The FACTS Sheet March 2013

REEFERS

For some reason we have been running into the problem of freight brokers sending in reefer vans (refrigerated/insulated van trailers). PLEASE do not load – call our office – the driver is clueless – he only knows that he has been dispatched to your location.

The problem is that you cannot usually get enough on because they are smaller due to the insulation and the mills do not like unloading – it is very easy to puncture the insulated walls.

If you are in the end asked to load – you will not be penalized – if the load is too light, etc. Knowing ahead of time can make a big difference

TEXTILES

We recently had the opportunity to visit the destination where all the bales of clothes go – OMG – the warehouse was cavernous and all the people sorting was amazing. They have 70 categories of clothes that they sort – and they have sorters in training and then senior sorters. The good news is that they will take many more items than we have all been handling – stuffed animals, linens, soft sided suitcases. And if you are able to take shoes they are an item that is a premium. Shoes must be paired. If you think you would like to start taking and sending shoes please call the office to find out the specifics.

FREIGHT CHARGEBACKS (FCB) AND MOISTURE DEDUCTIONS (MD)

The OCC mills have been instituting FCB since the price of fuel went up a couple of years ago. They have been very erratic – one load that recently went in at 15 tons and no FCB – another load went in at 19.2 and there was a $1.85 FCB. Go figure. With the price of fuel going up I do believe we may see more consistent behavior. Do try to make loads of 40,000 to 42,000 but if the price of OCC stays where it is – do not put more labor/cost into making that happen. The average charge has been $30 to $45 and usually when there is light load as in the case of the 15 tons there is a reason (bales from local industry/store that are small).  And currently it’s a mystery as to when they will apply it.

The OCC mills have also been checking for moisture – this happened a couple of years ago when we had an exceptionally wet spring – now with the snow they have been checking more often. These MD’s have been quite significant – one was 4 tons – again, no pattern of consistency they are not checking every load. The mills have a “formula” which they use with a probe that is inserted into the bales. MD’s have to be caught when the OCC is unloaded – FCB’s are done in an office.