International marketing makes exchanges possible between different countries giving your business an increased chance of success through efficiency and productivity resulting in growth. Whether you’re selling or buying goods globally you’ll want to get them to their destination safely meeting any deadlines.
There are two main options for you to consider and these are to send them by air or by sea. That choice is then down to your individual needs. Look at when to use air freight or sea freight here…
International shipping
The differences between air and sea freight typically depend on the size, weight, and content of your shipment, and how quickly your goods need to arrive at their final destination. Before you make a decision here are some air freight vs sea freight facts:
Air freight
Air freight is preferred for being the most direct route between counties when goods need to reach their destination quickly. It’s chosen due to this quick transit time and because scheduled departure and arrival times are generally very reliable. Even taking into account holding times at airports and awaiting available aircraft, goods will normally be delivered within 10 days.
There’s minimal handling involved so a far lesser risk of goods getting damaged during transportation. Airport regulations are strictly controlled to include the storage, handling, and securing of your goods, and accessibility is improved due to less congestion for smaller volumes of air freight. However, duty and VAT are noticeably higher when importing via air.
Due to capacity and safety factors, air freight can be limited in the type of cargo it can carry. And it can also be considerably more expensive than shipping by sea. Increased expenses result from high fuel consumption and operational costs. Air freight is best used when the cost of shipping is less than 15 -20% of the good’s value. So to send a light international package by air would probably be your first choice.
There are many items that can’t be shipped by air due to airline restrictions and regulations. These include:
- Toxic or corrosive items
- Gases
- Anything flammable
- Magnetic substances
- Public health risks
- Biochemical products Items with danger signs on the packaging
Another factor to bear in mind is that air freight emits on average 500g of carbon dioxide per tonne of cargo moved a km which seriously impacts the environment.
Types of aircraft used for air freight
Aircraft utilised for air cargo include:
- Passenger aircraft where freight goes into the forward and aft compartments in the hold.
- Feeder aircraft that are relied on by express carriers to support transporting cargo to and from markets to cargo hubs.
- Wide-body freighters that can accommodate container palletised freight on upper and lower decks.
- Narrow-body freighters that accommodate containers and pallets on the upper decks only.
Sea freight
For cheap international shipping sea freight can be up to six times less expensive than air freight. This transportation of goods across the ocean via cargo or container ships is one of the most cost-effective types of freight shipping. Specialist vessels are able to carry heavy cargo including bulk commodities like grains, fertilisers, and lumbar.
Sea freight is also highly reliable with goods typically arriving with almost 100% success rate. Many types of goods are able to be carried in containers and because the volume of goods can be shipped at the same time forward planning ensures deliveries are made within deadlines even if transit times run into weeks. And sea freight leaves a relatively small carbon footprint in comparison to air freight.
The disadvantages of transporting goods this way are the relatively slow transit times, which can be up to 10 times slower than air freight. There’s also a risk of delays being experienced in the ports, or possibilities of not being able to load or unload cargo due to unforeseen circumstances.
Until recently smaller shipments that didn’t fill a whole container regularly took much longer to ship than full containers. However, there are now ocean services that are aiming to compete with air freight for time and are a lot cheaper. With faster ships, delay cuts on routes, and improvements to ocean tracking an international parcel shipping company may be able to offer express ocean services almost matching air freight times.
Types of vessels used for sea freight
Vessel types include:
- Dry cargo ships, bulk carriers, and general cargo vessels.
- Liquid cargo ships incorporating crude, chemical, and liquified gas carriers.
- Specialised cargo ships, passenger vessels, and livestock carriers.
Looking for a trusted international shipping company?
DRG Solutions can help with any international courier service from Barcelona, making consulting, logistics, and transportation of your goods easy. You’ll be able to send goods from Barcelona to locations worldwide with effective supply chains and multimodal freight shipping, bringing together ground, air, and sea transport, coordinating the ideal solution for your business needs. Whether you want a parcel delivery from Spain or an entire shipment DRG Solutions will resolve any transportation dilemmas!