Switch from rail to road slashes transit time to Jo’burg

JOY ORLEK
SPECIALISTS IN the movement of consolidated imports and FCL cargo from the UK and US into Cape Town, Durban, PE and Johannesburg, World Groupage Services (WGS) has seen a 10-15% increase in groupage volumes over the past year, according to sales director Alistair Heald. This he attributes to regular reciprocal USA / SA sales visits coupled with an increase in market share flowing from a significant service upgrade. In March this year WGS switched from rail to bonded road for all US-sourced cargo, cutting transit time by 10-12 days from port of loading in the US to consignee in Johannesburg. “Containers are now discharged in Cape Town and road hauled to their final unpack depot in the East Rand where we find turnaround times far more efficient for the hauliers,” says Heald. “Groupage containers generally contain at least one hazardous commodity, and when these are moved by rail they end up on the ‘milk train’ which is probably the least direct option available. “Not only have we reduced the transit time but we’ve found the operation to be a lot smoother, with far fewer transit queries.” WGS has absorbed the additional cost which it believes has more than paid for itself in increased LCL volumes. “The service improvement coincides with our 15th anniversary - and some of our loyal client base has been with us since day one,” says Heald.