An alliance between J.B. Hunt Transport Services and ocean carrier Matson Navigation Co. and its subsidiary, Matson Integrated Logistics (MIL), is opening the doors to more Asian trade for the TL carrier.
The new partnership will offer guaranteed, expedited services from the ports of Ningbo and Shanghai in China to the port of Long Beach, CA, and various U.S. inland destinations under a single invoice, said Dave Hoppes, senior vp of the Oakland, CA-based Matson.
Two premium services will be available. The first, offered by Matson and MIL, guarantees transit time and delivery from China to the West Coast and selected inland destinations.
According to Matson, the second option “involves partnering with J.B. Hunt to provide guaranteed expedited transload and inland point delivery.” Hoppes pointed out that it “gives Matson and J.B. Hunt a chance to gain economies of scale on inland transportation costs by reducing the number of container/trailers that are moved to the final destination/inland point. By using J.B. Hunt’s 53-ft. containers, customers will be able to consolidate cargo from ocean containers into a lesser number of domestic containers synchronized for carriage via expedited intermodal or over-the-road service.”
Both service options offer customers a percentage refund for shipments not meeting the stated transit time/arrival date.
“For customers requiring time-definite service for imported shipments, this represents an excellent synergy between our respective service offerings,” noted Kirk Thompson, president & CEO of J.B. Hunt. “Enhancing customer supply chains by creating value and providing superior speed-to-market is another way we are adding to our ‘shore-to-door’ services.”
