The Dynamics of Freight Forwarders and Transporting Your Cargo via Air
As a business, you may have to order overseas cargo from time to time. In such a situation, your transportation options will either be sea or air. Given the options, you could request your international freight forwarder to use air transport for your cargo for fast delivery.
Out of the total global shipment value, the air cargo sector makes up roughly 30%. Using air transportation has a lot of advantages for you as a business compared to ocean cargo shipping. Here’s all you need to know about freight forwarders and air cargo shipping.
Making the purchase
Before making a purchase, you should seek assistance from top-notch freight forwarders. Miami freight forwarders are among the best that you can find in the country. From here on, the freight forwarder you settle on will be responsible for the rest of the technicalities with you playing an advisory role.
Before making the purchase, consult with the freight forwarding company and find out if it’s possible to get the goods you are seeking in the Virgin Islands. If yes, then this is where you should make your purchase as most goods sold in this market are duty-free. Therefore, you will be able to save some money off the purchasing cost.
Leave the hustle and bustle of finding the best market price for the goods you are seeking to your international freight forwarder.
Making the decision
The first step is deciding on whether to use ocean cargo shipping or air transportation. Unless your cargo is too big to fit in a plane, air shipping should be your first option. There are also specialized shipping planes for any fragile cargo you may have, and which freight forwarders in Miami can get you.
The role of the Miami freight forwarders is to handle the logistics of shipping your cargo. This includes any special requests that you may have.
Time vs. Money
The primary reason that you may want to go with ocean cargo shipping is that it’s more affordable as compared to air transportation. It’s understandable that as a business, you may want to cut down on unnecessary costs, but you have to look at the bigger picture.
As the international freight forwarder will advise you, air cargo shipping despite the high cost is swift. If you are importing your cargo from the Virgin Islands using air transport, you can expect to have it in Miami within a day or so. If you are importing the cargo from other parts of the world, it may take two to four days.
On the other hand, if you choose ocean cargo shipping, it will take roughly three days to get your goods from the Virgin Islands to Miami. If you are shipping from the cargo from other parts of the world, it may take two weeks to two months to get them to Miami.
This disparity is because ocean shipping is much slower, and its logistics are much more complicated. It’s going to take longer for Miami freight forwarders to clear your cargo at the port compared to an airport.
Therefore, despite the high air shipping rates, air cargo transportation is still the best option. The time you save by using air transport for your cargo is much more valuable to you as a company than the money you save by using ocean shipping.
Choosing the right freight forwarder for you
There are numerous freight forwarders in Miami that you can opt for. The international freight forwarder you choose to handle your cargo should be:
- Experienced: If your freight forwarder has long-term experience, you are bound to receive smoother services. Their expertise will come in handy in organizing fast transport and dealing with customs.
- Door to door delivery: Make sure you settle for one of the Miami freight forwarders who provide door to door delivery. All you can do then is sit and wait for your cargo to be delivered.
Now that you know how to pick an international freight forwarder and the ins and outs of air cargo shipping, why don’t you go ahead and try it?