Shift in attitudes brings opportunities for BIFA Members

A shift in attitudes from shippers is seeing an increasing number contracting with freight forwarders for ocean and air transport procurement needs. This reverses the trend where major shippers took such activity in-house, cutting out the forwarder.

That is the theme of a new report, Using International Freight Forwarders - Costs, Contracts and Best Practices, published by industry consultants Drewry Supply Chain Advisors.

An increasing number of clients are also relying on freight forwarders to handle a wider and more complex range of services and requirements. This is having the result of requiring more complex business contracts and practices being created.

The new report has been researched and written from the perspective that logistics is not a core business for many manufacturers and distributors. Contracting out to freight forwarders and third-party logistics (3PL) and 4PL providers can mean cost advantages and the flexibility of a wider carrier base – “so long as you know what you are dealing with,” says the company.

Drewry believes that managers new to logistics will find this report a valuable mentor. For “battle-hardened professionals”, it is a source of the latest forwarding data and best practice benchmarking while for anyone connected with logistics it is a reference for how to get the best from the freight forwarding supplier whilst managing the inherent risks.

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