What is multimodal transportation?

What do we know by multimodal transport? The Multimodal transport It is what we know for those who, during their transportation from inception to delivery, use more than one different means of transportation, whether land, sea, air, etc.

This type of transport consists of combining several means of transport without having to handle the merchandise that it contains, that is, the merchandise cannot be separated. This makes it easier to transport on transoceanic trips, including maritime means.

With multimodal transport came the need to simplify and guarantee loading and unloading operations and their distribution.

Not only does it generate benefits in terms of costs and time, but it also helps the person who manages it, since there is a wide range of possibilities in terms of how to approach a possible trip for future transportation.

WHAT ARE THE ADVANTAGES OF MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT?

The objectives of multimodal transportation are as follows:

• Reduce costs and travel times
• Anywhere can be reached
• . reduces the need for warehousing of goods
• Reduced risk of loss or theft of merchandise.
• Ease of transshipment
• Simplicity of documentation
• Global transport route programming and economic costs
• Reduced cost of goods control

WHAT MEANS OF TRANSPORT CAN WE USE IN MULTIMODAL TRANSPORT?

As we have already mentioned previously, the transportation sector allows us to use different means of transportation to reach our destination in the shortest time possible and streamlining all possible processes.

Ground transportation

It is the most used and versatile transport, therefore it is the most demanded transport nowadays. It consists of transportation from one point to another by land with three types of vehicles: rigid truck, articulated and road train. It can be divided into full load service or groupage..

Rail transport

In the last decade, there has been an increase in its use as freight transport as it reduces transport time and speeds up delivery times when it comes to long distance shipments. It is mainly used to move large volumes and can be adapted to the load, i.e., depending on the type of goods, we can use a tank wagon, container carrier, refrigerated wagons…

Maritime transport

It transports cargo through aquatic media, that is, it allows ports to be connected to each other. It is the most common means of transport on routes international transport routes. Several clients and/or companies that use the same means of transport are usually coordinated and share spaces in order to save costs and contract regular lines.

Air transport

This type of transport allows us to ship cargo by air. It is generally used for shipments of urgent due to its speed. Different types of aircraft are used depending on the kind of transport required, as its only drawback is the cost, which is usually high.

WHAT CHARACTERISTICS MUST MULTIMODAL TRANSPORTATION MEET?

In order to be considered a multimodal transport, apart from using several means of transport, it must meet several other characteristics:

• Use of a single transport document, the FIATA Bill of Landing (FBL).
• The cargo must not be separated during the journey, that is, there should be no breakage of the charge

How can we avoid separation of merchandise? Due to this need not to separate the goods during the journey, transport units such as containers orswap bodies were developed.swap).

• Container: Container that allows loading for maritime and land transport. Its characteristics are rigid and protects its interior from weather variations. The containers are standardized with ISO 668 regulations.
• Mobile or swap body: Loading unit used for the transport of goods and having a size suitable for road and rail land transport.

The difference between both transport units is that the mobile box or swap They are conditioned or adapted to be transported by trucks, while containers are not.

Depending on your shipment’s requirements, we can use one transport unit or another… leave it to us!

If you need a multimodal transportation service, contact us!

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