Impacting the air cargo industry

Surging oil and jet kerosene prices, increased security measures, and government focus on compliance are just a few factors currently impacting the air cargo industry. These trends and others make it more critical than ever that shippers optimize their use of air cargo transportation. Scott Aubuchon, director of international airfreight marketing for UPS, offers the following advice to help transportation buyers get the most out of their air cargo shipments. 1. Implement and use shipping software solutions. Generate shipment labels and all required paperwork electronically. Using shipping software can save time and significantly reduce the risk of errors. The best-performing shipping programs on the market can be integrated with your company’s information systems and facilitate your internal reporting and customer service processes. 2. Partner with your transportation providers. Limiting the number of providers you work with creates efficiencies and optimizes rates. Identify and partner with trusted transportation providers that can do it all: large or small shipments, domestic or international, and urgent or routine. 3. Utilize the right service levels. Shipments often have different weight and size characteristics, and time-in-transit requirements. Be careful to select the right option for each of your needs. Simply taking the time to match the correct type of airfreight service to your needs can be an easy way to reduce costs. 4. Double-check your documentation. Missing or incomplete commercial invoice information is a common cause of customs holds for air cargo buyers who don’t utilize shipping software. You can easily avoid these delays by making accurate and complete shipment documentation a priority. 5. Broker through your carrier. If possible, manage customs through your carrier’s customs brokerage house. This will minimize hand-offs, which can cause unexpected delays in the supply chain. 6. Centralize your payments. Take control of transportation costs by centralizing service payments through either a consignee or third party. Managing all your payments through one party will help you avoid additional transportation mark-ups charged by independent shippers. 7. Insist on visibility. Having full tracking visibility of your air freight from the time of shipment to delivery is critical. Visibility enables you to identify problems and keep your shipments on track, avoiding potential negative impacts on time, money, and credibility. 8. Set up alerts. Many full-service logistics providers offer automated proactive notifications to alert you of any issues with your shipment en route, and notify you at final delivery. These automated proactive notification tools can play a major role in managing unexpected delays. 9. Maximize your pallet. Optimally package and consolidate goods to maximize pallet space. While weight is a factor, space also matters. Packing your shipment efficiently will reduce your chance of incurring dimensional weight fees. 10. Weigh your costs. If speed and reliability are critical to your business, don’t use price as your only carrier criteria. The repercussions of a missed deadline or upset customer can end up costing you more in the long run. You might end up stepping over a dollar to pick up a dime.

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Tips to Prevent Cargo Theft

So, what can you do to prevent cargo theft — or at least minimize the risk? Listen to what the statistics above are telling you: Keep the cargo moving. The longer a loaded trailer or container sits unattended, the higher the risk for theft. You should define limits on how long a loaded trailer or container can remain unattended under different circumstances. And you should collect data on where (and for how long) loaded trailers/containers sit along your supply chain to understand where you face the greatest risk for cargo theft. Just like you should “staple yourself to an order,” you should “strap yourself to a trailer” to find the inefficiencies in your transportation and delivery/receiving processes. Focus on the “hot spots” and “hot times.” As noted earlier, cargo theft is highly concentrated in just six states, and if you drill down further, in certain cities, neighborhoods, and truck stops and other parking areas. Also, thefts occur more frequently on weekends (especially Saturdays) and they spike during holiday periods. So, focus your security efforts in the places and times they are most likely to occur. Know who you are working with. Having your cargo stolen from an unattended lot is one thing, but getting deceived by a thief in broad daylight because you didn’t perform proper due diligence is simply inexcusable. Thieves are getting more creative and sophisticated, as the stolen tomatoes incident illustrates. This means you must have a robust carrier qualification process and follow it consistently. The same is true for the brokers you work with and the employees you hire. Trust, but verify. Of course, there are many more actions you can take, including properly training drivers and other personnel on theft prevention, but these three simple steps (which are obvious, but not always practiced) go a long way.

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Cargo Logistic Maximize Cost Savings

Transloading offers a cost-effective way to bring ocean containers inland to distribution centers. By transferring cargo without sorting the contents for shipment to a single destination, transloading services can reduce total landed costs, and—when combined with value-added services such as palletizing and shrink-wrapping—reduce handling at the destination. Jeff McCorstin, senior vice president of air and ocean products for UPS Global Freight Forwarding, offers these tips for maximizing savings with transloading services. 1. Understand general transloading rules. Transloading offers the greatest cost savings when ocean containers can be consolidated into fewer, larger domestic trailers. The cargo in three 40-foot ocean containers typically fits into two 53-foot domestic trailers. 2. Ensure overall transportation savings outweigh additional handling costs. Sometimes the savings are negated for destinations located farther east from the U.S. West Coast discharge port. 3. Consider palletizing cargo during transloading. To best use space in ocean containers, cargo is rarely palletized at the point of origin. Palletize during the transloading process to improve distribution center (DC) handling efficiency. 4. Factor transloading into transit time estimates. Unloading, handling, and reloading ocean container cargo near the port of discharge takes time. Allow up to three days to ensure customer delivery commitments are met. 5. Ensure your cargo fits the bill. Transload operators charge additional fees for containers with more than a certain number of cartons. The additional costs for containers with several thousand small cartons could offset any transportation savings. 6. Ensure handling flexibility by making Customs entry at the port. While it is a common practice to clear ocean containers at their final inland destinations, it is better to make entry at the port of discharge. This ensures maximum flexibility in handling cargo, and eliminates the need to move the shipment in-bond, saving additional costs. 7. Increase supply chain efficiency with merge-in-transit offerings. This type of deconsolidation allows importers to combine products arriving in containers from different origins/shippers by transloading near the port of arrival into domestic trailers. And if importers source from domestic suppliers—who may also have product arriving via container—this cargo can be merged in transit to arrive together at the designated DC. 8. Use transloading to expedite delivery to final destination. Transloading near the port of discharge provides the flexibility to bypass DCs and speed delivery to the end customer. The reduced DC handling charges and improved time in transit can help trim supply chain costs. 9. Avoid costly containers. Instead of shipping less-than-containerload, 20-foot, or light-loaded 40-foot containers from multiple overseas vendors to your inland DC, ship fully loaded/optimized containers to a single container freight station near the port of discharge. From there, they can be transloaded, merged in transit with other inbound cargo, and shipped to the final destination using the transport mode that best fits the importer's needs. 10. Set up transloading programs in advance. Having your service provider involved in coordinating with the origin forwarder translates into better service levels and reliability.

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Several things you need to consider for Express Courier

Firstly who is your target audience? I know virtually anyone might use a courier but who makes the decision which courier to use. If a MD of a large business wants to send a package s/he doesn't look for a courier , their PA does. So you need to contact the PAs and not the MDs with your leaflets etc. Likewise having a Google Ad isn't enough on its own .. it has to be targeted at a geographic location and use the keywords that customers search on ... not the ones you would search for! So you might decide that courier service is a good keyword (and it isn't bad) but all your competitors will also use it and it might be that your customers Google something like "How can I send a parcel?". Most of your competitors will not be using this keyword phrase and you can clean up on it at low cost. Secondly you need to consider where they search for a courier. Certainly online directories, Yell.com etc work to an extent .... but how about Google Maps and places like that. I recently needed a courier when I was in Manchester and successfully searched on my SatNav ... and not many of your advertisers will be advertising there .. and most people don't even know you can place an advert on a SatNav. Certainly you need a website to back up the above ... I never buy without looking at a company via their website .. and nor do lots of other people. Don't spend a fortune on a website though. There are some very good sites available now that are sponsored by Google and cost absolutely nothing at all! Phone me on 01926 632794 for details. If you want to talk through any of the above please feel free to call me ... or check out my website www.Stefandrew.com where there is a lot of free marketing advice that you could utilise at nil cost.

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Express Courier Company

A courier business is a company that moves packages from 1 location to another for a fee. Starting a courier business can be a lucrative opportunity, but there are practical considerations and logistics you may overlook that need to be taken into account. Below is a guide that will help you start a successful courier business. -Write out a comprehensive business plan following guidelines available from your local Small Business Association (Business Centre Association), paying special attention to financial management details. -Meet with business advisers. 1.Consult a business attorney familiar with the courier service industry to advise you on matters such as local zoning laws, which is especially important if you will run the business from your home. Obtain the necessary business permits, license your business and your vehicle and discuss the the pros and cons of incorporating. 2.Consult an accountant familiar with the courier business industry to advise you on how to keep your business records, tax filings, the pros and cons of employees vs. independent contractors and setting up an accounting system. 3.Consult an insurance professional familiar with the courier service industry to advise you on obtaining the proper business insurance for your office and its contents as well as commercial vehicle coverage, cargo insurance, worker's compensation insurance (if needed) and health insurance. -Establish a pricing policy, and print it in an easy-to-read format. -Establish a communication system between you, your drivers and your customers, keeping in mind that it is illegal to drive and speak on a cell phone in many areas. -Purchase street maps for the area you will be covering. These maps are also available in book form and can be purchased at most book stores. Even if you have GPS, these maps are invaluable, especially if the GPS malfunctions. -Purchase tee shirts and baseball caps with your company name printed on them. This gives you a more professional appearance. Select a color, and use that color on every conceivable piece of equipment throughout the company, including personalized ink pens, notebooks, clipboards and, as your business grows, your vehicles. -Purchase a computer dedicated to business use only and an accounting system. -Order printed materials such as business cards, invoices, price lists and log sheets. Log sheets are a list of pick up and delivery points and can be used to track your mileage.

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Simple Steps to Begin Express Courier Business

Entrepreneurs who start a courier business should have good driving records and the ability to read maps and use GPS navigation systems. Punctuality and interpersonal skills are also very helpful. While a delivery or courier service involves the purchase and maintenance of a reliable vehicle, the rewards of owning your own business can outweigh the initial costs. Instructions: 1.Gain courier experience. Subcontract with an established delivery or courier company to learn how the business is run before starting your own business. You can earn and save money for your fledgling business while you learn. 2.Decide what kind of items you want to pick up and deliver. The storage capacity of your vehicle will play a large part in this decision. The wider the variety of items you handle will increase your income potential. If you handle only envelopes, small packages and confidential legal documents, you need a high-quality, waterproof courier bag. If you decide to also deliver larger items, such as food, medical cargo, industrial cargo or large boxes, you will also need a moving dolly. 3.Buy or lease an appropriate vehicle. Purchase a GPS navigation system to avoid getting lost. If you will employ other drivers, be sure to install two-way radios in their vehicles so you can communicate with them. 4.Decide what areas you’ll service in your delivery or courier business. Large cities and metropolitan areas fare better than rural ones. The larger your geographic reach, the more you can boost your income potential. You can choose to service a single city or an entire state. You might also decide to cross state lines or even provide international delivery services. Arm yourself with local and long-distance maps and become intimately familiar with the areas you decide to service. 5.Establish a fee schedule for your delivery or courier service. Consider mileage, gas consumption, and the nature of the items you'll be picking up or delivering when computing your fees. Check the services and fees of existing delivery or courier services to make sure you are competitive. Keep a log in your car at all times so you can track your mileage. Make sure to keep all receipts for parking, tolls and other costs related to your business for income tax purposes.

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