With reliability proven, demand grows for day-definite, less-than containerload service

On the first anniversary of the shipping industry's first guaranteed service for less-than-containerload cargo; the creators of OceanGuaranteed say their on-time performance is nearing 100%.

APL Logistics, a global supply chain management leader, and Con-way Freight, which operates the most extensive regional less-than-truckload freight transportation network in the US, issued the first report card on the performance of their day-definite, Asia-to-US service.

The two partners said that OceanGuaranteed shipments are arriving on time 98.6% of the time. They added that cargo volume has increased five-fold in the first six months of 2007 thanks to the proven reliability of the service.

'The on-time performance is near-perfect,' said APL Logistics President Brian Lutt, 'and we won't stop until it is perfect.' Added John Labrie, President of Con-way Freight: 'OceanGuaranteed is living up to its promise, but what matters most is that we are helping our customers remove variability from the international supply chain and better navigate the strained transportation infrastructure in the United States. For customers seeking first-mile logistics in Asia through last-mile delivery in the United States, OceanGuaranteed is the answer.'

APL Logistics and Con-way Freight introduced OceanGuaranteed Sept. 5, 2006. Created to couple airfreight reliability with the lower cost of ocean transport, the service carries the industry's only day-definite, money-back-guarantee for less-than-containerload cargo.

With OceanGuaranteed, shippers can transport cargo from seven Asian ports to any destination in the US Shipments cross the Pacific on ocean services operated by APL, the world's eighth-largest container steamship line. Once they're discharged at APL's Los Angeles marine terminal, containers are deconsolidated and cargo transported to final destination in one-to-four days by Con-way Freight's dedicated, time-definite US delivery network.

In their first-anniversary summary, APL Logistics and Con-way Freight reported that OceanGuaranteed is not only attracting shippers of high-value commodities such as apparel, electronics and auto parts, but also other commodities where reliability and cost savings are paramount.

'We didn't enter this market lightly,' said Lutt. 'OceanGuaranteed is run by two of the most reliable transportation service providers in the industry ' companies that control their own transport and terminal assets. We knew we could achieve this type of result.'

OceanGuaranteed debuted last year with three ports of origin ' Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen in China. Customer demand prompted expansion in January to Yokohama, Japan; Busan, Korea; Kaoshiung, Taiwan; and Singapore.

Lutt and Labrie said their two companies are exploring opportunities for a US East Coast import gateway by 2008.