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What is Considered Project or Oversize Cargo?

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Project or Oversized Cargo is a specialized field of transportation that requires extensive, comprehensive experience handling cargo/freight that does not fit in standard-sized containers. A few questions to help you determine if your shipment qualifies as Project Cargo : Is your shipment too large to fit inside a traditional shipping container? Are the dimensions wider, longer, or taller than usual shipments? Is the cargo overweight, unusually shaped, or does it require specialized equipment for handling and/or transport? If you answered yes to any of these details, our Project Cargo team can provide a solution tailored to your specific requirements. What information does our Project Cargo specialist require to quote? In addition to information such as the origin, destination, dimensions, weight, and commodity; our Project Cargo team will need to know: How the cargo is packed, How the freight must be handled, If specialty equipment required—this can ...
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Why is my Drayage invoice higher than expected?

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Without a good understanding of the steps involved in the complex international shipping process, you might be scratching your head as to why your ocean container drayage costs are higher than anticipated. The good news is, if you set your expectations appropriately, you can more fully understand how drayage fees are assessed. Important: Drayage should never be quoted as an “all-in” fixed cost because of the many unforeseen changes that can occur with a round trip container move. To begin, let’s look at the primary steps involved with round-trip container shipping. As you’ll see, it’s an involved process with many opportunities along the way that might change your originally estimated drayage costs. If you’re new to it, here’s a high-level overview of how drayage works: Exporting Empty the pick-up container that will carry your shipment Take the container to the loading location Return your Full Container Load (FCL) to port Importing Pi...
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How will the dip in consumer demand affect the volume of my shipments and overall business?

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Recent data suggest USA consumer confidence is improving as fears of continued inflation are leveling off. However, the recent drop in demand for import goods has significantly impacted ocean vessel operations throughout most ports around the world. Current USA-Chinese manufacturing orders are down 40% for the year, with an overall 20% decrease in container imports between August and November 2022. 1 Ocean carriers are reacting to the current vessel over-capacity in several ways including: Blank sailings - a sailing that has been partially canceled wherein some ports are bypassed, or fully canceled with no sailing at all Rollovers - overbooked sailings that leave a percentage of scheduled containers off the sailing Suspended service for specific lanes Reduction of vessel capacity for the short term 1 The decrease in import container traffic is having knock-on effects on export container capacity as well. That is, as fewer containers are being brought into the USA, competitio...
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Should I Buy Insurance for Cargo Shipments?

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Shipping insurance is a cost-effective investment that shouldn’t be overlooked for international ocean and air freight to make sure your valuable cargo is sufficiently protected. While most shipments go smoothly, unforeseen events do happen. The small investment in cargo insurance decreases your financial exposure in the unlikely event of a claim.  What is Cargo Insurance? Throughout the entire international shipping process, cargo insurance will protect the value of your goods against theft, damage, or what is known as “General Average.” General Average is specific to ocean transport and means if goods are lost or damaged as a result of the vessel’s captain trying to save the ship, all shippers share in the loss equally. In the event of this happening, expect many delays including cargo being held while the case is being investigated. All-Risk Marine Insurance is recommended to cover most losses or damage. Over the years, our customers have found invaluable peace of mind b...
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Comprehensive glossary of international shipping terms

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For your convenience, DGX-Dependable Global Express has compiled an extensive, easy-to-use Glossary of International Shipping Terms . With 300+ commercial transportation terms, our is one of the largest, most comprehensive glossaries available online. Glossary of International Shipping Terms Why learn Shipping Industry terminology? Every industry has a special language with terms, acronyms, abbreviations, jargon, etc. that are uniquely theirs. The shipping industry is no exception. Through our 40+ years in the business we’ve found that if we help customers understand commercial shipping language—including for air freight, ocean freight, trucking, rail, import/export, warehousing & distribution, logistics—the shipping process from Pickup to Delivery goes faster and smoother, saving time and money. We invite you to visit, bookmark and come back often when there’s shipping industry jargon being slung around! And, if you have suggestions for additional terms, please let us know ...
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How is the current crises in Ukraine affecting international shipping?

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DGX shares global sentiment for a quick end to the Ukraine crisis, especially the terrible suffering for innocent civilians. As trade sanctions take hold in Russia and Ukraine, shippers are undoubtedly encountering shipping carrier notices regarding suspended services to Russia and Ukraine that are having unintended consequences for all international transportation. To help minimize disruptions as much as possible for the international shipping community and our customers, DGX-Dependable Global Express is monitoring daily reports from all our ocean and air carriers to help with scheduling adjustments as necessary. Importantly,  we strongly recommend cargo insurance for any and all shipments. If you need help, contact us immediately and we'll guide you through the steps to properly insure all cargo for any shipping mode. Significant delays in key transshipment hubs caused by increased inspections on restricted or banned goods are affecting Customs clearance in affe...
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How to get commercial ocean shipments to their destination faster? Consider shipping by air freight...

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Air freight is used to transport goods over a long distance in a short period of time. You’ve seen the photos of freight container ships stalled in ports as the pandemic continues its massive disruption in global supply chains, challenging practically every industry here at home and around the globe. Shipping and delivery companies are scrambling to fill the needs of customers and clients. Assuming you’re experiencing the same obstacles, we strongly recommend considering air freight vs. ocean freight as an expeditious and reliable option. What challenges can air freight solve for you? Speed You need that special replacement part now You have perishables and products with a short shelf life Reliability Your business requires reliable departure and arrival times Cost Efficiency Less packaging is required for shipments Insurance premiums will likely be less More security and reduced risk of theft and damage And lower need for ware...
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