Information

The new Thermo King CFF units can reach and maintain box temperature in the toughest conditions between -30 and +30 degrees Celsius to safeguard...

Fact Finding 29 is an order by the Federal Maritime Commission to investigate challenges to the freight delivery system in the USA and possible...

Many journalists and Twitteratis around the world might be having withdrawal symptoms after the Ever Given has been refloated from being stuck diagonally across...

Theft of cargo in transit remains highest among all types of cargo theft in 2020. This is one of the trends identified in the...

For any business to be successful, one needs to know the business, its model and requirements inside out.. Many businesses start with a great idea.. But there could be big gap between a great idea and a great startup and many people don’t have a clue on how to bridge this gap and may end up spending their life savings to start the business.. Forbes published an article on 10 Reality Checks Before Starting Your Own Business..

1. 1. Are you ready for the startup lifestyle?
   2. Are there customers with real pain and money?
   3. Is the market opportunity large and growing?
   4. Is this a crowded space already?
   5. Does your solution have hidden dependencies or costs?
   6. Do you have intellectual property to defend against competitors?
   7. Can you build a motivated and qualified team?
   8. Have you looked realistically at the costs?
   9. Do you have stamina and skills?
   10. Going “from” rather than “to”?

 

While the above is good for any business, if you are planning to start your own shipping and freight business, here are 7 reasons why you shouldn't start your own shipping and freight business..

Yes you are reading it right.. You shouldn't start your own shipping and freight business if :

The meaning of Declare (verb) is to make known or state clearly, especially in explicit or formal terms; to announce officially; proclaim; to state emphatically; to manifest; reveal; show; When none of the above happens, it is...

2020 will be remembered by many as one of the years that has caused maximum upheaval in terms of freight rates, space and equipment capacity in all markets around the world.

While the impact on the Trans-Pacific and Trans-Europe has been the maximum, other trades like the India trade has also been affected quite substantially.

These never before seen steep increases especially on the exports, has sent the export community in India into a frenzy as shipping lines continue with the increases one after the other.

A study by the International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT), revealed that liquid hydrogen could power nearly all container vessels crossing the Pacific Ocean, one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world..

The ICCT study found that 99% of the transpacific voyages made in 2015 could have been powered by hydrogen and fuel cells by replacing 5% of cargo space with extra storage for the clean fuel, or by adding an additional port of call to refuel..

The Hydrogen Council, a global CEO-led coalition has been working to enable the global energy transition through hydrogen..

The Hydrogen Council’s efforts have been buoyed by the joining of MSC – the world’s 2nd largest container shipping line..

Join Tim Crumley, Vice President of Global Logistics at Sysco International Food Group, Robin Jaacks, Chief Commercial Officer at Ocean Insights and Sarah Barnes-Humphrey, Founder and Host of Lets Talk Supply Chain in a webinar on "How Visibility adds Value to Food Logistics" where they will discuss issues facing the food logistics industry such as port congestion, carrier capacity, equipment shortage and lack of transparency on shipment statuses and how to manage them.

The continent of Africa comprises of 55 countries with about 1.35 billion people (16.72% of the global population) calling it home. The continent has a combined GDP of more than $3.4 trillion, a vast untapped potential and some of the fastest growing economies of the world.

But trade within the African continent is the lowest globally with more trade done from Africa outwards rather than inward.

The African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) agreement which started as a journey over four decades ago with the adoption of the Monrovia Strategy in 1979, the Lagos Plan of Action in 1980, the Abuja Treaty in 1991 and subsequent Decisions and Declarations adopted during various summits has finally come to fruition with the commencement of trading as of the 1st January 2021.

Anup Rampiar takes a look at what is AfCFTA and what it means for South Africa and the African continent in general.

Executive Insights is a series by Shipping and Freight Resource that provides insights and thoughtful analysis about the industry..

This series features selected individuals from the industry and is aimed at enriching the knowledge of the readers with what is happening in the shipping, freight, maritime, logistics, and supply chain industry..

Executive Insights also gives you a chance to pick the brains of these industry veterans, leaders, and enablers..

In this edition of Executive Insights, we caught up with Jan Hoffmann Chief, Trade Logistics Branch of UNCTAD, on what drives Trade Logistics and how UNCTAD is enabling trade and helping various countries achieve their full potential..

On the 4th of August 2020, a devastating explosion ripped through the port of Beirut killing more than 135 people and injuring at least 4,000+..

As per news reports, the explosion is said to have originated from a storage facility which was storing about 2,750 tons of Ammonium Nitrate (NH4NO3)..

This article highlights the characteristics of Ammonium Nitrate and the disasters that this chemical has caused over the last 100 years..

The prevalence of cargo theft incidents continues to have a material impact on stakeholders in the supply chain in South Africa.

Analysis of recorded incidents, increased data sharing agreements, collaborations, and widespread dissemination of findings all serve to improve our understanding of the underlying risks.

Throughout 2020, several cargo theft trends developed in South Africa. The threat and violence involved with cargo theft hijackings in South Africa are historically the primary concern for supply chains in the region.

In addition to historical risks and trends, the first half of 2020 saw an increase in thefts from facilities and theft locations diversified between the first two quarters of 2020, reaching the Eastern Cape and Western Cape.

Additionally, food and beverage and medical supplies saw an elevated risk throughout the start of 2020. Understanding these developing risks, coupled with the continual threat of in-transit operations in the country, and how to mitigate the impacts they may have on your organization is crucial in building a truly resilient supply chain.

These are some of the highlights of a new report by TT Club and BSI on South Africa's ongoing vulnerability to cargo theft as well as the trends during the first half of 2020.

To many customers around the world, demurrage and detention costs represent some of the most expensive fees that they will incur in the process of a trade transaction..

Although demurrage and detention are not standard charges that are applicable on every shipment, there are many shipments on which these charges are levied..

They are probably two terms that top the list of controversial charges levied by shipping lines on customers..

The seriousness of demurrage and detention charges is evident when you consider that EVERY shipment has the potential to incur both these charges during loading and unloading..

Demurrage and Detention really are avoidable costs and it is something that can be defeated with data..

Learn exactly how, in a webcast which focuses on ways and means customers can reduce and/or avoid demurrage and detention charges through the effective usage of data..

In anything that we do in life, the first time is a scary thought - first time on a bike, first time driving a car, first time swimming, first date, first kiss .................... etc..

So why should shipping your first container be any different..??

It could be a scary thought if you are a first-time exporter or importing for the first time, but like everything else, if done and handled correctly, shipping your first container can be a good experience as well..

Here are some tips to assist you in shipping your first container..

Currently, there are more than 55,000 merchant ships plying global trade around the world..

These ships include General Cargo ships, Bulk and Break Bulk ships, Container ships, Chemical, Oil and LNG Tankers, Passenger, and various other types of ships..

While these are types of ships, these ships could be operating on two main types of services - Liner and Tramp services..

Any maritime disaster will have severe impact on assets, people and environment.. The effects of the oil spill from the Wakashio is beginning to manifest itself as there have been several reports of dead dolphins washing ashore on the beaches of Mauritius, even as the bow of the ship has been scuttled and sunk about 14 nautical miles of where the incident happened..

The Captain of the Wakashio has been arrested and charged and currently faces a possible 60 year jail term for failing to safely navigate the vessel in Mauritius waters..

What is your opinion..?? Should the Captain of the ship be responsible for this incident and is a possible 60 year jail term (if convicted) justified..??

As I wrote in my previous article about the importance of proper lashing of containers onboard ships, there is increased concern and focus on the safety of the ship, its crew and the cargo..

The concern is especially amplified considering the many maritime disasters that have happened in the last few years, some of which have been reported in detail on this site..

A few of the incidents that involved containers falling of a ship have been attributed to the lashing of containers onboard or lack thereof..

Considering the intense strain that the extent and pace of growth in container volumes has placed on a wide range of operational procedures and the physical hardware employed to handle these volumes, the Thomas Miller managed insurance mutuals, container freight specialist TT Club and protection & indemnity insurer, UK P&I Club organised a Webinar to discuss the diverse range of factors important to safe container ship operations and the security of the container stacks they carry..

Here are the details..

The latest WTO statistics say that world trade is expected to fall by between 13% and 32% in 2020 as the COVID 19 pandemic disrupts normal economic activity and life around the world. A resilient supply chain is essential to ensure a strong global trade.

Our survey on the impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the supply chain industry revealed how vulnerable the industry was with the results showing that 35% of the market was totally unprepared for it and 59% of the market was severely impacted by it.

Based on these results, on the 4th of June 2020, we organised a Webinar sponsored by Ocean Insights on how the future of global supply chains would look.

This webinar, hosted by Eric Johnson, Senior Technology Editor of the JOC featured Steve Kranig of IM-EX Global, Inc., Pritam Banerjee of Asian Development Bank and Robin Jaacks of Ocean Insights as panelists.

For those of who missed out on this insightful and informative webinar, here is a synopsis of what was discussed.

There is a tiny isthmus (narrow strip of land with sea on either side, forming a link between two larger areas of land) lying between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans connecting North and South America called the Isthmus of Panama.. This isthmus is of strategic importance to global trade and the world of shipping because it contains the country of Panama and the Panama Canal.. Panama is home to the largest ship registry in the world, whereas the Panama Canal is of huge significance to the shipping industry.. Capt.Ricardo Caballero Vega - a maritime pilot transiting ships across the Panama Canal for 25 years explains why..