by logisticsplus | Sep 14, 2020 | News
This week, September 13-19, 2020, is National Truck Driver Appreciation Week (NTDAW). This year especially, Logistics Plus (which was founded and is owned by a former truck driver) and its sister company, National Truckload (NTL), would like to thank the 3.5 million professional men and women that have executed the crucial role of delivering goods during the COVID-19 pandemic. These truck drivers undertake one of our economy’s most demanding and important jobs – delivering our goods safely, securely, and on time. We ask that you please join us this week to celebrate and honor our truck drivers for all of their hard work and dedication.
With the historic COVID-19 pandemic inflicting negative economic conditions on our country, the men and women of the trucking industry have made personal sacrifices and risked exposure to the virus to help fuel our nation’s response. Our drivers have delivered ventilators and other medical equipment to hospitals, distributed cleaning products across the country, and delivered personal protective equipment to businesses in need. Lastly, our truck drivers ensure that food and other necessities remain available to consumers across the country. While it’s impossible to individually recognize each driver, we thank you for your crucial role in keeping our society moving forward during these challenging times.
TRUCKING INDUSTRY FACTS AND FIGURES:
- In 2018, the trucking industry hauled 11.49 billion tons of freight
- More than 80% of U.S. communities depend solely on trucking for delivery of their goods and commodities
- In 2018, the trucking industry was a $796.7 billion industry
- There are 3.5 million truck drivers in the U.S. and the total industry employment is 7.8 million
- Over 40% of all jobs in the trucking industry are held by women and minorities
To learn more about National Truck Driver Appreciation Week, visit the America Trucking Association (ATA) website here: www.trucking.org/NTDAW-2020
by logisticsplus | Sep 14, 2020 | News
Global Trade Alert Message:
In response to the United States’ recent tariffs on certain aluminum products from Canada, Canada will impose surtaxes against imports of U.S. aluminum. Canada has stated that select aluminum goods will be subject to a 10 percent surtax – a proportionate amount in comparison to the products affected by the U.S. tariffs. These countermeasures will only apply to goods originating in the U.S. and will take effect on September 16th. Canada has stated that the tariffs will remain in place until the United States eliminates its tariffs against Canada.
The list of products outlined in the tariffs can be found here: www.canada.ca/us-aluminum-products
Visit the Department of Finance Canada here: www.canada.ca/department-finance
by logisticsplus | Sep 10, 2020 | News
Ready to kick the tires on eShipPlus™? eShipPlus is a powerful cloud-based transportation management system (TMS) for Logistics Plus North American customers. For a limited time, we are offering interested customers “demo” access to test-drive the easy-to-use quoting features of eShipPlus. Alternatively, our freight management specialists are available to provide a risk-free Zoom demonstration of eShipPlus. When you sign-up for a standard eShipPlus account, you’ll get access to the following time-saving features:
- LTL shipment quotes for multiple top tier carriers, such as Estes Express, FedEx Freight, Dayton Freight, Ward, and many others
- Standard and Guaranteed LTL service options
- Create bills of lading (BOL) and schedule shipments
- White label your portal and BOLs with your company logo
- Quick quote forms for truckload, expedited, and international shipments
- Track your LTL and truckload shipments all in one dashboard
- Run reports on your shipping history
- View invoices online … and more!
Visit www.logisticsplus.com/geteshipplus to request more information.
by logisticsplus | Sep 9, 2020 | News
If your business is running smoothly and your products are exceeding sales goals, you may find yourself in a dilemma. All of your success means that you have probably outgrown your facilities and the storage space needed to manage your products. Most businesses believe that “keeping it in-house” is the way to go, but in reality that involves many unknown factors such as “How much space will I need?” and “What kind of equipment do I require?” For these exact reasons, businesses are turning to 3PL’s – like Logistics Plus – in hopes of finding the perfect warehouse partner.
Warehouse Location
One of the most important factors in selecting the right warehouse partner is location. Where do you sell the majority of your product(s)? Do you need regular access to the goods? Do you want the warehouse to be close to your production facility so that you can avoid high transportation charges? For example, if you sell your product across the United States, it might make sense to choose a warehouse partner that has access to multiple facilities across the country. This will ultimately lead to the most savings on your transportation costs.
Services Required
It’s important to know exactly what services you require from a warehouse before you begin your search. If you are primarily an e-commerce seller, you want to find a warehouse that has “pick, pack, and ship” fulfillment capabilities. If you work exclusively with Amazon, you want to find a partner with reliable FBA (Fulfillment By Amazon) or FBM (Fulfillment By Merchant) expertise. Lastly, if you require transloading services then you will need a warehouse that has the ability to handle short-term storage and staging. By addressing your requirements upfront, choosing the proper partner to meet all of your needs will be less cumbersome.
Technology and Inventory Management
Leveraging a 3PL that has strong technology solutions means you can level the playing field without investing hundreds of thousands of dollars in systems and IT infrastructure. A warehouse management system (WMS) needs to be able to communicate inventory levels to the customer and notify them when items are running low. A state-of-the-art WMS tends to be more important for businesses that have fulfillment needs rather than just storage.
Security and Storage
Everything mentioned above won’t matter if your product isn’t kept safe. A good warehouse partner will have security measures in place around their facility to reduce the chance of theft and damages. Look for a warehouse that has alarms, cameras, and fencing around the perimeter. If your product requires additional safe-keeping inside the warehouse, make sure to discuss that with the warehouse staff before you sign a contract.
Overall, your warehouse partner should provide flexible solutions that fit your growth strategy and drive efficiency to maximize your cost-savings. Having a 3PL provider like Logistics Plus ensures that you have the back-end resources to give you time to do what you do best – grow your business!
by logisticsplus | Sep 3, 2020 | News
Global Trade Alert Message:
Goods made in Hong Kong for export to the United States will need to be labeled as Made in China beginning September 25th. This move was announced after China imposed a national security law on Hong Kong. The United States determined that Hong Kong is “no longer sufficiently autonomous to justify differential treatment in relation to China.” Although the goods need to be marked as Made in China, the actual country of origin reported to customs must remain Hong Kong.
To read more about this ruling, visit here: www.cbp.gov/rulings/hong-kong-executive-order
by logisticsplus | Aug 31, 2020 | News
Gretchen Seth, International SVP for Logistics Plus, appeared as a guest on Freightwaves Radio on the Road Dog Trucking channel of SiriusXM this past Saturday afternoon. Gretchen spoke with host Tim Dooner about how the new Logistics Plus Medical division, dba LP Med™, is leveraging its global connections, logistics expertise, warehousing capacity, and transportation knowledge to do some good and creative things on the personal protective equipment (PPE) front. Gretchen also discussed other optics, such as LP’s origins, recent tech trends, hiring challenges, and the reason why 50 country flags fly on top of Union Station in downtown Erie. Subscribers to SiriusXM can listen to a replay of the broadcast on-demand online (as shown below) or via the SiriusXM app.
