Logistics Plus Inc., a worldwide provider of transportation, logistics and supply chain solutions, helped successfully coordinate the unloading and transportation of two 190-foot, 28 thousand pound windmill blades destined for Gratiot, Michigan, and 127 sections of 40-foot long pipes being delivered to the Ohio gas line in Dundee, Michigan. After a two-week journey from Bremen, Germany, the 411-footlong Faglegracht, a Spliethoff Lines vessel out of Amsterdam, arrived at the Port of Monroe on Monday, July 6. It was the first European cargo ocean line to dock at the Port of Monroe since the 1960s.
The delivery was brokered by Robert Hallberg, vice president of domestic operations for Logistics Plus, and Paul LaMarre III, director for the Port of Monroe. In a quote to local media, Mr. Lamarre said the event marks a milestone in the port’s history and is a preview of its initiation into the modern, global transportation industry. “I think the Port of Monroe has not necessarily been seen as a potential gateway to international trade in recent history, but this is proof that our capabilities are far-reaching,” Mr. LaMarre said. “It essentially takes our port from being a highly productive domestic cargo hub and broadens its reach across oceans.” The success of this international cargo project required coordination between six entities beyond the Port of Monroe, including Logistics Plus, Spliethoff Lines, DRM Terminal Services, Barnhart Crane and Rigging, the Carl Polzin logistics company, and Mund and Bruns cargo surveyors. Logistics Plus facilitated a large portion of the communication to bring the parties together, and is handling all of the domestic transportation, which will include over 60 trucks movements “This is just one of many clean energy and pipeline cargo projects we are coordinating to the U.S. from Europe,” said Hallberg. “For this particular shipment, it was important for us to optimize the U.S. ground portion of the move to reduce overall transportation costs. In the Port of Monroe, we have definitely found a port that can efficiently handle this kind of cargo for shipments being delivered to points in eastern Michigan and northwestern Ohio.”