Category Archives: News

Numerous logistics network are trading with the “Amazon effect,” and that has led customers to demand free and fast delivery times with 100% order reliability and accuracy, and last-moment order changes. While generally noticed as just a retail issue and these types of demands have been enlarged to the B2B environment as well.

Handling the Amazon effect needs an expert of solutions, but a TMS (transportation management system) is commonly ignored. A transportation management system (TMS) is essential for the completion of an order, and especially this is true as shipment sizes shrink and order sequences shorten. Any shipping organizer would agree that if the behaviors of the consumer are not managed properly, they can drive up costs.

If you are worried about the expectations and demands around your deliveries and orders, point of the solution may be at your fingertips literally. But you should note that not all transportation management system (TMS) will be able to manage the options and scenarios we mentioned below. Only multi-modal transportation management system that was developed in the last many years will have the flexibility and architecture to respond in such kind of dynamic environment.

1. Real-time planning
2. Leveraging pool distribution
3. Optimizing your distribution network

When it all about the Amazon effect of faster delivery expectations, little orders, or other consumers demands, don’t overlook your TMS. A modern transportation management system with the perfect design can work in real-time and dynamically to assist you enhance routes, deliveries, and your consumers’ experience.

The Road Transport System: its benefits and drawbacks

The services of Road transport are carried out throughout the Nation & around the World with vehicles ranging from small delivery vans to large road trains. The loading ability is either an exchange body that can be moved to another method of transport, typically sea or air, or fixed on the vehicle. Road transportation benefits are its mobility and capacity to move far out to clients and the safety of goods because a driver always involved is there.

The capacity of a shipment can range between a bundle up to a full truckload. The boundaries are the loading ability, based on road load carrying ability and a maximized range of vehicles, and driver’s dependence. Additionally, increasing traffic jam complications is a disadvantage in some regions.

Below are some benefits and drawbacks of Road Transport:

Benefits-
Road transport has various benefits comparison to other approaches of transport:

• Less Capital Expenditure
• Service in Rural Region
• Door to Door Solution
• Appropriate for Short Distance
• Flexible Solution
• Saving in Packing Cost
• Lesser possibility of Damage in transport
• Less Price
• Rapid Speed
• Feeder to other Modes of Transit
• Private Owned Vehicles

Drawbacks-
In spite of numerous merits, motor/road has few serious boundaries:

• Breakdowns and Accidents: More possibilities of breakdowns and accidents in case of road transport.
• Seasonal Nature: During flood and rainy season, roads become unsafe and unsuitable for use.
• Slow Speed: The speed of road transport is generally limited and slow.
• Unfit for Bulky Traffic and Long Distance.
• Deficiency of Organization: The road/motor transport is generally less organised.

As reported by IATA, fifteen airlines of IATA members (including American Airelines, British Airways, Air France-KLM, Air Canada, Cathay Pacific, Delta Airlines, Etihad Airways, Finnair, Lufthansa, Qatar Airways, Saudi Arabian Airlines, SWISS and United Airlines) have taken the lead towards employing electronic air waybill for air freight shipments eliminating paper documents while increasing efficiency and reducing the handling and delivery time. The effective date has been announced as March 1st, 2016.

Milky Way Logistics Ltd has become a member of the British International Freight Association which is the trade association for the UK-registered companies who are engaged in International Freight Forwarding. 

The average container freight rates have continued to hit its lowest ever. The market analyst Alphaliner reported that the CCFI (China Container Freight Index) plunged to its lowest in its entire recorded history (752 points) last week. Previously, the lowest record was 763 points in June 2009 during the world financial crisis. The trend for the container freight rates would remain downward for the rest of 2015 considering the season’s slowdown. As per Alphaliner, the data from Danish Maersk Line, OOCL and Hapag-Lloyd show a significant decline in the freight revenue for the third quarter of 2015 comparing to the second quarter this year and the third quarter last year.

A trainload of 1600 tonnes of biomass pellets was the first shipment rolled out from the new bulk terminal of port of Liverpool that was completed in early October 2015. The shipment of 25 wagons was despatched on October 26th for delivery at the Drax Power Station in Yorkshire.

DPD officially opened the Europe’s largest and most technically advanced parcel sorting hub in Hinckley, Leicestershire. The £100 million state-of-the-art  giant new superhub is capable of sorting 720,000 parcels per night and will be fully operational ahead of this year’s Black Friday and Christmas peak period.

During the opening ceremony, DPD was presented with the Queen’s Award for Enterprise by HM Lord-Lieutenant of Leicestershire, Jennifer, Lady Gretton JP, on behalf of Her Majesty the Queen.

“The superhub is way beyond anything else in the UK and gives us significant scope to expand in the next few years. We’ve been consistently investing in our network and growing our capacity for some time now to ensure we stay well ahead of the increasing demand for DPD’s services.” DPD’s CEO, Dwain McDonald.

As reported, three new ship-to-shore gantry cranes, built by ZPMC, have been delivered to the Port of Felixstowe for operations on berths No. 8 and 9 that are being extended for hosting two of the latest ULCS simultaneously. The cranes are of 70m outreach (24-wide), 64t SWL, 35m rail span and 49.5m lift height. As per Felixstowe officials, the lift height is sufficient to stack10-high deck stows at all states of the tide.The new cranes are equipped with driver aids and are designed to work with tandem-lift spreaders allowing two 40fts to be handled at the same time. The driver aids include partial automation of the loading cycle to reduce strain on the drivers and to increase productivity.

The cranes will be commissioned over the next few weeks and the extended terminal will be operational during the fourth quarter this year as per Clemence Cheng, Chief Executive Officer of the Port of Felixstowe.

The second quarter of the year has once again ended with serious capacity shortage in most of the markets. As per ECG (Belgian based Association of European Vehicle Logistics); crisis resources lag the market and investment is insufficient.

Although the automotive sector is seeing both volumes and market confidence increasing across Europe, the FVL (finished vehicle logistics) industry is under significant pressure. The latest ECG Confidence & Cost Trend Survey (that is conducted regularly amongst ECG members ) shows operations at maximum capacity. Further investment is urgently needed to meet the increasing needs of the expanding market as the current financing is not sufficient for the growing demand.

“Despite increasing confidence in future volumes, ever tighter margins and short term contracts mean the industry is still not investing in extra capacity. Worse still, in many places the transporter fleet continues to age, and this despite plenty of production capacity at the trailer and truck manufacturers.” ECG’s Executive Director, Mike Sturgeon.