When it comes to the literal high seas and a company which can provide both you and your customers with secured freight transportation options and services, you should be looking at someone who has the required skill, expertise and experience in the required department, but this is to say the least. Choosing a third party logistics company which can deliver the said promises is even more difficult, in some cases, than actually transporting goods by shipment. The concern, when choosing such a company, is that it should be able to provide logistics solutions to your growing and expanding business so that you too can deliver what the customers need within their stipulated deadline. With international trade and commerce on the rise, it is imperative to choose a company that comes with the understanding that all goods come with an expiry date, more so, if the product is a perishable item. The shipping and transportation company you choose should realise that the gestation period of certain products and goods cannot be toyed with and hence a timely delivery is the need of the hour. If you are producer or a manufacturer, would you not be interested in hiring a shipping and…
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Beginning in the 1990’s, with the advent of increasing customer baselines by pursuing the global market, innovative and progressive companies began formulating more cohesive and defined supply chain management techniques. Being able to meet quality, cost and delivery commitments while still satisfying end user requirements, took on global ramifications for companies interested in staying competitive in the world marketplace. There are many factors that influence getting your product into your customers’ hands in a more effective, timely and cost-efficient manner. To begin at the beginning, begin by involving your key suppliers in the improvement of your supply chain management. Probe methods to involve key suppliers in the early phases of the process; explore ways to maximize the product, cost, quality and speedy delivery to your end user. Next, utilize your own purchasing department and encourage initiative in finding ways to shorten time to market and cost reduction among every person on your staff. Encourage your acquisitions department to keep the flow of incoming raw materials maximized to support production. Encourage new product development ideas. Establish a “commodities group” to manage the collection of parts and suppliers on schedule. Broaden your new product development efforts. Try to reduce the time a…
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Effective January 1, 2013, California ports became the first worldwide to require vessels operate from shore-side electrical power while at berth. This required the international shipping industry to equip vessels and container berths with equipment to operate the vessels’ engines with low-polluting electrical power while at berth. In addition, low-sulfur fuel regulations, aimed to reduce harmful diesel emission from vessels in transit, required using fuels with no more than 0.1% of sulfur content. The at-berth regulation must be conformed to over the next six years. In that time frame, 50% of a container line’s fleet must be able to use shore-side electrical power, with increases to 70% in 2017 and 80% in 2020. Standards to measure compliance are already in place. Environmentalists are confident that this pioneering California model will eventually and gradually be adopted by other ports in Asia, Europe and the US. Once California-bound vessels comply, they will be allowed access to other ports around the world, having already complied with the stringent California regulations. T.L. Garrett, vice president of the PMSA, which represents shipping lines and terminal operators on the West Coast, advised that any vessel, on its first berthing in Los Angeles, Long Beach, or Oakland,…
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Maersk has recently released what are now the world’s largest container ships. These ships are 18,000TEU in capacity and are currently being put into use in the AE10 string between Asia and North Europe. The Maersk Mc-Kinney Moller was the first of 20 Triple-E Class ships that was put into use in June of 2013. Currently, there are 5 of these Triple-E Class ships in service and all 20 of the ships are expected to be in service by 2015. The industry has been alarmed by the release of these ships because of the fact that there is already weak demand for east-west trades resulting from the recession that was experienced in Europe and North America. Maersk is watching the markets carefully to make sure that they do not roll out the remaining ships too quickly. The company expects demand to remain weak through 2016. Falling exports from China are also an issue that is affecting the trade and the trend is moving toward ordering smaller container shipments more frequently rather than large infrequent shipments. Rolling out the large capacity shipments could mean major damage to freight export raises and would flatten the demand.In the past year freight rates have…
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A new program has been created in order to optimize performance and reduce fuel and emmissions for container ships. The program is the HPS ‘Newbuilding Solution’ which was created by Jotun Hull Performance Solutions (HPS) and announced back in 2013 at the Kormarine Exhibition in Busan, South Korea. The program is targeted at ship yards that want to increase the energy efficiencyof the vessels that they produce. The goal is also for the ship yards to produce eco-design ships. Cost effectiveness is one of the most important aspects to ship yards in this regard and therefore they demand that ship coatins include performance antifouling coatings that can keep barnacles and boring creatures off the bottom of the ship. The plan is focused around the product SeaQuantum X200, slated to be one of the best anti fouling coatings with low friction properties. The SeaQuantum X200guaranteeds a lifetime of performance and also has three different levels of upgrade options for ,ater adjustment. The first component of the program upgrade is the Smooth Application Package in which the company will measure the roughness of the water for the client and also include an anti-corrosive system that is optimized for the client’s needs. The…
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The Panama Canal is currently undergoing a major expansion plan which began back in 2007. The purpose of this expansion plan is to make it possible for larger ships to pass through the canal. The expansion involves the placement of two new set oflocks. One set each will be placed on the Atlantic and Pacific sides of the canal. The basins in Gatun Lake and Culebra Cut will also be widened and deepenedto allow for the passage of larger ships. The plan is being financed by the port taxes collected which is current estimated at $32,000 per ship. As a result port cities such as Baltimore, Miami, Jacksonville, Fl., and Charleston, S.C. have initiated projects to expand their ports and related infrastructure however experts are warning that the demand may not be as highas these cities are anticipating when the Panama Canal expansion plan is completed. Experts are saying that the cities are likely not to benefit because they do not have the distribution channels that these large ships need in order to dealwith their cargo loads. The expansion plan was originally anticipated to be completed in 2014, however due to some issues with the current plans involving the delivery…
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The usage of reefer containers has been increasing at a rate of 30% year over year and this trend is slated to continue in the near future. As a result reefer containers were a major topic of discussion at Intermodel Europe this past October. Intermodel Europe took place in Hamburg, Germany and brought togethermany of the industry leaders in intermodal shipping across Europe. The hot topic surrounding refrigerated containers was regarding improving their efficiency. Thermo King, an exhibitor at Intermodal Europe 2013, unveiled upgrades to its Thermo King MAGNUM PLUS® transport temperature control system which was originally released in 2009. This company has dominated the industry for more than 20 years and the company’s products are ranked as the lightest, most efficient and most powerful. In addition, there is also discussion that more needs to be done to improve the sales of second-hand reefer containers in order to address the growing quantities of oldreefer containers that would otherwise be retired from use. Maersk Container Industry also announced their efforts for 2014 to help reduce food waste in refrigeration container shipping by joining the United Nations’ SAVE FOOD Initiative. The program aim to increase the efficiency of food logistics. The Food…
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In an increasingly environmentally aware world, going green is getting great for business and having an environmentally friendly community account can now be crucial. Due to the huge amount of fuel that they consume and also the size of several shipping lines, maritime industries are currently coming under closer scrutiny for the impact they are having on the ecosystem. In addition, the execution of the carbon tax in several states has had shipping companies looking critically at how they can manage their carbon footprint. Even though this may seem like a tiny amount when compared with other sectors it still represents the comparable CO2 output of the tiny country and it is also thought that unless the issue is addressed now that it could ultimately increase to around five or six times that amount by 2050. Another problem facing the marine freight business is really one of public perception. Even though transportation by boat is the most carbon efficient system for moving freight, mostly as a result of economies of scale, the boats themselves are known to produce large quantities emissions and to consume enormous levels of fuel. In the face of the many of the greatest shipping lines have…
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After bulk cargo, transport containers account for about 90% of all of the goods transported into the planet. There are currently over 5 million shipping containers in passage to the whole world’s oceans transporting most of the buyer things that we purchase and use in everyday life. While this is just a tiny percentage of the total amount of containers that are shipped each year it comes with an estimated price of $370 million which adds appreciably to freight prices overall. However, there are also other costs related to losing shipping containers to the sea. On the surface this looks alright but many containers feature noxious materials which slowly leach into the environment over time having a long term adverse effect. Additionally it is believed that these new artificial reefs might be creating highways in the shipping lanes for the migration of species into environmentally-sensitive areas. The potential for smaller boats and pleasure craft to collide with one of these loose containers increases every year but they are difficult to locate and salvage. Floating containers also frequently wash up on-shore and get broken up to create another type of environmental risk. Although containers have these downsides they remain the most…
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Ships and railroads operate nicely together in providing effective, economical means for moving products. While ships are the most affordable means for transporting goods abroad, railroads are the least expensive kind for overland transportation. Because of this, the growing quantity of global trade has prompted several countries into building new ports and expanding old ones while also undertaking the job of constructing railroad lines to service the ports. Australia is building a brand new deep water port along its west shore to facilitate development of its own mineral resources. The Okajee Port and Train project will haul coal, iron ore, and other bulk supplies in vast quantities from the Australian interior to the coast. The material will then be loaded onto other growing regional economies anxious for the substance, and bulk carriers destined for Japan, China. A brand new railway project in Los Angeles is intended to ease up the blockage caused by tens of thousands of trucks lining up to load and unload their containers in the Port of LA Long Beach complex. The rail line will remove the need for tens of thousands of short haul truck trips transferring containers a short distance to nearby rail yards. Not…
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