International News Notes

By Staff -- Logistics Management, 10/1/2000

Freight Forwarders- Fritz Cos. has won approval from the United Kingdom's customs authority to participate in the Single European Authorization (SEA) trade prototype. The project will allow importers in the European Union to conduct transactions with a single customs organization rather than clear shipments in each country where they do business. Schenker has been named the official supplier of customs and freight-forwarding services for the 2002 Winter Olympics in Salt Lake City. The company also will provide services for the 2002 Paralympic Games and will be a supplier for the U.S. Olympic team through 2004. World Cargo Alliance, an international alliance of freight forwarders, has announced the induction of its 300th member, Sea Sky Cargo of Kathmandu, Nepal. BAX Global has contracted with National Processing Co. to offer its customers online bill payment using VirtualPAY software. BAX Global expects to process up to 200,000 online payments each year. Caribbean Transportation, a subsidiary of FedEx Logistics, has inaugurated service between Borinquen, Puerto Rico; Dallas, and Los Angeles. An A300 freighter will accommodate 90,000 pounds of heavy cargo.

Ocean Carriers- Totem Ocean Trailer Express is marking the 25th anniversary of its roll-on/roll-off service between Seattle and Anchorage, Alaska. The company is now building two new ro/ro vessels, which are due to launch in 2002 and 2003. Maersk Sealand and CMA-CGM have announced a vessel-sharing agreement covering four vessel strings in the Caribbean market. Consolidator AIM Caribbean Express has opened a receiving station featuring direct rail access and on-site U.S. Customs examinations in Berwyn, Ill., near Chicago. TMM Lines will launch its new Premier services between Europe and the U.S. East Coast and between Europe and the U.S. Gulf/Mexico region. The new services will increase trans-Atlantic sailings from 22 to 38 weekly and reduce some transit times by more than 30 percent.

Airfreight Services- Polar Air Cargo has formed PAC Charter Services, a separate business unit that will offer Boeing 747 freighter charter and leasing services. CF AirFreight has opened a new service center in Miami to meet inbound, outbound, and expedited transportation needs between South Florida and Latin America. Lazer Transportation Services, a business unit of F.X. Coughlin Co., now offers garment-on-hanger service between the United States and Central America. The service uses unique, collapsible containers that were specially designed for large-scale shipments of display-ready garments.

Logistics Services- Maersk Logistics has established operations in Brazil, with headquarters in Sao Paulo and branch offices in Santos and Novo Hamburgo. Continental Traffic Service has endowed a professorship of international business at Yang-En University, a private university offering bilingual English/Chinese education in Quanzhou, Fujian, China.