Ocean freight is a shipping method that has been in use for more than 2,000 years. It's the most common method used to transport goods between continents, and it accounts for more than 95% of international trade. Ocean freight shipments often take weeks or even months to be delivered. However, they are a great way to send your products worldwide while offering customers an affordable price point. Still, these types of shipments can be especially tricky to track if you aren't careful. Let’s discuss some of the best practices and how to implement them.
Diligent Record Keeping
To avoid costly mistakes and lengthy delays in the event of a dispute, it is crucial that you keep meticulous records of all activity relating to your ocean freight shipments. To this end, we recommend keeping a record of:
- All communications with the carrier (including copies or transcripts).
- All communications with the shipper/forwarder (including copies or transcripts).
- All payments and receipts related to your freight shipments (e.g., bills of lading, email receipts).
One of the most obvious benefits of keeping records for ocean freight shipments is that they can be used to make better decisions. A well-kept record will give you an accurate picture of how your business is doing, which you can use to analyze your performance and identify areas for improvement. This could be anything from changing the way you run a particular operation or comparing different types of services or products, allowing you to see what works best.
Further, keeping records of your ocean freight shipments means you can better understand how your company's resources are being used, which helps you make more efficient decisions and ultimately leads to increased productivity. The time saved by keeping accurate records is valuable, especially considering that it would otherwise be spent on managing the logistics for shipments and making sure they go out on time.
Regular Reporting
When you keep your ocean freight carrier up to date with regular reporting, you're helping them meet their obligations and stay on top of the logistics involved in getting your cargo from point A to point B.
Regular reporting helps you get paid faster because it gives your ocean freight carrier the information they need to process invoices. Regular reporting also ensures that you stay informed about what's going on with your shipment—for example, if any delays or issues may affect its delivery time or price. In addition, regular reporting means fewer surprises for everyone at both ends of the supply chain: Less uncertainty means less stress.
There are many other benefits of regular reporting on ocean freight shipments, but the ability to control and monitor your shipments is one of the most significant. By receiving regular reports, you can track the progress of your shipments, be aware of any problems that may arise in transit time and make decisions based on this information.
You can also communicate with suppliers more quickly; if there is a need for change or action, then knowing what has happened will help avoid delays or mistakes being made.
- Knowing where your shipment is at all times.
- Knowing when it will arrive.
- Knowing what the weather was like when the vessel departed and where it was heading.
- Knowing if the vessel is on time, delayed, or in trouble.
Ocean freight is one of the most critical components of international shipping. It requires timely delivery, proper documentation, and many other factors that are best left to shipping experts. Regular reporting on ocean freight can help solve many common problems associated with international shipping by providing updates promptly and visibility into where each shipment is in transit and its current status (i.e., whether it has been loaded onto its final carrier).
Open Communication with Suppliers
To ensure smooth sailing, you will want to work with your suppliers in a way that leaves no unanswered questions. You can start by asking them the following questions:
- Do they know when the goods were shipped?
- Are they aware of any delays or changes in the delivery schedule?
- Will they be able to provide a tracking number if one becomes available?
Having good relationships with suppliers means more flexibility in changing plans if necessary. For example, customers may change their order at the last minute if they can receive an item sooner than expected by placing an expedited order through a supplier with open communication and EDI capabilities.
Vendor Manuals
Vendor manuals should include a checklist of what is needed for each step of the process, a list of required documents, and any other relevant information that could help speed up or simplify the process (such as logos, colors, etc.).
Vendor manuals can save you time by ensuring all parties involved in an ocean freight shipment know precisely what they need to do at each step. This helps keep documents organized on both ends, so no one has to worry about anything being lost in transit.
The benefits of using EDI to automate requesting and receiving vendor documentation are clear. This means both sides of the transaction can easily access the same information simultaneously.
This means you can also spend less time waiting for the delivery of documents and more time doing what you do best: Helping your customers move their cargo around the world.
Use the ASN
An [ASN] (airway bill) is a document that collects information about the cargo being shipped and the airline or carrier it's being transported by. This makes it very useful in tracking your shipment and checking on delivery status.
A few of the things you can do with an [ASN] are:
- Check on delivery status – You can see your shipment any time, so if you need to know where it is right now, just check there!
- Check customs status – If your freight has been flagged for inspection, there will be a note here letting you know what they want to look at more closely when they return from their trip abroad. Be sure not to send anything valuable overseas without checking this first.
- Customs clearance – In many countries around the world (not all, though), customs agencies will take some time before releasing goods into circulation because it helps prevent smuggling activities from happening under their noses; however, this does mean longer waiting times for businesses like yours who rely on getting goods out quickly for sales purposes. You'll find information about how long these hold-ups might take here, too.
Use EDI
If you're a freight carrier or ocean shipping company, you likely spend a lot of time and effort tracking the location of your cargo. This can be quite the hassle, especially given that it's manual by nature:
- It's tedious—it requires filling out forms and waiting for information to come back from suppliers or shippers.
- It's time-consuming—it takes staff hours to pull reports from various sources and put together an accurate picture of where all your shipments are at any given time (not to mention figuring out which ones need attention).
- And it's laborious—you have people calling their counterparts at other companies asking them for updates on shipments that may or may not exist anymore because things change fast in this industry.
Electronic data interchange (EDI) is a communication protocol used to transmit information between companies. It's an electronic version of paper-based document exchanges, but it's faster and more reliable. EDI for ocean freight allows for real-time exchange of information between trading partners, reducing costs by eliminating the need for manual data entry and improving efficiency through better communication between partners.
EDI standards are published by EDIFACT (the Electronic Data Interchange For Administration Commerce and Transport). This global organization sets best practices for exchanging electronic business documents such as orders, invoices, purchase requests, and other transactions related to trading activities between buyers and sellers worldwide.
For instance, EDI messages can track containers, shipments, and freight by providing visibility across the process that helps with tracking. These standardized messages are sent through an application on your computer or mobile device and allow you to:
- View shipment status
- Track shipments in real-time
- See when shipments arrive at the final destination.
Be aware of significant events that can affect delivery
For your ocean freight shipment to be successful, you need to know what can affect the delivery. This means becoming familiar with key events that could delay or stall your shipment.
- Weather events are one of the most important factors when planning an ocean freight shipment. If a storm or hurricane occurs at sea, it could delay delivery for several days or weeks depending on how severe it is and where in the world it occurs.
- Political events can also potentially impact your shipment's timeline. For example, suppose there are protests against a country's government during a major holiday or celebration (like Christmas). In that case, this may temporarily shut down ports and shipping lanes in those areas until things calm down again.
- Major holidays like Labor Day and the Fourth of July slow international shipping down due to fewer available ships and ports being closed by their employees while they're off celebrating with their families over these long weekends. If possible, avoid scheduling shipments during these times unless necessary because they'll likely cause delays and increase rates due to higher demand for available space on ships and trucks between countries.
Choose the Right Container
A vital step in tracking ocean freight shipments is choosing a container that is large enough for your shipment. It must be big enough to fit the contents safely and securely, but it must also be small enough to fit through standard shipping doors.
You'll need accurate documentation for your container. This includes information like its dimensions and weight and any special handling requirements (such as temperature controls) or hazardous materials that may be inside. You should also ensure that the person picking up the container has all the necessary paperwork and permits.
You'll want to ensure that your container is in good shape before opening it up for inspection by customs officials or any other third parties who could damage or steal items from inside it during transit—check for cracks or dents on its surface; look underneath for rusting; make sure all locks are intact.
Triple Check Before Going to Customs
Triple check your ocean freight shipment before you go to customs. This is the best practice, right?
- Check the container seals. You want to ensure that all your goods are in the container and undamaged. If there are any discrepancies, get a copy of the Bill of Lading, notify your ocean freight carrier immediately, and follow up with them on how they plan to resolve it.
- Check the weight of your shipment against what was initially declared on your BOL (bill of lading) and what was declared at pickup/drop-off with customs officials in both ports (this could be different if there were delays along the way). The difference between these two numbers is known as "loss/gain,"—and we can help you figure out whether or not there was an error made somewhere along this process so that it can be corrected accordingly by either party involved.
- Measure everything inside and outside again just for good measure before heading into customs.
Be Prepared for Changes in Paperwork Processing
It's essential to be prepared for changes in paperwork processing. For example, you should expect to deal with the following:
- Additional paperwork requirements. As a result of heightened security measures, some governments may require other documents before allowing shipments through their borders. More paperwork will mean longer wait times and higher costs.
- Longer processing times at customs offices worldwide result from increased service demand, greater scrutiny of container shipments by customs agents, and detailed inspections that take time. This could slow down your shipment's delivery time considerably—or even cause it to miss its delivery date altogether if there are delays due to long hold ups during inspection processes or bureaucratic problems arising from transit from one country's port to another's border crossing station or airport terminal building.
Pay Your Shippers
Pay what you agreed to pay in the agreed currency. This includes customs duties and taxes that are due at delivery. The problem is not just a matter of paying late or not at all -- it can be much worse: if you under-pay for customs duties and taxes due at delivery, then both parties will be out of pocket because there is no way for either party to collect payment from the other without some significant coordination efforts (and even then it may still take months).
Final Thought
Ocean freight tracking is a complicated process, but with these tips, you can stay informed and address any problems before they become too serious. As you continue to track your shipping process, remember that it's an ever-changing landscape, and you need to stay on top of all the latest developments to be successful.
There's no substitute for good communication between shipper and receiver; diligence from both parties will ensure a smooth delivery every time.
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