Sea or ocean freight transportation is often used by companies that need to ship large amounts of goods at once. While this is the longest mode of transportation, it is ideal for bulk shipments, especially minerals and coal. It is a suitable option for products with long lead times, and for large volumes, it is an affordable and economical transportation solution. However, this mode of transportation tends to be quite slow, is subject to customs restrictions, and can lead to product damage due to environmental hazards and movement if your goods aren’t packaged properly.
Load Optimization is Crucial When Loading an Ocean Freight Container
When transporting your products via ocean freight, it is crucial that you optimize your container load. Not only will you reduce your shipping expenses, but you will also reduce the potential for damage during transport. Non-optimized loads mean that you’ll have unused space within the container, allowing your items room to shift and move up against each other during transport. For proper load optimization, follow a few simple steps:
Inspect the container. Your container needs to be inspected carefully before anything is loaded. Pay close attention to any contamination or residue on the floor, as these substances could cause a negative reaction with your cargo.
Load heavy materials first. Large, heavy items should always be loaded first on the floor and against the container’s front wall. Lighter items should be placed at the top.
Distribute weight across the container. If your container is loaded to maximum capacity, it is important that the weight is evenly distributed across the floor area.
Before loading, it is important to plan ahead. There are advanced tools and software programs that use values like package weight, dimension, volume, and restrictions in order to help you reach an optimal container load.
The transportation of goods through marine channel is a complex and risky process that depends on both man-made and natural situations. Hence, it is important to take appropriate marine insurance to cover the risks associated with the goods that get transported through this medium.
Air Freight
Companies that work with short lead times and require their packages to be transported as quickly as possible often choose air freight. This is a relatively safe mode of transport, and it reduces supplier lead times while improving the overall level of service. However, only certain goods are suitable for air transport, and this expensive option often comes with airport taxes, custom and excise restrictions, and other regulatory requirements.
Hazards of Air Freight Transport
If you choose to transport via air freight, there are certain hazards for which you need to prepare by choosing the right packaging:
Atmospheric changes and environmental exposures. High and low atmospheric pressures can have a dramatic effect on certain packages, and humidity changes can result in condensation or corrosion that could affect your product if not packaged properly.
In-transport movement. Your packages are liable to shift and move significantly during air transport. From acceleration and take-off, to in-flight dropping and pitching if turbulence is experienced, your package needs to be able to withstand any unexpected pitching or jarring.
Shock. Shock occurs during transport and handling as a result of impacts with containers, racks, floors, and other shipments. Proper cushioning within your package will reduce damage that results from shock, and most products will require some level of shock protection in order to prevent damage during distribution.
Road Transport
Almost all packaging will require road transport to some degree. Road transportation is cost effective and ideal for transporting perishables for short distances. It is easy to monitor the location of your goods, but your packaging could be damaged by mishandling or careless driving. If you are choosing road transport, it is important to prepare for potential delays, including traffic, truck breakdown, and bad weather.
Ensuring Proper Vibration Protection during Road Transport
When shipping your products via road transport, it is important that you choose the right package design. Package cushioning can be designed for vibration protection if you consider that cushions should perform like springs. Depending on the thickness and load-bearing area of the cushion, it should be designed in a way that either does not have an influence on the input vibration or isolates the product from the vibration. The right design will make all the difference in how well the cushion can protect your product from vibration damage.
Transit Insurance Requirement
A transit insurance plan proves to be most useful for businesses as it offers many advantages. Here are some of the advantages of a transit insurance policy that makes them must buy:
The coverage offered by transit insurance provides businesses financial support, which may encounter considerable losses when their goods are damaged at the time of transit. In this way, it helps to keep the finances of a business stable even after encountering a loss.
As mentioned above, the coverage is provided as per global standards, thus even when you are transporting your goods internationally, then as well you can meet with the coverage requirements of that country wherein the goods are headed.
You can customize the policy as per your business requirements; therefore, transit insurance policy is suitable for almost all types of businesses.
Transit insurance provides a policy that includes compensation against common perils that might cause damage to the items that are being transported. The common perils against which a transport or transit insurance provides protection are:
- Earthquakes
- Fire
- Explosion
- Lightning
- Any type of manmade or natural calamities
- The vassal containing goods therein collides and causes damage
- Transport vehicle overturning
- Vessel encounters derailment
- Vessel sinks
- Risks encountered at the time of unloading and loading the goods
- Risks encountered at the time of unpacking and packing of goods
- Malicious damages
- Accidental damages
- Theft
- Impact damages, etc
Types of Transit Insurance
The various types of transit insurance policies that you can buy are listed below:
- Single Transit: Such policies are designed for business owners who send out shipments occasionally. And the coverage is provided for a single voyage only. As soon as the shipment reaches its destination the coverage will cease.
- Customized Plan: A transit policy can be customized on the bases of the goods type, transaction limitations, location limitations, mode of transportation, and any other specific requirements.
- Overnight Vehicles’ Insurance Policy: If the goods have to be stored overnight in the vehicle, then this policy is recommended as it provides coverage for such goods.
- Open Policy: This transportation insurance policy provides coverage for multiple transits that may occur within a given period, which is generally for one year. So, if a business transports its goods very frequently, then they can purchase this policy and can assure that they will get coverage for more than one trip without purchasing a different transit insurance policy for each trip.
- Goods in Transit through Third-Party Carrier Cover: If your goods are being transported through a third-party vessel or carrier, then that carrier may not take risk of damage to the goods in it. You can, therefore, purchase this insurance plan to provide cover against the damage when the goods are transported through a third-party carrier.
- Goods in transit Through Own Carrier Cover: If you are using your vehicle for transporting your goods, then this insurance will cover the goods against damages.
- Cover for Multiple Vehicles: If you are using multiple vessels for transporting your goods, then you should take an insurance plan of this kind as it will cover the goods that are transported through more than one vehicle. Multiple vehicles are covered under a single plan in this policy.
Benefits of Transit Insurance
- Transit insurance policies offer global standard coverage. It means that they cover clauses that are internationally recognized.
- There are multiple coverage options from top insurance providers.
- The policy can be issued immediately online.
- Just by providing limited information, you can get transit insurance cover.
- One of the simplest ways of providing insurance coverage to your goods in transit.
- This insurance policy offers coverage between all risks of damage or loss to goods/ or death of the livestock and the majority of selected perils that you can select according to your business line.