Refrigerated freight represents a large portion of US trucking. Here are the top50 refrigerated trucking companies operating in North America.

From: https://www.ttnews.com/top100/refrigerated/2019

Ship Zephyr offers refrigerated service nationwide and works with refrigerated shippers small and large to build more efficient and lower cost transportation and logistics plans. All our services provide data optimized and high visibility freight solutions that take advantage of the latest technology offerings.

All ShipZephyr freight solutions are backed by capacity and route optimizing technology that will bring reliability and visiblity to your cold chain supply chain. We also provide refrigerated intermodal services, available through our digital logistics platform.

Our team will support you 24/7 to make sure your freight is where it needs to be. Give us a call today to see how our team can help take your supply chain to the next level!

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Top 50 Global Third Party Logistics Companies

Global logistics represents around 10% of total global GDP, with thousands of players in the industry occupying every niche imaginable.

Here are the top 50 Largest third party logistics companies based on gross revenue From: https://www.ttnews.com/top50/logistics/2020

ShipZephyr provides comprehensive logistics services nationwide with a focus on full truckload dry van, flatbed, refrigerated, managed transportation, intermodal and drayage.

We offer nationwide shipping coverage with shipment visibility across all modes and lanes. Our shipping solutions and freight operate with 24/7 support from our dedicated team of logistics experts. Contact us for a freight quote, intermodal quote or refrigerated quote.

Let us know if we can help your company create a more efficient supply chain!

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Reduce Costs within your supply Chain

Freight and logistics costs represents and significant component of many businesses bottom lines. Creating a more efficient supply chain and freight procurement plan can drastically improve the overall cost structure of your business.

Here are the top 5 ways to reduce costs within your supply chain:

1. Team Members

Anyone in your company that helps coordinate your supply chain needs to be well versed in the logistics plan you are building and refining. Document all steps and contacts that are needed to operate your supply chain. Convey the importance of efficiency and cost reduction to all team members involved in planning the freight and logistics budget. Encourage team members to suggest improvements and look for innovative new ways to improve the overall system.

2. Packaging

Many manufacturing and retail companies do not invest the time required to build efficient packaging for their products. This is a crucial area that can help reduce costs. Directly spending less on more efficient packaging will help you realize savings, but also indirectly reducing the weight and volume of your product will reduce overall freight spend. Just be careful to make sure items are well protected, as inventory return or damage will quickly erase any efficiency gains.

3. Data and Data Analysis

Only work with partners that provide robust data on your freight movements and supply chain spend. This will be the backbone to building a more efficient supply chain and reducing overall costs. With so much data available, it is important to partner with logistics companies that can provide relevant data across many aspects of your supply chain. Use this data to model costs and track freight spend across lane and mode.

4. Only using one carrier or mode

Particularly for small businesses it is easy to get into a habit of only using one more or one carrier for the majority of your freight. This drastically increases risks  in the long term though due to the very likely probability of a carrier to have reliability issues at one time or another, or even something so small as a change of personnel resulting in a carrier increasing their rates. It is really important to build relationships with more than one carrier and utilize more than one more of transportation in your supply chain.

5. Inventory Reduction and Planning

Consider implementing a just in time inventory management plan across your business. This will reduce your inventory holding costs which will have a very noticeable impact on your bottom line. While many businesses are starting to do this, there are still many that have not yet taken into account inventory holding costs. By utilizing the available inventory and logistics data, you can accurately forecast when inventory will be needed and work with logistics partners to build a network that will provide the correct amount of just in time inventory to both your manufacturing facility and to your end customers.

ShipZephyr is a North American supply chain and logistics provider that provides refrigerated, dry van, flat bed, ltl, intermodal and managed transportation services nationwide. We’ve worked with businesses small and large to optimize freight spend and build a more efficient supply chain.

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Coronavirus freight volumes drop 39%

From Fleetowner: https://www.fleetowner.com/news/economics/article/21128410/after-surging-in-march-spot-truckload-freight-volume-drops-39

After several weeks with trucks in high demand, truckload freight volumes dropped abruptly during the week ending April 4, said DAT Solutions, which operates the industry’s largest load board network.

The number of posted loads fell 39% compared to the previous week.

At the same time, load-searching volume skyrocketed. The number of posted trucks on the spot market increased 13% week over week, the largest such gain in available capacity so far this year.

National average rates, March:

• Van: $1.87 per mile, 8 cents higher than the February average
• Reefer: $2.19 per mile, up 10 cents compared to February
• Flatbed: $2.19 per mile, up 4 cents compared to February

Rates declined from their March averages during the first week of April. From April 1-4, the average van rate was $1.85; the reefer rate was $2.09; and the flatbed rate was $2.08.

Key trends

Reefer rates retreat: Reefer rates have given back a good portion of their March gains, and it seems more likely that reefer rates will slip below year-ago levels in the next seven to 10 days until the typical seasonal uptick toward the beginning of May.

Load-to-truck ratios slide: The national average van load-to-truck ratio was 1.5 last week, down from 2.8 the previous week. The national average reefer load-to-truck ratio fell to 2.6 from 4.9, another sign that pricing power has shifted toward shippers.

Borderline decline: There’s still plenty of reefer freight to be found in the Mexican border markets of McAllen, Texas, and Tucson, Ariz., but average rates trended down last week:

• McAllen to Atlanta lost 22 cents to $2.45, and lane rates also dropped from McAllen to Dallas, Chicago, and northern New Jersey.
• Tucson to Los Angeles fell 19 cents to $2.44, but that rate is higher than it was three weeks ago. Rates also dipped on lanes from Tucson to New York and from Tucson to Chicago.

Produce picking up: Reefer rates were higher on lanes originating in the Midwest and California, plus a few lanes out of Florida:

• Chicago to Kansas City rocketed up 23 cents to $2.60 per loaded mile.
• Green Bay, Wis., to Minneapolis added 13 cents to $2.51.
• Stockton, Calif., to Portland, Ore., increased 16 cents to $3.09 (other Stockton lanes rose, too).
• Lakeland, Fla., to Baltimore rose 9 cents to $2.12.
• Los Angeles to Phoenix was up 11 cents to $2.97.

“Thank you to the owner-operators, drivers, fleet managers, freight brokers, and warehouse workers who keep the freight flowing. Be well, stay safe,” DAT said.

ShipZephyr provides comprehensive logistics services spanning North America, with an experienced team and capacity nationwide, we are positioned to help you focus on your business, while we build efficiency into your supply chain. Give us a call or email today for a quick quote.

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