APL Logistics, Con-Way detail success of OceanGuaranteed service

APL Logistics, Con-Way detail success of OceanGuaranteed service One year after kicking off a guaranteed service for Asia-to-U.S. less-than-containerload cargo, APL Logistics and Con-way Freight said today their OceanGuaranteed partnership is achieving nearly 100 percent on-time performance.
   The two partners said that OceanGuaranteed shipments are arriving on time 98.6 percent of the time. Cargo volume handled by the service, which kicked off in early September 2006, has increased five-fold in the first six months of 2007.
   With OceanGuaranteed, shippers can transport cargo from Asian ports to U.S. destinations utilizing transpacific services operated by Singapore-based APL and other carriers. Once discharged at the Port of Los Angeles, containers are deconsolidated and cargo transported to final destination in one to four days by Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Con-way Freight's domestic delivery network.
   Created to take advantage of the coupling between air freight reliability and the lower cost of ocean transport, OceanGuaranteed claims to offer the industry's only day-definite, money-back guarantee for LCL cargo.
   The first anniversary report card also detailed that the service is attracting shippers of high-value commodities such as apparel, electronics and auto parts, as well as other commodities where reliability and cost savings are paramount.
   The service debuted last year with three ports of origin — Hong Kong, Shanghai and Shenzhen in China. Customer demand prompted expansion in January to Yokohama; Busan, Korea; Kaoshiung, Taiwan; and Singapore. APL and Con-Way are also exploring the possibility of adding a U.S. East Coast import gateway to the service by 2008.