In the value-added business, industries must transport large quantities of goods or commodities. Bulk transport uses large vessels that can carry items in liquid or solid form. It’s one way to satisfy the market demands for products and services.
The consignment in these large merchant vessels is weighed in tons due to the large volumes needed to be transported. However, environmental concerns over bulk transport affect the commodities in transit. The impact can interfere with the habitat and humans if there’s a spillage of the goods.
Carriers are now looking to transport commodities in packages, such as FIBC bags. Investing in such packaging materials is crucial to safeguard your goods in transit. It ensures that the goods are in perfect condition when delivered, and you can store them for a few months. You can eliminate the possibility of goods spillage for the shipping vessels.
Below are eight industries that benefit from bulk transport for their business processes.
1. Food And Beverage
Food and beverage bulk transport is highly regulated due to the underlying food safety policy. Businesses in the industry must adhere to international organization for standardization (ISO) standards for food handling to ensure that the commodities in transit are safe for human consumption. For that reason, surveillance controls must monitor how food and beverage commodities are transported across the ocean, road, and air.
Moreover, the carriers’ equipment should also satisfy hygiene standards. Otherwise, it becomes hard to contain health complications that stem from poor bulk transportation and handling of food and beverages. Your company can suffer losses due to errors that started from transporting food-related commodities to your end product in the market.
2. Chemicals And Industrial Gases
Industries use chemicals and gases for various reasons, which can affect the production of goods and services. Bulk transporters must meet the safety standards outlined by the Occupational Safety and Health (OSH) regulators. Such a requirement protects the carrier and those using the chemicals and gases.
Therefore, it’s crucial to audit the bulk carriers’ vessels and vehicles used to carry the chemicals and gases. There must be relevant labels to inform the public of what’s in transit as a safety measure. You must also provide personal protective equipment (PPE) for anyone handling the chemicals and gases to safeguard their lives.
3. Manufacturing Sector
Bulk transportation can smoothen your operations if your core business produces and sells. It’ll ensure that you’re on course with your organizational goals. Bulk shipment can be cost-effective considering the volumes you intend to transport. For instance, bulk transport can be 10% of your total production cost, and you can negotiate better payment terms with your carrier.
However, geographical variations and forex fluctuation can affect the rate of transportation. It’s crucial to consider the product’s price, the foreign exchange rate in your country, and the source of the commodity.
4. Metal Industries
Metals are byproducts of ore that come from mining activities. Stakeholders in the metal business can ship the metal alone or carry ores collected from the mines. The cargo carried depends on the underlying weight calculations. For instance, the ship’s draught can be a weight-determining factor during bulk transportation. But it’s unreliable since it’s not an accurate tool for measurement.
Alternatively, carriers use haulage vehicles on a weighbridge to determine the weight dumped at the ports. Aside from shipping ores, stakeholders in the metal sector can decide to carry premade metal bars by road after receiving large consignments by sea.
5. Crude Oil Refineries
Oil refinery covers edible foodstuff and vehicle fuel and lubricants. They use crude oil in their production processes to create finished goods for the market. Bulk transportation of crude oil can vary by the nature of the end product. Edible oil to refineries can use barges, railroads, tankers, and pipelines, among other allowed food standards means of transportation.
Bulk transportation is specific due to safety concerns for crude oil used in vehicles and other lubricant functions. It can use pipelines and liquified tankers with instructions to road users. They’re highly flammable and can be hazardous to the environment and uninformed users.
6. Mining, Earth Production, And Agriculture
For instance, coal as renewable energy has a competitive market where miners need to produce more of the product. Miners need bulk shipment to stay ahead of the market demand for the products. It’s also a safety control for the miners who can go thousands of feet underground.
Farmers can use bulk transportation bags for farming technology in the agriculture sector. They keep the crops safe and ready to use for an extended period. Farmers can also use bulk earth transportation to control soil erosion from their farmlands. In addition, soil minerals, such as soda ash, fly ash, and hydrated lime, use bulk shipment as a land preparation strategy in a large plantation.
7. Retail Outlets
It can be challenging to meet supply chain demands and satisfy everyone. The retail sector acts as an intermediary between manufacturers and consumers. Bulk shipments fulfill orders that customers make to merchants’ stores or outlets. The haulage companies ensure that goods reach their destinations on time and eliminate downtime, which can devastate the bottom line.
8. Bulk Food Grade And Dairy Input
Food-grade businesses also use bulk shipment to maintain a steady flow of freshly produced farm input and feed production. They follow sanitization and tracking requirements to uphold the quality control restrictions. Bulk carriers must ensure they’re certified by the government before shipping food grade and dairy input. It’s an investment that logistics companies can endeavor to add to their credentials.
Conclusion
The growing demand for goods and services is forcing people to consider bulk transport as a solution to enhancing business operations. Many sectors consider it an opportunity to cut the cost of production and increase business revenue.
However, there are underlying concerns about the environment and bulk shipping. A mistake, while the bulk commodities are in transit, can cripple operations in many sectors of the economy. It’ll also damage the environment due to the raw nature of the items in transit. As a solution, carriers offer bulk carriage bags to transport the commodities safely. That move also helps to contain any spillage of the good in transit.
