This year, 18 ocean carriers were cited by our readers as being the best in the business. That status didn't come easily, as the past year didn't exactly offer smooth sailing for ocean carriers. Choppy seas came in the form of West Coast port shutdowns that backed up containers for weeks as well as from increased security demands. Not only did ocean carriers have to comply with heightened security requirements from Customs, but they also faced pressure from customers to manage security compliance well or risk losing business. In fact, 66 percent of the survey respondents said that a carrier's ability to meet the new security requirements directly figured into their choice of a steamship line.

That may explain why the overall customer-satisfaction score in this category fell below decks, dropping from 32.79 in 2002 to 31.65, the lowest since 2000. In fact, scores dipped in all categories except information technology, which hit 3.53, its highest point in the past five years. Scores in the other four categories fell between 0.05 and 0.59 points.

Of this year's winners, 13 are repeaters from last year and several others returned after two- or three-year absences. Atlantic Container Line captained the fleet with a score of 34.88, improving on its seventh-place score of 34.65 in 2002. Matson Navigation returned for the first time since 1999, slipping into second place with 34.82. K Line surged into third place with a score of 33.77, an improvement on its 2002 number of 32.89.

Ocean carriers that jumped back onto the list after an absence last year include APL, Yang Ming Line, and Evergreen—a significant accomplishment in a year with so many service and operational challenges.

According to the results of our survey, shippers believe that dealing directly with ocean carriers remains the best way to do business. When asked if they use an online logistics or transportation exchange to book or monitor their ocean shipments, 71 percent of readers noted that they did not.