International Air Freight to Protect the Environment

Global warming is no longer something that you debate for awhile and forget. It has become a gigantic reality and all global leading companies are slowly waking up to the fact that unless they do something about it, this is not going to get better.

The international air freight companies all over the world contributed about 7% to the total carbon emissions measured in 2006, which has put pressure on them to do something about the problem. It is high time that every air cargo freight shipping company and cargo airline commits to working for and not against the environment.

The international air freight companies are in the middle of the environmental protection controversies; they have agreed and have announced that they will enter into an agreement to contribute compulsorily for projects that protect the environment all over the world.

The amount that is earmarked for this purpose has not been fixed, though the agreement stipulates that it should be proportionate to the number of freight services that each cargo airline offers. Europe organized and spearheaded its efforts through the Kyoto Protocol Agreement, which states that the participating countries are committed to bringing down the carbon emission by 2012. USA was conspicuous by its absence at this momentous event.

It is encouraging to learn that the international air freight companies, which form a good part of the global mega companies, are at last taking environmental things seriously. However, is this enough?

Many feel that it would be much better if each of these major and minor cargo airlines committed themselves to control the level of pollution they emit and set strict rules against pollution. This would have a rippling effect in checking the carbon emissions since the demand for air cargo services is on the rise.

Today, what is required from the international air freight companies is not a handout for green projects, but a direct, full hearted and committed approach to see that there is no further damage to the already ailing environment. While the agreement to keep aside a percentage of the overall profits for environmental protection projects is definitely a step in the right direction, much more is expected from the air cargo companies all over the world.

As the use and need for cargo airlines is on the rise, unless there is a concerted effort to bring about changes inside and outside the operational areas, there is very little hope for our planet. Pacts, such as the Kyoto Protocol Agreement, are a wonderful way to show how much these mammoth companies care and are doing towards the "greener earth" objective.

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Air Freight Carriers - What Do They Do?

Air freight carriers are companies or airlines which are used to ship goods over long distances in a short amount of time. Freight carriers may be part of a passenger airline or dedicated a dedicated cargo airline. Such Freight carriers may also be dedicated transportation logistics companies like Fed-Ex who have a cargo airline and a business and logistics system to support end to end delivery as well.

Air freight or cargo airlines

Cargo/ air freight is a service used by many companies all over the world everyday for multinational import and export. Air freight services are professional logistics support businesses which manage the handling and transportation of goods and raw material. Today, airfreight businesses handle any kind of shipment, domestic or international, to any destination anywhere in the world provided there are no legal barriers to the transportation of the goods in question.

Modern airfreight services provide customs support (clearance agents all over the world) for the quick clearance of goods while also combining other transportation methods (like trucks or cargo ships) for end to end delivery in order to combine services and cut costs all round for themselves and therefore for their clients. Many such cargo carrying companies also provide the option for expedited shipment (express delivery) to most parts of the world.

There are three forms of air cargo transportation. Passenger airline freight (smaller goods carried on commercial passenger flights), dedicated cargo airlines using cargo planes, and super cargo planes used for specialized transportation (for instance machinery, other aircraft and any other such heavy goods).

Air freight transportation companies use a variety of aircraft, depending upon the goods, the quantity (or weight) and the destination. Commonly used aircraft may include ATRs, Boeing 707, 747-200F & 727, Douglas DC-8, DC-10, MD-11, Ilyushin Il-76 and even some 60-year-old Douglas DC-3s. The largest built cargo planes in use today are the USAF's C-5 Galaxy and the Russian Antonov AN-225.

Freight forwarding services

Freight forwarding companies; act as intermediaries between clients who wish to ship goods and transportation companies who actually transport the goods; these companies usually have a vast list of transportation services with home they have established business relationships and as third-party logistics companies, provide clients the benefits of their expertise in handling all transportation related issues.

International shipments from one destination to another usually involve using a system of multiple carriers and attention to transportation requirements and legalities (bills or lading, customs documentation, clearance and insurance). A freight forwarding service handles these details for their clients, managing the entire logistics of a shipment, relieving a burden that would otherwise be handled by the business/ producer making the shipment.

These companies guarantee the delivery of the product to a destination by the contracted (agreed upon) delivery date, and negotiate the best price to move the goods via the most economical route by working out various bids and choosing the one that best balances speed, cost and reliability; often providing their clients with options on various packages which might best suit their needs accordingly.

About Author:

Allen is a staff writer for Allegro Freight Services. Allegro Freight is one of the largest shipping companies worldwide, focusing in ocean freight, air freight and trucking freight with worldwide offices in many countries.

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What is Air Freight?

There are several differences between shipping items with an Air freight company and shipping with an LTL carrier. As you may guess, the main difference is the mode of transportation that is used to move product from the origin point to the final destination. LTL carriers use a network of trucks consolidating freight along the way through their break bulk points before the product is finally delivered. Air carriers use a group of local trucks to pick up and deliver the freight, but utilize a network of airlines (both commercial and cargo) to do the bulk of the freights movement. By comparing the basic transportation difference, you can probably also determine the next main difference in shipping with an LTL carrier vs. shipping through an Air carrier; that would be transit time.

Air carriers can also offer something the LTL carriers cannot, which is next day or 2nd day services from any origin point in the US to any US destination point. Due to the way LTL carriers network their equipment, it would be very difficult for an LTL carrier to provide next day or 2ND day services for shipments moving over 500 miles. Also, air carriers can provide guaranteed delivery dates for next day and 2nd day shipments. This is a very good service that fits a customer's need to get product to the final destination quickly and on time. This type of service does introduce us to the third main difference in shipping LTL vs. air and that is price.

Air carriers will provide very quick transit times and can easily guarantee delivery dates, but in comparison to the cost of shipping a product LTL, shipping via air freight can be very expensive. This type of service is not something a customer will use on a regular basis but can be very helpful in a time of need.

One other difference between LTL freight and air freight is how a customer's price is calculated. LTL carriers take into account the origin and destination zip codes, the products total weight and freight class. Air carriers calculate rates based on the origin zip code, destination zip code, and the products total weight and dimensions. Freight class is not used to calculate air freight. Air freight rate shipments based on a per pound rate based on the greater of either the shipments actual weight or the dimensional weight.

To calculate a products dimensional weight, you will multiply the shipments length, width and height (in inches) and then divide the total by 194. You then would compare that number against the shipments actual weight. The greater amount of the two is what you would use to calculate the total cost.

Dimensional weight example: A customer has a shipment that weighs 1000 lbs and is 48" long X 58" wide X 72" high. To find out which is greater, the dimensional weight or the actual weight, you would use the below equation:

(L) 48 * (W) 58 * (H) 72 = 200,488

200,488/194 = 1033 dim weight

In this example, the product's dimensional weight is greater than the products actual weight. One thing that LTL carriers and Air carriers have in common is the fact that they are renting out container space on the vehicle they are moving the product with. If a product has a dimensional weight that is greater than the actual weight, the carrier must be able to make up for potential lost revenue.

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The Essence of Air Freight KPI

People can now send as much cargo as they want with at least 24 hours delivery turnaround time. This is made possible because of the existence of airplanes and cargo planes. Without these, everyone will have to wait for days, and even weeks, if ships are still the only way to travel across the seven continents of the world. However, there will still be problems that will occur in freight services even with technology around. It is therefore important to have standard air freight KPI scorecards to measure how effective this service is.

Key Performance Indicators or KPIs are measurable metrics that are incorporated into company scorecards. These are used to measure not only the financial aspects of the company's performance but also customer satisfaction and the actual efficiency of the activities and processes. This is applied in any industry and the metrics measured are not the same, even for companies that belong to the same industry. This is precisely because each management has a different perspective of what is important and what is not.

Let us say that an air freight company has 90% accuracy in delivering the right package to the right recipient. This may sound good, but in reality, it is not. 90% accuracy means that for every one million packages, 100,000 of these are incorrect. This is an alarming number, and for this very same reason, air freight companies should develop ways to reduce the chances of errors. This can only be done if things are measured effectively. Always remember that one thing cannot be managed if it cannot be measured. And if something is not manageable, it cannot be improved.

So, what are the KPIs that should belong to the scorecard of an air freight company? Actually, there are many. And as mentioned earlier, these metrics may vary from one company to another. However, there are common metrics that are measured and one of these is booking.

Booking includes the flight time. This should be identified right away-and flawlessly executed-so customers know when their cargos will be sent out. Part of booking is the efficiency in tagging these packages whether they should belong to this flight number or the other. There will be serious delays if a package intended for flight number one was sent to flight number two instead. The standard here should be 100% accuracy. The way it is measured is through taking the time the package was taken against the time the package was agreed to be taken.

Another metric that is all too common is Received as Agreed on Time. This is called RAT. This means that if the promised delivery is within a 24-hour period, the recipient of the package should receive the package without the specified timeframe and no longer than that. Otherwise, it is considered a defective service. This has something to do with booking, too. If the booking is not accurate, there will be a certain delay in the cargo delivery. Of course, the air freight KPI equivalent for RAT is also 100%.

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Air Freight Companies - Great Transport Service Providers

Modern times have seen air freight companies continuously upgrading their services for the customers. They keep up with the demands on their cargo services and make sure that such services are superior in order to satisfy the requirements of their customers. These days, cargo clients find themselves satisfied with transport features and services such as air freight tracking and speedy deliveries.

Air freight companies make business by linking their clients to the appropriate service providers or providing the services themselves. Some of these firms possess complete cargo transport as well as equipment and machinery to provide people with all kinds of freight services. The small and medium sized companies offer personalized and customized services, which are nonetheless appreciated by their valued customers.

Most of the air freight companies these days will ship for their customers anything they wish to send - from the smallest such as their personal mails to relatives and friend to their large packages. Transport fees, of course, vary - services and features are priced using NMFC or National Motor Freight Classification system.

The most important feature that freight service can offer is the transit time being cut down from one coast to another if only because of the fast delivery service via air. Many companies provide next day or even overnight delivery service. When it comes to speedy deliveries, such service is applied to smaller parcels such is mails, documents and parcels. One the other hand, bigger packages and cargos can be shipped to its destination from as fast as three days up to a few weeks.

For more interesting and engaging articles on air freight rates and air freight charter, do visit us at our Air Freight Charter for All blog.

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Air Freight Charter - Advantages and Benefits of Availing One

For so many years, transporting cargo by way of air freight charter was considered one of the most expensive means for most businessmen. Nowadays however, concerted efforts are done to make freight charter an effective option at much reasonable price. Indeed, people are now more involved in the business of forwarding, whether they act as shippers or shipping service provider.

Air freight charter is known nowadays as one of the best solutions in forwarding requirements. It is also known as profitable option as far as the transport industry is concerned. And while it is a fact that such service do not appeal much because of high rates, those who opt for such service may think of good profit in the future, in spite of the initial expenses and costs.

Many people do realize the substantial benefits they enjoy with the use of air forwarding service. This is one reason why if you are involved in air shipments, it is best for you to employ air freight charters as they work to substantially cut down on existing expenses.

Where can we find freight charter service? Just go to the internet and you can find a wealth of resources considered valuable for providers and shippers, especially those who want to avail of such service.

People who are unsure on how to do the right moves in getting freight charter services can go to licensed brokers. If you need information on such professionals, they can be easily found on the internet. Many of them are willing to offer their services and help everyone when it comes to air freight requirements. However, you should be careful by not dealing immediately with the first broker you meet. You must likewise be sure that the broker you selected is licensed and willing to assist you in your air freight charter service and not simply out to get more money from you.

For more interesting and engaging articles on air freight companies and air freight services in general, do visit us at our Air Freight Charter for All blog.

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Answering Your Air Freight Questions

It is important for your package to arrive at its destination on time and in good condition. That means you have to trust it into the right hands but sometimes that is a hard decision to make.

This decision can be especially hard if you must ship something by air freight. You constantly have to worry about the packages being loaded onto the wrong flight and being misdirected to another destination and being lost. Or you have to worry about them being damaged in flight.

Plus there is the additional factor of how much it will cost you to ship the packages. It can be enough to make your head spin around in circles. In this article we will cover the basics of air freight and hopefully answer some of the basics where this is concerned and before it is all over you will have a greater understanding of what this valuable service has to offer and where you can turn to for your shipping needs.

What companies offer air freight?

There are several companies that offer air freight services. FedEx, UPS, and United Air Freight are just a few. Some air freight companies offer pick-up services up to a certain amount of pounds per package whereas some will require that you deliver the package to their terminal. You will have to check with the individual shipping company to ensure what their services cover.

How much does it cost?

The cost of the air freight shipping will vary depending on: location, how soon it must be there, the nature of what it is you are shipping, the value of the item(s) in question, how many item(s) you are shipping and how much each item weighs. It also depends on what company you go with. Many large companies have contracts with shipping companies that provides them with a discount since they ship frequently. You will have to check around for pricing information before you decide on a company to ship with.

Should I take out insurance for my package?

Most air freight services will only cover packages up to a certain dollar amount. You should always insure your package if it is valuable. If you are taking the time and money to ship a package by air freight chances are that it is valuable to you.

Insurance does not cost that much and it is well worth the price if something were to happen to your package. It is better to be safe than sorry.

What is the weight limit for packages?

Some shippers do have a weight limit for picking up packages. They may require that you deliver the packages to their air freight terminal yourself or arrange for delivery yourself. You will need to check with the shipping company to see what the weight limit is and how you should properly prepare the packages for shipping.

It is important to follow their guidelines if you want your packages to arrive at their destination in one piece. Some may require special stickers to be placed on the packages to let the handlers know the weight of the package so that they are not harmed during lifting.

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