often than not on international shipments. On the LP International team, Emily Grein is our lead air freight specialist and Kristen Smith is our lead ocean freight specialist. We asked these two to square-off in order to better understanding the pros and cons of shipping air freight versus ocean freight. Although Emily, Kristen, and their teams are intimately immersed in either air or ocean transportation, their top priority is always to ensure the right mode is selected for the needs of each customer (which, in some cases, can include both ocean and air).
When considering the choice between air and ocean freight forwarding, the top three factors to consider are generally reliability, speed, and cost. Whether you ship via air or via ocean, each requires some level of expertise to understand how these three factors will be impacted; and each has a different set of rules, regulations, and best-practices practices.
RELIABILITY
Airfreight is more convenient and faster even though flights can get delayed by weather and other circumstances. There are usually daily air flights back and forth and between major cities around the world. Ocean carrier sailings, on the other hand, are generally weekly or every other week depending upon the trade lane. This means that if a cut-off time is missed at a seaport, there will be a longer delay. There is also the possibility of exposure to weather conditions and goods being damaged due to the wait at the ports of transfer. Lastly, the longer, more stringent schedule of ocean service may not always line up with business expectations.
SPEED
It should be no surprise that shipping by air is usually much faster than by ocean. Air shipments can take up to a few days while shipping by ocean can take anywhere from a few weeks to months to arrive; however, more efficient routes are being created and ships are getting faster, meaning shipments crossing the ocean are taking less time.
COST
For many businesses, cost can be a very crucial factor which can influence the decision to ship by air or ocean freight. Shipping your items by air is more expensive than ocean freight. Expect to pay between 5-6 times more to ship by air versus ocean transportation. With both air and ocean, costs are directly related to the cargo weight, dimensions, value, and distance being shipped. Generally, larger and heavier shipments are often cheaper to ship by ocean, while smaller more valuable shipments are better to ship by air.
The table below shows a few items to consider when deciding whether to ship via air or ocean:
No matter which mode you ship, customs regulations, duties, and fees will come into play on all international imports or exports. Working with a reliable freight forwarder that has in-house customs broker solutions will go a long way towards ensuring your shipment receives expedited customs clearance and that your import/export fees are minimized.
If you need help with air freight forwarding, ocean freight forwarding, imports/exports, or global trade compliance, work with Logistics Plus and enjoy the benefits of having an award-winning supply chain partner on your side.
by Scott Frederick | Aug 21, 2015 | News
Earlier this month, Logistics Management magazine unveiled the results of its 32nd Annual Quest for Quality Awards recognizing some of the highest-quality carriers in the industry. This year, its survey results yielded 125 providers of transportation and logistics services. To determine who wins the vote, Logistics Management readers evaluate companies in all modes and service disciplines, choosing the top performers in categories including motor carriers, railroad and intermodal services, ocean carriers, airlines, freight forwarders, ports, third-party/contract logistics services.
Logistics Plus, being a smaller-sized third-party logistics company, was not included on the survey ballot (but we’ll see if we can change that in the coming years). However, many of our core LTL freight carriers were on the ballot and many also won awards. So we’d like to congratulate the following Logistics Plus LTL freight carriers for winning Quest for Quality Awards this year:
- FedEx Freight (National and Multiregional LTL categories)
- Con-way Freight (National LTL category)
- Holland (Midwest/North Central LTL, South/South Central LTL and Expedited categories)
- Pitt Ohio (Northeast/Mid-Atlanta LTL category)
- New Penn (Northeast/Mid-Atlanta LTL and Expedited categories)
- A. Due Pyle (Northeast/Mid-Atlanta LTL and Expedited categories)
- Southeastern Freight Lines (South/South Central LTL category)
- Reddaway (Western LTL category)
Additionally, there were a number of truckload, expedited, ocean and air freight carriers that Logistics Plus has worked with in the past year that won Quest for Quality awards, including Miller Transporters, Ruan Transport, Prime, Landstar, and J.B. Hunt (truckload carriers); Panther Premium Logistics and FedEx Custom Critical (expedited motor carriers); Maersk Line, Hapag-Lloyd, Evergreen Line, OOCL, and COSCO (ocean carriers); and Cathay Pacific, British Airways, Delta Air Lines, Korean Air, Lufthansa, Emirates SkyCargo, and FedEx Express (airfreight carriers).
Reputable and quality carriers not already a part of the Logistics Plus network can click the button on the left below to start the process of becoming a carrier. Shippers looking for quality carriers through a third-party logistics partner can click the button on the right below to request a risk-free quote.
by logisticsplus | Aug 18, 2015 | News
Businesses that ship less-than-truckload (LTL) freight shipments would benefit from using a transportation management system (TMS). Most large companies with big freight expenditures are already using a TMS, either with or as a part of their enterprise systems. However, those same benefits are also available to smaller companies with lower freight spending. This is often done by working with a reliable third-party logistics (3PL) partner (such as Logistics Plus). Contrary to what many may believe, most transportation management systems today are web-based and can be inexpensively integrated with a company’s back office or order management system.
There are many benefits to using a TMS. The use of a TMS will help ensure your LTL freight loads are matched to the ideal carrier so that you can get the best rates without sacrificing the service you need. More specifically, here are five key benefits to using a TMS for LTL freight management:
- Streamlined visibility to carrier rates and services: With a robust TMS, you can enjoy instant, real-time access to freight rates and transit times for multiple carriers. Not having to call multiple carriers or access multiple websites is a real time-saver. A TMS can also be customized to your specific shipping patterns and lanes, which leads to greater efficiencies for LTL carriers and better rates and service for you.
- Simplified data entry and the elimination of manual steps: TMS automation features allow you to save your customer, vendor, and product data in an easy-to-retrieve database. This creates bills of lading and other shipping documents fast and easy with little need for manual entry. It also improves document accuracy, which alleviates many downstream issues.
- Improved visibility to your shipments and documentation: Knowing your freight location allows you to be more responsive to your customers or monitor routing compliance with your vendors. Being able to pull bill of lading copies, standardized invoices, and proof of delivery documents not only creates back-office efficiencies but fosters better communication and builds better relationships with your customers and vendors.
- Freight invoice consolidation and auditing: LTL freight pricing and auditing can be complex with fuel surcharges, freight classifications, minimum density rules, and more. A good TMS should house all carrier pricing, rules, and shipment information for easy access and to provide reporting and auditing on variances between quotes and actual freight invoices.
- Availability of analytics and data: With reports generated from your TMS, you can gain better insight into your LTL freight shipping activity, costs, and service trends. Better information allows you to make future business decisions based on facts and not gut or opinion.
As mentioned earlier, smaller companies that don’t have access to a TMS today should consider partnering with a reputable 3PL with a robust TMS. If you choose to partner with Logistics Plus, you’ll receive free access to our online eShipPlus™ TMS platform. Our eShipPlus platform is a proven TMS which customers have been using for nearly a decade. In addition to all of the LTL benefits described above, eShipPlus also provides shippers with access to truckload shipment quoting, booking, and reporting functionality.
If you’re new to Logistics Plus, become our customer, and we’ll provide you complimentary access to eShipPlus. If you’re interested in integrating eShipPlus with your ERP or order management system, please email nadops@logisticsplus.com for more information. If you have general questions about our LTL freight services or tools, please click the button below.
by Scott Frederick | Aug 14, 2015 | News
India is celebrating its 69th year of Independence this month. India became an independent nation on August 15, 1947. Independence Day in India is a day when Indian people pay homage to their leaders and those who fought for India’s freedom in the past. The period leading up to Independence Day is a time when major government buildings are illuminated with strings of lights and the tricolor flutters from homes and other buildings. In honor of this great holiday, the Logistics Plus (LP) employees in New Delhi, pictured below, joined in on the celebrations.
With six locations across India, Logistics Plus is fully committed to helping businesses with their transportation and logistics within, to and from India. We specialize in project cargo, air and ocean freight forwarding, warehousing, and ground or rail transportation. With our 4PL solutions, we can also help businesses manage their entire supply chain using dedicated resources and technology. Please click the button below to request more information about our India logistics solutions.
You can read more about India Independence Day on timeanddate.com or at independenceday.nic.in
by Scott Frederick | Aug 12, 2015 | News
As we announced back on July 7, Logistics Plus was named a 2015 Great Supply Chain Partner by SupplyChainBrain magazine. The official July/August magazine article came out earlier this week. A copy of the article and the official, final listing of top supply chain partners also appears on the SupplyChainBrain.com website. The article points out that no company and no supply chain exists in a vacuum. Shippers and logistics partners rely on each other because ‘no one of us can do it all, successfully, ourselves.’ We all need partners – but which ones are right for your company or supply chain?
According to the SupplyChainBrain authors, when they looked closely at all of this year’s ‘Great Supply Chain Partner’ nominations carefully, they found the following top ten challenges on readers’ minds with regard to issues that their supply chain partners help them solve:
- Reliability – Meaning well is not enough; hope is not a business model.
- Excellence – If they don’t have this upfront, should they be your partner?
- Value – Seriously, what does your potential partner bring to the table?
- Expertise – Give me a partner who knows my business – and something I don’t already know.
- Problem-solver – You deserve a proactive partner, not one looking to you for the answers.
- Continuous improvement – Does your partner value ongoing education?
- Support – Your partner needs to support you well after the sale is done or the implementation is finished.
- Positive attitude – You need a partner who sees challenges as opportunities.
- Global reach – You can’t conquer the world if you have a stay-at-home partner.
- Strong leadership – What’s required is much more than Leadership 101.
We here at Logistics Plus remain very proud of being both nominated and recognized as a 2015 Great Supply Chain Partner. Our ability and flexibility to address many of the supply chain challenges listed above is clearly a primary reason we were chosen for the list. Although we don’t know for sure which of our customers actually nominated us, we do continue to receive many testimonials that confirm our status as a great supply chain partner, including recent ones from a solar industry manufacturing company and a shelter systems relief organization.
Feel free to read the full SupplyChainBrain article online, check out the full 2015 Great Supply Chain Partner list, or contact Logistics Plus if you have a supply chain challenge of your own that you’d like us to help you with (just click the button below).
by Scott Frederick | Aug 12, 2015 | News
Last week Thursday, Logistics Plus was given the opportunity to throw out the first pitch at an Erie Seawolves baseball game in Erie, PA. The person selected for this honor was Jesus Mireles de la Cruz “La Guera,” the father-in-law of Logistics Plus employee Alfredo Ayala. In addition to being Alfredo’s father-in-law, Jesus is also a former Double A player from México and was one of the Little League players that played at Williamsport in the 1960’s (Liga Pequeña Industrial from México). You can watch a short video of the first pitch on the Logistics Plus Facebook page.
(Pictured below on the left is Alfredo, Jesus and an Erie Seawolves player; in the center is Jesus and his grandchildren (Alfredo’s children); and on the right is a player recognition plaque for Jesus)
