The project “Bourbon” has nothing to do with whiskey. Rather, it is the result of a complex international transport order for Evonik Industries, one of the long-standing DB Schenker customers. The facility for the production of a filler for tires required components from five different countries. During the transport to the destination Goose Creek, near Charleston in South Carolina (USA), a total of seven DB Schenker country organizations were involved.
The requirements: impeccable service, smooth handling, perfect packaging at a competitive price
Evonik has been relying on DB Schenker for international projects for around 15 years. Together, orders have already been successfully completed in Thailand and Japan.
The confidence was accordingly high when Evonik approached DB Schenker in 2015 with the briefing for the freight tender. From the beginning, the industrial company emphasized that they wanted a carefree package. In addition to the implementation of all customs formalities and the coordination of suppliers, this also includes impeccable service and the smooth handling of sea freight transports.
The customer put the highest priority on the transport packaging. In the past, Evonik had had a bad experience with another service provider because it did not pay attention to seaworthy packaging in accordance with international standards. The cargo reached the destination damaged at that time. With the transport around half the world, that can be very expensive. But from the beginning DB Schenker made sure that there would be no problems.
The preparation
The management of the “off-shore” transport was carried out by German employees. The US national company was responsible for the after-sales and on-shore orders in the US. In addition, colleagues from China, Turkey, Belgium, Taiwan, Thailand and Slovakia were involved in the process.
Already the preparation of the transport required an optimal cooperation of all colleagues. The first step was to give Evonik’s suppliers precise instructions and check their work – especially with regard to packaging and customs marking requirements. Under German guidance and coordination this task was handled by the respective national company.
Challenges in the transport
The shipments finally started in March 2017. In total, the components from five different countries (China, Germany, Taiwan, Turkey and Thailand) were transported to the USA.
The project team mastered several challenges in the process. In the countries of origin of the transports, DB Schenker partially optimized the packaging so that it met the customer’s own standards and requirements. In addition, thorough and intensive exchange with suppliers ensured the in-time provision of the components. As a result, the logistics service provider relieved the customer Evonik in many ways.
