Guide to Drayage and Its Role in Service Work

Transportation of goods is handled by several service providers in international trade. Generally, such services are used for short distances and are referred to as drayage. When drayage services are executed competently, it would not be an exaggeration to say that well-managed drayage services can lead to satisfied customers.

Transportation of goods is handled by several service providers in international trade. Generally, such services are used for short distances and are referred to as drayage. Trucking during transshipments, transloading goods from rail cars into truck beds, and transporting goods from the destination port to the final delivery point are all included in this service. Freight forwarders or third-party service providers can be used for drayage services by shippers. Drayage providers that specialize in third-party drayage services are located near transportation hubs, such as ports, train terminals, and warehouses, in order to reduce delivery times.

 History of Drayage

The term “drayage” was first used in 1791, which makes it a surprisingly old concept. To cover a few miles between warehouses and ports, traders used horse carts to transport heavy cargoes. Drayage used to involve horses carrying cargo over short distances in the old days since 'dray' stands for horse carts. Horse carts were slow to move, which was their biggest downside. The issue was addressed by switching to trucks for drayage. The growing use of electricity in commercial operations and the emergence of combustion engines led to trucks becoming the most common drayage carriers in shipping during the late 1800s and early 1900s. Service providers use trucks to transport goods from warehouses and manufacturing facilities to ports and to deliver goods last-mile. In recent years, freight forwarders and other service providers have begun using technology to improve drayage transparency and sustainability.

Why is Drayage Important?

In maritime logistics, drayage is an indispensable and unavoidable aspect. A company's success in drayage heavily depends on the quality of its 3PL provider. Shippers can benefit greatly from drayage if they choose a reliable service provider in the following ways:

1. A number of shippers, freight forwarders, port workers, transporters, and other parties are present at shipping ports which are already congested and very busy constantly. The shipper can avoid adding to the congestion by entrusting their drayage to a reliable 3PL provider. Business operations can also be carried out smoothly and efficiently as a result. Additionally, the cost of using a 3PL service provider for drayage is decidedly lower than maintaining a physical presence at ports.

2. With years of experience in drayage, 3PL logistics providers are dedicated to moving goods safely. Transporting goods over short distances safely is their expertise. They are also well-versed in the various safety regulations that apply to a variety of goods that are transported from one point to another. Their skills would be better than the shippers themselves in terms of executing the job safely.

3. In order to make drayage more traceable for shippers, modern, digitalized 3PL service providers use many technologies. In addition to improving visibility, tracking allows shippers to coordinate with their supply chain partners effectively, giving them greater control over the process. For example, shippers could direct trucks carrying goods to specific ports to divert them, if necessary, to another port using real-time data.

4. A professional 3PL service provider can handle drayage efficiently, which minimizes supply chain lead times to execute the logistics process. In this way, a trader can drastically reduce the lead time of their logistics and supply chain.

5. The trader can focus on their primary business operations, for example, manufacturing, packaging, marketing goods, and dealing with customer grievances and queries, while 3PL providers handle their drayage.

What Does Drayage Include?

Drayage refers to the transportation of goods over short distances, as well as the charge associated with this service. The term drayage refers to the transportation of goods over short distances for trade purposes. An example would be moving goods from one warehouse to another in the same city, transporting a shipping container from a trader's warehouse to a port for international shipping, or moving a container from a port or border to a trader's warehouse.

Role of Drayage in the Supply Chain

Drayage binds together the phases and stakeholders of the supply chain. The shipper will have to handle intermodal or inland transportation on their own if drayage services are not available. Besides causing a slowdown in supply chain operations, the absence of professional drayage services would also contribute to the problem by distracting their core operations. In the shipper's supply chain, professional drayage services and technologies play the role of reliable and efficient intermediaries.

Conclusion

It may sometimes be overlooked the importance of drayage. When drayage services are executed competently, traders can bring delivery ETAs closer. As a result, it would not be an exaggeration to say that well-managed drayage services can lead to satisfied customers.