AIT Delivers Heavy Components from Italy to Build a Complete Manufacturing Production Line in Ohio
Published on: Mar 28, 2013
The Challenge
A global home appliance industry leader needed an entire production line consisting of heavy automated industrial machinery delivered from a supplier’s factory in Italy to their manufacturing facility in Ohio. The massive shipment of 116,797 kilograms filling 18 ocean containers not only required specialized equipment, but also had to arrive in a precise order to facilitate smooth installation of the line according to plan. Two years ago, the customer received a similar production line shipped from overseas, but the supplier had been in control of the cargo. The supplier used a different forwarder and as a result, that project suffered from poor communication and coordination.The Solution
Looking to avoid a similar debacle in the future, the customer turned to their longtime global transportation partner, AIT Worldwide Logistics, and asked for advice. In response, AIT’s account executive suggested changing the Incoterms in the customer’s contract with the supplier. This adjustment allowed the customer to select AIT as their importer and write this choice directly into the contract. Knowing firsthand of AIT’s reputation for excellence in handling their other international deliveries, the customer was assured that AIT would manage the shipment of the next order from the Italian factory.When the new production line was ready to ship, AIT was ready, too. The Ocean Import Supervisor and International Manager worked with the customer, the AIT Account Executive and AIT’s trusted global network partner in Italy to gather all the requirements and devise an appropriate delivery plan. Specialized and standard containers were prepared along with flatbeds, step-decks and wide-load permits. A speedy recovery at the port of entry was arranged, saving the customer thousands in storage fees. Most importantly, the final delivery of the heavy machinery took place in the exact specified order, allowing the customer to install the line in the most efficient, logical manner. The orderly arrival of the components ultimately saved money for the customer since additional man hours weren’t spent shuffling around equipment arriving out of sequence.