Shipping can be tricky any time of the year but the winter often complicates things further. Read our blog to learn the best ways you can prepare yourself for a safe and smooth transport during the winter months.
General Shipping Complications
There are all kinds of things that can go wrong in the process of moving goods all year round that are causes for shipping delays. Like any other industry, seasonality impacts the ability to deliver cargo on a tight timeline so if you can help it, it’s best to avoid scheduling shipments during the busy season. Major global events such as war and widespread illness outbreaks complicate logistics managers’ ability to get cargo where it needs to be on time and they are largely unavoidable.
Port congestion, which has been a considerable issue since the COVID-19 pandemic began, can be one of the toughest complications to work with, as there is quite literally nothing that can be done about it other than planning ahead. Incorrect or incomplete paperwork is also a frequent reason for complications, as there are so many laws and regulations around what can and can’t be shipped. But by far, the most common shipping complication in the winter months is due to weather conditions.
Winter Weather Impacts to Shipping
According to the Department of Transportation, 23% of all highway delays are due to snow, ice and fog, amounting to an estimated 544 million vehicle-hours of delay each year. With ground transportation as the most common form of domestic shipping, winter weather delays are largely unavoidable. This takes a financial toll on logistics managers, which results in higher overall costs for customers as well.
Winter storms are not always the most predictable of all the types of storms. They are also often under or over-estimated; it is impossibly hard to know when a winter storm is coming, exactly how bad it’ll be, the precise areas it will impact and, certainly, what this weather means for how the roads will be. And even with the right knowledge, it still remains difficult to properly prepare for what happens if the highway your driver must cross to make a delivery is covered in deadly ice. Because there is only so much we can do to prevent winter delays, the key to safe and smooth shipments is working with prepared, experienced partners.
Shipping Smarter in the Winter
In any season, there is no way to guarantee a perfect shipment. There are many things that can and sometimes do go wrong when you have cargo being moved a significant distance, getting handed off in several stages, in many vessels. To have the best odds of a smooth transportation in the winter months, you must choose the right partners for the job.
Your logistics partners should be experienced, having handled plenty of winter transports in years passed so they gained the knowledge of how to do it right, and hopefully they even made some mistakes they got to learn from! Choosing logistics partners from New England could also be to your advantage, as they have both personal and professional experience dealing with and planning for slick, icy roads. Finally, your ideal logistics partners should have a high standard of safety in all that they do. Those who have safety as their utmost concerns know how to keep your cargo, their vessels and their drivers safe under risky conditions.
Looking for a Trusted Partner?
If you’re looking for a logistics partner this winter, LogiWorld might be the right fit for your needs! Contact us today with information about your next shipment and let us know how we can help.