Logistics, Trade Administration and Supply Chain

Water transportation service is limited in scope for several reasons. Domestic water service is confined to the inland waterway system, which requires shippers to be located on the waterways or to use another transportation mode in combination with the water. In addition, water service on the average is slower than rail. Availability or dependability of water service are greatly influenced by the weather. Movement on the waterways during the winter is impossible and floods and droughts may also interrupt service at other times as well. There is tremendous capacity available in water carriers with barge tows up to 40,000 tons and there are individual barges with standardized dimensions of 26 by 175 feet and 35 by 195 feet. Capability and handling are being increased as barged carrying ships are being developed and such improvements as satellite navigation with radar, refined depth finders and auto piloting mean  around the clock service. Water services are provided in all leg...

Last year proved tough for transporters on the world’s busiest trade routes between Asia and Europe. Both the sea and air markets suffered from weak demand and overcapacity as new orders of airplanes and ships continued to come on line. The container shipping market was down around three percent worldwide by volume in 2012 compared to the previous year, says Denis Sanguinetti, sea-freight procurement manager at Bolloré Logistics. Routes between Asia and Western Europe suffered the biggest drop of between seven and eight percent, he adds. Similarly, the volume of goods transported by air fell by around 2.5 percent worldwide, says Georges Van Hove, manager of airfreight procurement at Bolloré Logistics. “The air-freight market will remain weak as long as the global economic recovery is uncertain and capacity stays high,” he warns. In particular, the sea container market looks set to continue its record level of volatility as shipping companies seek to balance supply and demand. ...

The Shipper's Export Declaration (SED) is a document prepared by the shipper and presented to a government authority specifying goods expected along with their quantities, weight and destination. Each country has its own SED form. Certain elements are likely to be required in the SED for all countries. The SED typically includes the following elements: Name and address of seller, Name and address of buyer, Issuance date, Export license number (if required, based on certain countries' requirements and goods exported), Country of origin of the goods shipped, Country of final destination of the goods, Quantity and description of the goods, Country of export statistical classification number (some countries do not require this information for shipments under a certain level), Shipping details like, weight of the goods, number of packages and shipping marks and numbers. The SED is used by a nation's customs authority to control exports and compile trade statistic...

The Regional Trade Pact Import/Export Declaration is a standardised import/export document used in common by members of a regional trade group containing compliance, administrative and statistical information. This document is typically issued by the exporter or seller (shipper). The typical trade pact import/export declaration contains the following elements: Name and address of the exporter/seller/consignor/shipper, Name and address of the importer/buyer/consignee, Description and value of the goods, A statement of origin of the goods, Country of destination of the goods, Carrier and means of transport, Other compliance, administrative and statistical information. This document is used as an export declaration when exporting from any trade pact member country to a non-member country and as both an import and export declaration when transporting goods across country borders within the trade group. Because of its standardised format, this document is often linked to a...

A multimodal transport document is a bill of lading covering two or more modes of transport, such as shipping by rail and sea. A complete multimodal transport document should contain the following elements: Name of the carrier or multimodal transport operator with a signature identified as that of carrier, transport operator or ship's master or agent for or on behalf of either the carrier, transport operator or ship's master, An indication that the shipment has been dispatched, taken in charge or loaded on board along with a date, Indication of the place of receipt of the shipment that may be different from the place of actual loading on board and the place of delivery of the shipment which may be different from the place of discharge, A sole original or if issued in multiple originals, the full set of originals, The terms and conditions of carriage or a reference to the terms and conditions of carriage in another source or document other than the multimodal transpor...

A non-negotiable sea waybill is a transport document covering port-to-port shipments. It is not a title document, is not negotiable and cannot be endorsed. A complete non-negotiable sea waybill contains the following elements: Name of the carrier with a signature identified as that of carrier, or ship's master, or agent or on behalf of either the carrier or the ship's master An indication or notation that the goods have been loaded on board or shipped on a named vessel. also, the date of issuance or date of loading An indication of the port of loading and the port of discharge as specified in the original sales contract or documentary credit A sole original or if issued in multiple originals, the full set of originals The terms and conditions of carriage or a reference to the terms and conditions of carriage in another source or document In a documentary letter of credit, no indication that the document is subject to a charter party and/or an indication that the nam...

Sea carriers must have written and verifiable procedures for the screening of carrier's agents and other service providers contracted to provide transportation services for the carrier. Sea carriers also must have screening procedures for new customers, beyond financial soundness issues to include indicators of whether the customer appears to be a legitimate business and/or posses a security risk. Sea carriers shall also have procedures to review their customer's requests that could affect the safety of the vessel or the cargo or otherwise raise significant security questions, including unusual customer demands, such as specific stowage placement onboard the vessel (beyond a request for below deck or on deck stowage). Security procedures Sea carriers must have written or web-based procedures for screening of new customers to whom they issue bills of lading, which identify specific factors or practices, the presence of which would trigger additional scrutiny by the sea ...

Sea carriers must conduct a comprehensive assessment of their security practices based on the C-TPAT minimum security criteria. Where a sea carrier does not control a specific element of the cargo transportation service it has contracted to provide, such as a marine terminal operator or a time chatered vessel with whom it has contracted, the sea carrier must work with these business partners to seek to ensure that pertinent security measures are in place and adhered to. The sea carrier is responsible for exercising prudent oversight for all cargo loaded on board its vessel, pursuant to the applicable laws and regulations and terms of this program. C-TPAT recognizes the complexity of the international supply chains and security practices and endorses the application and implementation of security measures based upon risk. Therefore, the program also allows for flexibility and the customization of security plans based on the member's business model or requirements. Security me...