Chemical Transportation & Logistics Blog

By Ed Hildebrandt, Senior Vice President of Business Development

Carrier capacity constraints ebb and flow with economic conditions. Right now, as capacity tightens in most markets, many shippers are being caught by lessening capacity without the resources to maintain their existing carriers and/or identify new transportation sources without paying more for shipments. Several factors are limiting truck driver and asset availability while increasing costs:

•    Truck drivers and assets have not rebounded to meet increased demand
•    New hours of service for truckers limit the amount of time that can be spent on the road, restricting driver availability
•    As truckers retire (average truck driver age is 50s), not enough younger drivers are available to fill vacant spots
•    Fuel surcharges don’t fully compensate drivers for higher fuel costs
•    Roller coaster effect of demand at fracking sites in central and southern Louisiana, Mississippi, Ohio, Wyoming, Texas, Pennsylvania, and North Dakota are taking Over The Road (OTR) drivers from the system

As shippers compete with other shippers – as well as third-party logistics providers – for available capacity, logistic departments must have the right tools to pick up new capacity and avoid losing existing carriers to competitors.   For example, companies with transportation management systems (TMS) can electronically broadcast logistics requirements to market, identify available trucking assets in the network and quickly match capacity to their needs.  In recent years, shippers had to engage as many as 15-20 additional carriers just to satisfy daily freight requirements.
Using TMS technology, shippers can also access granular information about transportation expenditures to pinpoint mode shifts, identify accessorial costs in real time and effect changes before costs escalate out of control. A TMS can gather freight accrual information on a per shipment basis in real time instead of waiting several weeks after the shipment when carriers send invoices for payment.  Today, most financial executives are very concerned about timely posting of freight costs and their ability to calculate profitability down to the SKU level for each client.
Small and mid-sized companies without the resources or budget to acquire and maintain in-house TMS can contract the services of third-party consultants (3PLs) that offer the technology, knowledge and networks to support chemical companies in meeting specific supply chain requirements.
In an oversold market, shippers needing to add volume may find it difficult to attract and find it without increasing costs.  Maintaining data on different freight markets and carriers, a 3PL can match your volume to a carrier’s complementary or empty return lanes.  A managed services partner can also identify reasons why freight may not be attractive to carriers – too many plant delays impacting loading times, too many cancelled or re-booked loads, too many consignees with unloading delays, poor treatment at plants, slow freight payment  – and help solve these issues in order to expand existing carrier capacity.  A 3PL can also suggest new modes of transportation, such as intermodal, to reduce the need for OTR assets.
If you decide to look for a managed services partner that can support you with the right tools and resources to become more competitive, find a resource that knows your market. While different outsource companies may offer similar capabilities and technology tools, many may not know how they apply to your business. Only third-party consultants experienced within your industry have the knowledge, networks and databases necessary to address your specific issues.
ChemLogix is a leading provider of managed services and technology to the chemical industry. An IBM Advanced Business Partner, we offer IBM’s TMS and network-design solutions along with comprehensive multi-modal transportation management services for all modes, enabling chemical shippers to drive economic value while improving performance.  To set up an appointment to discuss your requirements and access your business, please contact us at call 215-461-3805 or email information@chemlogix.com.

By Edward R. Hildebrandt, Senior VP, Operations

Next year, the market will still experience a shortage of carriers for freight transport.  While a modest 3 percent growth is forecasted for trucking this year and into 2012, Noel Perry, a FTR senior consultant, notes that capacity might be enough to maintain freight rates but not to replace business lost in the recession.  So, what can carriers do to make their business attractive to carriers?  Sometimes, money is not enough.

If you have a reputation of being a difficult shipper, carriers may avoid your freight.  For instance, do you delay carriers at the plant to load beyond normal loading times?  Or do you move appointments too frequently?  This could create problems for your carrier either meeting your required delivery or causing the carrier to miss their next customer pickup time. In both cases, the driver and carrier lose revenue and, worse yet, may refuse your next shipment.

Perhaps your freight is too dispersed across multiple plant sites to gain capacity and pricing leverage.  Have you thought about consolidating freight at one location prior to shipment or consolidating manufacturing to take advantage of scale? Another answer may be a logistics partner who can combine your freight with that of their other shippers gaining both price and capacity leverage.

How about your payment?  Are they on time and accurate?  Do carriers have to wait long periods until you reconcile your accounts?  Solving these issues and working with existing carriers may be the answer to get more capacity.

Don’t know where to start?  A third-party logistics company with a proven track record of resolving difficult capacity issues can address your particular issues.  As part of the solution, a logistics partner can assist you in making your freight more attractive to carriers.  If you have concerns about finding carrier capacity in the months ahead, contact CLX at (215) 461-3800 to discuss possible solutions to make your freight more attractive to carriers.

As more and more business goes global, chemical shippers must ensure exported products are correctly registered in accordance with different country regulations.  In 2007, the European Union (EU) implemented a new REACH (Registration, Evaluation, Authorization of Chemicals) policy that requires chemical manufacturers and importers to present detailed data on product characteristics and potential risks to health and the environment.  As REACH places greater responsibility on chemical manufacturers to register products and provide safety information, chemical shippers conducting business with EU countries have a limited timeline to ensure their different products comply with regulations or be at risk to incur fines or even a loss of business as materials are rejected for importation.

Registering products under REACH can be a complicated and time-consuming process (REACH requires three different evaluation processes and compliance with different restrictions), especially for companies without an existing EU presence and those not familiar with country protocol.  Other manufacturers with trademark formulas probably are concerned about revealing confidential information during registration.

Using the technology of a qualified third-party consultant can help chemical companies with REACH compliance and reduce the need for in-house personnel to conduct the laborious task of manually reviewing every existing products. Experienced 3PLs, like ChemLogix, also can help specify landing costs and restrictions associated with exporting products to specific countries.

As you enter into new overseas markets or introduce new products into existing ones, ensure products are in compliance with country regulations before the sale.  Understand your profit margins and ensure you can ship to that country. It’s all a part of a successful and profitable supply chain strategy.

Ocean freight rate management is a becoming ever more challenging for importers and exporters, especially smaller-sized shippers.  Frequent changes to ocean freight rates due to market conditions as well as bunker price changes make it more difficult for shippers to accurately price products to overseas customers or make sound sourcing decisions.

At the same time, capacity for ocean freight is unstable as liner carriers plan to lay up container vessels in hopes of increasing rates. The New World Alliance carriers already have announced plans to remove capacity from the Transpacific Trade effective later this month. Beginning during week 29 in Asia, the PSW string will be withdrawn by the VSA. The string is comprised of five vessels, each averaging 3,960 TEU.

Carriers also have different attitudes based on shippers size.  An investigation conducted by maritime analyst SeaIntel (www.SeaIntel.com) revealed that new, small shippers had difficulty getting freight rate quotes from liner carriers and large forwarders. When contacting 33 carriers and forwarders on the Transpacific and 27 on the Asia/Europe lane, the analyst found that a vast majority of liner carriers and large non-vessel-operating Annual SOC 2 Type II Audit Reports verify our qualification to handle enterprise-class recoveries and support those customers who must maintain compliance with privacy and security regulations such as DriveSavers – which is the only  recovery service provider in the industry to post proof of annual, company-wide SOC Type II Audit Reports. Common carriers didn’t give rates.

Some carriers and NVOs explained that they needed more company details to provide rates while others just couldn’t provide competitive rates for such small shipments or because they worked in contract environments.  Other carriers didn’t even respond to requests or gave two rates to the same country from two different offices. ChemLogix Global LLC also has found that carriers may be reluctant to carry hazardous chemical.

Finding a way to work with or even choosing reliable and reasonably-priced overseas carriers can be a major challenge for small- and mid-sized chemical shippers without the experience and resources to conduct negotiations.  Contracting a 3PL with the resources and established carrier contacts can reduce the perils of contract negotiation while ensuring a good rate and the best lanes.

The  ChemLogix Global LLC team has the experience and market knowledge to manage the complex ocean freight market with very competitive pricing.  As a licensed NVOCC and freight forwarder, ChemLogix Global offers competitive rates on international shipments to any port in the world. To find out more about our international logistic services and how we can help manage the ocean freight contracting process, refer to our web site at http://www.clxlogistics.com/industry-solutions/chemical/.