Dear Editor,
“Although breakbulk services have existed for some time, we have seen a huge upswing in interest over the last two to three years, not just to achieve cost savings, which help to offset newly introduced customs duties and taxes resulting from Brexit, but to simplify customs documentation, as there is just one set of paperwork to be processed”
In my company, we have seen a 250% increase in customers using or close to implementing breakbulk services as they try to cut Brexit-related cross-border shipping costs and paperwork. Interest in breakbulk has been growing since the UK referendum to leave the European Union and has continued in the weeks after the transition period ended on January 1st.
Breakbulk services involve consolidating multiple orders into one big shipment to cross the border in order to reduce shipping charges and paperwork. Once on the other side, the consolidated shipment is broken down into separate shipments for individual delivery.
We help shippers ensure their labelling and documentation can support this and we have seen customers achieve savings of more than 25% on their transportation costs by switching to a breakbulk service rather than sending shipments individually. For one customer, the goods are picked up from their UK facility before being shipped in bulk to the Netherlands where they are broken down for delivery across the EU.
“If there is a problem at the border, having one large shipment also means you will only have one problem to solve. Multiple issues can arise if you are transporting many individual shipments, which can slow things down.”
For large shippers sending multiple items, the economics of breakbulk are clear. Not only is there a cost saving on the actual shipping charge, due to lower £/kg rates on higher weight shipments, but there is a corresponding reduction in the quantity and cost of paperwork. If 50 individual shipments are consolidated into one breakbulk shipment, there is only one set of paperwork to clear customs, meaning less chance of delays at the border. With carriers charging for each invoice declared at the border, the savings opportunities are clear, and having only one carrier invoice to be checked, also means less work for the finance department.
Yours Sincerely,
Ken Fleming
President, Logistyx Technologies.
