Where there are goods and products to be sold, there are logistics to be conducted.  So, it should be no surprise to anyone that Valentine’s Day is one of the biggest holidays for logistics.

The National Retail Federation (NRF) states that 55% of the U.S. population will participate in Valentine’s Day with the average consumer spending $143.56 ($7 increase from 2017).  Planned Spending for 2018 is projected to be $19.6 Billion which is $1.4 billion more than last year.

Author: John Hritz from Ann Arbor, MI, USA via WikiMedia Commons

According to the NRF, the top 3 gift plans are candy (55%), greeting cards (45.9%), and flowers (35.6%).  Surprise, surprise, all these items are commodities which can be imported.  Looking at U.S. import data in the month of December alone, we see about ~39 million kilograms of candy, ~25+ million of individual greeting cards, and ~61 million kilograms of flowers being imported.

Once the products are imported they still need to be moved to the importer’s warehouse, separated, repackaged, moved to distributors, distributed to retailers, unpacked, labeled, and shelved before they are ready to sell.  That’s a lot of planning and a lot of logistics.

But when your significant other receives that bouquet of roses and the box of chocolates and showers you with love and adornment, no one thanks the logistics.  No thanks for the hundreds of people who ensured you will have something to buy your loved one that one day of year you express your gratitude and appreciate to them.

So this Valentine’s Day, Universal Cargo urges you to not only thank your loved ones, but thank logistics personnel everywhere.  The hardworking men and women of our society that ensure we have beautiful and delicious things to purchase everyday.

Featured Image:  Author – Johntex via WikiMedia Commons

The post Thank You for Valentine’s Day Logistics appeared first on Universal Cargo.

We then departed to Mable which is farther north to stay at a Hotel and finish all the preparations for the big party day. The day before the event we went to Tororo to visit Pastor Ruth and her staff of 100 women at SMILE. Our job that day was to get everything stored and ready (2,000 backpacks filled with gifts) along with different colored t-Shirts for each of the age groups and genders. We also got to hang with several of the hundreds of orphans that were at the facility that day.

After this we lined up the 100 women and washed their feet like Jesus taught us. Then we did their manicure and pedicures. While this was going on, Alex Moreno grabbed me and said there were a few sick women that needed our prayer. I felt excited, because I knew God was going to do something powerful. One lady came to us literally crawling because her feet were deformed. So, she either used a specially made seated bicycle to get around or she crawled on her knees. As we looked at her knees they were all cut up, bruised, dirty, it was very sad. She said she had a few pains here and there, including her knees. As we prayed for her, I felt the faith build up in me to believe for a miraculous healing of her feet.

We started claiming God’s promises in the word about healing.  She began to feel much better, but her feet were still deformed. She eventually said thank you (asanti) and crawled away. I felt bad. I was expecting a miracle. But then I also felt peace that God would heal her in his timing. So, I let it go, and approached the next woman who needed prayer.

She had said she had a severe pain in her stomach and was wrenching over, basically crying. We immediately began praying over her, and as we did, her pain got worse. It was if our prayers were having the opposite effect. So, I began to pray quietly to myself to ask God what was going on. Immediately I sensed God showed me in my mind a picture, or I heard him tell me that she had a generation curse, sort of like someone in her family line had put a curse on her, like a witch doctor or something. I then questioned God not sure if I was really hearing correctly. Right away I sensed an urgency from God telling me to identify this and cast the demonic curse or demon out.  I had also seen a very clear picture in mind of two demons standing on each side of her pulling a chain around her mid-section and squeezing the life out of her.

So, with this sense of urgency and obedience to what I believed the Holy Spirit was showing me, I stopped us all from praying and told the lady what God showed me, and that God wanted us to take authority in the name of Jesus to cast these demons and this curse from her life. After this was translated to her in Swahili, she agreed and said he believed God would do it. We then told the demon to leave her and declared her free from this sickness in Jesus name. Then she instantly relaxed and smiled and was healed. This all happened so fast I was blown away. My faith just shot up about a dozen notches. We all then hugged her, and she walked away healed.

Then the day came for the event. The Bull had been slaughtered and made into stew in very large vats, together with rice and some veggies. We had also helped sponsor to pay for some merry go round type rides and those gigantic blow up jumping things, you know what I’m talking about…I forget what they are called. They also brought in a DJ along with some musicians and instruments (djembes my favorite). As we arrived that day, we came in our bus and as we entered the gated facility, we saw about 3,000 kids outside wanting to get in, but not allowed. These kids had walked for up to 5 miles to come to this event. The problem was that we could only allow 2,000, and there were already 2,000 kids inside the compound.

Wow, I was again blown away. As we entered the area and exited our bus, I was immediately mobbed by probably 100 boys, they all wanted to touch me, pull the hair on my arms (apparently men in Uganda don’t have hair on their arms). They began to shout and jump, and eventually I did too along with this hoard of boys.  They wanted me to take their picture (many have never looked into a mirror let alone seen a picture of themselves). At some point I looked around the walls of the compound surrounding us, and as they had barbed wire on top of these walls, there were several trees nearby on the outside with several boys just sitting on the branches watching us. Eventually I went outside with Alex out the front gate to see all the kids standing outside that couldn’t get in. I wanted to say it to them. But instead they started throwing rocks at us, so we had to duck inside.

Well this went on for a long time, until it was time to sit them all down in their designated age groups and put on the show. The show was a few speeches (I made one about the importance of Fathers and told my story of not having a father), there was a lot of music, dancing (I also joined the dance contest, but was badly out danced by these kids…wow, they can dance). I spent some time teaching some of the boys how to play the djembe, and ended up playing with some of the musicians and received some fist pumps from them (to which one of our Watoto team members told me what an honor that was to receive).

Then all the kids were set loose to play on all the rides. But basically, during this whole day I was constantly surrounded by boys needing me to pick them up, swing them around, hold them, take their picture, learn Swahili, and just hang. Because again, there is no men in the lives of these boys. I felt everything being sucked out of me, all of my energy, my strength (did I mention how hot it is on the equator), and my life.  But you know what, it felt GOOOOOOD. I was getting dirtier, more stinky, and germs everywhere, eww right? No, it was glorious. By the way although I did get my necessary shots for this trip, I not only didn’t get sick, but I felt even stronger as I was doing God’s work.

Then came the time to eat Bruce (the Bull). We first organized all the kids back to their perspective areas and line them up in an orderly fashion, then proceeded to bring the food to all of them. Then we all sat down and ate together. It was amazing. Later, after that it was time to present all the kids with their individual gifts. Same process, line them all up and distribute. Everything went great until the group I was handing gifts out to ended up about 30 backpacks short. After some confusion and deliberation, we then found out that that the local men who were hired to assemble all the rides had stolen these 30 backpacks. We then brought in 2 of the policemen that were outside guarding the gate and they tied up the three men together with rope with all three standing with their backs to each other and their hands behind their back tied all together. They then had to sit before Pastor Ruth who sat on a chair acting as their judge and jury while the police waited for her verdict. She questioned them, and shamed them, and afterwards it was determined that two of them were sorry and repentant while the other was the leader and was not repentant as he kept lying. Pastor Ruth then forgave the two and the police released them, while they hauled the one guy away. Local justice. We then interestingly found some gifts in a bag we forgot about in one of the storage rooms, that gave us enough gifts to hand out to the remaining 30 boys.  Interesting how God works this stuff out.

Once the party was over and we cleaned everything and got ready to leave, we then gathered around Pastor Ruth and prayed over her for strength, protection and blessings. It was a powerful day that impacted me tremendously. I left feeling a sorrow for these children in these slums, that were just a fraction of the slums throughout Uganda and what I would surmise to be in the neighboring countries. For I knew that several of these kids would have their backpacks stolen from them after they left our compound by older kids or adult males. They would go back to their poverty-stricken existence. Several of these young girls that we were ministering to would eventually get raped and impregnated and some would get AIDS. I knew we had made a powerful impact on them and showed them the love of God not just in words.

I know we gave them some hope. But I also know that there are good people in Uganda like the Skinners and Pastor Ruth who have laid their lives down to bring this hope and restoration to these people. I know there are also many great stories to tell as well. Stories of children who were left abandoned and then were rescued and nurtured and educated and have become great people, productive members of the Uganda society. I do know that God can do anything, he just wants us to get off our bums and be obedient to whatever it is we are called to do to help solve the problem.

I like a quote from one of my ancestors Edmund Burke that says: “all that is necessary for evil to triumph is for good MEN to do nothing.” So, when I say MEN I mean MEN. Because one the things that affected me the most during this trip was the absence of men. The men are the problem in Uganda. They have shirked their responsibilities as leaders, as fathers. So, what is needed is MEN to come to this country (not just a mission team of 17 where 14 are women). Men who will be an example, be a father figure, and train the next generation of boys to become real men. This curse must stop not just in this country but in every other third world country where the men are the problem and instead become the solution. How does this happen? If you are reading this and your heart is not moved to do something then either you are already doing something great somewhere else, or your heart needs to be worked on a little by God. Don’t worry, if you allow God to do this, it doesn’t really hurt too bad, it actually hurts good if you know what I mean. But really all I am saying is men need to stand up and be like Isaiah in the Bible, and say “here I am Lord, send me.”

Don’t forget to click and check out all the ways UC CARES on our new webpage.

The post Reach Up Reach Out – Mission Recap – Part 2 appeared first on Universal Cargo.

As far as I know, most “Mission” trips are Christian based, meaning there is a Church or ministry behind it. So, this means if you are not a “fellow believer”, you will either be powerfully impacted in a positive way, or you will be very uncomfortable. Because the driving theme will be faith and the expectation of the miraculous. This kind of forces you as the “outsider” to decide if this is something you want to come into agreement with or not. There is no room for fence sitting. With that said, I am sure there are “non religious” mission type trips that seek to accomplish the same, but I suspect they are not even called mission trips. They would most likely be associated with an NGO, non profit charity, or something like the Peace Corps.

Now that we have clarified this, I will say unashamedly I am a “born again”, spirit filled, charismatic, Bible believing follower of Jesus the Messiah and savior of the world and son of God Who is part of the trinity, therefore being God.  Whew, that’s a mouthful.  But I wanted to make sure there is no confusion here. I am not a “religious” person and I am not in a Cult. I say this because there is a lot of misrepresentation and confusion as to what a real Christian is. I say it also because my story about this trip must be understood from the perspective of what I truly believe.

As I mentioned, if you are going on a mission trip you should go expecting to encounter the power and love of God in the miraculous.   Because if you study the life and teachings of the greatest Rabbi ever, Jesus son of Joseph (Ben Joseph) which is Jesus’ real last name, not Christ, you will discover his life and the life he taught us to have is anything but boring.

Now to the story:

There were 17 of us, 3 of us men. I have a reason in pointing this out which I will discuss later. Most of us met in Dubai because some had come from other cities besides LA where most of us hailed from. The rest met us in Kampala, which is the big city of Uganda, which is one country west of Kenya in east Africa.  When we touched down after a total of 22 hours of flying, I did which I have learned to be very effective against jet lag. I took of my shoes and stood on the actual ground (not cement) in my bare feet. I immediately received a soul stirring charge to my body. Africa was welcoming me. My first time in this continent.

The first morning I awoke very early because my body had not yet adjusted to the 12-hour different time zone. But this morning I was swimming in the Holy Spirit. I mean it felt awesome. I could hear God’s voice so clearly.  He began to show me several important things about what I was to expect on the following 10 days as well as insights I was to share with several other team members. Then as I left my room in the dark, headed to a vantage point to catch the sunrise (with camera in hand of course) I found myself looking out from the mountain we were on over Lake Victoria, which is the largest lake in Africa.  I began to see the sun rise over the mist covering the lake. It was epic.

One of the things I felt the Lord impress upon me was to expect his power to show up in 240 volts verses 120. As in most countries outside of the U.S., you need a transformer to adjust to the stronger electrical outlets to not blow out your electronics. So, God was then imparting a spiritual transformer to me.

After a few days it was interesting to see how 17 people, most of whom didn’t know each other, assimilated.  It is interesting because it takes about 3 days for Christians to be very close together all day long and then you start seeing the usual polite and amiable “Christian” Venere wear off, and people start to get real, and we all start to get glimpses of who we all really are.  Once we started to get our rhythm collectively, we found ourselves immersed in the task at hand. That was the enormous endeavor to help coordinate and facilitate a Christmas party for 2,000 orphans in the remote area called Teroro in eastern Uganda, 15 minutes from Kenya.  Basically, we were in the slums. Surrounded by thousands of poverty-stricken people, where like most of Uganda, the villages, towns, communities are filled with an abundance of orphans due to the combining factors of the AIDS epidemic killing many adults, the highest concentration of alcohol abuse (with men) in the world, extreme poverty (average wage is $0.55 a day) incest, rape and a complete void of fathers in this country.  Oh yeah, and a dark history of corruption, abuse and genocide (Idi Amin, Joseph Kony).

In this area of Uganda, there is an organization called SMILE AFRICA, headed up by, of course, a woman, named Pastor Ruth Kahawa. She has bravely formed an organization run by all women (about 100) who take care of about 500 orphans out of these surrounding slums, and act as their teachers and parents during the day, while attending to any medical needs and of course feeding them. The organization that headed up this mission trip is called RURO (Reach Up Reach Out) formed by Alex and Shunna Moreno. They have partnered with SMILE to bring people twice a year to assist them in the caring for these orphans while putting on a major event. The Summer mission trip is all about a Worship/Music event, where children are invited to participate and learn to sing and play instruments. The winter one is all about a Christmas party that lasts about 12 hours.

So, our job was to fill up 2,000 backpacks with toys for both girls and boys in 3 different age groups. Then transport everything from Kampala to Teroro (a 10-hour drive). Once there, we spent two days not only organizing everything for the event but ministering to the 100 women that ran SMILE. We then paid for a Bull to be bought and slaughtered so that there would be a feast for 2,000 kids during the event. It was amazing by the way to see how this practice of killing and eating farm animals is so common in this culture.

Getting back to our time in the beginning where we stayed a few days in Kampala. There is an organization called Watoto (Meaning Children in Swahili) that is headquartered there. They have branch locations all around the Kampala area. But their HQ is right in downtown Kampala where ironically the building being used by Idi Amin for torturing his victims occurred, as well as a jail or prison, back in the late ’70’s and early ’80’s (a good movie to see about this story is The Last King of Scotland, with Forrest Whitaker ’06). Watoto was formed by Gary and Marilyn Skinner in 1984.  Their passion was to deal with the widespread problem of orphaned children throughout Uganda. Today they have 3 separate facilities in Uganda caring for over 4,000 children.  They also use their HQ for their Church that has over 25,000 in attendance. The Watoto Children’s choir also tours the world and is gaining notoriety.

RURO also teams up with Watoto to gather some help for the enormous task of putting on these events. We first attended one of their facilities where newborns up to toddlers are kept and cared for. The experience of holding these infants and toddlers brought tears to my eyes. Because in Uganda there is so much rape and incest. It is very common after a 12-14-year-old girl is raped by a family member, if they give birth, it is then a shame to the family. So, the infant is literally thrown away into the fields. So, organizations like Watoto rescue children all the time that are left to die. Sick and starving somewhere in a pile of trash, field, back alley, or God knows where. So, these babies desperately need not only human touch and love, but they also need the presence of a man, a fatherly figure. So, this was a powerful experience for me. My most memorable time was spending about 1-2 hours with an 18-month boy named Livingston, holding him, feeding him, letting him play with the hair on my arms and just giving him quality MAN time he so desperately needed.

After 3 days, with several new team members that Watoto lent us, we were headed to Jinja. Which is at the northern point of Lake Victoria (Lake Victoria is where Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi, Kenya, Tanzania and the Congo all converge). In Jinja this is basically where the Nile is formed and travels over 4,000 miles to Egypt making it the longest river in the world and the only river to travel north. There we visited another Organization/Ministry that also takes in orphans in the poor areas of this town, called H.E.A.L. Ministries. What they do is act as a school and day care to help the poor families in the area. While we met the women that headed this up and played with several of the children, they had prepared a major feast for us.  We ate very delicious and healthy farm grown food, with one of my favorite meats (which happens to be the most eaten meat in the world, can you guess?). Yes, that’s right, goat.

I’ll stop here and pick up the story later this week with our healing prayers and what happened at the big party!

Don’t forget to click and check out all the ways UC CARES on our new webpage.

The post Reach Up Reach Out – Mission Recap – Part 1 appeared first on Universal Cargo.

What is the commodity?

You’d be surprised how many times we get asked to ship mystery containers. Before we can give you a quote we need to know what you’re shipping so that we can be sure it isn’t a restricted item and we know how to classify it. Improperly classified shipments can lead to delays and sometimes destruction of property, which is very costly.

Knowing what you’re shipping also tells us how to handle the item. If you’re shipping 1,000 lbs. of Wagyu Steaks, we would need to know so that your product is kept refrigerated and you don’t lose your profit to spoiling.

What is the size and weight of the shipment?

Is it 300 lbs. or 30,000? Depending on how big your shipment is, different options may be available to you, such as Air or Ocean. Air pricing depends on size and weight and Ocean is generally priced by the cubic meters the container takes up.

Some loads are too small for us to ship, but when this happens we usually have a good recommendation for other shippers. If you let us know up front, it will save you the time of finding a person who can get your product shipped.

Where is the shipment going?

Be specific, saying a shipment is going to California isn’t as helpful as a warehouse address or providing us with a port of destination. We’re able to give you an accurate quote when we know exactly how far a shipment is going. Remember, if a trucker has to move your goods from the port to the warehouse that’s additional man power, and it adds up.

We also like to ask about destination because there are some countries that, due to Embargos or acts of war, have restrictions on shipments going in and out of the country.

Timing

Logistics is all about timing. If you get a shipping quote too early, you run the risk of it not being valid when you’re ready to ship. If you get a quote too late, you might not get the best quote, and, worse, you might not be able to ship when you want. Try to get quotes around 30 days out from when you would like to receive the shipment. Quotes are good for around 30 days, so you won’t need to worry about prices changing.

Conclusion

The bottom line is if you’re new to shipping, it can all seem overwhelming. Making sure you correctly categorize your commodity, checking shipment sizes, and figuring out the perfect time to get a quote is complicated. At Universal Cargo, we’ve been CARE-ing about your cargo for over 30 years, and we know what we’re doing. Give us a chance to take CARE of any of your shipping and logistics needs.

The post How To Get an Accurate Freight Quote appeared first on Universal Cargo.

Now that it’s been in place for over a year, we decided it would be good to have some of our staff explain to you, our customers and readers, what C.A.R.E. means to them!

In this blog, we will focus on the first two values of C.A.R.E., Customers and Available. Below you will find messages from members of our staff explaining which value means the most to them and how they use it in their daily work.

C – Customers

Porche’ Fogg – Executive Coordinator, ATL Ops

“C- Customer : Being as though I’m the first point of contact, customers are very important to me. I want to ensure that each person has a pleasant experience firsthand, and that I’m able to answer any question and help them in any way possible. Whether that includes helping them find information such as when the shipment is coming in or directing them to a sales person for  quotation of future shipments. ”

Shirley Burke – President

“My top letter is C for our Customers.  They are why Universal Cargo exists. We not only CARE about out customers we APPRECIATE them, we VALUE them, and we actually LOVE Serving them.  We are in a service industry and we teach our staff that each of them are a leader and the most successful leaders are Servant Leaders.   I also love C because we promote Internal Customer Service.  What this means is that we are also here to CARE for each other and serve one another.  Sometimes we forget this one because it’s not in our “job description” but it is an important part of our CARE Core Values.”

Joey Bitong – Account Manager

“We should always care about feedback and personal  comments from our customers so that we can handle  their shipments the way they want it. Examples are: Giving advance notice to clients so that they can accept delivery when they want and accommodating customers requests. This way they know they can call you a friend instead of just a forwarder.”

Angel Choi – Account Executive

Customers means the most to me. Without customers, our business doesn’t exist so the most important to me is show customers that we care about their shipments and we can relieve them from any stress and worry related to their logistic needs. To me, to be reliable and be accountable to my customers are the my core value.

Bryan Burke – Sales Staff

“Customers means the most to me in the sense of teamwork and response time to my co-workers, with the same urgency as with customers.”

Kellee Mallord – Account Executive

“I care about my customers and I appreciate that they trust me to handle their freight.   I am honored to work with them and I always want to make sure they know they are in good hands.”

A – Available

Jennifer Lee – Account Manager

“I am always available to answer any technical or work related questions in the office. Even when I’m off, I’ll answer any phone calls or text messages from the office or co-workers to help them out when needed.”

Mayra Munoz – Finance Supervisor

“The letter that means the most to me is the letter A for Available. The way I apply this core value to my daily work is by being Available and ready to help. I like to be available for people at all times. I think that helping each other out is what keeps this business running smoothly.”

Erika Moreno – Operations Staff

“Available means the most to me. As an Ops Support I need to be available for any  request that my fellow accountant managers need in order to provide the best accurate information to our customers and partners.”

On Thursday, we’ll hear from a few more staff members about the second half of C.A.R.E., Resourceful and Evolving.

The post Universal Cargo CARES – Part 1 appeared first on Universal Cargo.

With Universal Cargo as your partner, you can trust that each shipment we prepare will meet Amazon’s standards. All we need from you is confirmation of the following:

• How will this be delivered?
  • Which FBA Warehouse(s) are we going to
    • Amazon will assign you the FBA warehouse(s)
  • How many cartons to each location?
• Where is the Amazon Prep happening?
  • Origin
    • Your shipper must apply the product labels to each individual piece
    • The shipper should also use a box size approved by Amazon (see below)
    • Some importers ask their supplier to label the boxes
      • We can double check the labels to make sure they were applied properly
  • Destination
    • Universal Cargo!
  • Your Garage
    • Some people want to handle the palletizing and labeling all on their own. This is acceptable, but please beware, it takes a lot of work and must be done perfectly or Amazon will turn away your shipment.
• Would you like help with the delivery?
  • No – Use Amazon’s Domestic Trucking Portal
    • Amazon Discounts
    • You set up the trucking via the portal
    • Choose from list of carriers with prices
    • Input pickup location info
    • We will give you the pallet measurements
    • You send measurements to the truckers
    • You send the Bill of Lading to the warehouse
    • You follow up with the trucker for pickup or delivery status
    • You will be the truckers point of contact for any problems or surprises
  • Yes – Universal Cargo will handle (recommended)
    • Competitive pricing
    • Much less work on your end
    • Universal Cargo can intervene if any problems or surprises pop up!
    • Less chance for error
• The carton and pallet labels
  • Can be accessed from within your Amazon account
  • We provide you with the pallet dimensions and weight that you input into Amazon’s site to generate the labels

Four things – that’s it! We handle everything else when you have us help from start to finish.

Once the shipment has arrived and been cleared, we will move the cargo to the warehouse, break down the pallet, apply (or double check) the box labels, segregate the boxes into different loads, palletize, shrink wrap, label the pallets, and deliver the cargo!

Here are the requirements all Amazon shipments must meet:

• Cartons & Carton Labels
  • Most cartons cannot exceed 25” on any side; less than 50lbs
    • There is a premium charge if overweight/oversize
  • Carton labels must contain required Amazon info & specs
  • One label per carton
  • Labels cannot be placed on a seam or box opening
  • Only place labels on flat surfaces
• Pallets & Pallet Labels
  • Pallets must be standard size 48”x40”x <72”; up to 1500lbs
  • Pallets must be in good condition
  • No cargo overhanging the edges
  • Pallets must be shrink wrapped and securely stacked.
  • Pallets cannot be made out of weak material (i.e. cardboard or particle board)
  • Pallets cannot be broken
  • 5 labels per pallet (one on each side & one on top)
  • Most Amazon shipments delivered by an LTL trucker (i.e., not UPS, USPS, or FedEx) must be palletized
  • Special Pallet Labels (as needed)

• Delivery
  • Appointment Delivery
    • Set up in advance
  • No General Public Deliveries
    • i.e., you can’t deliver the cargo yourself
  • Carrier must be registered with Amazon

As you can see, a lot of work is required to prepare a shipment for Amazon. A forgotten label, appointment mishap, or pallet violation has the potential to cause a loss of hundreds (if not thousands) of dollars and unnecessary delays.

Let us know how we can help!

The post Amazon Shipments – What You Need To Know appeared first on Universal Cargo.

What many of you may not know is that Universal Cargo can continue to help with your shipment long after the freight arrives in the U.S. and has cleared customs. This blog post is going to cover the extra services that we can provide for our import customers selling on Amazon.

Amazon has very specific requirements when it comes to the shipments they will accept. We can help make sure the following are correct with your Amazon shipment:

• Carton Labels
• Pallet Type
• Pallet Height
• Pallet Labels
• Amazon Appointment Delivery

The services we provide for Amazon are as follows:

• Segregation
  • Are you shipping to one warehouse or has Amazon provided you with multiple FBA locations?
• Re-labeling
  • Carton labels
  • Pallet labels
• Re-palletizing to Amazon specifications

When you entrust Universal Cargo with your Amazon shipment, we only need the following information/documents from you to prepare for and delivery to Amazon:

• Which Amazon FBA are you going to?
  • Amazon will assign you the FBA warehouse(s)
• Where is the Amazon Prep happening?
  • Origin/Destination/Your Garage?
• Would you like help with the delivery (two options)?
  • Use Amazon’s Domestic Trucking Portal
  • Let us handle
• The carton and pallet labels

We handle everything else!

Check out this blog to take an in-depth look at what it really takes to get your cargo prepared for Amazon and to get more details regarding the above lists.

We promise, preparing for Amazon is not as hard as you may think!

If you have a partner like Universal Cargo to help you out with the process, it’ll be easy peasy lemon squeezy.

The post How a Freight Forwarder Can Help with Amazon FBA Shipments appeared first on Universal Cargo.

As an international shipper, one of the most important steps you can take to avoid excessive delays and fees is to prepare every shipment as though customs will perform an inspection.

This means to always load your container in a way that allows the CBP officer(s) to quickly examine your cargo. If your cargo isn’t loaded neatly, CBP may take that as an indication that prohibited items are being hidden. To assist you, we’ve put together some container loading guidelines.

Some recommendations from CBP are to:
• Palletize your cargo
• Pack the container neatly so it doesn’t look like suspicious cargo is being hidden
• Leave enough room in the container for a drug-sniffing K-9 to access your cargo (down the center and at the top)
• Separate merchandise that is subject to different duty rates
• Ensure that all the goods are properly listed on the invoice

Another preventative measure is to become a C-TPAT partner. C-TPAT is a voluntary government-business initiative that builds cooperative relationships that strengthen and improve overall international supply chain and U.S. border security.

Photo courtesy of C-TPAT website

By becoming a C-TPAT partner, along with other benefits, you will experience less frequent exams (when compared to non-C-TPAT importers). Your tier level (I, II, or III) is taken into consideration by CBP’s internal risk assessment system and “C-TPAT partner companies are considered low risk and are, therefore, examined at a much lower rate than non-C-TPAT Partners,” as explained by CBP.

Lower risk equals fewer exams.

For more information on C-TPAT you can visit our Universal Cargo C-TPAT Validation Page or go directly to the C-TPAT website.

CBP explains that once the exam has started, CBP will make sure that the commercial invoice matches the cargo. “If the CBP officer finds any package that contains an article not specified on the invoice, and there is reason to believe the article was omitted from the invoice by fraud, gross negligence, negligence on the part of the seller, shipper, owner, or agent, a monetary penalty may be imposed, or in some cases, the merchandise may be seized or forfeited. (See e.g., 19 U.S.C. 1592.) “

To avoid additional delays and costs, make sure your container is loaded in a way that allows the CBP officer to perform an inspection.

Photo by James Tourtellotte for CBP

CBP has provided a Reasonable Care Checklist that importers can use to ensure they are in compliance with customs requirements. Please note that this list is not exhaustive, but rather a resource that can be used to assist importers with their efforts in compliance. Universal Cargo is a great partner to have when importing because with the combined experience of customs specialists, account managers, agents, and operations specialists, many of the items on the checklist will be covered. It’s up to the buyer and seller to make sure the cargo details are accurately documented (i.e., origin, value, quantity, etc).

Packing the container properly, getting certified and validated with C-TPAT, and complying with all US Customs and Border Patrol requirements will help to minimize any delays in receiving your cargo.

As inconvenient as these exams are, they are invaluable when it comes to public safety, national security and public health (to name a few). CBP isn’t just looking for importers undervaluing their cargo or using the wrong HTS code.

CBP is also stopping weapons, invasive pests and plants, and food that could cause severe illness or death from affecting the public. You may know (or think) that your cargo is safe, but it’s CBP’s responsibility to ensure the safety of 318,000,000 people in America.

That’s a big job.

The post Not another Customs Exam! Part 2 appeared first on Universal Cargo.

You insist you haven’t done anything wrong! We believe you. Exams are just a part of the international shipping world that we’ve all grown to know and tolerate. Under 19 USC 1467, any shipment imported into the United States can be examined by Customs and Border Protection.

Per CBP’s publication on Importing into the U.S.

“Examination of goods and documents is necessary to determine, among other things:

The value of the goods for customs purposes and their dutiable status,
Whether the goods must be marked with their country of origin or require special marking or labeling. If so, whether they are marked in the manner required,
Whether the shipment contains prohibited articles,
Whether the goods are correctly invoiced,
Whether the goods are in excess of the invoiced quantities or a shortage exists,
Whether the shipment contains illegal narcotics.”

CBP doesn’t explain exactly why containers are flagged, but details such as origin country, shipper, importer and tariff code are taken into consideration.

To add insult to injury, the consignee (you) will be responsible for any costs associated with the exam. CBP does not charge for the exam, but fees from the Centralized Examination Station (CES), demurrage, transportation to/from the exam site, and storage may accrue during the exam period.

North American 3PL (NA3PL) has put together a great list explaining the different types of exams.

Agriculture Specialist performing a tailgate/backdoor exam. Photo by James Tourtellotte for CBP

• X-Ray Exam/Vehicle and Cargo Inspection Systems Exam (VACIS)/Non-Intrusive Inspection (NII))
  • Per NA3PL, “VACIS uses gamma ray technology to produce images of tankers, commercial trucks, sea and air containers, and other vehicles for contraband such as drugs, weapons, and currency. This examination does not break the seal on your container, and is usually completed ship-side or within the port terminal compound.”
• Tailgate/Backdoor Exam
  • The container is moved to an exam area close to the port and the back of the container is opened. “The seal is removed and, pending any suspicious indicators, could at that time be flagged for a more intensive examination or released,” as explained by NA3PL.
• Contraband Enforcement Team (CET) Exam/Intensive Exam.
  • The container is actually moved to a different facility (such as the Oakland CES belonging to NA3PL), examined and, if necessary, unloaded.

Click here for part two to see some tips and tricks that can help reduce the downtime and may even decrease the frequency of customs exams.

The post Not Another Customs Exam! Part 1 appeared first on Universal Cargo.

This blog is a blog to highlight the blogs on the UCM Blog Page which are our top blogs in terms of popular blog reading. Too many blogs in that sentence? I can never tell.

To narrow out blogs on topics specific to current events that are no longer current, this list is based on blog views over the last year.

No need to keep you waiting, here’s the countdown of Universal Cargo Management’s top 5 most popular blogs:

5 – What Effect Does China’s Value Added Tax (VAT) Have on Shippers?

This is a pretty new post, but became popular fast. At the beginning of this month, China had tax policy changes that affect shippers. Specifially, they issued a Value Added Tax to replace certain Business Tax in certain industries throughout the country. If you import goods from China, this blog covers how China’s new Value Added Tax will affect you.

4 – Top 10 Import Goods from China with Pics!

Speaking of importing goods from China, this popular blog features a top 10 list of the most imported products from China. It’s great for the person looking to get into importing from China or who is just curious about the top items that are imported there. Of course, it is a good idea when choosing a product you’re going to import to make it one you’re passionate about so you can sell it and be successful with it.

3 – 4 Factors for Considering Air Freight vs. Ocean Freight

When it comes to international shipping, there are two main choices: shipping by air or shipping by sea. Air cargo and ocean freight both have advantages, but which one is right for you? This blog looks at 4 factors you should look at to help you make the best choice. This has been a very popular blog since it was first posted two years ago.

2 – Incoterms to Apps: 5 Resources to Help You Succeed in International Shipping

As a friend to your business, Universal Cargo Management provides many resources to help you succeed using international shipping for international business. This popular blog post features five easily accessible resources UCM has on our site. It includes a Ports App for your iPhone, a Logistics Glossary, Incoterms Chart, a Conversion Calculator, and a Cargo Insurance Guide.

1 – What’s the Deal With Incoterms?! / Incoterms Definitions

Incoterms is a popular subject. Our number one most successful blog is What’s the Deal With Incoterms?! While that blog is our most popular, I’m cheating here a little bit by including the whole series of blogs that define the different incoterms individually with it. Each of these blogs could have made this list individually; but, to keep this list from becoming a list of incoterm blogs, I’ve bundled these together.

If you want to know the definition of a particular incoterm, you can find it in the title list of the incoterms definitions blogs below.

Incoterms Definitions Part 1: EXW, FCA, FAS, FOB

Incoterms Definitions Part 2: CFR, CIF, CPT, CIP

Incoterms Definitions Part 3: DAT, DAP, DDP

Of course, as a freight forwarder, we’re not here merely to write blogs related to international shipping; we’re here to handle your international shipping so you can focus on the part of your business you love.

We’re always prepared to give you great, free freight rate pricing quotes for your imports and exports.

Source: Incoterms

The post UCM's Top 5 Most Popular International Shipping Blogs appeared first on Universal Cargo.

The post Top 10 Import Goods from China with Pics appeared first on Universal Cargo.