The transport bill is the most representative logistical cost of cargo shipping industries. On average, transport costs represent 8% of companies' revenues.
Many contracting industries wonder how the price of road freight will behave in 2018, and what is the best format to manage transporters: To make a long-term contract or not? Pre-establish readjustment deadlines and triggers? Include or not SLAs in the contracting of the carrier? Effectively charge penalties if the carrier does not comply with the agreement? How many conveyors should be used? To hire or not to hire a dedicated fleet?
If your company hires freight, you may have already begun to realize that it is not as easy as it used to be to find available carriers, especially during periods of peak demand. Some segments perceive this unavailability of vehicles even more strongly and the increase in pressure to increase prices. In general, this situation begins in segments with more specific requirements, such as refrigeration, or licenses, or with high seasonality in some period of the year.
What is happening again in the country is simple: rebalancing supply and demand.
Companies need to be prepared, and the quest to improve efficiency must once again be a priority, not just negotiating freight prices.
Maria Fernanda Hijjar
https://ilos.com.brManaging Partner of ILOS, she holds a master's degree and a bachelor's degree in Production Engineering from the Federal University of Rio de Janeiro (UFRJ). With over 10 years of experience in Logistics and Supply Chain, she has worked on various projects, managing and participating in research related to the topic. She has published more than 20 articles in newspapers, magazines, periodicals and conference proceedings, and is co-author of several titles in the COPPEAD Collection published by Atlas and in the ILOS and CEL/COPPEAD Logistics Panorama Collection.
