Day of the Seafarer #seafarersmatter

A day in the life of a Seafarer 2 – #seafarersmatter


As you know, the 25th of June every year is celebrated as the DAY OF THE SEAFARER under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)..

Day of the Seafarer (DotS as it has come to be known), is celebrated to recognize the unique contribution made by seafarers from all over the world to international seaborne trade, the world economy and civil society as a whole and to let the world know how and why #SeafarersMatter and are indispensable to everyone..

In my previous post promoting this Day of the Seafarer, I shared with you the story of Nick Chubb MNI, a former Merchant Seafarer and how he spends “A Day in the Life of a Seafarer”..

This article comes right from the top, yes from a Captain himself.. Capt.Abhishek Nair recounts the life of a Captain on board a ship..

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problems with container shipments

What are the biggest problems with container shipments..??


Disruption, Innovation, Big Data, IoT, SaaS, Digital freight forwarders, Blockchain.. No its not a Thesaurus test..

These are just some of the big fancy words thrown around in the market and media currently in relation to shipping and freight..

These tools are all (or should be) designed to assist the customer, whether you are a buyer, seller, trader, forwarder, NVOCC or shipping line to conduct their business smoothly and efficiently..

Yet with all these advances, innovations, digitization etc customers still have problems with container shipments on a daily basis.. Whether it is with a shipping line, with a forwarder, with customs, with port, with hauliers etc etc etc, there are still many problems on a daily basis..

So my question today is, in spite of such advances in technology, communication, operations, trade documentation and accessibility why are many customers still facing problems with container shipments..??

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vintage shipping the way it was done

Vintage Shipping – the way it was done


Cyber crime.. Nothing new, but something that didn’t affect the shipping and freight industry in a big way till the 27th of June 2017 when the world’s largest container shipping line Maersk Line, was hit by the global Petya cyber attack..

This unexpected and unprecedented attack led to a huge disruption in the operations of Maersk Line..

For a few days their operations were affected because

– some of the APM Terminals were affected and gates were closed
– they were unable to serve new quotes
– they were unable to accept new bookings and
– the attack limited their ability to communicate with their customers..

This is quite a serious issue and has come as a rude shock to many customers and the industry in general.. The delays caused by such incidents affects not just the line but also the customers that had booked their cargoes for loading on specific dates for arrival at destination within a certain time frame..

Such delays may specifically affect retail and assembly line customers (like automakers) who ship on the basis of JIT (Just In Time) deliveries where such precision in delivery is required..

While I sympathize with the affected lines and customers, this also got me thinking how shipping was done in the past, before these technological advances came about and there was no possibility of such disruptions..

This prompted me to take a stroll down memory lane and write this article on Vintage Shipping – the way it was done.. 🙂 This could be a nostalgic overdose for many!!

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pack your container properly

Will you please pack your container properly..!!


Will you please pack your container properly..!!

I can hear this cry loud and clear from many Insurance companies, P&I Clubs, Transporters, Importers and Shipping Lines and all within good reason too..

There are innumerable cases of damage to cargo, containers, personnel, lifting equipment and ships due to improper packing of cargo into containers..

Cargo damage can take many forms such as Physical, Wet, Contamination, Temperature related etc..

As per UK P&I Club, 25% of the cargo claims that they receive is due to physical damage.. Read on to understand more..

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Day of the Seafarer #seafarersmatter

A day in the life of a Seafarer 1 – #seafarersmatter


|| June 25th, 2017 || A day in the life of || , , , || Estimated reading time: 6 minutes ||

The 25th of June every year is celebrated as the DAY OF THE SEAFARER under the auspices of the International Maritime Organisation (IMO)..

Day of the Seafarer (DotS as it has come to be known), is celebrated to recognize the unique contribution made by seafarers from all over the world to international seaborne trade, the world economy and civil society as a whole and to let the world know how and why #SeafarersMatter and are indispensable to everyone..

This is an article about a typical day in the life of a seafarer on the occasion of the Day of the Seafarer..

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points to consider before packing your cargo

5 points to consider before packing your cargo


If you are an exporter and especially if you are exporting for the first time, you should have a checklist of points to consider before packing your cargo..

Here are 5 main points you should consider before packing your cargo..

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Intermodal Asia

Record number of visitors at Intermodal Asia 2017


|| June 4th, 2017 || Shipping and Freight || || Estimated reading time: 2 minutes ||

Intermodal Asia took place 21st-23rd March 2017, welcoming a record number of visitors to its 4th edition in Shanghai, China.

With more than 8,500 visitors, 160 global exhibitors and 85 expert speakers, Intermodal Asia successfully brought together the senior decision makers from the container and intermodal industry to network, learn and do business with new and existing customers.

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