A shipper is a business that receives, oversees, and transports cargo on behalf of other businesses. The company can choose to ship goods by sea, rail, or road based on type of cargo, final destination, optimal route, and budget. The forwarder is also tasked with unloading and loading of cargo, inspecting quantity and quality, checking inventory receipts, and more. If you are interested in becoming a freight forwarder, you need to master some essential skills, identify your career goals, and learn how to manage contracts and international freight services. Essential Skills to Master To become a shipper, you… Read more
Rail freight transport is commonly used to ship cargo, including bulk cargo and consumer goods such as household cleaning products, batteries, and paint. Types of Cargo Shipped by Rail The main types of cargo that are shipped by rail freight transport include hazardous materials, special cargo, and consumer goods. Special cargo includes steel pallets, automobiles, oversized cargo, and products for which certain temperatures must be maintained. Goods that require refrigeration are usually shipped in refrigerator cars while extra heavy items are transported in Schnabel cars. Closed and open autoracks are used to ship vehicles while coil cars are usually used… Read more
Just three decades ago, logistics and the services provided by international freight forwarders was part of the supply chain which was never fully transparent, clear and predictable. The reason why the international freight services in the 1970s and 1980s were so uncertain and not straightforward was the lack of means to keep track of the shipments, their exact location, and condition in real time. Thanks to the rapid development in technology in the past few decades, today the list of logistics companies from IFA and all freight forwarders around the world have the technological and communication means to track all… Read more
While reverse logistics is a part of the services offered by the International Forwarding Association, it has often been overlooked in the past. The truth is there are multiple benefits of the reverse logistics procedures implemented by the companies from the European logistics network, which have paved way to success for the international freight forwarders and their multiple clients. What exactly is reverse logistics? This is the process which includes all of the procedures implemented by the international freight forwarders network for dealing with product returns, as well as their repairs, maintenance, storage and distribution, recycling and dismantling. It is… Read more
Now that the New Year is here, it is time for the IFA community to analyze the most important news and events in the sphere of international freight forwarding for 2018. Here are the most essential international freight forwarding and logistics news of the past year, which will no doubt affect the developments in the storage and distribution and European logistics as well as all other international freight services in 2019 as well. Truck orders have soared In 2018, there was a tendency for a steady increase in truck orders made by members of the European logistics network, as well… Read more
All member companies of IFA are aware of the vital importance of palletizing the goods and cargo properly for storage and distribution as well as for safe and reliable International freight forwarding. Having such knowledge and skills can save a lot of time and money for all members of the European logistics network because they can avoid or minimize the risk of freight damage during the pallet shipping and other international freight services.Here are the main steps which each and every one of the companies from the International Forwarding Association always follows when they are palletizing goods for their European… Read more
Pick & Pack is a decision, comfortable for the tradesmen, who offer stock in online stores. The ordered stocks are delivered to clients in different countries in Europe with groupage transport service. The stocks, which are ordered and paid, are taken from the storage of the tradesman and are packed. On each packing is labeled the address of the client, who must receive the stock. That way, with the organization of the selection of the stocks and their packing – Pick & Pack, are saved much more time and the stocks are delivered to the clients in short time. In… Read more
Inventory storage Inventory can be one of the most expensive parts of a production process. The costs for storing large inventories can reach up to 70% of all your warehousing costs, while the products are just sitting around waiting to be sold. This is why the International Forwarding Association offers cross-docking as part of its international freight services. What is cross docking and how can the International freight forwarders association help you with your inventory Cross-docking is the practice of unloading products or cargo from an incoming truck or railroad car and loading it on outbound ones so that… Read more
