Company Name:
Lishui Huanqiu Bearing Trading Co., Ltd.
Company Address:
No.11 Shiting Road, Shuige Industrial Zone,Lishui, Zhejiang,China
Contact Person: William
Email: admin@tradebearings.com
Homepage: www.asiabearings.com
Bearing B2B: www.tradebearings.com
Based in North Yorkshire, CyberOptics Ltd supplies industry-leading process control sensors and inspection systems to the international electronics assembly market. The company's global customer base presents regular challenges in shipping its products overseas. Administration manager Susan Harrison explains how a freight-forwarding service helps them achieve their objectives and saves time and money into the bargain.
What I did
Choose a freight forwarder
"We ship and receive goods from all over the world, from small consignments of parts to large and very expensive pieces of equipment. Some shipments are demonstration systems for testing and evaluation, which creates the additional headache of continual transfers from one country to another.
"When I joined, the company had already started to use freight forwarding on an ad hoc basis, via a number of providers. I could see the potential benefits, particularly when I first had to organise some shipments myself and realised what a time-consuming nightmare it can be!
"However, using a variety of providers wasn't ideal, so after a while I reviewed and rationalised the supplier base, settling on one main provider, Ital Logistics. The main selection criteria were market knowledge in the countries we needed to ship to, a proven track record, competitive pricing and high levels of customer service. I also checked for membership of the British International Freight Association."
Plan ahead
"Freight forwarding has many benefits, particularly the time saved and the smooth passage of our goods through customs. Not only do our freight forwarders have a thorough knowledge of the customs procedures in the countries we ship to and from, they also have excellent personal contacts 'on the ground' and they know all the legitimate shortcuts to speed up the process.
"Having said that, it's still important to plan ahead. Some goods to certain countries are relatively easy to ship, so we allocate time to do that ourselves. We reserve the freight forwarding service for high-value shipments, goods that we think may create customs issues, or when shipping to countries with a reputation for being 'difficult'. For example, we recently started exporting to Russia, which has such complex regulations that we couldn't possibly have done it ourselves.
"Anticipating which shipments require freight forwarding also helps us to build in the cost and price orders correctly at the outset."
Control costs
"Because freight forwarding is relatively hassle-free, it's tempting to use it for everything. However, that would be very expensive and isn't always necessary. For smaller packages such as spare parts, we often just use a standard courier company.
"We allocate costs for freight forwarding services in our annual budget and analyse the previous year's spending. We also conduct occasional price comparisons, getting quotes from other companies or from our overseas distributors.
"It's important to remember though, that cost isn't the only factor. If something gets stuck in customs because the shipper doesn't have the know-how to get it out, or isn't inclined to help because they don't know you from Adam, you might lose an order completely. In general, we'd rather pay for the peace of mind of knowing it'll get there when it's supposed to."
What I'd do differently
Rationalise suppliers sooner
"I wish we'd rationalised the supplier base sooner. Having one point of contact for customs and shipping needs has streamlined the process considerably and allowed us to develop a beneficial working relationship with our provider."
( linda )10 Nov,2011
