Container Unpacking Delays

A quick message to all our amazing customers who may have FCL inwards goods that have arrived or will arrive soon. We are sure most would have read about the delays at the ports, over the last few of months, and it would seem going forward we are also having major issues with congestion at empty container parks.

For those of you not 100% aware of the issues or need more details of exactly what is happening with all unpack yards please see the below explanation.

Currently there is a massively disproportionate volume of empty containers in Auckland. This means that the empty container yards which work for the shipping lines are full or in some cases overfill, which is causing them to shut and therefore not accept MT containers.  The current wait times seem to be anywhere from a week to two weeks to get a space.

So that means that the cartage companies can’t pick up the empty containers out of the depots (such as DSL) that unpack them, without having somewhere to take them, because obviously they can’t stay onboard the trucks.

Some cartage companies have yards they can hub them back too, but this incurs costs, that end up getting passed back on to you the end customer. After all it is not the FCL cartage companies’ fault that the de-hire depots are full. Yes, it costs extra if the cartage company does hub the boxes somewhere, however the alternative is even worse, because it means that they don’t collect the containers from the people who unpack them. The roll-on effect of that is that no more full containers can be received by the unpacking depots.

This causes further costs and delays in getting what may be urgently needed stock in. So, your cargo is delayed, and to add insult to injury you will also be hit with huge demurrage and detention costs as well.

We as a company who unpacks containers on behalf of our customers are being pushed into an awful position. We are trying to help all our customers, by devanning as many boxes as we can each day, however unless the empty ones are removed each night, or in a timely manner, we can’t get more full ones in to help either yourselves, or other customers with the urgent unpacks that are required. It is a vicious circle, and we are all left just going around and around every day, for weeks and weeks, with no certainty of the situation being fixed.

And we all end up paying a price. Please put pressure on your shipping lines to not only find a solution to this problem, but also to stop charging Detention on containers that everyone is trying to return but the depots those same lines choose to contract too, are full, and won’t accept bookings. The shipping lines are the only ones who can fix the problem.

Please be patient with our inwards team as they are trying to get the containers moved around so that we can get your freight processed as urgently as we can. I suppose this is just another link in the supply chain crisis we are all facing!

John Widdows

john@dsl.co.nz

One Damn Thing After Another

We were preparing to find out how many of our staff will not be able to come back to work tomorrow, due to possible flood damage to their homes and cars.

We have now received this advice: in the face of a weather forecast for heavy rain on the night of Tuesday to Wednesday, the Secretary of Education directed all schools in Auckland to shut down for one week, until February 7. Details in the NZ Herald. Maybe this decision was made ‘out of an abundance of caution’.

Measures like this have historically resulted in as many as half our staff being unable to attend work. We will update you later in the week, but you can expect processing times to get worse before they get better.

Daniel Silva

daniel@dsl.co.nz

Auckland Floods – Stock Safe

We inspected our five warehouses in Auckland, following the floods of last Friday evening. There was no water ingress in any of the warehouses and no stock was damaged.

It is too early to tell how the floods will impact on our work. It is likely that some of our colleagues will have to attend to flood damages to their properties and/or cars. We can’t assess the extent of those factors, as today is a public holiday in Auckland. Our Customer Services staff will provide more information as it comes to hand.

Daniel Silva

daniel@dsl.co.nz

Empty Container Returns

We are starting to see increased pressure on empty container yards, to the point where they have started to reject new deliveries.

You may have experienced this already, or soon will. We have become an informal hub for empties with nowhere to go, which in turn limits the number of containers that we can fit into our yards.

To add insult to injury, some shipping lines are charging importers for so-called ‘detention charges’ when they fail to return the empty containers by the due date. One legal advisor with specialist knowledge in this area, Pauline Davies of Fee Langstone said, 

“The obligation on cargo interests is to return containers to the place nominated by the carrier, within the free period. It seems to me that if a place of redelivery is either not nominated by the carrier, or if it is impossible to return containers to that place, the right to charge detention does not arise. Contractual performance is simply not possible. If [the shipping company] continues to nominate a place that won't accept empties, arguably the nomination is invalid.” Hat tip to CBAFF. 

If you have any questions regarding this, please feel free to reach out.

Aaron Hobbs

aaron@dsl.co.nz

Artificial Intelligence In Logistics

ChatGPT is all the rage in nerd circles. It is an Artificial Intelligence large language model that sounds eerily human. Just read the transcript below of a session for an idea of what you can get. Then, go over to https://openai.com/blog/chatgpt/ and give it a go. It could be more entertaining than playing Scrabble on a rainy day by the beach.

Daniel Silva

daniel@dsl.co.nz

Transcript of a ChatGPT Session

How do I calculate stock turns?

Stock turns, also known as inventory turnover, is a measure of how quickly a company is able to sell its inventory over a given period of time. To calculate stock turns, you can use the following formula:

Stock turns = Cost of goods sold / Average inventory

To calculate this, you will need to know the company's cost of goods sold (COGS) and the average inventory for the period being measured. The cost of goods sold is the total cost of the inventory that was sold during the period. Average inventory is calculated by taking the average of the beginning and ending inventory levels for the period.

Here is an example of how to calculate stock turns:

Let's say a company has a cost of goods sold of $500,000 for the year and an average inventory of $100,000. To calculate the stock turns, you would divide the cost of goods sold by the average inventory:

Stock turns = $500,000 / $100,000 = 5

This means that the company was able to sell its entire inventory five times over the course of the year. A higher stock turn rate indicates that the company is able to sell its inventory more quickly and may be more efficient at managing its inventory. A lower stock turn rate may indicate that the company is having difficulty selling its inventory or that it is carrying too much inventory, which could lead to higher storage and carrying costs.

Where do I find stock turns benchmarks for sports footwear?

There are a few different places where you may be able to find benchmarks for stock turns in the sports footwear industry. Here are a few options:

1. Industry trade publications: Many industry trade publications, such as Footwear News or SGB Magazine, publish regular reports on key performance indicators in the sports footwear industry, including stock turns. These publications may also provide comparisons to industry benchmarks or to the performance of similar companies.

2. Industry associations: Industry associations, such as the Sports & Fitness Industry Association (SFIA) or the Footwear Distributors and Retailers of America (FDRA), often publish industry data and statistics that may include benchmarks for stock turns in the sports footwear industry.

3. Company financial statements: You can also try looking at the financial statements of publicly traded sports footwear companies to see how their stock turns compare to industry benchmarks. These statements are typically available on the company's website or through a financial data provider such as Bloomberg or Yahoo Finance.

4. Consultants or analysts: Consulting firms or industry analysts who specialize in the sports footwear industry may also be able to provide insights into typical stock turn values for the industry.

Keep in mind that it is important to consider the specific business goals and objectives of a company when evaluating its stock turns, as the optimal value may vary depending on the company's unique circumstances. It is also important to consider the specific time period being measured, as stock turns may fluctuate over time.

Please repeat last answer in the style of a rap singer.

Yo, it's your AI assistant here to bring the knowledge

I got a few places where you can find some benchmarks

For stock turns in the sports footwear game

Trade publications, industry associations, company financial statements,

Consultants and analysts, they all got game

But don't forget, it's all about the company's goals and objectives

And the time period being measured, don't miss it

So keep that in mind as you seek out the data

Hope this helps, now let's kick it, we outta here!

And now repeat in the style of Shakespeare.

Greetings, dear user, and allow me to impart

Some wisdom upon thee, regarding benchmarks for stock turns in the sports footwear art

Trade publications and industry associations, they have much to share Verily, company financial statements and consultants and analysts do declare

But remember, context is key, with business goals and objectives in mind And the time period being measured, do not be left behind

Thus, these sources do offer guidance and direction In finding benchmarks for stock turns, with circumspection

Can you create a formula to calculate stock turns in Excel?

Yes, it is possible to create a formula in Microsoft Excel to calculate stock turns. Here is an example of how you can do this:

1. Open a new workbook in Excel and create a new sheet.

2. In cell A1, enter the heading "Cost of goods sold" and in cell A2, enter the cost of goods sold for the period being measured.

3. In cell B1, enter the heading "Beginning inventory" and in cell B2, enter the beginning inventory level for the period being measured.

4. In cell C1, enter the heading "Ending inventory" and in cell C2, enter the ending inventory level for the period being measured.

5. In cell D1, enter the heading "Average inventory" and in cell D2, enter the following formula: =AVERAGE(B2:C2) This will calculate the average of the beginning and ending inventory levels for the period being measured.

6. In cell E1, enter the heading "Stock turns" and in cell E2, enter the following formula: =A2/D2 This will divide the cost of goods sold by the average inventory level to calculate the stock turns for the period being measured.

7. You can then format the cells as desired and add additional rows or columns as needed to include additional data or calculations.

Keep in mind that this is just one example of how to calculate stock turns in Excel, and you may need to modify the formula based on your specific needs and data. It is also important to ensure that the data being used in the formula is accurate and up-to-date in order to get an accurate stock turn value.

Can you provide code to do the same in C#?

Yes, it is possible to use the C# programming language to calculate stock turns. Here is an example of how you could do this:

In this example, the variables costOfGoodsSold, beginningInventory, and endingInventory are initialized with example values. The averageInventory is calculated by taking the average of the beginningInventory and endingInventory. The stockTurns value is then calculated by dividing the costOfGoodsSold by the averageInventory. Finally, the stockTurns value is output to the console.

You can modify this code to include additional calculations or to handle different types of input data as needed. It is also important to ensure that the data being used in the calculations is accurate and up-to-date in order to get an accurate stock turn value.