5 Things to Check Before Taking Cargo Packaging Services

The United Arab Emirates is known worldwide for its state-of-the-art packaging and moving services provided to the corporations that handle all the tasks related to the loading, transition and delivery of the goods. Transit of goods take place using different means such as road, air and sea cargo. Cargo packaging services offered by the leading companies based in the Emirates include those that assist in the import or export of merchandise across the world. DCCIINFO business directory is the best directory available online that provides all the detailed information about some of the top cargo companies in Dubai including the business name, phone number and complete physical address. Finding this information in the directory helps various businesses and individuals to choose the best company. Different services are offered by these cargo companies based on the export or import of goods using different modes of transportations such as sea cargo, air cargo and cargo transport by road along with providing other services such as freight quotations, instrumentality management, documentation support and import or export licensing.

Following are the top 5 things to check before taking the cargo packaging services and shipping the cargoes:-

1- Use the Right CTU (Cargo Transport Unit)

There are different packing methods and cargo types available in the freight containers. Using the right size and type of the container for cargo packaging makes sure that the goods are delivered safely. Container size of 40’ is twice the size of 20’ container. Hence, if 20’ container consists of 21 tons of cargo, 40’ container would handle double the capacity of the 20’ container i.e. 42 tons of cargo. The 20’ container is designed for carrying heavy cargos with more weight as compared to the voluminous cargo such as metal, cement, mineral, paper, machinery, steel coil while the 40’ container is designed for carrying the voluminous cargo such as furniture, cotton, steel pipes, tobacco, paper scrap and others.

2- Use the container of right shipping line

Using the right shipping line’s container is a major issue for some of the exporters especially for those who export large volumes of cargoes to pack around 20 to 30 containers every day to different destinations. Using containers with varied shipping lines is useful in these cases or otherwise the packaging warehouse may mistakenly allocate a line’s container for any cargo to a destination with no service for that shipping line. This is likely to be the case if the leasing company uses same prefixes for leasing the containers such as Maersk line and MSC both lease TEXU containers. An example of how wrong shipping line could be used is the allocation and packaging of containers meant for IRISL lines for destination to Iran but using Israel ZIM lines instead.

3- Ensure using good conditioned Cargo Transport Unit

Using the cargo transport unit in good condition is extremely important as this will ensure that the goods are transported in a safe manner to avoid damage or loss of cargo and to prevent the hassle of fighting for its claims. A good conditioned cargo results from following all the instructions and guidelines used for shipping so that it may not open during the transit. If any cargo is not in good condition, it will not pass the security check as it is properly scanned by the container depot to confirm whether all the shipping instructions are met such as the empty cargo container is clean, dry and sound to be cargo worthy. Thus, it is the responsibility of the transporter to ensure that the cargo is properly packed to suit the needs of the exporter.

4-Understand the shipping process properly

The documentation process of the cargo packaging services related to the packing and shipping of cargoes should be properly understood before packing is done to make sure nothing is forgotten or else unpacking or repacking of the cargoes would become highly expensive as a result of improper documentation. There are general guidelines of documentation that could be checked such as the permits required for loading and discharging of cargoes, whether the cargoes are hazardous and requires declaration of dangerous goods, if the packing list is correct and reflect the right cargo weights, to consider the regulations associated with SOLAS VGM, adhere to proper weight documentation if Method 2 is used and to ensure OOG (Out of Guage) transport permits.

5- Ensure that the cargoes are packed well

After you have checked everything else, you should cross check to be satisfied that the cargoes are packaged properly. To import or export the goods whether business or personal, ensuring this will be helpful in securely transporting and delivering them to the destination. There are certain general guidelines that need to be checked such as whether the empty container is free from any kind of unusua smells or stains, the doors are shut properly without any gaps, there is no crack or breakage in the floorboard, there are no roof holes, there are slots present for seals and the locks work properly.