For both domestic and international shippers, air freight is usually the fastest method of transporting goods. Contrary to popular belief, under certain circumstances, it can actually be a more cost-effective option than shipping by sea or ground.

Depending on the type of cargo and the destination, air freight can maximize your company’s operational efficiency, offering a degree of flexibility, reliability, and speed that other modes of transportation simply can’t match. If you’re looking to squeeze the maximum amount of value out of your air freight program, however, you’ll need to understand some of the factors underlying its component costs. Here are a few that you should be aware of.

Economic Conditions

Like every industry, air freight is affected by current economic conditions. Rising demand for air freight could result in higher prices, while greater competition could yield lower rates. Carriers might also raise prices in response to new laws and regulations. As companies adapt to economic downturns, air freight providers search for more cost-effective practices to ensure that their planes are completely loaded, from reducing the number of flights to applying surcharges to partial loads. A solid understanding of the current business climate and some knowledge of how carriers adjust to economic changes can help you find affordable rates and avoid additional costs.

Local Conditions

Where you’re shipping your cargo can often matter just as much as what it is that you’re shipping. While most domestic shippers will only contend with weather, international shippers should have some understanding of social, economic, and political conditions of foreign countries before shipping goods there. Since every country has unique duties, tariffs, and fees, shipping via air freight to some countries might prove too expensive to justify. Other countries might be experiencing work stoppages, natural disasters, political instability or war, forcing carriers to significantly raise their rates so as to ensure their safety. Knowing the destination of your goods as well as their point of origin is vital when it comes to making smart, cost-conscious shipping decisions.

Operating Costs

Every air provider has at least some built-in operating costs. Fuel, labor, equipment, infrastructure, and maintenance are the most important expenses, but landing fees and surcharges, research and development, and environmental regulations can contribute as well. While some of these costs will be higher or lower depending on the route, the equipment involved in the shipment, and local regulations regarding shipping, the final rate will always reflect a combination of each. Doing some research into providers can help you get a better sense of how their operating costs inform your final rate.

Cargo Type

Some pieces of cargo have certain handling requirements. Most shipments don’t need to be transported immediately, but some goods need to arrive at their destination by the next business day. Oversized, fragile, and refrigerated cargo require extra precautions that may result in additional fees. Most carriers have fixed rates for the types of cargo they’ll handle, making it a good idea to check a prospective partner’s rates for whatever goods you most commonly ship. An established and experienced carrier will tell you up front about any additional costs for transporting certain items.

Premium Services

In recent years, air freight providers have started offering premium shipping services in exchange for higher rates. Options like packing and door-to-door service fall under this umbrella, but today, even a simple direct route can qualify as such. As air freight providers continue to combine routes, opting for economy shipping might mean your goods will travel to several different locations before reaching their final destination. But this isn’t necessarily a bad thing — if you can make some minor adjustments to your supply chain and extend your timelines, you can save big by allowing for an extra day or two of transit time.

Weight and Volume

An airplane is a fixed space, and as such, it has a finite cargo and weight capacity. Costs are always determined by a piece of cargo’s physical weight, or by what’s known as its “chargeable weight” — a set formula that takes both an item’s weight and volume into account. The formula for determining chargeable weight is:

(Length x Width x Height) ÷ 366

So, for example, if a box weighs 10 lbs, but the dimensions of that box are 3’ x 3’ x 6’, the chargeable weight will be more than a 10-lb box that’s only 1’ x 1’ x 1’.

The Primary Freight Difference

Whether you’re shipping cosmetics from Sydney to Los Angeles or office equipment from Seattle to Houston, Primary Freight has the requisite experience and dedication to guide you through the complex world of air freight shipping and logistics. With nearly two decades of success under our belt, we’re committed to providing industry-leading customer service and bespoke, outside-the-box solutions to ensure your goods always get from Point A to B as quickly and cost-effectively as possible.

If you want to learn how you can get even more value out of your air freight shipping program, give one of our dedicated experts a call at (800) 635-0013. We’re looking forward to hearing from you!

Over the past two decades, Primary Freight has established itself as a visionary leader the shipping and logistics industry, providing clients with a wide range of services and solutions that span a network of more than 100 countries.

We specialize in LCL and FCL ocean and air freight shipping logistics, but we also excel in extended domestic, intermodal, warehousing, purchase order tracking, and on-forwarding services. Our many years of experience, along with an unwavering commitment to embracing innovation whenever and wherever possible, have enabled us to deploy cutting-edge, customer-specific solutions that maximize the visibility, accuracy, and value of each and every one of our clients’ shipments.

You may be sitting there saying to yourself, “There are so many shipping and logistics providers out there — what makes this one so special?” The truth is that Primary Freight has one massive competitive advantage that no other company can offer: our team.

How Our Culture & Values Boost Our Clients’ ROI

At Primary Freight, we’ve always understood that a company is only as strong as the sum of its component parts. Our idea was simple: take care of your employees, and they’ll take care of business. The decision to create a positive, dynamic, and supportive work environment has enabled us to attract not only the best and brightest employees, but also the most dedicated ones. Moreover, nearly half of our team has been with the company for more than a decade, which translates to more organizational expertise and, of course, value for our clients.

Below are some of the core values that describe who we are as a company, and that have helped us achieve the level of success we enjoy today:

• Forward-thinking: we’re committed to remaining at the forefront of our industry and focused on developing innovative solutions, identifying new markets, and embracing emerging technologies in order to provide the maximum amount of value for our clients.
• Professional: our team operates with the highest possible level of industry expertise and customer service. We treat our clients with the same consideration and respect we’ve come to expect from one another within the organization.
• Driven: for everyone on our team, Primary Freight is like a second family, and like any family, each employee is personally invested in its ongoing well-being and success. That value gets passed along to our clients in the form of commitment and customer service. We consistently go above and beyond the call of duty for our clients — for us, that’s just another day at the office.
• Committed: we’ve created an environment that encourages our team not only to enjoy their work, but also to grow on a personal and professional level. We strive to set realistic expectations and workloads, and to ensure each employee maintains a good work-life balance — we’ve found this translates to better results for us, and for our clients.
• Diverse: Primary Freight’s team represents a wide array of nationalities, beliefs, personalities, and backgrounds — we believe this intellectual and cultural diversity is a cornerstone of our success.
• Dedicated: we’ve built our company with a strong foundational belief in our services and abilities, our team, and of course, our clients.

If you’re not satisfied with your current shipping and logistics partner, we recommend putting a premium on long-term value over quick fixes and surface-level savings. To that end, Primary Freight promises to be a true partner and bring the full force of our team’s expertise and organizational values to bear for your business.

Australia isn’t usually a top priority for big shipping and logistics companies, and it’s no secret why — just look at the numbers: in 2016, the total monetary value of traded goods between the U.S. and Australia was approximately $31.7 billion. While that might sound like a pretty reasonable sum, consider that trade between China and the U.S. over the same period of time amounted to more than $578.2 billion.

It makes sense that giant, global entities wouldn’t pay much attention to Australia. After all, in order for their business models to work, they have to move the maximum volume of cargo possible, meaning that their primary focus will always be on major shipping markets like the U.S., China, and Japan.

But that leaves companies operating in the Australian market in something of a bind — they still have cargo to ship, and they shouldn’t have to sacrifice value, customer service, and speed in order to get goods from point A to point B. Luckily for them, Primary Freight has been operating in the Australian market for more than two decades, offering clients world-class services at an competitive price.

Why Primary Freight?

What sets Primary Freight apart is that Australia has been a core market for us from day one. We understood that in order to make a real impact, we needed to develop a variety of dedicated, high-value services for our partners shipping goods in and out of the region.

In addition to our air freight and full-container ocean freight services, what really sets us apart is our LCL consolidation program. We take partial goods, consolidate them, and ship them out on a weekly basis — and we’ve been offering this service for more than 18 years.

This has enabled us to compete with larger, global entities, and become a key player in the Australian market — we’ve carved out our niche by providing a consistent weekly service, a personal touch, and a dedicated and experienced team, which in turn has allowed us to remain competitive in an increasingly rate-driven marketplace.

A Commitment to Australia

But it’s not just our services that set us apart — when we launched Primary Freight nearly 20 years ago, we made the financial commitment to actually go there, educate people about the process of importing and exporting goods to and from the U.S., and work closely with our partners to develop new and improved services. We’ve built strong relationships with a number of key stakeholders within the market — partnerships that are still in place today.

At the end of the day, companies operating in the region deserve the same quality and array of services as any other market. At Primary Freight, we’ve always made Australia a top priority, and we will continue to do so in the years to come.

People have been transporting goods across the globe for centuries, but in today’s increasingly connected global economy, the task has never been more complex. The explosive growth of eCommerce and one-day shipping have ratcheted up pressure on companies to improve delivery times, even as barriers to expediency — from import/export regulations to customs complexities — become increasingly onerous.

With end-users exhibiting little tolerance for what they perceive to be excess shipping costs, companies need all the expertise they can get to determine the most cost-effective way to ship their commercial goods. In that spirit, we’ve created an overview of the various types of international shipping, each with its own usage and cost considerations.

Ocean

The ocean has long been the primary channel for international shipping, and with good reason: ocean freight gives customers flexibility by enabling them to reach multiple ports — for example, a manufacturer can deliver goods to one destination, where they can then be separated and sent off to various worldwide ports by the shipper. According to the World Shipping Council, liner shipping tops the list of most efficient transportation channels because of its ability to transport more and/or larger goods than most other options.

Air

Companies turn to air freight for time-sensitive deliveries. Whether the product has some kind of expiration date, or a customer simply needs goods shipped by a hard-and-fast deadline, air freight guarantees the fastest delivery time of any transportation option.

But speed isn’t the only benefit offered by air freight: for example, ground shipping typically involves transferring goods to different trucks and storage facilities, which increases the chances that an item is damaged or lost. Air freight minimizes the number of steps standing between the goods and their destination, which in turn means a reduced level of risk overall.

Ground: Rail and Truck

When shipping goods via ground transport, manufacturers typically choose between either rail or truck. While both methods are often used in combination with air or ocean freight, rail and truck transport can also be used for cross-border shipping throughout North America or Europe, for example. According to the World Industrial Reporter, trucks can transport a variety of load sizes, while rail freight can take larger shipments greater distances. As rail services are often connected to ports, rail can be used to get goods to an export destination or to a local market upon arrival.

Finding the Right Shipping Partner

While it may be tempting for companies in search of a shipping and logistics vendor to opt for the big name or the biggest cost-savings, it’s important to remember the role of customer service in transactions as complex as international shipping. When complications and challenges emerge, you want a partner you can trust to navigate them safely and cost-effectively.

As a professionally run, family-owned business that’s been in operation for nearly two decades, Primary Freight has experience working with customers in all facets of international shipping. But more importantly, we also concentrate on building strong relationships and support structures that add value when our customers need it the most.