Doing business in Africa…Challenge accepted

Pilot has a presence just about everywhere in the world, and being everywhere is sometimes no easy task. International freight forwarding comes with its challenges, particularly in regions where the infrastructure isn't quite the same as what we are used to in the U.S. No continent better exemplifies the obstacles we come up against than Africa. In the past several years, our business in Africa has greatly increased, thanks in large part to work with the U.S. military, and I’m proud to say that we’ve successfully conquered significant obstacles on many occasions in the course of doing that work.

Shipping into and out of Africa presents a number of unique challenges that we and our partners have to work through to make sure we can deliver the great quality service that our customers expect. Some of these issues include political unrest, a lack of infrastructure, equipment that doesn’t work, and airports that can close on a moment’s notice. It’s this new set of challenges that really tests what we’re good at, which is being flexible.

To give you an example, we recently had a 747 full of military freight going into Africa. To unload a 747 is no ordinary task—it requires a device called a K-Loader, along with about seven trucks that can then unload cargo once it’s on the tarmac. Plus, as I mentioned, it’s not uncommon for the airports in Africa to have issues with their equipment. In this case, we found out at the last possible minute that the K-Loader at the airport that we had chosen as our destination was broken. We had to quickly re-route to fly into a different airport, find a K-Loader that did work, make sure the runway could hold the weight, and find seven trucks that could unload the cargo and transport it down to the airport of the original destination. All of that happened in about an hour and a half.

This is the kind of situation that continues to set us apart. There will always be challenges, and as long as there are, Pilot will continue to find ways to overcome them.

Pilot recognized for excellent service and customer value

It's awards and ranking season in the shipping and logistics industry, and Pilot has once again been recognized by Inbound Logistics and Logistics Management magazines. These awards are a true reflection of the hours logged, calls answered, and overall customer service provided by Pilot employees across the globe.

I’m happy to tell you that we have, for the fifth year in a row, been named to Inbound Logistics’ Top 100 3PL Providers list. Continuing to make this list is a huge win for us. Our logistics program is still relatively new in the scope of Pilot’s history, yet we continue to grow and expand our services and market share.

We also received our 25th Quest for Quality award from Logistics Management, ranking second in the air freight category and first overall in value. We hold this award in high regards because it’s determined by a survey of the magazine’s readers, who are our customers. Logistics Management readers are some of the industry’s most influential shippers, who are asked to evaluate the providers they work with in order to calculate the rankings. To be placed this high in the rankings is a clear sign that we are doing something right and providing great customer service.

Everyone at Pilot enjoys winning awards. Who wouldn’t? However it’s not just hanging a plaque on the wall in our headquarters that gives us satisfaction, but the reasons that we earned them. Our dedicated employees are the reason we keep gaining recognition and I want to thank them for an incredible year so far. Great job, everyone! 

Raleigh rings in the New Year at bigger and better location

Here at Pilot we are continuing to grow and expand as a company, and our Raleigh station is no exception. The station is ringing in the New Year in a brand new updated location. The new space is located adjacent to the Raleigh-Durham International Airport, in the heart of the Triangle region. Our Raleigh team will now have roughly 25,000 square feet of office and warehouse space, nearly doubling the size of the previous station.

This expansion allows the Raleigh team to continue providing excellent service to its customers, as well as add to their arsenal of services. Raleigh will now be able to offer inventory management to its customer base, which includes technology, furniture, medical, electronics, and manufacturing companies, and we couldn’t be happier. We are very excited to see what new opportunities the station’s new and improved space will bring in the New Year!

Congratulations to the team in Raleigh on the big move and continued growth!

On-time deliveries at an all-time high this holiday season

I want to take a moment to congratulate and thank everyone on the Pilot team for their hard work over the holiday season and in the months leading up to it. Not only did we handle a record number of shipments this year, but we did so while achieving an extremely impressive on-time performance.

This year’s holiday delivery rush was our best ever, delivering more than 40,000 televisions and other large items to consumers in the month of December. There's no doubt that the new technology solutions we launched this year aided in making our network more efficient and error-free. But it's also important to note that our success this holiday season -- and through the year -- would not be possible without our team of dedicated employees.

There is still large numbers of orders coming in after the holidays, but we anticipate that when the numbers are all in, our home delivery on-time performance rate will be well over 99 percent for the month of December, which is an incredible achievement during a notoriously difficult delivery season. Once again, thanks to the staff and Pilot community for making that possible!

Pilot Introduces Customs Brokerage Service Offering

Over the past several years, we have continued to add more services to our arsenal in our quest to provide the best possible service to our customers. To that end, we have just announced the launch of Pilot Customs Brokerage (PCB). PCB is now processing and handling the customs clearance of imports for Pilot customers everywhere in the U.S. We are also offering customs brokerage as a stand-alone service for companies who are not current customers, allowing us to broaden our reach and bring in new business.

Ilyse Dawicki, managing director of customs brokerage, is spearheading the new PCB operation. Ilyse has over 20 years of experience in customs brokerage and has undoubtedly been a great asset to our team.

With the help of Ilyse and this new service we are able to better serve our customers and eliminate the use of third party brokers. PCB not only adds to our growing list of customer services, but to our overall growth as a company. Congratulations to everyone involved in putting PCB into action!

Technology: It’s here to stay, so let’s embrace it and use it to our advantage

Supply & Demand Chain Executive recently asked me to share my thoughts on the technology advances that are helping propel our industry into a paperless environment. In an article that was published this week, I discussed not only what the industry is doing as a whole, but how Pilot’s use of technology is allowing us to really level the playing field and compete with the big guys.

Let’s be honest, our industry has not historically been the most tech savvy. However, in the past few years we have taken major leaps forward that have changed our business for the better. We have streamlined the process of delivery, allowing our customers to close the communication gap and ultimately solidify sales. With the introduction of Compass, we now have the tools and base we need to adapt and create more apps or add-ons that will continue to give us an advantage within the industry.

To read the full article, check out Supply & Demand Chain Executive’s website. And if you have any questions on the topic, feel free to leave a comment and I’ll be happy to get back to you.

Pilot helps Isle Surf & SUP reduce damage and increase sales

For a number of years, our San Diego station has worked with Isle Surf & SUP, a company that sells stand up paddleboards (SUPs) and surfboards. Pilot handles all SUP imports and nationwide home deliveries. I recently spoke with Marc Miller, the co-founder of Isle Surf & SUP, about how Pilot has been able to help his business.

The SUP industry presents a shipping challenge, as these boards are oversize and can be easily damaged. Marc told me that with his previous domestic shipping partner, they were seeing damage rates of roughly 20 percent. Pilot has been able to work with Isle to improve their boxing and has brought their damage rates down to the two to three percent range. This improvement has meant happier customers and a reduction in the man hours normally spent dealing with customers who have received damaged products or delayed shipments.

In online retail, shipping rates can make or break a sale. And in an industry selling large items that need special treatment, shipping costs for consumers can be exorbitant. However, we were able to work out competitive rates for Isle that—along with a lower damage rate—has allowed them to offer free shipping to its customers. This is a MAJOR competitive advantage, and part of the reason that Isle has been able to take advantage of the recent SUP boom and has seen overall sales growth of roughly 100 percent this year.

The shipping and handling of paddleboards has the potential to be one huge headache, but our team in San Diego has proven that it doesn't have to be. Congratulations to Marc and team on such impressive growth this year!