Goal Keepers

Quest for Quality - Ocean Carriers

By Staff -- Logistics Management, 8/1/2006

For centuries, shippers have given their business to the ocean carriers that provide the fastest, most reliable service—and do so at the right price. In 2006, LM readers have once again validated that the more things change, the more they stay the same.

Even though this year’s overall weighted quality score dropped to 32.76 from last year’s 33.04, ocean carriers’ marks have improved in what have traditionally been the two most critical attributes: On-time Performance and Value. The 19 ocean carriers that made the cut saw their average On-time score nudge up from 9.87 to 9.93 and their average Value score jump from 7.72 to 8.61—a notable improvement, considering that those attributes have slipped a bit in several other modes.

On top of being fast, reliable, and offering solid value, shippers are looking for an ocean carrier that offers “outstanding customer service, quality equipment management, and a superior sense of urgency to get things done,” said one respondent. Another said he looked for “quality follow-through and excellent tracking, so I know where my freight is and when it’s going to arrive.”

The ocean carriers that have met these criteria and have completed the voyage from the 2005 Quest for Quality list to the 2006 list include Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, Atlantic Container Line (ACL), NYK Line, Matson Navigation, “K” Line, OOCL, Hyundai Merchant Marine, MOL, Evergreen Line, APL, Hanjin Shipping, Maersk Line, FESCO, Hapag-Lloyd, and Cast (now part of Hapag-Lloyd). New arrivals in the 2006 winners circle include Horizon Lines, Hamburg-Sud, Canada Maritime (now part of Hapag-Lloyd), and Yang Ming Line.

Hats off to Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics, which pulled into port with 12.00 in On-time Performance, 9.75 in Value, and 7.0 in Customer Service to win the quality race in the category overall.

The competition for the 2007 Quest for Quality awards may get a little tighter. Carriers tell us that pricing is no longer the way for shipping lines to stand out from the crowd. Instead, they are using IT products and value-added services to differentiate themselves and attract customers, so watch for more diverse offerings from your carriers.

Ocean Carriers (color chart)

	On-time Performance	Value	Information Technology	Customer Service	Equipment & Operations	Weighted Score
Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics	12.00	9.75	4.40	7.00	4.56	37.71
Atlantic Container Line (ACL)	11.10	8.67	4.22	6.92	4.69	35.60
NYK Line	10.70	9.13	4.47	6.40	4.24	34.93
Horizon Lines	10.69	8.54	4.40	6.67	4.49	34.79
Matson Navigation	11.00	8.78	4.36	6.11	4.43	34.68
“K” Line	10.32	8.64	4.29	6.69	4.34	34.28
Hamburg-Sud (includes Alianca)	10.79	8.55	4.13	6.30	4.50	34.27
OOCL	10.54	8.64	4.36	6.19	4.28	34.02
Hyundai Merchant Marine	10.20	8.71	4.34	6.28	4.17	33.71
MOL	9.97	8.78	4.21	6.50	4.24	33.70
Canada Maritime (Hapag-Lloyd)	10.59	8.89	4.15	5.82	4.24	33.70
Yang Ming Line	10.16	9.13	4.05	6.28	4.04	33.67
Evergreen Line	10.10	9.03	4.27	5.64	4.29	33.32
APL	10.30	7.85	4.40	6.33	4.38	33.25
Cast (Hapag-Lloyd)	9.63	8.91	4.43	6.30	3.94	33.20
Hapag-Lloyd	10.07	8.67	4.18	5.99	4.17	33.08
Hanjin Shipping	9.90	8.79	4.09	5.90	4.31	32.99
FESCO	10.27	8.67	3.56	6.65	3.80	32.94
Maersk Line	10.10	8.27	4.43	5.60	4.35	32.76
AVERAGE	9.93	8.61	4.11	5.95	4.16	32.76
All scores are weighted. Weighted scores are determined by multiplying the average raw scores by the average importance of each attribute (1 = least important; 5 = most important). To find the attributed weights for this category, see the introduction to the Quest for Quality report. Source: Logistics Management, Reed Research Group