Four Trends in Intermodal Transportation You Should Know About

Intermodal transportation is becoming an increasingly common solution for businesses looking for new freight transportation services.  When done properly, intermodal shipments can avoid many of the problems currently surrounding the trucking industry, while giving businesses a variety of options in how to get their goods from A to B.
This increased interest in multi-mode shipping is creating a number of new trends, ones which may affect your own decision to make use of intermodal transportation.  These are the trends you should be keeping an eye on.
Four Critical Trends in Intermodal Freight Transportation Services

1. Increased digital transport tracking

Traditionally, one of the big challenges in intermodal transport has been the issue of oversight.  Very often, the various modes of transport used incompatible computer systems that made day-to-day tracking difficult or impossible.  Now, standardized systems are being increasingly utilized that allow for intermodal oversight that’s as streamlined as standard ground-based options.

2. More interest in eco-friendly shipping

Whether it’s a genuine interest in protecting the planet, or a simple pragmatic desire to avoid paying fuel costs, either way, businesses are looking for more eco-friendly solutions for shipping.  Intermodal transportation providers are aware of this, and increasingly pushing for modes – such as rail and waterways – that minimize fuel usage.

3. More support from FMCGs

Fast Moving Consumer Goods have traditionally stuck to truck-based transportation, due to the frequently perishable nature of the products.  However, as companies in the FMCG sector have felt the pinch from truck shortages, they’ve been turning to intermodal solutions.  In turn, this is pushing the intermodal industry to adopt technology and procedures appropriate for FMCGs – and making intermodal transportation more attractive to a wider variety of businesses.

4. Increased use of brokerage services and 3PLs 

Those being hit most hard by the trucking shortage are companies that rely on small shipments and Less-Than-Load buys.  These are also the companies who can benefit most from a move to intermodal transportation – if they have the right resources to make use of it.  So, they turn to third-party logistics (3PL) services instead.  3PLs can streamline the process of setting up intermodal freight transportation services, while also providing increased transparency into the process from end to end.
To learn more about how your company can benefit from partnering with a 3PL for intermodal shipments, just contact Amstan for all the details.  You will get the same great service as American Standard has for decades.

Answering Your Questions About Truckload Shipping – Logistics in Ohio

If you’re doing business with transport companies in Ohio, truckload shipping will undoubtedly be part of the arrangement.  While intermodal shipping is gaining in popularity, the majority of cargo still goes out via trucks.  So, unsurprisingly, most of the questions we commonly hear at Amstan Logistics are about truckload shipping.
Here are the answers to some of the questions we most commonly get.

A Quick FAQ About Truckload Shipping

1 – What is truckload shipping?
Truckload shipping is exactly what it sounds like – shipments that take up most or all of a single 48′ or 53′ tractor-trailer, all going to the same destination.  In rare cases, a full truck could be reserved even when there is not cargo to match.  This is wasteful but sometimes makes sense for particularly time-sensitive deliveries.

2 – What’s the difference between truckload and Less than Truckload (LTL) shipments?
Less than truckload shipments are shipments which are too small to fill up a full trailer and are usually handled on an ad-hoc basis.  The LTL shipper fits them into other trailers with free space, as it becomes available.   This can be affordable for those who are making small shipments which aren’t particularly time-sensitive.

3 – How much weight can a truckload shipment accommodate?
This will vary somewhat depending on the carrier, the trucks, and the type of cargo being moved.  As a rule of thumb, it’s usually around 40,000 to 45,000 pounds.  It’s important to always discuss weight with your shippers, to ensure that they have the equipment and expertise to meet your needs
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4 – What are my choices in truckload shipping equipment?

There are three types of trucks/trailers most commonly seen in truckload shipping and handle nearly all the shipments being made.  These are:

• Flatbed:  Flatbed trailers are open-air and used in situations where the cargo isn’t particularly sensitive to the weather and needs to be loaded in from the top or side.  This can include lumber, steel beams, pipes, and similar objects.
• Dry Van:  This is the common shipping container type, without any climate control or special features.
• Refrigerated (or “Reefer”):  Refrigerated trucks are like dry vans, but with air conditioning, for transporting foods, medicines, electronics, and other heat-sensitive materials.

Partner with Amstan For Highly Optimized Logistics

Amstan stands out among logistics companies in Ohio thanks to our long history and experience.  We have been transporting American Standard products for decades.  For low-cost streamlined transportation services, contact us today.

Partner with A Third-Party Logistics Provider in Ohio To Improve Your Customer Service

The rise of the Internet and global trade has created huge new challenges for businesses.  One of the biggest of those challenges is the simple problem of how a company can stand out and distinguish itself when it has a literal world of competition.  Geographical considerations are now almost meaningless when it comes to making purchases.  Whatever a company offers, it’s guaranteed that there are hundreds -or thousands- of companies all around the world offering that same basic product or service.
For many businesses, the solution to this problem is to focus on customer service.  By providing superior service to customers and other partners, businesses can still stand out.  Being the easiest company to do business with is a major selling point!
Partnering with a third-party logistics provider in Ohio (3PL) that has customers across North America can be an excellent way to accomplish this.  In a world where speed and accuracy in shipments is increasingly desirable, you can easily show up your competition with better transportation services.  The 3PL will deliver major benefits to you, which you can pass onto your customers and partners.
How an Ohio based Third Party Logistics Provider Can Improve Your Customer Service and Customer Experience

1. Lowered shipping costs

3PLs act as brokers, making shipping buys in bulk on behalf of all their clients.  This allows them to leverage considerable economies of scale which their clients simply couldn’t demand on their own.  This reduces shipping costs, as well as making it more likely your shipments will be accepted by shippers running at capacity.  In turn, these are cost-savings you can pass on to your own customers and partners.

2. Greater transparency

A good 3PL will be able to track your shipments from end to end, with real-time updates on their status – even in complicated transportation situations.  Standardized data formats are provided on deliveries and you can easily make this information available to your own partners.

3. Easily leverage intermodal transportation

Intermodal transportation offers a wealth of new options in moving products from point A to B – if you have the infrastructure and oversight in place to take advantage of them.  A 3PL can easily manage intermodal transport on your behalf, allowing you to offer substantially more ways for your partners to receive their products.
Amstan Logistics
From our beginnings at delivering American Standard products customers across North America and managing flatbed trucking companies in Ohio, Amstan is now a leading 3PL solution throughout the US.  Contact us to learn more about the benefits we bring.