Why should you use Sea Freight to transport your goods?
Sea freight is the transportation of large, usually consumer goods via ocean or sea on large cargo ships. This is a preferred mode of transportation for many and is said to be a safer way to transport goods as compared to air freight.
What are the types/forms of sea freight?
1. Full Container Load (FCL) – this is where a big single shipment is packed into a container which can have a length up to 400 metres
2. Tankers – these are long ships which carry liquids such as vegetable oils or wines, petroleum products, oil or natural gas
3. Bulk Carriers – bulk carriers are designed to carry cargo such as coal, sand, crushed stone, building materials and grains. Some bulk carriers are called ‘self-discharging ships’ because they usually come with conveyor belts which unload goods from hold on the ships and back
4. Less Than Container Load (LCL) – this is where different cargo or shipments share a container and are then separated when they reach their final discharge point
5. Roll On Roll Off (RoRo) Ships – this is where large vehicles such as trucks, lorries or even big cars are able to drive onto a ship and simply drive off once they reach their destination.
6. Reefer Ships – these are designed to carry cargo such as perishable goods e.g. meat and dairy products, fish and vegetables in refrigerators. The temperature in the refrigerators is monitored and regulated so food will not spoil
What are the pros of sea freight?
1. The biggest advantage is that sea freight is cost effective and much cheaper than sea freight. Things like import and/or export duty will be less expensive than if you were shipping your cargo via air freight and this also includes VAT
2. You are able to transport big cargo such as furniture or big vehicles such as trucks, lorries, cranes and big cars
3. Sea freight is generally better for the environment as there is less pollution of dangerous emissions
4. There are quite a few sea freight options to choose from as mentioned above
What are the cons of sea freight?
1. Unfortunately cargo transported via sea freight is more likely to go through damage as compared to air freight
2. Sea freight can be very costly in terms of time as it can take between 30 – 60 days to transport cargo from one place to another
Using sea freight to transport goods